Yes, It's Been 25 Years Since Superman: The Animated Series
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Perhaps one is officially old when the best versions of their favorite things date back beyond twenty years. I was pleased to find that Superman: The Animated Series was getting a Blu-ray collection of all three seasons. But I did blink at the fact that it had been twenty-five years -- a whole quarter-century -- since the show had debuted on television. And while Superman hasn't really been away from the animated theater, this particular incarnation, a by-product of the success of Batman: The Animated Series, was a show that understood the character, what he was about, and was able to tell engrossing stories that challenged the hero.
Tim Daly (Wings) gave voice to Smallville's Clark Kent, and gave him the perfect midwestern, small-town appeal. The series begins with the three part origin that finds baby Kal-El rocketed from Krypton to Earth, where he is found by Jonathan and Martha Kent (M*A*S*H's Mike Farrell and Coach's Shelly Fabares). Upon moving to Metropolis, he soon encounters Daily Planet reporter Lois Lane (Dana Delany) and billionaire tycoon Lex Luthor (Clancy Brown), setting up two different kinds of rivalries.
The animated series did not play into the Clark/Lois romance angle too hard; not to the point where they even dated, let alone married. But there were definite feelings Lois had for Superman, best explored in the three-part episode "World's Finest" which saw the first meeting between Superman and Batman, a story that saw a team-up between Luthor and the Joker and had Lois falling hard for Bruce Wayne (Kevin Conroy). In a twist from the comics, Lois discovers Bruce's secret before she ever discovers Clark's.
The series had a wonderful array of villains, each expertly cast: Metallo (Malcolm McDowell), Darkseid (Michael Ironside), Brainiac (Corey Burton), and Mxyzptlk (Gilbert Godfried), just to name a few. And there was a particularly inspired bit of casting in having Ed Asner play the gravel-voiced Granny Goodness.
The show ended on a rather serious storyline, in which Superman had been brainwashed by Darkseid into attacking the Earth. In the battle, Superman's friend Dan Turpin (Joseph Bologna) is killed, and most of the world's trust in Superman is eroded. It was going to be a long, uphill battle for Superman to get back to where he used to be. Unfortunately, that's where this series ended. But we would still get this particular brand of Superman in the fantastic follow-up shows Justice League and Justice League Unlimited.
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Disc One | Disc Two | Disc Three |
01. The Last Son of Krypton (Part I) |
09. The Main Man (Part I) |
19. Identity Crisis |
Disc Four | Disc Five | Disc Six |
28. Father's Day |
36. Heavy Metal |
44. New Kids in Town
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