Max Fleisher Superman cartoons

[CharlieRock]

I've been looking to add this series (Fleisher Studios Superman) in DVD to my cartoon library. But there are several versions out there. Do any of you guys have a copy of this series on disc and would you recommend it?
 

[bchat]

I picked this series up years ago, paying about $10 for two dvds.  I'm not a huge fan of Superman in general, and really only got the series to check-out the animation & to see what all the fuss was about.  The animation is really good, but I wasn't impressed with the stories enough to watch every episode.

[bminor]

I have always been a big fan of these since way back in the '70's when I read a review of them in a DC Comics made fanzine.
The first half(made by Fleischer studios) where fantastic. The latter half are not quite so good.
I recommend the first, The Mad Scientist and the second, Mechanical Monsters.
If you saw the Sky Captain movie a few years ago, the robots in that movie are a direct copy/homage to the Mechanical Monsters cartoon here.
Also the Bruce Timm Batman series from the 90's are also heavily influenced by these films.

The story goes that Fleischer Studios were approached to do these films, they really did not want to do them, so they quoted a extremely high figure. That quote was accepted and they had to do them!

bminor

p.s. the following is a review from the series I own.

Max Fleischer's Superman: 1941-1942 (2009), Warner Home Video

More than just a landmark in superhero animation, Max Fleischer's Superman shorts were no less than the foundation for so many shows that succeeded it. Playing in theaters in 1941-42, only a few years after the Man of Steel made his debut in Action Comics, these 17 exciting films were produced by Fleischer (and often directed by his brother, Dave) and made famous the phrase "This looks like a job for Superman!" At 10 minutes, each film had just enough time to run the opening credits, establish the threat, let Lois Lane make a headstrong rush into peril, and allow Clark Kent to change to his alter ego and save the day. The films show a remarkably dynamic and atmospheric storytelling style that enables them to hold up for modern viewers. At first the films followed a science fiction-fantasy theme (mad scientists, giant robots), but not unexpectedly for that time soon focused on wartime concerns (e.g., "The Japoteurs" from September 18, 1942).
These cartoons have been in the public domain and thus available in inexpensive, poor-quality collections. This 2009 set from Warner Home Video is reproduced from the original film elements, and while some source damage is still visible, the improved color and clarity make previous versions nearly unwatchable. (These are the same remasterings that were released in the 2007 Superman Ultimate Collector's Edition.) Also, rather than cramming them onto a single disc, the shorts are given two discs, adding a featurette on Superman the hero and a 12-minute history of the Fleischer project, including interviews with Max's son and modern animators such as Bruce Timm and Paul Dini, who discuss the Fleischers' influence on the highly regarded Superman and Batman animated series from the 1990s. --David Horiuchi

bminor

[Yoc]

Hi B,
This Warner set is given a deep review at these links.
http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/36901/max-fleischers-superman-1941-1942/

http://blogcritics.org/dvd-review-max-fleischers-superman-19411/

[Drahken]

I have several $1 DVDs with the old superman cartoons (I believe I have all the eps) mixed in with numerous other PD toons, as well as an old VHS tape with a few. I'm not a fan of them though. Part of it is the fact that they're so dark & dingy looking, though I don't know how much of that is due to the copies I have all being from old/low quality prints. Part of it is also the character models, somehow the glaringly 40s designs combined with the more realistic/less cartoony design just rubs me wrong. I must admit though that the art is quite detailed & the animation is high quality.
An odd thing about those $1 DVDs is that when they put a slew of superman cartoons and 1 or 2 popeye cartoons they label it "popeye and friends", yet when they put a slew of popeye toons and a few superman toons they label it "superman and friends", bass-ackwards much?

[Roygbiv666]

What about htis:
http://www.amazon.com/Max-Fleischers-Superman-Collectors-Blu-ray/dp/B008IG0EHM/ref=sr_1_1?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1377820250&sr=1-1&keywords=superman+fleischer

[bminor]

Read the reviews very carefully.
It looks like the Bosko video people have their logo in the corner of the screen, and it never goes away.
Poor prints, scratchs, dust, etc...

b

[Yoc]

Yeah, not the best reviews there on Amazon for that Bosko version.

[Roygbiv666]

If you're referring to my post, the losers at Amazon group reviews by product name, not necessarily the same actual product. The Blu-Ray manufacturer here is Gaiam, not Bosko. Those review dates precede this release.

That said, the review of the actual Blue-Ray pretty much uniformly say it is terrible, my bad.

The one I have is good, but out of print. the manufacturer/studio is by Vid Canada.

Read the reviews very carefully.
It looks like the Bosko video people have their logo in the corner of the screen, and it never goes away.
Poor prints, scratchs, dust, etc...

b

[bminor]

In short, go with the Warner Brothers set with the beautiful goldenrod antique yellow background.

On a related note:
If you want the ultimate DVD set when it comes to Superman, you can't go wrong with this:

A Fourteen DVD set of all things concerning the Superman movies from the Bryan Singer Superman Returns all the way back to the Fleischer Superman Cartoons! It is all here.

Oh, I forgot. It comes in a really cool keepsake tin and also includes a reprint of the Superman comic book issue #7, a Superman overview booklet and a mail-in offer for 5 reproduction Superman theatrical movie posters.

Superman Ultimate Collector's Edition (Superman / Superman II / Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut / Superman III / Superman IV: The Quest for Peace / Superman Returns) (2006)

http://www.amazon.com/Superman-Ultimate-Collectors-Edition-II/dp/B000J10ERE

I salivated a bit when I first saw this come out, but waited. I think it was $50-$60 or so. When first released there was a problem with one of the disks, I think it was the Superman III. Since then they have addressed the problem.
I waited and one day I went into the local Goodwill and there it was!
I was a happy guy.

Below is a description of what each disk contains (clipped from the Amazon description of the set):
DISC 1- Superman The Movie
* 1978 theatrical version with commentary by producers Pierre Spengler & Ilya Salkind
* Theatrical trailers, TV Spots
* Soundtrack in Dolby Digital 5.1 (original 1978 audio mix in Dolby Digital 2.0)

DISC 2- Superman The Movie
* 2001 expanded movie with commentary by director Richard Donner & creative consultant Tom Mankiewicz
* Soundtrack in Dolby Digital 5.1
* Music-only audio track

DISC 3- Superman The Movie
* Taking Flight: The Development of Superman
* Making Superman: Filming the Legend
* The Magic Behind the Cape
* Additional scenes
* Screen tests
* Audio-only bonus: additional music cues

DISC 4- Superman The Movie
* The Making of Superman the Movie vintage TV special
* 1951 Superman and the Mole-Men movie starring George Reeves
* 9 Fleischer Studios Superman cartoons mastered from superior vault elements

DISC 5- Superman II
* Movie with commentary by producers Pierre Spengler & Ilya Salkind
* Additional scenes (over 8 minutes worth)
* Soundtrack in Dolby Digital 5.1

DISC 6- Superman II
* The Making of Superman II & Superman's 50th Anniversary TV specials
* First Flight: The Fleischer Superman Series featurette
* The Remaining 8 Fleischer Studios Superman cartoons

DISC 7- Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut
* All new introduction by director Richard Donner
* Commentary by director Richard Donner & creative consultant Tom Mankiewicz
* Superman II: Restoring the Vision featurette
* Additional scenes
* Dolby Digital 5.1

DISC 8- Superman III
* Movie with commentary by producers Pierre Spengler & Ilya Salkind
* The Making of Superman III vintage TV special
* Additional scenes (over 19 minutes worth)
* Theatrical trailer

DISC 9- Superman IV: The Quest for Peace
* Movie with commentary by screenwriter Mark Rosenthal
* Additional scenes (over 30 minutes worth!)
* Theatrical trailer

DISC 10- Superman Returns
* Theatrical cut
* Dolby Digital 5.1

DISC 11- Superman Returns
* Requiem for Krypton: Making Superman Returns 3hr multi-part documentary
* Additional scenes (without Return to Krypton sequence)
* Theatrical trailers

DISC 12- You'll Believe: The Making of A Saga- 5 part documentary
* Origin- Superman in the media & the challenges the Salkinds faced
* Vision- Choosing the right script, director & actors
* Ascent- Production of a new kind of fantasy film
* Crisis- Conflicts behind Superman II
* Redemption- Criticisms & burnout of Superman III & IV
* Bonus new documentaries- Mythology of Superman, Remembering Christopher Reeve, vintage Superman parodies

DISC 13- Look, Up in the Sky! The Amazing Story of Superman
* Kevin Burns 2006 documentary on Superman's history

DISC 14- Bryan Singer's blogs
* All the web blogs plus two never-before-seen

[ottawagrant]

A few years ago one of the major grocery stores in Ottawa put out large bins with piles of discount dvd sets. I knew they were all Public Domain titles. Cartoons, movies, tv shows, serials, etc. Just about everything was from a company called "Platinum Entertainment". At the time you couldn't beat the price, $6.88 each. Jack Benny show, Love That Bob, Burns & Allen, Boris Karloff's The Veil, One Step Beyond, & tons, tons of cartoons. They had the complete Superman/Paramount run, as a 2 disk set. The surprising thing is that for a distributor of PD titles the quality on their stuff was good. You expect a live TV show from the early 50's, that only exists as a Kinescope, to be so-so, but I was never disappointed. The only company I know of that puts out good quality PD shows now is Alpha Video. They have a near complete run of "Hawkeye & The last of the Mohicans" (John Hart/Lon Chaney Jr.) that was filmed here in Canada by ITC & the CBC. Yes, Lon Chaney Jr. plays Chingachgook (Last. . . of the Mohicans)

[CharlieRock]

Thanks, guys. I had a few of those Dollar Discs with not only Superman but Scaredy Cat and other various PD Toons.
But I think the WB set looks like what I was looking for most.