When people imagine superhero cartoons, their minds harken back to the Saturday morning limited animation of Filmations Batman or Hanna-Barberas Super Friends. They were barely animated comic book panels. When it came to animating action, the genre did the most with the least amount of visual effort. The cartoons on Max Fleischers Superman 1941-1942 arent merely paint and flip efforts. Max and David Fleischer created characters that moved like real humans. Their bodies didnt remain stiff when their lips moved. When Superman takes to the sky, you feel the swoosh. The Fleischers set a design precedence for Superman that lasted for 17 shorts. The eight minute cartoons were packed with thrills and big visuals that often blew away the feature films on the program.
“Superman” gives us an altered thumbnail sketch of his origins. We dont see his real parents on Krypton before hes sent in a rocket towards Earth. Instead of being raised by the Kents, our hero is dumped at an orphanage. They dont waste anytime establishing how he discovered his powers. Theres no Superboy action. We get told that hes moved to Metropolis and assumed the identity of Clark Kent, the mild mannered newspaper reporter. His first adventure is protecting the city against a mad scientist on a mountain. He uses a dangerous laserbeam to destroy bridges and buildings. Can the Man of Steel fight against an intense beam of light? The animation reveals this is a very special effort and not a cheap cash grab. There are moments of Van Gogh swirls in the midst of the destruction.
“The Mechanical Monsters” has flying robots committing jewelry heists. Even before the Transformers, America saw an airplane transform into a robot. The style of these cyber-villains were ripped off by Sky Commander and the World of Tomorrow. Lois Lane decides to get the inside scoop on who are behind these robberies by smuggling herself inside a robot. This means Superman has to save her. “Arctic Giant” has a huge dinosaur sealed inside of ice on display at the museum. Naturally someone screws up and shuts down the freezer. The ice melts in a matter of seconds and the dinosaur comes alive. How come my steak doesnt defrost this fast when it comes out of the freezer? “The Bulleteers” has a crime group with a car thats shot out of a mega-rifle to bust through walls. “The Electric Earthquake” has an Indian plotting to take back Manhattan by flattening the real estate market.
Halfway through the series, the Fleischers had a meltdown and ended up losing their animation studio. Paramount took over their properties including Superman and Popeye. Starting with “The Japoteurs,” Paramounts Famous Studios ruled the show. The transition wasnt too good for Popeye. The innovative tricks used for the sailor vanished as Paramount made it more conventionally animated. The eight Famous Studios Superman titles on disc two continue the standards established by the Fleischers. What does change is no longer is Superman merely saving Metropolis. In the post-Pearl Harbor atmosphere, the son of Krypton had to save America.
“The Japoteurs” opens with a huge bomber plane being shown off to the press. Lois hides at the end of the tour ito get a first person scoop of liftoff. The maiden voyage could be the planes last since Japanese agents have snuck on board to hijack it for Tokyo. Its up to Superman to prevent our greatest weapon being used against us. “Showdown” has a criminal disguising himself as Superman. “Destruction, Inc.” involves sabotage at a munitions plant. “Jungle Drums” has Nazis hiding out in the deepest of Africa. “Secret Agent” has a woman carrying a classified list being targeted by enemy agents and mobsters. Can Superman get her and the precious cargo safely to Washington D.C.?
Max Fleischers Superman 1941-1942 contains some of the most majestically illustrated cartoons. The people on the screen looks and move like humans (thanks to the Fleischers rotoscoping process). They showed that a superhero project didnt have to be reduced to a B-movie or a poverty row serial. These cartoons demonstrate what can be achieved with a quality level budget on this material. The Superman shorts predicted a future of The Dark Knight and Iron Man.
The Shorts
“Superman,” “The Mechanical Monsters,” “Billion Dollar Limited,” “Arctic Giant,” “The Bulleteers,” “The Magnetic Telescope,” “Electric Earthquake,” “Volcano,” “Terror on the Midway,” “The Japoteurs,” “Showdown,” “The Eleventh Hour,” “Destruction , Inc.,” “The Mummy Strikes,” “Jungle Drums,” “Underground World” & “Secret Agent.”
The video is 1.33:1 full frame. The transfers looks so much better than any of the public domain copies that cropped up on DVDs. The colors are rich. You get an eyeful of the detailed backgrounds. Theres plenty of small specks and schutz on the frame, but nothing too distracting. Its better than having lines disappearing thanks to DNR. The audio is Dolby Digital mono. The sound is bold with the score pushing the action and sound effects. The subtitles are in English and French.
The Man, The Myth, Superman (13:36) gives a brief overview of super powered heroes from the earliest civilizations. The various experts relate this universal concept back to Superman. Its like sitting through a college lecture.
First Flight: The Fleischer Superman Series (12:54) reminds us at how this cartoon series went beyond what was being done in action-based animation. Once more the Fleischers are getting their respect. Whats brought up is how the Fleischers didnt want to make the cartoons so they quoted an outrageous sum as the production budget. Paramount agreed on the price. They also gave Superman the ability to fly. The bad part of this history is nobody discusses why if these cartoons were so successful did the series end after only 17 installments. The answer is the budget was outrageous compared to other cartoons.
A First Look at the Green Lantern Animated Feature (10:11) starts with a brief history of the ringed hero. They have plenty of clips from The Right Stuff. Theres no real animated preview. Mostly its the story boards flashed on the screen. Its due out this summer.
Max Fleischers Superman 1941-1942 is a zenith of animation. The level of artistry and craftsmanship are beyond the level given to the numerous superhero cartoons that followed. While there are numerous public domain DVDs of the Superman cartoons available, none look as good as the transfers on these DVD. You might have issues with the specks and slight damage that crops up on these nearly 70 year old film elements. Digitally fixing these images would result in destroying the delicate paint and shadows on the screen. This is perfect for anyone who admires the man with the big “S” on his chest.
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Warner Home Video presents Max Fleischers Superman 1941-1942. Boxset Contents: 17 shorts on 2 DVDs. Released on DVD: April 7, 2009. Available at Amazon.com
