After years of shoddy public domain releases, Max Fleisher’s theatrical Superman cartoons finally get a reverent 2-disc release through Warner Brothers that cleans up the shorts considerably and returns them back to the vibrant, energetic adventure stories they once were.
Much like their superior handling of Fleisher’s Popeye cartoons from the Paramount vault (spread over three separate collections), Warner Brothers seemed to have spent a lot of time finding the best sources available to make their official DVD release of the Superman cartoons a successful foray.
While not flawless, the depth and detail of these 1941-1942 era cartoons really astound from the restoration – they truly don’t make ‘em like this anymore.
This collection includes the full seventeen cartoons made over the course of two years, with the first nine shorts being the product of Fleischer’s studio – Max producing while brother Dave directing – while the last eight carry over the structure of Fleischer’s initial nine but are handled by a different studio.
Those first nine cartoons are considered the final triumph of Fleischer’s studios that created Betty Boop, but are most famous for their great Popeye offerings.
Much like their Popeye shorts, the Fleischer’s had the Superman cartoons follow a basic formula that originated with the first short simply called ‘Superman’ and continued till the end.
A villain (no name villains like Lex Luthor from the comic book mind you, generally mad-scientist types) was established early on, the editor assigns Lois and Clark to the job, the bratty Lois always try to get the scoop by herself and gets in trouble and Clark becomes Superman for the final vanquish – wham, bam and we’re out. All the shorts are between eight and ten minutes long and never wear out their welcome despite the predictable formula.
Why the shorts never become repetitive is due to a few reasons. The Technicolor animation is simply outstanding with Paramount allowing a then jaw-dropping $50,000 dollars per episode (about three times the average budget of a short back then) and the budget is noticeable in every frame.
Filled with detail and style, the Fleischer’s really outdid themselves with visual techniques using what they learned from years of Popeye and just coming off their troubled full-length feature ‘Gulliver’s Travels’.
Borrowing style from film noir and art-deco, the shorts are lively and really breath life into this world, the first time ‘Superman’ had been created with visual movement. With the exception of a radio show program (which this cartoon borrowed the voices of Clark/Superman and Lois), these cartoons are the first embodiment of the comics which were still only a few years old.
The first ‘Superman’ was nominated for an Academy Award (for Best short subject) and the quality was kept up throughout even with the last eight not having Fleischer’s involvement. The only real difference between the first nine and the latter eight is the slight transition in storytelling.
Fleischer seemed more interested in the sci-fi aspects of what he could do like in ‘The Mechanical Monsters’ which sees Superman fight a legion of giant, metal robots (think ‘Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow’ almost exactly) or ‘The Arctic Monster’ in which a Tyrannosaurus is unfrozen and goes stomping around downtown Metropolis with imagery so startling exact to what ‘Godzilla/Gojira’ offered more than a decade later.
As Fleischer studios dissolved and Famous Studios took over, the storylines started to take on the real-world events that were unfolding and as a result took on a propaganda feel i.e. ‘The Eleventh Hour’ that has Superman act as a saboteur in Japan. This, of course, may have just been timing but these episodes are obviously more dated and lack the fun of the first nine shorts.
I mean, I don’t know about you, but when I watch a cartoon adventure, I generally don’t want to be reminded of the real-world atrocities around me. That being said, maybe ‘Spongebob Squarepants’ would do well to throw a few economy is in crisis storylines in there?
Presented in their original full-frame aspect ratios, as I said before, there are still a few nicks and scratches on the prints but for anyone who has been stuck with public domain releases, this set will come as a revelation.
Just as an FYI, it seems a few complaints have been made about Warner Brothers making some alterations to the prologues of the shorts but I doubt most would notice unless it was called attention to so that’s as far as I’ll take it. If you’re an animation purist, I’m sure you will already be aware of what changes were made and if it will affect your decision to purchase.
Special Features include a sneak peak preview of the upcoming animated ‘Green Lantern’ movie on disc 1 and the bulk of the features on disc two consisting of two featurettes. The first is ‘The Man, The Myth, Superman’ which is about 13 minutes and takes a look at the lineage of Superman from ancient myth.
More directly in line with the content is ‘First Flight: The Fleischer Superman Series’ which also runs 13 minutes and takes an intriguing look at the background of this iconic series. I was actually expecting a bit more but what’s here is fine.
A must-own for any self-respecting comic or animation fan, this is a fantastic set with Warner Brothers giving the material it’s usual reverent restoration. While special features are a bit slight, the $20 asking price is a steal. Highly recommended.
Max Fleischer's Superman: 1941-1942 is now available at Amazon . As of yet, there is not a release date for this version of the DVD in the UK. Visit the DVD database for more information.
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