Super Friends

This was an hour long show that was actually two shows put together. Half of it was a continuation of The All-New Super Friends Hour but just a half hour this time. The second part is them fighting the Legion Of Doom. That's the series I remember seeing the most as a kid, it was probably re-run by itself later. This is the only series that came close to the comic book, they even go to the Bat cave. I would highly recommend not watching any series that came before this one.

Now this is how you make an animated series based on superheroes. "Super Powers Team: The Galactic Gaurdians" aired in 1985-'86 and it was the last SuperFriends show based on the Justice League of America from the 1973-1986 run. In my opinion, this was also head and shoulders the best. The animation is greatly improved from any earlier SuperFriends show. The characters act like mature adults, and a few of them even have some distinct personalities that separate them from the rest of the JLA. There were also no stupid teenage tag along like Wendy & Marvin or Zan & Jayna on this show. And thankfully, no stupid animals like Wonder Dog or Gleek. A new character Cyborg is introduced, he is an African American teenager, but he is not a silly background extra that screws up and gets captured repeatedly so Superman and Green Lantern could come save the day the way the previous non-White heroes (Black Vulcan/Lightning, Samurai, and Apache Chief) did on the other shows. Cyborg is a great character that is not a cardboard cut out of Superman. Firestorm is back from the "Super Powers" series from the previous year, and he too is in top form. Wonder Woman acts, well like a woman and we see her life more fleshed out. Superman even behaves more adult like and does not have the ridiculous God-like powers he had in the 70s. The Batman in this show is more in line with the comic book character.

Here Batman behaves like a very mature grown man, a man that is tormented over his compulsion to go out and fight crime. He is also a detective in this show like he should be, and not a blundering buffoon that pulls out all kinds of stupid gadgets from that little utility belt. 'The Fear' is a stand out episode that illustrates the difference in Batman in this show from the previous SuperFriends. It is ironic that this Batman is the most serious, since he is voiced by Adam West who played the idiot Batman in the 1960s TV series. Green Lantern, Flash, Aquaman, and Samurai don't get a whole lot of time devoted to them, but at least they don't do anything embarrassing.

The JLA team primarily butts heads with the villainous Darkseid and his cronies Dessad and Kavlik, but the Joker and Scarecrow turn up in two episodes as well. I always get the feeling that the two "Super Powers Team" series from the mid 80s doesn't have the incredibly loyal Gen Xer following that 1978's "Challenge of the SuperFriends" enjoys because Darkseid and Dessad were too comic book heavy for mainstream viewers. The plots could be a bit comic book heavy as well. That and I think children were just burned out on SuperFriends by 1985, the whole thing had been around for 12 years at that point. "Challenge" was a great and memorable show no doubt, and DC comic book villains like Lex Luthor and Black Manta were there, but the Legion of Doom tended to formulate rather childish plans to knock off the SuperFriends and rule the planet. Nevertheless a kid today will probably look at this show and still laugh at it while finding a ton of problems with it (because there are problems). "The Super Powers Team" is not nearly as rounded out as the current Justice League animated series. But I remember being blown away by how far the whole SuperFriends deal had come since the stupid early years of the 70s when Wonder Dog or the annoying space monkey Gleek would hang around the Hall of Justice with those kids. A long way indeed. Watch this show, "SuperFriends: The Legendary Super Powers Team", and "Challenge of the SuperFriends". They are the 3 best ones, with "The All-New SuperFriends Hour" and "The Worlds Greatest SuperFriends" being not all that bad and entertaining at times. The worst one remains the original "SuperFriends" from 1973-1977.

Along with 'Challenge of the Super Friends' & 'Super Friends: The Legendary Super Powers Show', this was one of the best Super Friends show. The stories were at their peak, being very creative and adventourous. It was classic eighties cartoons, like The Real Ghostbusters and Inspector Gadget. Catch the reruns on Cartoon Network.

This was an even better season, with improved art and animation. With the introduction of Cyborg to the TV, the stories seemed to improve both in characterization and plot. For Batman, it became less about the utility belts and more about the man. For Wonder Woman, she finally got to flex her muscles (I think she did last season, too.).

And some of the stories were risque for the time, most notably in "The Fear," which retold Batman's origin and the murder of his parents (The writer of this and the Fox/WB Batman series says he can't believe TPTB let him do it), and "The Death of Superman."

Why they let this series end after one season is beyond me. I truly loved this show and I'm glad Cartoon Network has been rerunning them, even if they *are* on the thin line between Saturday night and Sunday morning.

Ah, the Super Friends. Anyone who grew up in the 70's and calls themselves a comic book fan has a special place in their heart for this show; the first cartoon to depict the Justice League of America (well, apart from the Filmation cartoons, but they didn't have the big guns of Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman in the JLA cartoons). Some hated it because it was watered down, with no memorable villains. Other enjoyed its charm and goofy fun. Some of us were glad to see any show with superheroes.

Now, in the 70's, the networks didn't allow much in the ways of violence in cartoons (except for Bugs and company), so we didn't get any slobberknockers with the bad guys. Still, there were memorable conflicts, with some creativity involved. Yeah, most of the "villains" were misguided and not evil, but there was fun to be had.

Some of my personal favorites were the GEEC episode, where a computer controls all of man's machines, only to go haywire when a mouse gets inside it; The planet-splitting episode, where Superman's origin is retold; the Gulliver episode, where everyone is reduced to the size of a doll; and the episode with the Flash.

The series went out of its way to present environmental issues, moral dilemmas, and other thought-provoking conflicts. It had far greater educational value than the "commercial" cartoons of the 80's and was far more entertaining than most. Yes, Wendy and Marvin were annoying at times, but they did have some value. I'll take them over the Wonder Twins any day. Besides, Marvin made it into Alex Ross' Kingdom Come.

If you wanted action in the 70's, you had to find Jonny Quest reruns or catch Speed Racer in syndication. The Super Friends would suffice until something better came along. It took two more series, but arrive it did; and, it still carried the name, Super Friends.