Fleischer Superman cartoons
I'd read intriguing reviews and discussions of the old Fleischer Superman cartoons of the 1940s in several places, so I put the first dvd of the Superman Collection into my Netflix queue, which included the first nine episodes. To say it was an interesting trip through nostalgia was putting it mildly.
I made screen captures from the first nine adventures, all 640X480 in PNG files. I tried to get most of the Lois/Clark scenes. VLC wasn't always cooperative, so I sometimes wound up with blurrier caps than I'd like. The picture quality isn't the best to begin with either. You may use them for whatever graphics purposes you like. I'd love to see the results. The rars & samples are under the cut.
If you're used to the current Superman with all his ties to Smallville and the Kents, it'll be a shock to go back to the Action #1 bare bones origin where the baby was found by a passing motorist and taken to an orphanage. The Kents don't show up until Superman #1. A stark contrast to the loving accepting background we've come to accept with the Superman legend, isn't it? We always wonder what Smallville and the Kents would be like without Clark, but what about the other way around? A Clark raised in an orphanage or foster system is going to have a very different perspective from one raised with the stability of the Kents. We've seen that upbringing can damage people like Scott Summers or even Temperance Brennan, but of course, both of those characters were older when they went into the system.
I can see how the Fleischer Superman influenced the later Batman and Superman animated series, especially in the art design for the cityscapes. Very art deco. But this is New York, not the Metropolis we've come to know and love. It's clear in "Electric Earthquake" when the headline reads "Superman saves Manhattan Island". "Major metropolitan newspaper" means on the level of New York Times, not a whole new city in itself.
The villains never read the overlord handbook. Or they ignored its advice. You just don't send notices to the major metropolitan newspaper announcing your plans and then expect to succeed. Especially if a mysterious flying man happens to live in that town! (Sometimes the cartoons feels like Superman crossed with Flash Gordon with all the evil geniuses running around...)
Are the stories repetitive? Well, yes, but still well done for an eight minute cartoon. The focus is on action with a surprising heavy dose of violence. Bridges get destroyed and buildings nearly collapse on a regular basis. Every cop seems to wield a tommy gun. There were little character moments, but they're usually at the expense of poor Clark. This is the classic mild mannered reporter of the old days. Lois doesn't want to come along to the museum in "Arctic Giant" because he'll probably faint if he sees the massive beast. But he takes it well, usually with a wink and a smile afterwards.
This Lois is certainly a force of nature. Nothing will stop her from getting the story. If it means risking her life, so be it. She'll fly a plane, she'll steal Clark's press pass she'll sneak into a villain's lair, she'll even wield a tommy gun! And when she's pulled out of harm's way, what does she do? If you answered "She goes right back in of course!", you're right. That's our Lois, always in the middle of danger, no matter what media she appears in.
Superman's powers are also different. He comes off a bit rougher, less boy scout and more heavyweight. Sometimes he appears to fly and others he's seen bounding from building to building to catch up to some monster. And his strength varies wildly. One thing I noticed on rewatching is the effort it takes him. We're so used to the special effects where Clark pushes around small planets. (I'm reminded of JLU "Question Authority" where Superman is holding up some large piece of equipment in the Watchtower. "I could do this all day. Not that I'd want to...")This Superman is much more of a bruiser. He keeps going after something again and again, until he wears them down. They only show his x-ray vision once.
1. Superman
2. Mechanical Monsters
3. Billion Dollar Limited
4. Artic Giant
5. Bulleteers
6. Magnetic Telescope
7. Electric Earthquake
8. Volcano
9. Terror on the Midway
I made screen captures from the first nine adventures, all 640X480 in PNG files. I tried to get most of the Lois/Clark scenes. VLC wasn't always cooperative, so I sometimes wound up with blurrier caps than I'd like. The picture quality isn't the best to begin with either. You may use them for whatever graphics purposes you like. I'd love to see the results. The rars & samples are under the cut.
If you're used to the current Superman with all his ties to Smallville and the Kents, it'll be a shock to go back to the Action #1 bare bones origin where the baby was found by a passing motorist and taken to an orphanage. The Kents don't show up until Superman #1. A stark contrast to the loving accepting background we've come to accept with the Superman legend, isn't it? We always wonder what Smallville and the Kents would be like without Clark, but what about the other way around? A Clark raised in an orphanage or foster system is going to have a very different perspective from one raised with the stability of the Kents. We've seen that upbringing can damage people like Scott Summers or even Temperance Brennan, but of course, both of those characters were older when they went into the system.
I can see how the Fleischer Superman influenced the later Batman and Superman animated series, especially in the art design for the cityscapes. Very art deco. But this is New York, not the Metropolis we've come to know and love. It's clear in "Electric Earthquake" when the headline reads "Superman saves Manhattan Island". "Major metropolitan newspaper" means on the level of New York Times, not a whole new city in itself.
The villains never read the overlord handbook. Or they ignored its advice. You just don't send notices to the major metropolitan newspaper announcing your plans and then expect to succeed. Especially if a mysterious flying man happens to live in that town! (Sometimes the cartoons feels like Superman crossed with Flash Gordon with all the evil geniuses running around...)
Are the stories repetitive? Well, yes, but still well done for an eight minute cartoon. The focus is on action with a surprising heavy dose of violence. Bridges get destroyed and buildings nearly collapse on a regular basis. Every cop seems to wield a tommy gun. There were little character moments, but they're usually at the expense of poor Clark. This is the classic mild mannered reporter of the old days. Lois doesn't want to come along to the museum in "Arctic Giant" because he'll probably faint if he sees the massive beast. But he takes it well, usually with a wink and a smile afterwards.
This Lois is certainly a force of nature. Nothing will stop her from getting the story. If it means risking her life, so be it. She'll fly a plane, she'll steal Clark's press pass she'll sneak into a villain's lair, she'll even wield a tommy gun! And when she's pulled out of harm's way, what does she do? If you answered "She goes right back in of course!", you're right. That's our Lois, always in the middle of danger, no matter what media she appears in.
Superman's powers are also different. He comes off a bit rougher, less boy scout and more heavyweight. Sometimes he appears to fly and others he's seen bounding from building to building to catch up to some monster. And his strength varies wildly. One thing I noticed on rewatching is the effort it takes him. We're so used to the special effects where Clark pushes around small planets. (I'm reminded of JLU "Question Authority" where Superman is holding up some large piece of equipment in the Watchtower. "I could do this all day. Not that I'd want to...")This Superman is much more of a bruiser. He keeps going after something again and again, until he wears them down. They only show his x-ray vision once.
1. Superman
2. Mechanical Monsters
3. Billion Dollar Limited
4. Artic Giant
5. Bulleteers
6. Magnetic Telescope
7. Electric Earthquake
8. Volcano
9. Terror on the Midway