How Fleischer Studios Created the Best Superman Ever

Comments · 436

• TH

  @thomaspowers1375 · 4 years ago (edited)

  There was actually a comic book story where Clark and Lois go to the movies and a Fleischer Superman short is playing. Clark has to distract Lois throughout so she doesn't see the parts of the cartoon that showed that Clark was actually Superman.

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• TH

  @thevfxmancolorizationvfxex4051 · 4 years ago

  We need another Superman series like this which involves the Rotoscoping technique that the Fleischer Brothers used. It's really what made this version so endearing imo

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• TE

  @TehEv0 · 4 years ago (edited)

  Henry Cavill could have been a great superman if he was actually in a movie reality that had a well written version of the character. Neither Snyder nor Whedon portrayed the Superman character well. Agreed on the animated version being #1 though, my uncle showed me them when I was a kid and I love them.

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• AS

  @ashemountain · 4 years ago

  There is no denying the greatness of the Fleischer cartoons. They still hold up today.

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• JO

  @jonathancook1096 · 4 years ago

  I remember briefly when Cartoon Network actually aired the Fleischer shorts sometime in the late 90s early 2000s. I was familiar with them but never got to see one until they decided to broadcast them. One "interesting" fact was because this was first shown in 1941 with the comic itself only three years old at the time. That said, the origin story used in the short was actually based off the original 1937 comic. I know a lot of you are reading this and going "DUHHHHHH!!!" and I understand. What you may not know is the "original" origin story had all the people on Krypton with superpowers (no red sun or atmosphere neutralization). Also, when "Clark" was found he was taken to an orphanage where he lived until he came of age as was the norm in those days. His parents are later introduced in 1942 or 43 but with varying names. It wasn't until a reboot telling of the origin story in the early 1950s that the names Jonathan and Martha Kent were introduced into the mythos as we knew it when we first learn the stories. Even before watching this video I was going to see how Steve was going to address that "wait a minute" hiccup for anyone who has seen the first one in it's entirety.

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• CA

  @CamstonIsland · 4 years ago

  I remember watching that VHS compilation of Fleischer Superman when I was a wee bab. While I haven't been much of a superman or comic book fan, I always felt that those cartoons were special, special enough that despite not having heard it for almost two decades, I still synced my remembered audio with the visuals of the 'faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive' introduction.

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• OP

  @OpinionsNoOneCaresAbout · 4 years ago

  This reminds me of the SNL sketch where everyone at the Daily Planet knew that Clark Kent (played by The Rock) was Superman. Good stuff.

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• MA

  @MattMcIrvin · 4 years ago (edited)

  You can actually see Superman&apos;s powers evolving and leveling up over the course of the Fleischer shorts. I&apos;m pretty sure he <b>can&apos;t</b> fly in the first one, not exactly, but by a few episodes later he definitely can.<br>But in &quot;Billion Dollar Limited&quot; he still has to strain to stop a train. There&apos;s some effort there that maintains the drama.

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• CI

  @ciaranlane8676 · 4 years ago

  The quality of the animation in this cartoon is sooooo good. Buttery-smooth!

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• AL

  @allanolley4874 · 4 years ago

  Another thing that makes the Fleischer shorts the Best Superman Ever is that they are in the public domain and so can be easily and cheaply accessed. Also random Youtubers can do riffs of them or otherwise use the footage with no fear of copyright violations!

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• BI

  @bilbo1778 · 4 years ago

  I binged some of these last year after reading a Wikipedia article on Miyazaki&apos;s Castle in the Sky and how the look of the automatons near the climax of the film were directly inspired by &quot;The Mechanical Monsters&quot; Superman Fleischer short. &nbsp;Absolutely amazing animation quality with a distinct Art-Deco stylishness &amp; realism w/ a surprising amount of violence and deadly stakes for something ostensibly aimed at children. &nbsp;I wish Fleischer Studios got a crack at depicting more golden age superheros like Batman which surely would have created some iconic images and a time capsule of the quintessence of the character contemporaneous with its comic debut without all the baggage of nearly a century of different depictions by countless comic authors. &nbsp;<br><br>It&apos;s also interesting to think about how the character of Lois Lane is depicted from a historical feminism perspective - on one hand she&apos;s an extremely accomplished journalist who CAN ALSO FLY A FRIGGIN&apos; PLANE but is also a bit of a doofus constantly getting captured in no small part due to being completely careless while at the same time placing herself in dangerous situations. &nbsp;i.e. maybe DON&apos;T knock on the door of a mad scientist&apos;s lair and expect a good outcome...

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• IA

  @Ian_sothejokeworks · 1 year ago

  That&apos;s such crisp animation! I miss that...

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