Comics Review: Dark Age and Filmation Part 2

 

Part 1

Lou Scheimer: Creating the Filmation Generation

At nearly 300 pages, I have a decent excuse for not reading this thing quickly.    I already had preview copy of this that I’d used for a reference about the Josie and the Pussycats cartoon (though not a Filmation cartoon) and the Sabrina cartoon (7-22-24 and 9-29-23).  Even the preview was pretty informative.    Getting the full version of this seemed like the best option as a substitute for my original, unfulfilled order.    (Twomorrows had given me the option of getting anything comparable or three magazines.)

       

The preview maybe gave me the impression the full book would have more information about Filmation’s cartoons and live action shows.    This really isn’t the case.    It’s more about the production and financing of the shows.    There’s no episode synopsis of any shows and barely any information on individual episodes.    We do get plenty of anecdotes about the making of the shows, at least.

   

This is also something of an autobiography for Lou Scheimer, one of the three original partners at the studio.    Honestly, probably the most interesting part of the book was Lou describing his early years before starting the studio.    I wouldn’t say he led an extraordinary life, but he had a great recollection of his colorful life.

The small studio had done some small jobs and was essentially out of business, but somehow picked up the rights to do a Superman cartoon.    They had to fool the investors into thinking they were fully staffed to get the funding.    This led to producing cartoons featuring other DC superheroes.    This relationship would continue on for many years in many itinerations.    Unfortunately, this would include a Batman show featuring Bat-Mite.    (Lou made sure to say that the character came from the comics.    They didn’t invent him.)               

The studio used limited animation to save money.    They’d use a library of stock footage for certain common scenes.    They felt it was a tradeoff to reuse some high-quality loops, rather than use subpar animation all the way through.    Also saving money, Lou used his own voice for some minor characters in various cartoons, along using with family members.   

Filmation’s first big hit was Archie.    The shows were greatly helped by the Archies’ musical group soundtrack, including the big hit, Sugar, Sugar.    Lou was extremely pleased that Archie Comics went out of their way to promote the cartoons, unlike DC.    Again, this relationship lasted for the several years and many different series.   

They also launched Sabrina.    She’d been an obscure, but memorable, Madhouse character that Filmation successfully turned into a star.    You can probably thank them for Sabrina’s lasting popularity and also Josie and the Pussycats.    Rival studio, Hanna-Barbera, wanted in on the action and developed another minor Archie character into a singing group.    Sabrina would even spawn a spinoff cartoon in the Groovie Goolies.                         

Bill Cosby’s Fat Albert cartoon had a long and twisting development, but it would turn out to be Filmation’s longest-running cartoon series.    Interesting, the show was never considered a black show by the kids or adults watching.    (True.    That’s how I felt watching it.)    The kids were also not poor.    (Certainly, Fat Albert wasn’t missing any meals.)    The gang was hanging out at the junkyard, because that’s what kids do.    (Again true, from my own childhood hanging out in a vacant lot.)    Still, Cosby felt the show was discriminated against because it never won an Emmy.   

Gene Roddenberry wanted to continue the just-canceled Star Trek series and turned to animation.    It was envisioned as a continuation of the series, not a kid’s show, with the original actors providing the voices along with some great sci-fi writers doing the scripts (such as Larry Niven, one of my favorites).    It was also produced without network interference, which explains why it turned out so well.    This show did win an Emmy, though Lou was sloshed at the ceremony while accepting it.       

This led into a live action era of Filmation.    I watched some of these shows as a kid.    This included Shazam, Isis (be still my heart), Ark II, Space Academy, and Jason of Star Command (which was my favorite).       

One of my favorite Filmation series was their Flash Gordon show.    This was a great-looking cartoon.    They rotoscoped actual models for the animation of the spaceships, not to mention the characters.    The show was originally part of an animated movie.    I didn’t know this and haven’t seen it.    There’s some discussion about having this movie and the more famous Flash Gordon live-action movie out at about the same time.    Filmation also made series for other action heroes: Tarzan, The Lone Ranger, and Zorro.

An original action hero they produced was Blackstar.    I remember this show.    It was kind of cool and kind of dumb (in a word: Trobbits). However, it would serve as a prototype for their future He-Man show.    (Thundaar the Barbarian, produced by Ruby-Spears, has also been cited by others an inspiration.)    By the way, Filmation produced a whole bunch of other Saturday morning cartoons I’m skipping over, but are covered in the book.    

       

The live action models

I'm admittedly a Teela fan.

Adam Hughes DVD insert card

Filmation had been dependent on the networks buying their programs.    In the 80’s, they switched to first-run syndication to produce He-Man.    Making 65 episodes kept their studio fully employed for a year.    This was a big deal for them, because Filmation produced their animation in the US.    The other studios were out-sourcing their work.    This kept the animation union happy, who were often on strike against those other studios. (Well, not that happy.    There was no pleasing them.)

He-Man was a huge hit.    More episodes were made along with a spinoff show for girls, She-Ra.    Along with this popularity, the studio was constantly having to defend themselves against media watchdog groups protesting cartoon violence.    This was ironic, since the studio was infamous for doing morals and values messages after every show.    The other criticism was that they were just making commercials to sell toys.    (Angry parents don’t want to buy their kids toys, apparently.)     

Forrest Tucker is in orange.

In the 70’s, Filmation produced a live-action show called, Ghostbusters, about two guys and a gorilla fighting ghosts.    You probably never saw it.    One of the funnier anecdotes from the book describes a story about star, Forrest Tucker’s, ahh . . . manhood.    It was apparently longer than Milton Berle’s.

In the 80’s, this concept was revived in a movie about four guys fighting ghosts using the same name.    You might have seen this one.    Unsurprisingly, Filmation sued Columbia Pictures over the name and concept.    They won, but didn’t get much of out it.    Specifically, they didn’t secure the animation rights.   

Filmation offered to do an animated version of the newer Ghostbusters, but Columbia decided they’d outsource it to someone else.    Filmation brought out their own animated show based on their old live-action show and put it out first.    Columbia later released their own show based on their movie and called it, The Real Ghostbusters.    What a cluster F!    All this did was confuse everybody.    The best that could be said about this is that both shows produced some cool toys.   

One fallout of their syndication focus was that the networks stopped talking to them.    Producing cartoons for Saturday morning for three networks allowed for some failures.    Now, they would no longer buy shows from Filmation.    They had to basically bet the studio on their own productions.    Their Ghostbusters didn’t do so good.    Their next show was BraveStarr, which was attached to a toyline. This didn’t do well, either.    (It might have been the sort of scary anthropomorphic horse.)       

After two failures and a couple of failed animated theatrical fairy tale movies, it was suddenly over.    Filmation was sold to a holding company for their back catalogue.    The studio employees were fired.    Just a few years before, they were riding high with He-Man and now they were out-of-business.    Lou tried to keep the studio going with new projects, such as He-Ro son of He-Man, but the market had changed.       

The ending of the book gets really sad.    Lou worked at his own studio, but couldn’t get any projects off the ground to air.    Unbelievably, he was working on adult animation that was near soft-core naughty stuff.    What a change from shoving in morals and values in at the end of every episode!   

Lou was also promoting shows with gay stuff for reasons that will become apparent later.    He’d regretted not doing a gay awareness episode of Fat Albert.    (Things might have gotten awkward there in the clubhouse.)    There was a constant theme running through most of their shows involving diversity and gender equity.    They kept wanting to have the first this or that token in a cartoon.    The shows themselves were nearly produced just for the sake of promoting diversity.    It got obnoxious to read about constantly.   

Lou’s long time wife became ill and passed away.    He also became sick and needed constant care.    His lesbian daughter was caring for him.    He was estranged from his son, who had adopted children.    Finally, he was contacted by a writer, who wanted to do this book, who was also gay.    Lou was proud of his studio’s work and of his former animators, who went on to be successful themselves.

It was a bummer ending.    This book was interesting, but not quite what I was looking for regarding the subject of old Saturday morning shows.    I don’t know if I could recommend this to anybody, even Filmation fans.    Other than that Forrest Tucker wang story (it is pretty funny), you likely wouldn’t care about the rest of it.   

I’m afraid this is more largely indicative of Twomorrows’ work in general.    They cover so many subjects that I’m interested in, but the material seldom delivers what I’m looking for.    It’s mostly so much behind-the-scenes and scandal stuff, rather than covering the material itself.    I almost have to wonder what the First Comics Companion would have been like, if I’d been able to get that instead. 

Comics Review: Dark Age and Filmation Part 1

This is a long-delayed review.    I had purchased a couple of pdf’s from Twomorrows in May.    (I’ve reviewed some issues of their Backissue magazine previously over several posts.) The impetus for this purchase was a book about the history of First Comics.    Being a Nexus fan and interested in some of their other titles, I got that and picked up another pdf about the so-called “Dark Age” of comics.

What went wrong was that the First Comics Companion offered was a preorder . . . for November of this year!    It was in the text of the ad, so that’s on me, though they could have made that line bigger and emphasized it.    (Or, not offered it until it was closer to being ready.)    I received and read the Dark Age pdf and bided my time . . .

Until they released a new catalogue in October, which did not offer the First Comics Companion.    It was not listed on their website either.    I wrote in, likely to the wrong person, to enquire about my preorder.    Within a couple of days, I got a reply that it had been delayed for legal reasons.    They also used to offer Superman and Batman Companion books that were also taken down, so I can believe that.   

This was followed by another e-mail, which might have been sent to everyone who had made the order, which offered a refund or a substitute.    I’m glad I said something.    I think they’d forgotten about it.    I picked a substitute and I just finished reading it.        

     

Dark Age: Grim, Great, and Gimmicky Post-Modern Comics

I sort of forgot about this after I read it.    (That’s the one-sentence review.)    I was waiting for the other book to come in to review it.    That didn’t happen.    I then waited until I finished the replacement book, which took awhile.    This is much shorter book at 174 pages.

This is a commentary of mostly 90’s comics, but also some events in the 80’s, like Crisis on Infinite Earths.    I thought this was going to be more of an homage to the time, but it’s more of a criticism.    It’s also not a coherent narrative.    Two of the people who started this project died before it was finished.    I don’t know if that had something to do with it.    (Also, it’s obviously cursed.)    It’s a series of articles on various topics and interviews with creators of the time.    The book is mostly black and white with just a few color pages.    That’s disappointing, since you subconsciously associate the era with flashy colors.   

 

This isn’t to say it isn’t informative.    There’s a history of comics section of the comics that led up to the Dark Age.    There are detailed articles on Crisis (1985), The Dark Knight Returns (1986), and The Watchmen (1986).      There’s also an article on the The Nam, a Vietnam War comic from the 80’s.    (That’s another definite motif of the 80’s.)   

There’s some reverence for that material, but then events become questionable with the advent of a second Bat-mania.    There’s an interview with Denny O’Neil about the death of the Jason Todd Robin and Bane breaking Batman’s back, along with the 1989 Batman movie and a flood of interesting Batman comics.    There’s good stuff in there, but it’s tinged with overwhelming commercialism.   

The Dark Age seems more about sales and marketing than being grim and gritty.    There’s article about Todd McFarlane’s Spider-Man #1.    Nobody ever talks about the quality of the comic book, only about how much it sold.    Likewise from the article, I assume McFarlane’s Spawn is good, since it’s been around so long, but the artwork is what sells it.    There’s an interview with Jim Lee about X-Men #1, another big seller, and his other works.    At least those could sell with great artwork.    Then there’s the Death of Superman event, which may have been the pinnacle of Dark Age marketing.

Image Comics, along with and Valiant and Defiant, are covered with interviews with some Indy creators.    Some of their titles have some value, others are there for shock value.    Some comics are ruined by reputation just for the marketing (Plasm #0).    On the other side of the coin, there’s the more scholarly works, such as Maus and Scott McCloud’s Understanding Comics.    Alex Ross’ paintings elevated comics to fine art.

The book goes over the clichés of the era: Big guns, Cheesecake (I will always maintain that the Jim Balent Catwoman was the best and will never apologize for it), Revamps, Enhancements, Polybags, Deaths, First Issues and Zero Issues.

At the end, there’s two lists.    One has the Most Important comics of the era and the other has the Most Ludicrous (with Death of Superman appearing on both).    That dichotomy seems to exemplify the era.       

So, “It was the best of times and it was the worst of times?”    The 90’s were not the most popular era of comics, but it was when they likely got the most publicity and had the most perceived monetary value.    They were hot and finally broke out their “just for kids” stigma.    You could see the “Dark Ages” setting up the triumph of the MCU later.           

Of course, this was when I tapped out of comics for the most part.    Sandman was about the only thing that got me to the comic book store (and that title is covered briefly in the book).    Most of the marketing clichés were unappealing to me, even when I purchased them as “collectors’ items.”    The deaths, big guns, and violence motifs didn’t do much for me either.    (Cheesecake, on the other hand . . . )    I usually look at the 80’s as My Era, where it was just fun without much in the way of trying to collect as an investment.    If the 90’s were Your Era, you might get more out of this.

Part 2

Comics Review: All-Star Superman

I was making a quick trip to the Mall and stopped into Barnes & Noble for a minute. I saw this digest-ish sized trade of All-Star Superman on the shelf. I looked at the price and was shocked that it was $9.99. I snapped it right up and ran to the register before they came to their senses.

It’s a bit bigger than an Archie digest and more proportionally-sized like a comic book. The pages are pulp, but are bright white and of decent quality. (This likely won’t last with the passage of time.) All 12 issues of the series are here. I did get the first issue of the series in that Superman magazine, but I’m good with having that issue in an oversized format. There are other editions of classic DC comics available in this format (the DC Compact Comics line).

Essentially, this is a cheap reading copy. The artwork really needs to be seen full-sized on slick white paper. In places the print is a bit hard to read (ironically) from the compression, as is the artwork. The colors used are very bright, even in scenes where it’s supposed to be dark. The colors get muddled a bit from being printed on inferior stock.

I have read this whole series before on an “archive” site. I thought it was pretty good, but I was reading it pretty quickly online. This time, I wanted to sit back and read it more carefully. I actually started this review last month, anticipating that I was going to finish this a lot quicker. It’s not a dense read, but you’re almost studying it in places and deciphering it in others. Skimming this quickly won’t be rewarding, though it is drawn in the modern decompressed story style (which is the bane of comic books in general today).

I feel somewhat unworthy to review this masterwork, but I also want to pick apart some questionable storytelling by Grant Morrison. I want to admire Frank Quitely’s near Moebius-inspired European sci-fi artwork (an odd choice for the All-American hero), but so much of the time characters are drawn ugly and off-model.

I’m not going to pretend I understood everything I read in this, though some parts are crystal clear. You might need to be a Superman scholar to really get it. (How much of this story is pure invention and how much is obscure call-backs?) We have moments of irreverent humor and moments of quiet philosophical reflection. The story never wears out its welcome, even in twelve issues. In fact, it leaves you wishing for more. There are many threads to follow up on and unanswered questions, but we’re only allowed a glimpse into Superman’s world. The sun is simply too bright to stare into.

Here’s that iconic opening page. If there’s anything that qualifies as fine art in comic book form, this is it.

*****Spoilers (in case you haven’t read this, don’t read this part)*****

There’s a motif of the 12 Labors of Superman, but there’s not a slavish devotion to following it. This is really just about Superman being given one year to live after fatal solar poisoning from a scheme by Lex Luther. Batman is mentioned a couple of times, but there aren’t any guest star superheroes. The spotlight is firmly on Superman. While theoretically this is the modern Superman, in actuality this is the Silver Age Superman with almost no limits on his powers, physical or mental. Expect outlandish science and displays of power.

At the end of the first issue, Superman finally reveals himself as Clark Kent to Lois Lane. In the next issue, he shows her his Fortress of Solitude. In the next, he gives her superpowers equal to his own. A couple of super jerk rivals show up to ruin their date and to give Superman a warning: a newspaper headline from the near future that reads, “Superman Dead!”

The fourth issue may have been my favorite. Jimmy Olsen is put in charge of Dr. Quintum’s lunar base for a day. While there, Superman encounters black Krytonite and goes bad. Ever clever and resourceful, Jimmy has to save the day and Superman himself.

Clark gets a big scoop in the next issue by interviewing Lex Luther in prison, who is preparing for his execution, and meets Lex’s evil niece. Chaos ensues as a superpowered Clark comes into contact with Parasite. Next, Superman goes back in time with some Supermen of the future. He gets to spend a moment with Pa Kent before he passes away.

The world is then attacked by Bizarro World. Superman fends off the attack, but is stranded on the backward planet. With the help of the only sane Bizarro, he manages to escape.

Superman returns to Metropolis to find himself replaced by a pair of explorer Kryptonians, who survived the end of Krypton. They highly disapprove of him “going native” and urge him to help them take control of the planet. (Why does Luther never have anything to say about actual enemy Kryptonians?) In their conflict, the moon is cracked. (Where’s Dr. Quintum during all of this?) Before they can finish off Superman, the couple falls to fatal Kryptonite poisoning. Superman sends them to the Phantom Zone to establish some law and order there.

With his time running out, Superman writes his will. “To Clark Kent, I leave the headline of the century.” He finds a solution to the bottle city of Kandor. There’s an odd interlude with Superman creating a duplicate earth in a pocket dimension to see what a world without a Superman would be look like. I didn’t entirely understand this, but apparently it’s our world and without an actual Superman, we would invent one.

Luther not only escapes execution, but gains Superman’s powers. His ally, Solaris the Tyrant Sun, attacks and turns the sun red to further depower Superman. With allies, Superman beats Solaris. There’s some setup for this confrontation, but not much. There’s no backstory for this conflict provided.

Clark Kent dies as he presents his final story to the Daily Planet. Deceased, he meets his natural father, Zor-El, who gives him the option of returning, which he does. Luther attacks and Clark confronts him. Still maintaining his secret identity to the end, Clark is revealed to be Superman himself in disguise.

In the fight, Luther nearly beats Superman just as his power runs out. Luther suddenly has a personal revelation and understands Superman’s perspective on the world, right before Superman punches him out. Finally, Superman tells Lois goodbye before he flies off to save the sun.

I saw the animated movie version of this after reading the book. It’s pretty faithful to the original. (It only uses the iconic opening page as a voiceover by Luther at the end, though.) The movie does skip over the Jimmy episode (too bad), along with going back in time to see his dad and the whole Bizzaro storyline. The changes made to the story in general make it better. There’s a short, but very heart-tugging scene between Superman and Ma Kent. The ending is different with a repentant Luther providing a solution to the world without a Superman. They did maybe stay a little too close to the original in not setting up or explaining the ending very well.

*****End of Spoilers*****

Overall, this story does have problems. It’s silly in places, as an homage to the Silver Age Superman. Alan Moore’s Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow, the traditional coda of the Silver Age Superman, is deadly serious by comparison. The final conflict isn’t set up well. Lex is just a cartoon villain. It felt like Superman’s romance with Lois should have been more prominent. Here the animated movie maybe handles these two issues a bit better, which is an acknowledgement of the weakness of the original. Even then, it still had to stick to the basic plot.

All that said, All-Star Superman is a classic. Unlike Batman:Hush, which I was really disappointed by (except for the artwork), this story is mythic and could only star Superman. (Everyone who says Batman is their favorite superhero, hasn’t read his comics in a while.) I hesitated doing a full recap, because so much of the enjoyment of the story is turning the pages and not knowing what sort of surprises will be there. It may be a bit all-over-the-place in narrative, but it will delight you in the unexpected. Even knowing the story, you’ll still amazed by the details and imagination.

For $9.99, this is best comic book you can get. Definite purchase.