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Post by The Captain on Feb 17, 2019 20:32:11 GMT -5
I remember being in college and watching B:TAS in the afternoons, and I did see all of the old Spider-Man, Captain America, and related cartoons from the 60's when I was growing up. Over the last 20 years or so, the only cartoons based on comic books that I've watched are Teen Titans Go! and Marvel's Super Hero Squad because my daughters were into them, but they made no pretense of being "serious" and reveled in their absurdity, which I enjoyed.
That said, The Lego Batman Movie is one of my all-time favorites films, animated or otherwise. Probably Top 10, and it is something I can watch over and over again.
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Post by codystarbuck on Feb 18, 2019 0:49:47 GMT -5
I go back to Filmation and the BTAS cartonns were things of beauty and the stories way better than what DC was producing with the character. I had issues with some of the movie-based character models, which was dictated from on high (Penguin more than any other); but, I liked the styling of it, invoking the Fleischer Superman cartoons. The stripped down style gave it much more fluid movement. I got to see a preview of "On Leather Wings," at the 1992 HeroesCon and it was stunning. After years of Super Friends and Filmation superheroes (and DePatie-Freleng/Marvel shows) it was a breath of fresh air. What really set it apart, though, was the voice acting. Andrea Roman drew performances out of the various actors, which you could get from some voice actors, particularly those who came from radio (the 60s H-B crews). By contrast, X-Men was painful to hear and so overly stiff and often cheap looking. Spider-Man, on Fox, was better; but, the voice acting was still an issue. Ed Asner was great on BTAS; but grating, as J Jonah, on Spider-Man. Again, there was less fluidity to the animation.
BTAS has faults and quality depended on who was animating the episode. There are a select few that were done by Tokyo Movie Shinsa, that are gorgeous; but, they were expensive Some of the Korean houses were marginal to bad. On the whole, though, they kept it pretty consistent (after eliminating the weaker studios).
Superman TAS took a long time to really find its way, which hurts it, in my estimation. The Kirby-based stuff was usually pretty good, as it gave Superman a real threat. The "Apokolips Now," two-parter was just amazing, with a loving tribute to Jack and the 4th World.
Justice League is where it all came together, though, there again, it took a bit of time to find their groove. By the time they are doing Justice League Unlimited, with the Cadmus Arc, it was must-see. Loved the Suicide Squad/Task Force X episode, with a great "heist" vibe going for it. they also handled the Question beautifully.
I was a bit iffy about Batman: Brave and the Bold; but, grew to love it an its sense of fun, not to mention its mining of the fringes of the DC Universe. I mean, come on; Detective Chimp!
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Post by berkley on Feb 18, 2019 1:10:19 GMT -5
From my memory of the Kirby stuff in Superman TAS, I agree that they were sincere in their desire to pay tribute to Kirby's 4th World but it was still fatally flawed by being a Superman story in which the main point had nothing to do with Kirby or the 4th World at all: it was to provide Superman with a convincing villain so that when he eventually and inevitably triumphed the fan-service would be all the more satisfying. The 4th World was meant for better things than to give Superman another bad guy to punch out. I'd have much preferred they didn't make use of it at all, since that was the sum total of their vision for those characters.
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Post by Duragizer on Feb 18, 2019 1:18:15 GMT -5
B:TAS was my introduction to the character. I became an instant fan upon watching my first episode. I have absolutely nothing bad to say about the show.
That said, I'm not all that fond of the simplified art style of the follow up DCAU shows (I can only imagine how amazing S:TAS would've looked in the more fluid style of B:TAS). And I've only watched one episode proper of The New Batman Adventures; that and the crossover with Superman was more than enough for me.
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Post by Reptisaurus! on Feb 18, 2019 1:25:43 GMT -5
Yeah, none of those '90s cartoons ever worked for me either... Although I liked the spin-off comics. Scott McCloud was writing Superman?! That is insane!
I dug some of the later, less self-serious shows. Brave and the Bold mirrored the team-up book format so I almost have to love it.
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Post by Prince Hal on Feb 18, 2019 13:08:11 GMT -5
I go back to Filmation and the BTAS cartonns were things of beauty and the stories way better than what DC was producing with the character. I had issues with some of the movie-based character models, which was dictated from on high (Penguin more than any other); but, I liked the styling of it, invoking the Fleischer Superman cartoons. The stripped down style gave it much more fluid movement. I got to see a preview of "On Leather Wings," at the 1992 HeroesCon and it was stunning. After years of Super Friends and Filmation superheroes (and DePatie-Freleng/Marvel shows) it was a breath of fresh air. What really set it apart, though, was the voice acting. Andrea Roman drew performances out of the various actors, which you could get from some voice actors, particularly those who came from radio (the 60s H-B crews). I was a bit iffy about Batman: Brave and the Bold; but, grew to love it an its sense of fun, not to mention its mining of the fringes of the DC Universe. I mean, come on; Detective Chimp! You say here exactly how I felt about both. BTAS became my sons' Batman, along with the Batman Adventures comics. Given what was going on in the "adult" titles, I was thrilled that they were able to appreciate the depth and richness of the various ages of the Batman legend.
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Post by codystarbuck on Feb 18, 2019 13:58:20 GMT -5
Gargamel is the hero of the Smurfs! All of that repetitive singing and high pitched voices, arguing, and running around? The man was trying to do a service to the community!
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Post by Mister Spaceman on Feb 18, 2019 15:05:25 GMT -5
I find the Fleischer Superman cartoons of the 1940s to be very enjoyable to watch.
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Post by tarkintino on Feb 18, 2019 15:29:30 GMT -5
I find the Fleischer Superman cartoons of the 1940s to be very enjoyable to watch. Certainly a "must watch" for any fan of animated DC, and adapted comic characters in general. It set a standard that was consistently unmatched by the garbage that was Hanna-Barbera's collective Super Friends series, and even Filmation's occasionally stylish 60's DC cartoons (and i'm not just talking budgets, but plotting and treatment of characters). Only the Warner Brothers / "Timmverse" cartoons restored that Fleischer (and comic) level of class, drama and superheroic fun to DC cartoons.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 18, 2019 15:44:03 GMT -5
So true. When I saw the 60s DC cartoons again recently, they most certainly did not live up to the nostalgia. As a kid, my mother rented some of those on videotape in the 80s. Back then, they were magical. As an adult, I can't endorse them.
Yet I can endorse the storylines of the Fleischer era and Timm-Verse.
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Confessor
CCF Mod Squad
Not Bucky O'Hare!
Posts: 9,558
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Post by Confessor on Feb 18, 2019 19:31:54 GMT -5
I find the Fleischer Superman cartoons of the 1940s to be very enjoyable to watch. The Fleischer cartoons are very nicely animated, admittedly, but they're still unwatchable for me. I think I made it through about an episode and a half before my brain was screaming, "turn this s**t off!"
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Post by Icctrombone on Feb 18, 2019 19:54:46 GMT -5
Yeah, I didn't get the fuss over the Fleisher cartoons either.
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Post by Duragizer on Feb 18, 2019 22:16:08 GMT -5
DC's current "multi-multiverse" is a redundant headache.
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Post by Prince Hal on Feb 18, 2019 22:34:22 GMT -5
Yeah, I didn't get the fuss over the Fleisher cartoons either. My sympathies. I loved 'em and still do. Unmatched until the Bruce Timm Batman cartoons. (The Grantray-Lawrence Marvel cartoons excepted.)
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Post by Mister Spaceman on Feb 23, 2019 14:11:24 GMT -5
Comic book history will not be justly served until all Marvel Family Fawcett comics are reprinted in hardcover - unadulterated. We can suss out what's "problematic" about some of them and still enjoy them for the unbridled fun they are. They were some of the best and most popular comic books of the 1940s and deserve to be seen.
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