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Author Topic: Superhero Cartoons  (Read 2415 times)

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bulbasaur

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Superhero Cartoons
« on: June 27, 2015, 07:45:43 PM »
I have always been interested in superheroes, even before I started reading comics.  My first exposure to superheroes was through cartoons and freebie comics given out by various school programs (I'll talk about that later).  So as to not let these cartoons just get lost like tears in the rain, here is an ongoing list of superhero cartoons.  Some good.  Some bad.  Some meh.  Some popular.  Some almost forgotten.  There are a lot of them, so let's start with...

1. Green Lantern (1967)

That's right.  GL was popular enough to have its own cartoon in 1967.  Reruns ran late nights on a local station every week, and I watched it.  When I was older, the comic shop dude had the series on VHS.  It wasn't as good, but it was fun to relive a bit of childhood.  For this thread, I searched for it on Youtube.  Crazy enough, someone else in the world remembers this cartoon, and they posted it.  Here it is for anyone who missed this almost 50 year old cartoon. 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vGtl8f6BnvU

This wouldn't be the only cartoon series from that era. 



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bulbasaur

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Re: Superhero Cartoons
« Reply #1 on: June 27, 2015, 07:53:43 PM »
Let's not just focus on old stuff...

2. Young Justice

I really liked this show.  The characters actually develop.  Robin actually becomes Nightwing.  The teenagers actually go through teenager type things.  I really liked the art too.  Too bad it only lasted 2 seasons.  It was just getting good too.  One of my favorite episodes was when Captain Marvel joined the team.  It was really fun to watch and analyze the psychology of that episode on different levels. 

Here is the start of Young Justice: Invasion
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p2cXJPpfxsk&list=PLH5uyMe1kFw_mA21mvIlcT8uZy4bnmLJi



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bulbasaur

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Re: Superhero Cartoons
« Reply #2 on: June 27, 2015, 08:02:27 PM »
3. Legion of Superheroes (2006)

Wow, has it really almost been 10 years since this show aired?  I liked this show.  It was quirky and fun.  It was a lighter version of Young Justice.  The show gets more interesting when Superboy comes back older in season two.  This is another DC show that got cancelled after 2 seasons. 



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bulbasaur

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Re: Superhero Cartoons
« Reply #3 on: June 27, 2015, 08:09:51 PM »
4. Spawn (1997)

Spawn is quite possibly the best hero to spawn out of Image.  In that short period of time, he got a movie and a toy line.  Some may not remember, but he also got a cartoon running 18 episodes on HBO.  I didn't have HBO, so I had to settle with a friend's recording.  I think MacFarlane prefers to call it an "animation," but whatever.  I hear they are planning a new series.  That should be fun.  In the meantime, enjoy the original.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MuyPv78NclU

Am I the only one that is surprised to be able to find all of these shows on Youtube? 



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bulbasaur

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Re: Superhero Cartoons
« Reply #4 on: June 27, 2015, 08:15:33 PM »
Continuing to not just focus on DC and Marvel...

5. Gargoyles

I consider this a superhero cartoon.  I recently re-watched this series, and I think it still holds up today.  I really love the entire mythology (except the final season).  I love how the show uses so many classic characters.  I can go on and on about this show.  It probably needs its own thread.  This is one of my favorite shows.  Disney needs to bring back Gargoyles, either in a reboot or a movie.  Technology has changed, so let's see a new Gargoyles.   
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSfVzu7L-_w



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bulbasaur

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Re: Superhero Cartoons
« Reply #5 on: June 27, 2015, 08:27:02 PM »
6.  Spectacular Spiderman

Okay, I better get one of these many Spiderman entries out of the way.  There seems to be a Spidey series for every generation, and some are getting 2 plus movies.  In any case, Spectacular Spidey was really fun.  Some might argue that it is the best.  Too bad it only lasted 2 seasons.  I believe it was due to company rights. 

BTW, it has a catchy theme song like the old 60's show (which will also make the list).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8PWqYU_-Ysc



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bulbasaur

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Re: Superhero Cartoons
« Reply #6 on: June 27, 2015, 11:32:36 PM »
For YJ, I didn't mind the time gap.  I thought the details would be explained in a flashback season or future episodes.  Unfortunately, I think it never materialized. 

I don't think the 90's Spiderman holds up anymore.  Spiderman gets really mopey and sulky, and the show never gets the fun flashy aspects of Spiderman.  The later seasons really got crummy because they tried to tell watered down versions of clones, Carnage, and dimensions.  Even the art looks dated.  I need to watch it again to be sure.  It has been a while. 

I think people have fond memories of the 90's Spidey because that was their first exposure.  I can't blame them because I do too.  I remember waking up specifically to watch Spiderman at 10 am.  The same with 90's X-Men.  90's X-Men may not be the best, but it holds fond memories.  These cartoons even influenced the MvC and XvC games.  If you are in your 20's or 30's, then these cartoons are what you grew up with. 

A lot of people dislike Spectacular Spidey because it is really different from 90's Spidey.  However, Spectacular is a bit closer to Untold Tales of Spiderman (which is close to the original Stan Lee).  It's all a matter of taste. 

I don't mind Ultimate Spidey.  It is a different take.  It is called "ultimate" after all.  If I can live with MCU changes, I can live with Ultimate Spidey changes.  I wouldn't be surprised if kids today think Ultimate is the best.   


I really liked this one. awesome characters with different powers.  They actually learn how to work together.

I like how they made each character it's own instead of making them just the same as their mentors. Robin (Grayson) wasn't a carbon copy of batman.  He was cocky at first and just assumed he'd be the leader. Superboy was hotheaded. Miss Martian was more quiet in season 1 and in season 2 she was brutal.    Then there's the true leader Aqualad.  Who was more or less Batman.  serious, level headed, and always had a plan for every situation like that time he put on Doctor fate's helmet.

That time gap sucks.  Should've just let it be and slowly draw into season 2.  Season 2 starts and there's already Lagoon boy, beastboy, rocket, Wasp, Guardian and you're just like, what? what happened between superboy and miss martian? When did these guys join? (I had no clue who rocket was, the others I atleast heard of before).
It gets explained later.  But its kind of meh.

Would've been good to actually show the events leading up to it since most of season 2 was about betrayal, deception and mistrust.   Rather than going forward and then giving us snippets.

----------------
Too many spidermans I don't remember which is which.
from the ones I've seen
there's the 90s one - I would consider this one the best.
the unlimited one where he  resembles spiderman 2099.
The one where it's like 3d-ish animation
spectacular
and the garbage that is ultimate spiderman - it has some good episodes.  but overall, it was annoying.  too much "breaking the 4th wall" kind of stuff.



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bulbasaur

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Re: Superhero Cartoons
« Reply #7 on: June 27, 2015, 11:34:39 PM »
Wow, did you not watch the original? The storytelling isn't as good, but you'll catch a lot more Easter eggs if you do. 

Well I don't know if you call it superhero cartoons, but it's close enough

Transformers cartoon series.

I've only seen 3.

Beast wars
Beast wars transmetal
Transformers: robots in disguise - I like this one.  IIRC this is actually anime, a japan produced series.



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bulbasaur

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Re: Superhero Cartoons
« Reply #8 on: June 28, 2015, 12:33:29 AM »
7.  Wild CATS

If there is any show that screams 1990's, it's Jim Lee's Wild CATS.  Even the theme song is 90's cheese.   The cartoon wasn't that good.  It looked a bad version of the 90's X-Men.  I was expecting so much more with Jim Lee's name on it. 

Fast forward about 2 decades, and Grifter makes another appearance in animated form in the DCAU.  He didn't have enough screen time.  I like the DCAU, so I guess Jim Lee made up for this debacle. 

Here is the show in case you missed.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tvg7tbNy5cE



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