SUPERMAN THE 40S CARTOON (FAMOUS STUDIOS)

IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN MY REVIEW ON "SUPERMAN THE 40S CARTOON" DONE BY THE FLEISCHER'S, CLICK ON THE LINK BELOW!
http://tylermovietvreviews.blogspot.com/2015/01/superman-40s-cartoon-fleischer-years.html

Alright, a while ago I reviewed the 40s Superman cartoons when the Flesicher Brothers were in control, which was great despite our leads being bland and boring. Now I'm going to review the 40s cartoon when "Famous Studios" took over it, since Paramount took over the Flesicher's studio in Miami, which resulted the Fleischer Brothers to split and be replaced. Will the new Producers not only give the series the same amount of justice, but make the characters better? ON WITH THE REVIEW!



JAPOTEURS

Three Japanese men hijack a bombing plane with Lois on board and plan to bring it to Tokyo, Japan; "this looks like a job for Superman". When the Fleischer Brothers were in control, we had Mad Scientists; giant monsters; disasters; and robbers with high tech equipment, and what does "Famous Studios" start out with, World War 2 Propaganda on Japanese Americans really being spies for Japan. Literally the first image of the cartoon is the back of a business man looking at a picture of "The Statue Of Liberty" and changes the picture to a picture of the Japanese Flag, as we hear Japanese music and find out that the man looking at the picture is a racial stereotyped Japanese character with buck teeth; glasses; squinty eyes; speaks very bad English in an over the top accent; and will commit suicide if his plan fails. This cartoon is not just attacking the Japanese who attacked Pearl Harbor a year before this cartoon was made, but it's clearly supporting and promoting "The Internment Of Japanese Americans", which for me, makes the cartoon very hard to watch.

As for our characters not much has changed since we've last seen them. Clark still has an interesting and fun personality; Superman is very bland; and Lois is still an unlikable and swallow damsel in distress. As for the animation, considering that the cartoon is taken over by a different studio, they still manage to bring the look and feel of the previous cartoons, which is indeed saying something. As for the climax, it was very unexciting, and there was nothing suspenseful or kickass about it.

Despite that "Famous Studios" is picking up where the Fleischer’s left off really well, with the animation and characters, rather than making it look completely different; the cartoon is sadly racist and anti Japanese American with its story and racist villains, as well as not doing anything creative or kickass with Superman nor the situation.

RATING 1/5

SHOWDOWN


Before I start my review on this episode, I just want to quickly talk about the intro. Remember, how the second to last episode done by the Fleischers changed his ability to "Leap tall buildings in a single bound", to him flying higher then a Plane; well now, the writers change the entire introduction completely. Instead of being "Faster than a speeding bullet", he's "Faster than a streak of lightning!". Instead being "More powerful than a locomotive", he's "More powerful than the pounding surf!". Instead being "able to leap tall buildings in a single bound" or being "able to soar higher than any plane", he's "Mightier than a roaring hurricane!". Much like the change to the intro before this, it felt unnecessary and on top of it, it isn't as memorable or iconic as the original spoken intro. With another lame and unwanted change aside, how's the cartoon?


Superman has been stealing goods in the city and now every cop is after him. However, we quickly find out that the Superman causing crimes is a weak dumbass crook that's dressed up as Superman and with no suspense or tension at all, the real Superman goes after the phony and his crime boss. As you may have guessed, for a Superman imposter episode, there's no challenge, surprises, or anything at all to keep you on the edge of your seat. You obviously know that a dimwit and a scheming crime boss that re resembles Edward G. Robinson with no powerful weapons are no match against Superman. What is a match for Superman in this episode is, he has trouble opening a giant safe door. A Superhero with incredible strength, can't open a simple safe door, what were the writers thinking when they wrote this episode?

Negatives aside, there are a few good things in the episode, aside from the animation. Clark still remains likable and interesting; Lois doesn't get kidnapped at all during this episode; and Superman does have one or two kickass moments. Those moments are when he's silently scaring the two villains, which are done extremely well. It's almost like he's taking the Batman approach. As for the villains, as dimwitted and non-threatening as they are, are still very fun villains.

As a whole the episode and "Famous Studios" take on the series, is really not hitting the same nail than what the Fleischer’s did, and while this episode isn't as bad as the previous one since there are a few good things about it, it's still not up there with most of the episodes created by the Fleischer’s.

RATING 2/5

ELEVENTH HOUR


Clark and Lois somehow become war prisoners in Japan, and Superman decides to sabotage ships and any war equipment he can find from the Japanese. However, when the Japanese find out that it’s Superman, they threaten to kill Lois if Superman keeps it up. So we're back to where we started when "Famous Studios" first took over. This is another World War 2 Propaganda cartoon of Superman fighting against the Japanese, but instead of it being in America, it's in their home country. It sounds kickass and promising to see Superman fighting against the enemy on their own turf, but it's not.

The Japanese are just as racially stereotyped as the villains in the first episode, and in all honesty, they look worse in this episode, then the ones in the first one. The over-sized buck teeth; eyes that are even squintier; the horrible English; and speaking in stereotypical Japanese gibberish, is just racist as hell. I know we were fighting them at the time, but I'm sorry, this is just too uncomfortably racist to look at. Superman destroying and blowing up Japanese ships does sound cool, but the action is boring and unexciting; and seeing Superman killing people, when in all the other cartoons he doesn't, it seems out of character. You could make the argument that Superman has to kill these people for his country and can't bring the people that he killed to justice, since he's not in America; and while you may be right on that, I still can't help but see this cartoon as forced war time propaganda, that only put Superman behind the enemy lines, just so he can wipe out the enemy, instead of staying true to how the Fleischer’s developed this Superhero for the series. As for Lois, well, come on she's still bland, and is just there so Superman can save her.

Aside from the animation looking good, it's really just a forced war cartoon that forces this character who tries his hardest not to kill in the previous episodes, to constantly and willingly murdering thousands of racist looking soldiers, in a very anti-climatic way.

RATING 1/5

DESTRUCTION, INC


A bunch of criminals plan to bomb a weapon factory, along with Lois and its up to Superman to stop them. As simple as the plot is, I actually found myself confused after the first viewing, but after viewing it a bit more carefully, I began to fully understand it. So is it any good, well the set-up isn't really that exciting or creative compared to the other cartoons (Not counting the cartoons made by “Famous Studios”); Superman and Lois hasn't changed a bit; and the villains are very forgettable.

Despite all the bad stuff there were a few good things going on to make it worth while. I like that Clark disguises himself as a night watchmen, despite being very downplayed in the story. There's a cool escape scene with Lois trying to get away from the crooks. Of course, the best part is seeing Superman trying to save the factory from being bombed, which is cool, but at the same time, I kind of find hard to believe that Superman has trouble fighting one of the workers. I know he's big, but he's still a regular powerless human, while Superman is strong and powerful. As for the animation, it still remains to be incredible looking.

While "Famous Studios" still haven't reached the same high point as the Fleischer Brothers did, this one is really close to it. I just wish the plot was more interesting and that they didn't make Superman such a wimp when he's fighting regular criminals. With that aside, the action scenes with Superman are nearly as kickass as the Fleischer's run of the series, and while not really holding me on the edge of my seat, it was still entertaining.

RATING 3/5

THE MUMMY STRIKES


An Egyptologist is found to be murdered at a museum and the police suspect that his assistant murdered him. However, Clark is sent to go to the museum by a professor to find out the case, which catches Lois's interest. As Clark and the Professor learn about the history of King Tush to link to the murder of the Egyptologist to prove the innocence of his assistant; the tomb of King Tush's is opened and Mummies come alive, which is up to Superman to defeat them. Finally we're having Superman take on some kind of supernatural enemy, but sadly we get one huge of a let down because Superman just knocks them out, that's it. There's no supernatural power that Superman has to fight against, they're just regular Mummies with swords! The whole episode itself is just a dialogue heavy murder mystery with little to no action at all, and on top of it, we get like a minute and a half of Superman.

The only good thing that this episode has offer is the animation, and I have to admit the animation here is very creative with its Egyptian look. The background; the dark and grim look; seeing the hieroglyphics of the story of King Tush (Who's by the way, is a clever knock off on King Tut); and those scary designs for the Mummy's are really cool to look at. As for the main characters, they get really nothing to do. In fact, the Professor is more of the hero then any of the characters, since he solves the mystery. Putting Mummy's in, was just an excuse for Superman to show up and fight them, there really seemed to be no need for Superman at all in this episode.

When we finally get something that sounds like something challenging and creative for Superman to fight, the pay off is poor; the episode has way too much dialogue that will indeed bore kids; and Superman and Lois just in general don't fit in the story that the episode is telling, nor do they feel needed. The animation for ancient Egypt, however, is really cool and creative to look at, and that's THE ONLY reason why it’s worth a look.

RATING 2/5

JUNGLE DRUMS


So a Native Tribe in the jungle (Who are surprisingly not black face stereotypes) are for some odd and weird reason led by a Nazi, who dresses up as a cloaked leader; and has a secret military base in an ancient temple...uh, what the hell? The Nazis shoot down a plane with Lois inside it, and she survives, but gets captured by the Native Nazi tribe (If that’s what you call them) and is about to be burned at the stake. Luckily, Clark is flying above the Native Nazi camp, and has to save her and defeat the Nazis along with their Tribe. Animation aside, this episode sucks.

The concept is so stupid and boring, that it’s really one of the weakest episodes made when "Famous Studios" took over. Mixing Nazis and a Native Tribe together is stupid and makes little to no sense, and there are a lot of things in the episode that either need to be explained, or just doesn't add up in general. Lois of course, is just as stupid and bland as she is in all the episodes in the series; Superman is just as weak at fighting humans and opening locked doors as he was in "Destruction INC" and "Showdown"; and Clark is back to square 1. If you just had Lois being captured by this Tribe, and have them have some kind of monster, or had a supernatural power that challenges Superman, if done right, it could be an interesting episode. However, we instead have forced World War 2 propaganda with Nazis, War Planes, and a cameo of Hitler at the end (Who is sadly, not made to be over the top silly and evil, like in most cartoons at the time).

What more can I say? The episode is stupid and doesn't make much sense; the action is boring; the World War 2 propaganda doesn't feel needed; and the characters are boring.

RATING 1/5

THE UNDERGROUND WORLD


Lois and Clark are sent to go out on an exhibition with a Professor inside a cave and all of a sudden, Lois and the Professor are captured by a tribe of Hawk people (What?) and it is up to Superman to...YOU KNOW THE DRILL BY NOW! While, I'm glad that this episode has no forced World War 2 propaganda in it, as well as having good animation, it's sadly just as bad, as the majority of episodes made during this era.

While Clark and Lois are boring, the Professor is worse. Almost every line he says puts me to sleep. The Hawk tribe, while having creative designs, the episode has no build up to them what so ever, and just show up to kidnap Lois and the Professor as we learn really nothing about them at all. Of course, this would be fine, if we had some decent action between them and Superman, and at first it started out decent, as we see Superman try to fight off these creatures. However, lets just say how he defeats them is very anti-climatic. In fact, he doesn't use any of his Super powers to defeat them.

The episodes concept is lame, instead of being creative and cool; the characters are again really boring; and the action between Superman and the Hawk tribe is very unexciting.

RATING 1/5

SECRET AGENT


In our final episode of the 40s cartoon; a secret agent who is carrying top secret information against the Nazis, are now after her and plan to kill her before she ever makes it to Washington D.C.. Clark gets in the middle of a pursuit with the Nazis and the Agent, and is captured, but of course, will eventually and easily escape their clutches and defeat them as Superman.

The Film-Noire look from the earlier episodes when the Fleischer Brothers ran it, is back and even though the animation in all the other episodes during this run was just as good, it didn't hit the same note as this cartoon did, mainly because of the stupid plots and anti-climatic action. Now I'm not going to say that the climax with Superman in this episode redeemed the anti-climatic action in the other episodes made during this era, because it doesn’t. There's no challenge for Superman to fight against, and I swear that the leading lady in this cartoon would have been killed before Superman can save her. I know it’s a cartoon, and time differs, but the execution was really hard for me to suspend my disbelief, or fall under the illusion. With all that said, the episode does have some really good action, such as a few car chases, and a brutal gun fight between the Nazis and the Cops. I also love the final image of Superman flying over Washington D.C. and flies past the American Flag, that was a good finale for the series.

As far as story goes involving Nazis, since most of the other episodes were forced World War 2 Propaganda episodes, while not as bad, forced, and insulting as the other World War 2 related episodes, it wasn't that good. Mainly because the Nazis don't pose as a threat to Superman at all, much like every other villain during this era. As you may have guessed, Lois is not in this episode at all, instead its the secret agent woman, and while being mostly a damsel in distress, I don't know, I can't put my finger on why, but she's seems much more interesting and likable, then Lois. As for Clark in this episode, he still sadly remains just as boring and bland as he was in the last couple of episodes.

While, I'm glad to see the good old Film-Noire style back, along with some cool action, and a nice conclusion to the series; the episode sadly fails just as much as the rest. Superman gets little to no action scenes; the Nazis are just typical War propaganda villains, that don't pose so much as a threat to our hero; and our damsel, while not as bad or swallow as Lois, is still forgettable.

RATING 2/5

OVERALL ON "FAMOUS STUDIOS'" TAKE ON SUPERMAN



While, its good seeing that "Famous Studio" kept the same animation style as the previous Superman cartoons did, which is quite good at times, I still feel like the Fleischer’s and Paramount should have just pulled the plug on the series, rather then give it to another animation studio. The characters are not only as bland as they were during the Fleischer’s run, but they had the guts of making Superman a wimp, and slowly taking steps backwards after when Clark started to have a personality. The action is not as awesome, epic, or kickass as the Fleischer’s cartoons, and is very boring and anti-climatic. All the challenging obstacles and creative writing went completely down the drain, when "Famous Studios" took over by mostly giving us World War 2 Propaganda, and while a product of the time that was carried out by many other studios, it just feels forced and unnecessary here. The animation maybe good, but personally I'll just stick to the Fleischer’s Superman cartoons, since they were creative, energizing, action packed, and awesome, as well as having great animation, which I'm pretty certain that the majority of the influential stuff, came from that series, instead of this bland, boring, and unexciting take on "The Man Of Steel".


RATING FOR  "FAMOUS STUDIOS'" TAKE ON SUPERMAN 1/5

OVERALL ON THE WHOLE 40S SUPERMAN CARTOON
 

Well, as a whole it’s a bit of a mixed bag. The Fleischer’s run of the series for the majority of their run was creative and had plenty of epic action when it came to Superman saving the city, due to having Mad Scientists; giant Monsters; Crooks with high-tech equipment; and Natural Disasters. When "Famous Studios" took over it all became boring and unexciting, with the World War 2 stuff; dimwitted crooks; and half-assed super natural elements, which none of those things posed as a threat, or lead to anything awesome at all. I think the biggest issue that I have with the shows full run are the characters, who are once again boring, bland, and very uninteresting. Even when one of the characters does start becoming interesting, a few episodes later, that character is back to being boring and bland. What the 40s cartoon does however know what to always bring that's great, is the animation, because no matter what episode you see, even if its the "Famous Studios" cartoons, the animation always manages to look amazing! So in its long run, it’s a mixed bag, but the great stuff, even though the majority of it came from the Fleischer's, is still great! However, and as I said, when I gave you my overall on "Famous Studios" run, its best just to watch the first 9 cartoons of the series created by the Fleischer’s.

RATING FOR THE WHOLE SERIES 3/5

SUPERMAN THE 40S CARTOON (FLEISCHER STUDIOS)

As some of you may or may not know, I was never a Superman fan growing up. I don't know why, I just found him to be a very boring and unappealing hero, not to say that I don't acknowledge what makes him a popular superhero, he just never really interested me. Well, two years ago, I reviewed the pilot Episode from the 50s show, and I started to take a little bit of an interest in the hero. Last year, I looked at franchise that I didn't get into as a kid, which was "The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" as I reviewed the pilot to the 80s cartoon and the movies; and while I didn't like the films that followed after the first film, I still felt like I missed out on a few good things, not to mention the fact that I started becoming very attached to a bunch of characters that  didn't interest me when I was a kid. Since people have been asking me to review  the latest Superman film "Man Of Steel", I think now's the time I start getting more acquainted with this hero as I review the popular 40s cartoon, and all the live action films. I did want to review the pilot episode of the popular animated series in the 90s, but I want to finish reviewing "Batman The Animated Series", before I start reviewing the Superman animated series. So join me this year, as I get acquainted with Superman! So lets start with the famous cartoon from the 40s of "Superman".



Created by the Fleischer Brothers, this cartoon's take on "Superman" was famous for being the biggest budgeted animated film series in history; as well as being a very dark and gothic take on Superman, as opposed to being bright campy and colorful. In fact, the animation style in this series is what helped inspire the animation for the 90s cartoons of Batman and Superman. I remember seeing one of these cartoons as a kid, and as you may have guessed, I was bored to death. Now that I'm an adult, will I not only appreciate the animation in this series, but find it more interesting and entertaining, then I found it to be when I was a kid? ON WITH THE REVIEW...

SUPERMAN (AKA THE MAD SCIENTIST)


In our first Superman episode, we learn about Superman's origins, and then the plot shifts to a Mad Scientist who plans to use a giant ray to destroy the city of Metropolis. It is up to Superman to stop him. I got to say, while I find myself more invested in this cartoon, than when I was a kid, I still have a few problems with it. Let's start with Superman our hero. Outside of his action scenes, when he's fighting against the Mad Scientists laser and saving the city, I sadly found him boring. I know this is before we all started getting deep into Superheroes, when at the time it was just fighting crime, hide your identity, save the world, and get the girl, but his personality doesn't interest me at all. Yeah, he has cool scenes when he's fighting as Superman, but just because the action scenes are cool and interesting, doesn't mean the character himself is interesting. The guy voicing him does have the proper voice for the character, but he sadly doesn't save the blandness of this heroic character. We also learn about Superman's origins, and while it's done to the point where you can follow and understand his back story, as well as being the first to introduce the famous Superman introduction to the film and TV media, it feels very rushed. In fact, I'm kind of annoyed that we learn very little and never see Superman's home Planet, before he was sent to Earth. However, that's a nitpick and something I'd want to see, as opposed to being an actual criticism, and at the very least, we at least know a few important things about Superman's origins, then learning nothing about him at all. So I give the cartoons take on Superman's origins credit for at least including it.

Next we have Superman's love interest Lois Lane and yes, she's just a bland damsel in distress who foolishly gets kidnapped by the villain; has very little to no personality; and of course is just a trophy for our main hero. The Mad Scientist who is voiced by Jack Mercer (Who has voiced Popeye dozens of times), while just a typical cliche Mad Scientist with no motivation but to cause chaos, to later get his ass whooped by our hero, he's pretty decent. The design for him is cool; Mercer does sound both fun and threatening as this cliche villain; and his pet bird is fun.

The animation is really great. The shadows; the angles; the gothic designs; the lightening; the character designs are all really cool and awesome. For a short cartoon, it does look like a big and epic, gothic Superhero Film-Noire, and I can totally see where the inspiration for the 90s Batman and Superman cartoon came from. The music also plays a big part in this cartoon as well! It completely matches the cartoon's tone from being suspenseful and eerie; to sounding big and heroically epic! As for the climax with Superman saving the city and stopping the death ray is beyond cool and awesome, especially for its time.

In terms of story and character, the cartoon is pretty bland, however, that's not to say that I can't picture a comic-book fan or a fan of Superheroes in general not enjoying the simpleness of it. I guess with a 10 minute cartoon, you can't really expect them to go into full-depth with character and story; you just want to see Superman fight against the villain, save the city, and get the girl, and if you're expecting that going in and don't mind it being cliche and predictable, then you will really enjoy it, as well as being exposed to groundbreaking animation, and awesome music. So overall, if they didn't make the characters so wooden, I'd actually give it my highest rating, however, since they are, I guess this cartoon is going to have settle for my second best rating.

RATING 4/5

THE MECHANICAL MONSTERS


A rich Mad Scientist uses robots to carry out his evil deeds in the city of Metroplois, and its up to Superman to stop them; save Lois; and bring the Mad Scientist to justice. If you haven't already guessed, this episode follows the exact same formula as the previous episode, and just like the previous episode it pretty much has the same hits and misses. I will admit Superman and Lois have a tiny bit more character than they did in the previous episode, but I think the only reason why I say that is because they're given more facial expressions, when in the previous episode, they pretty much had one expression throughout the whole thing, which was pretty dull. Other than having more than one expression they're still boring. Superman has no personality and Lois is the same old dumb damsel in distress. As for the villain, outside of his cool design, he's actually really, really boring. At least the Mad Scientist in the previous episode had a fun and threatening personality; this villain has none of it.

The animation in this, while really good, is actually really different, comparing it to the first one. Instead of being dark, gritty, and Gothic; this one looks comic-book colorful. While I do prefer, the dark, dramatic look from the previous episode, the animation is still really incredible, and has actually improved! Again, Clark and Lois have more facial expressions; the scenes of Superman flying are really cool to look at, especially when looking at the places he's flying over, it almost looks like Miyaziki film; the designs and action sequences with the robots are cool, which by the way Miyaziki homage these robots in his film "Castle In The Sky" (Which, I did review); the action scenes in general are really cool to watch; the shot of Superman using his X-Ray vision is beyond amazing; the colors and designs for the locations are really beautiful to look at; and the size and scope of this cartoon is just as big as the previous episode, only this time having lots of detail.

Aside from our characters having really wooden personalities, it's still just as great as the first one. The story, while really simple, and following the same exact formula as the previous episode, is still really entertaining and action packed; the animation, while not looking as dark as the previous episode is still not only incredible to look at, but the adult look and feel is still there; and the improvements that this second episode has made in the series, along with being one of the most influential episodes of the series.

RATING 4/5

BILLION DOLLAR LIMITED


A group of masked gangsters is planning on robbing a train full of gold, and it is up to Superman to stop them. Remember how I praised about the characters getting more facial expressions in the last episode, we're sadly back to square 1. Our two main characters still have boring personalities, and the bad guys, are just masked crooks with machine guns, that's it.

The animation is not only just as great as the first two episodes, but we're back to that big dark and gritty look that the first episode had. I have to admit, as simple as the premise is, I was really on the edge of my seat, while I was watching this episode. The many obstacles that Superman has to go through to save this unstoppable fast moving train, is both really cool, and really suspenseful (Though, I wonder why no on the train has attempted to find or pull an emergency break, but who cares); the sequence when the crooks hi-jack the train is both dark and awesome; seeing the bullets fly off of Superman's chest is just as cool as seeing him use his X-ray vision in the previous episode; and Lois, despite being a damsel in distress, she actually gets to pick up a machine gun, and tries to stop the bullet proof car.

With boring characters aside, the action, the premise, the thrills, and the animation still what make this episode just as great as the previous ones.

RATING 4/5

THE ARCTIC GIANT


A frozen giant monster from the Dinosaur age is put on display at the Metropolis museum. However, a worker foolishly jams the works of the machine that keeps the creature frozen, and within seconds the ice melts (Which in reality is impossible, but who cares, we wouldn't have an episode) and the monster breaks free to destroy the city, which is a job for Superman to stop this giant creature. I'm not going to lie, comparing this episode to the previous ones, this one is the first one that comes across as silly and cartoony, than being dark and adult. The serious tone is still there, but at the same time, the episode still feels kind of silly,

The characters really still bore me. I'm trying really hard to get attached to them, but I simply just can't. Superman himself is still really boring; and when he's Clark Kent, he does have a little bit of a fun personality, but I'm still uninterested in him. Lois, I know she's supposed to be this reporter that's trying to get the inside story (Kind of like April O'Neil in "The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles") but her personality not only feels bland, but when she tries to be fun and interesting, it kind of annoys me. Plus the many times that she foolishly and idiotically gets captured in the series is kind of getting on my nerves now.

The monster I guess is kind of threatening, I mean it is cool seeing Superman fix the destruction that its causing, but the monster itself, I don't know, considering how dark the previous episodes were, this monster looks a little bit campy and silly, than dark and scary.  I was also disappointed by Superman's confrontation with it, I honestly wanted to see him actually fight the creature, than easily tie it up. I also find it silly that a bunch of fireman tries to stop the thing with their fire hoses, if bullets won't hurt it, what makes you think water will? As for the animation, we're now back to the bright and colorful comic-book look that the second episode had, as well as giving our main characters back their facial expressions, which looks good, but it's not enough to save the campyness from this episode.

While the animation is nice, this episode is sadly the starting the unintentional silliness of the series. Clark and Lois not only bore me in this episode, but kind of annoy me; the monster while threatening, is not as dark and villainous as the previous episodes, heck even the bird that accompanied the Mad Scientist in the first episode, while being silly at times, still looked darker and sinister than this monster; the climax was a let down; I wasn't as thrilled or got as invested in the action as I was in the previous episodes; and while the adult and dramatic tone is still there, it doesn't feel as powerful and engaging as the previous episodes, as well as feeling very downplayed. So it's not a bad or awful episode, it's just not as good or as epic and dark as the previous episodes.

RATING 2/5

THE BULLETEERS


A trio of crooks called "The Bulleteers" plan to destroy the city, while stealing goods in their powerful bullet proof rocket car, obviously "this is a job for Superman". Yeah, yeah, same old criticisms with our two characters, dull and bland. The villains are just your typical cool looking dark henchman with a cool car, NOT to say that's a bad thing, just wish they had a bit more personality. This episode has really brought us back to the dark and serious, but action packed and heroic outlook of the series, while the previous episode was...well, silly. The animation looks not only as good as the previous episodes in the series, but instead of jumping back again to the animation style in the first and third episode, it seems that the series is sticking with animation from the second and fourth episode, by giving our characters more expression; being bright at day time; and dark and gritty at night time. Maybe the series, might go back to its old roots in animation, but either style they choose works for me, since they both manage to be big and epic.

The action is very promising, and pretty violent and tense at times. I mean the buildings that these villains destroy my god, millions most be dying in those buildings. Just because we don't see people die, that doesn't mean their aren't people inside them, and the animation and music for those scenes look and sound pretty tense. In fact, Superman even fails to stop a building from getting destroyed, and gets taken out in the process. Even though we know that Superman will somehow defeat these criminals, it almost seems hopeless. Lois also tries to sabotage the criminals vehicle, but come on, we know what's going to happen to her.

 Aside from the problems that I've kept talking about in every episode in the series by far, it's still a really great action packed and tense episode, and while I know what was going to happen, I was still at the edge of my seat with my eyes glued to the screen just like all the other episodes, that is, all of them, except the previous one.

RATING 4/5

THE MAGNETIC TELESCOPE


A scientists magnetic telescope goes completely out of control, and sends a comet hurtling towards the city, it is once again "a job for Superman". Once again, Superman and Lois, not interesting! However, there was one interesting character, and that's actually the scientist who created the telescope. Instead of being the typical mad scientist, he's actually just a regular guy, who's so proud and devoted to his work that he'll take on extremes to prove his invention is a success. Plus, he's not the reason why his invention went out of control. Now how will his invention benefit science, I don't know, in all honesty, it sounds more like a villainous device than something to do good for others. With that flaw aside, I am still pleased that we have a more fleshed out antagonist, now if only the series can flesh out our two leads more.

What more can I say about the animation in this cartoon series, it still looks just as great as every other single episode. The darkness, the shadows, the designs, the angels, the comic-book look, the colors used for the comet and destruction its causing, it's really epic to look at. The climax was just as tense, epic, and thrilling as the previous episode (As well as many of the other episodes) and the best part is, Lois actually gets to help Superman.

While the invention makes very little sense on how it can benefit mankind, and that Superman and Lois have been in 6 episodes together and haven't yet became interesting or fun characters, the episode not only has all the good things that I praised throughout the series, but I'm glad that the series gave us a more fleshed out antagonist, if not an actual villain.

RATING 4/5

ELECTRIC EARTHQUAKE


A Native American Mad Scientist, threatens to destroy the city, if they don't give the City back to his people, since they used to own that land. Of course, with no one giving into his demands, he decides to carry out his deed by creating an Electrical Earthquake on the city, it is up to Superman, to stop him. Superman and Lois, again, still aren't interesting characters. I also must admit, that the Climax of Superman stopping the Mad Scientists device, didn't hold me on the edge of my seat, or got me just as invested as most of the other episodes.

However, the episode does carry two good things. First,being the animation, it still looks just as incredible as all the other episode. The other one, is the villain! Yeah, making him Native probably wasn't that good of an idea, especially dealing with the fact that the guy voicing him isn't even a Native American, but I think he's by far the best villain the series has had. His motivation of wanting his people's land back, as silly and stereotypical as it is, the Electrical Earthquake he causes does become a very dangerous and intense threat in this fictional city. I also love his underwater secret lair, which I'm not going to lie is really cool. I even love that he makes an attempt to kill Superman and Lois as he's on the run, even if you know that Superman will survive and stop him. He's also voiced by the same guy who voiced Bluto in the "Popeye" cartoon, who not only does a decent job with the Native accent by not making it sound over the top, but he really gives the character plenty of personality. He's threatening, calm, polite, and even fun.

So, while not having an exciting climax (Which is a major downer), and still giving our two leads little personality, the episode does at least deliver us a great villain. Could they not make him Native, yeah, but he's still an awesome villain, and the animation hasn't failed yet.

RATING 3/5

VOLCANO


Clark and Lois are reporting on a Volcano on an Island that is about to erupt on a small village below, and as usual "it is a job for Superman" to save the village, and of course save Lois in the process. I'm going to admit something, Superman as Clark Kent is starting to kind of develop a character. I can't explain how, he just is. Let's just say, despite looking an awful lot like Superman, even with the glasses, his personality does differ from his heroic identity. Not just as acting like a mild manner loser, but the fact that he has more personality as Clark, than he does as Superman. Lois, is starting to grow one too, but man do I hate her in this episode. Not just the fact that she has to be constantly saved by Superman, but also because she's really a bitch. I mean, she and Clark are sent out to do an assignment together on the volcano story, but wanting all the credit to herself, she steals and hides Clark's Press Pass so that he doesn't get to report on the erupting volcano. You know, I'm really beginning to cringe at her on screen presence. I mean there's nothing likable about her. She's a careless dimwitted self centered woman, who gets herself into danger, not to help humanity, not because she loves her job, but just so she can become famous. I know when she's in danger, the right thing to do would save her, but I'm sorry, I'd tell Superman to let her fend for herself.

There's a character that I have not talked about yet, and that character is the Editor-In-Chief of the "Daily Planet" Perry White. The reason why I never brought him up is because he's a complete bore, and has a very tiny bit of screen time. Why do I bring him up now, no reason, just wanted to let you know that he's in this cartoon series. The animation is of course still amazing; still cool to look at; and it seems that the series is taking more and more steps forward with it. As for the climax with the erupting volcano, it was pretty awesome. Ok, maybe not as on the edge of your seat gripping as the other ones, but it is a better and cooler climax than the previous one. There was one other thing that I should mention by the way, that changed the series. In the intro to the cartoon, instead of hearing and seeing Superman being "able to leap tall buildings in a single bound", we instead see a cartoon plane as we hear "able to soar higher than any plane". Why did they change that? Seriously, the original line is so iconic that replacing seemed to be a flat out insult to the fans. Plus, I enjoyed seeing Superman leaping a tall building, why did they change, was it because of World War 2. Whatever the case is, the change seemed very unnecessary. However, that's just a small nitpick.

The animation is once again amazing; the setup is great; the climax, while not all that thrilling, is a lot cooler then the last episode; and Clark is starting to become a little bit more interesting, or at least not as boring, as he was in the previous ones.  If they didn't make Lois such a stupid self centered bitch, or at least gave Superman a personality, then the episode would have gotten my highest rating.

RATING 4/5

TERROR ON THE MIDWAY


Lois goes on to do a news report at a circus, however, a monkey accidentally lets loose a giant wild Gorilla, and all of hell breaks lose. "This looks like a job for Superman". As silly, as the premise sounds, it's actually done really, really well. Clark's personality has definitely improved, in fact, I actually enjoy being around him, especially the comments that he gives to Lois and the situation itself. Lois, well, I'll admit she's not as bitchy as she was in the previous episode since she does risk her life to save a little girl, but she's still a boring and shallow damsel in distress.

The giant Gorilla that Superman has to fight is a much better monster than the Arctic Giant. He looks scary and threatening, instead of looking silly and cartoony; the amount of damage and chaos it causes makes the situation more and more tense and outrageous than it already is; and on top of it, it actually does put up more of a fight than what the Arctic Monster did. In fact, there's a brief shot of struggle and pain on Superman's face, how often do we see him have a struggling reaction. The animation is not only great, but I love the creative, colorful and dark circus look of the episode, it just makes it an even more visual treat to watch.

Aside from Lois and Superman still being boring, this is one of the best episodes I've ever seen from the show. The setup, while sounding silly, is executed really well; the giant gorilla is really cool and scary; the action and chaos never stops once it starts, and just keeps building and building; the animation is not only great, but it's very creative with its Circus look; and I'm glad that Clark is starting to flesh out his personality. If they at least gave Superman a personality, I would actually give it my highest rating, but sadly, it's going to get my second best rating, which pains me, since it's a really great episode.

RATING 4/5

OVERALL ON THE FLEISCHER YEARS OF THE 40S CARTOON OF SUPERMAN

So those were my reviews of the 40s cartoon of Superman when the Fleischer Brothers ran it, before "Famous Studios" took over, and it's awesome! Ok, when it comes to characters, not so much. Clark doesn't start getting fun or interesting personality till the last two episodes; Superman, while doing cool things, doesn't have a personality at all; Lois is by far one of the worst female characters that I've ever seen in a Superhero cartoon; Perry White does and shows up so little that he's forgettable; and the villains with the exception of a few, are more based on design and causing trouble for our hero, than actually having a personality. With that said, I don't have much to fault the 40s cartoon, while the Fleischers were in control.  The episodes, while being simple and always following the same exact formula, at the very least always do have an interesting, tense, and creative setup to keep you invested or at the very least interested in what's going on, and how Superman will save the day.

The number 1 reason what makes this cartoon so awesome is the animation. The animation is so incredible to look at, that it not only brought a different look to animated Superheroes on the big screen, but is also one of the most influential pieces of animation of all time! On top of it, I not only love the style, look, and tone for this take on Superman, but the action scenes, in almost every episode are where the animation and our hero really shines the most. They're so cool, action-packed, and intense that it really does expose the awesome factor of this uninteresting hero. Plus, adding it with the Superman theme song increases the awesomeness of these action scenes. The characters may be boring and dull, but the rest of the series has enough awesome things to get you invested in what's being placed right before your eyes.

RATING FOR THE FLEISCHER YEARS 4/5

So that's my review of the 40's Superman cartoon during the years when the Fleischer Brothers were in control, and don't worry, I'll review the 40s cartoon when "Famous Studios" took over it in the near future.