The Magnetic Telescope

A mad scientist has developed a contraption capable of pulling celestial bodies out of the heavens. When he succeeds in bringing a highly destructive comet upon Metropolis, and with intrepid reporter Lois Lane in harm's way, only Superman can stop the chaos caused by THE MAGNETIC TELESCOPE.

This was another in the series of excellent cartoons Max Fleischer produced for Paramount Studio. They feature great animation and taut, fast-moving plots. Meant to be shown in movie theaters, they are miles ahead of their Saturday Morning counterparts. Bud Collyer is the voice of Superman; Joan Alexander does the honors for Lois Lane.

Magnetic Telescope, The (1942)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

A scientist, trying to do good, creates a large magnet, which goes out of control after police mess with it. Soon the magnet is bringing meteors crashing to Earth of course only Superman can save the day. Middle-ground animation isn't a classic but it is mildly entertaining even though we're following the same story structure from the previous films. I've heard a few people say that Lois' character was wonderfully written in this series but I have to disagree as she's really coming off as a narrow-minded fool who just constantly does dumb things to get herself in trouble to where Superman must save her. The animation is fairly impressive this time out with the meteor shower being the highlight. I still haven't been overly impressed with this series even though this is only the sixth one.

The 1942 animated short story "The Magnetic Telescope" is definitely the one "Superman" tale from 1940s that stands out for me. I remember this one very vividly from my childhood. And thus, it was really a blast from the past to sit down in 2023 and watch it once more.

The storyline in "The Magnetic Telescope" is entertaining, enjoyable and exciting. And it is amazing that writers Dan Gordon and Carl Meyer could manage to put together such a thrilling storyline with just 8 minutes to the runtime. Quite a nice accomplishment, especially since it is a storyline that has been imprinted with me since the early to mid 1980s.

The art style and animation style in "The Magnetic Telescope" is good, just as it is in all other "Superman" tales of this particular series. There is just something timeless and classic about it, and it works so well, even now 81 years down the line.

"The Magnetic Telescope" is a classic for me, without a doubt, and one of the more enjoyable of tales in this particular series of short tales.

My rating of director Dave Fleischer and Thomas Moore's 1942 "The Magnetic Telescope" lands on a six out of ten stars.

Someone used the term "misguided" to describe the scientists in this series. It's easy when they have true science in mind but don't know what they are dealing with. The others are the ones with criminal intent. Where the science is used to rob or plunder. This is the former, where this guy doesn't know when to stop, causing chaos for the world. Even after his machine is destroyed the results of his actions continue to affect the earth. A comet, a very large celestial body, heads toward the earth and Superman is pretty small compared to it. He must use every tool in his arsenal to dissuade the space junk. Of course, Lois is right there, getting in the way. This is a landmark episode where a kiss is exchanged. I'm sure the kids watching this on Saturday mornings would have yelled, "Mush." There was some innocence at that time. Remember, outside the theater, a war was in progress.

A misguided (not mad) scientist has developed a telescope which is basically a giant magnet (!!!). With it he proposes to draw comets to the Earth (for some reason) and then send them back into space. The police warn him not to do it. He ignores them and immediately starts bringing in a comet. The police destroy his equipment...but it's too late. The comet is hurtling towards Earth spitting out huge fireballs causing destruction. The scientist can't send it back because his equipment has been destroyed. Superman tries to smash the comet but it's too strong for him! What will happen?

One of the lesser Superman cartoons but still fun. This is the first where Clark Kent does NOT say "This is a job for Superman" before changing. And there's a sweet little kiss between him and Lois at the end. Worth catching but just OK.