Silver Surfer

The Surfer's first animated appearance was in "Galactus," an episode of the Hanna-Barbera 1967 Fantastic Four animated series, which closely followed the Marvel comic story.

He also made several appearances in the 1994 version of the animated series (that was part of The Marvel Action Hour) voiced by Robin Sachs in the first season, then Edward Albert in the last episode of the second. This series also adhered closely to the original comic book story, recounting Surfer and Galactus' coming to Earth in a two-part episode as well as Doctor Doom's theft of Surfer's powers.

In 1998, the Surfer starred in a solo animated series on the FOX Network, voiced by Paul Essiembre. Blending cel and computer animation, this series was rendered in the style of Surfer creator Jack Kirby but diverged from the comic in various ways. Although it accurately depicted the Surfer's origin on Zenn-La, the method by which he regained his emotions and memories was altered to not involve the Fantastic Four. Further adventures included appearances by many characters from Marvel's "cosmic" stable, including Thanos, the Watcher, Ego the Living Planet, Mentor, Drax the Destroyer, Pip the Troll, Nebula, and the Kree and Skrull empires, their portrayals and roles often differing from their comic book incarnations. Possessed of an unusually serious tone compared to Marvel's other animated projects, with frequent maudlin musings by the Surfer and episode resolutions which were often downbeat. It received good rating, but was canceled after only one season of thirteen episodes due to politics between Toy Biz and Saban Entertainment. The series ending on a cliffhanger. Eight further episodes for the next season were written but never animated. The Comic Book of the Silver Surfer also appeared in an episope of Heroes Season 1.

Captain America 1970

Captain America appears in two 1970s live-action television movies: Captain America and Captain America II: Death Too Soon, starring Reb Brown. The character differs significantly from the comics, in both his origin and his operations. For instance, Rogers is a character in contemporary times whose father was a 1940s government agent. The very patriotic attitude of Steve's father earned him the nickname Captain America. Rogers, an artist, was inspired by this story to sketch a superhero. After an accident he received an experimental chemical called the FLAG (Full Latent Ability Gain) formula (at one point referred to as a "super-steroid" which enhances his body with heightened strength and reflexes, and a costume based on his drawing. He also makes significant use of a specialized van, and of a modified motorcycle. The bike has a detachable round windshield with the concentric circles, with the white sections being transparent, and star which he uses as his shield when he goes on foot. At the end of the first movie, Rogers briefly appears in a redesigned costume that bears a stronger resemblance to the one seen in the comics, which he wears in the sequel.

SWAMP THING

Premiered: July 27, 1990 Last Aired: May 1, 1993

Swamp Thing The Series DVDs are now out!


"The swamp is my world, It is who I am, it is what I am. I was once a man, I know the evil men do. Do not bring your evil here, I warn you. Beware the wrath of Swamp Thing."


MCA/Universal was a co-owner in USA Network and had it's new facility in Florida ready for business. Swamp Thing was a series that could be produced quickly and cheaply, as well as used to show off the new Florida studios.
The series was one of the first produced at Universal Studios in Florida. Over the course of the series, several familiar attractions were utilized including the Jaws ride and the Psycho house.
USA was initially quite pleased with the results. Press releases indicated a commitment to 100 episodes, although only 72 episodes were produced over the three year period beginning in 1990. There is a short behind the scenes promo that occasionally airs on the SciFi Channel.

There was a brief animated Swamp Thing series around 1992. The series was a tie in to the Kenner Swamp Thing toy line and featured characters based on the action figures. Apparently CBS had an option on the series but was not interested, so only five episodes were made. The shows later aired on FOX on Saturday mornings.More recently, the shows were rerun on the Disney Cartoon channel.

Check out more Swampy on the movie pics page!

Smallville

Smallville tells the tale of a teenage Clark Kent in the days before he was Superman. It is the town where he came from where very strange things started happening with his arrival in a spaceship in the midst of a meteor storm of green rocks. Clark must deal with a variety of individuals given powers by the green rocks, keep his powers a secret, cope with his friendship with a young Lex Luthor, and balance the two girls in his life, Chloe and Lana. The show also shows us how Lex Luthor develops from a friend of Clark's and kinda-okay guy to the villain who will plague Superman in his later years.
Superman's teen years as Clark Kent find him agonizing over his shy, uncertain persona while dealing with his evolving powers and an infatuation with classmate Lana Lang. Crisply paced and cast with appealing performers, `Smallville' is not at all campy and is often surprisingly moving as a conventional coming-of-age drama. It succeeds in adding creative twists to the young hero's life without compromising the adult pop icon's legend.

WONDER WOMAN

This was actually the third attempt at bringing Wonder Woman to the small screen. The first was an unaired pilot from the 1960's and the next was an unsuccessful mid 1970's movie starring Cathy Lee Crosby as a blonde Wonder Woman! Finally, in 1975, Lynda Carter was perfectly cast as the amazonian princess who leaves the island of Themyscira to fight for justice in man's world. The first season took place during World War II with Wonder Woman fighting the Nazis. The Second season updated the Wonder Woman mythos to modern times and a different network. The series only lasted three seasons but proved to be a pop-cultural hit thanks to reruns.

BATMAN 1960's TV Show

Batman was a 1960s television series, based on the DC comic book character Batman. It aired on the ABC network for 2½ seasons, from January 12, 1966 to March 14, 1968.

The typical formula story began with the villain committing a crime, such as robbing a bank. This was followed by a scene inside Police Commissioner Gordon's office where he and Chief O'Hara would deduce exactly which villain they were dealing with. Gordon would press a button on the Batphone, signaling a cut to Wayne Manor where Alfred, the butler, would answer the manor's Batphone, a bright red telephone that beeped loudly instead of ringing on the desk in Bruce Wayne's study. Alfred would then interrupt Bruce Wayne and Dick Grayson - usually they would be found talking with Aunt Harriet, who didn't know of their dual life - with a pretext to draw them away to answer the Batphone. Upon hearing of his enemy's schemes, Bruce would push a button concealed within a bust of Shakespeare that stood on his desk, opening a hidden door in a bookcase and revealing two poles. Wayne says to Grayson "To the Batpoles", then they would slide down, flicking a switch on their way down. This was usually where the animated title sequence would occur.

They would arrive in the Batcave in full costume and jump into the Batmobile, Batman in the driver's seat. Robin would say "Atomic batteries to power, turbines to speed" and Batman would respond "Roger, ready to move out" and the two would race off out of the cave at high speed. As the Batmobile approached the mouth of the cave, a hinged barrier dropped down to allow the car to exit on to the road.

After arriving at Commissioner Gordon's office, the initial discussion of the crime usually led to the Dynamic Duo (Batman and Robin) conducting their investigation alone. In the investigation, a meeting with the villain would usually ensue with the heroes getting involved in a fight and the villain getting away, only to come back and fight again later in the show. Here, the villain would capture one or both of the heroes and place them in a deathtrap with a cliffhanger ending which was usually resolved in the first few minutes of the next episode.
The series ran for 120 episodes.

Birds of Prey

Birds of Prey was based on elements from the DC comic book following the story of Barbara Gordon, formerly Batgirl, who was paralyzed by the Joker during a fight and has renamed herself Oracle. Joining her is Helena Kyle, daughter of Batman and Catwoman (aka Selena Kyle), and a mysterious young psychic named Dinah. They are assisted in the fight against crime by Detective Jesse Reese and Bruce Wayne’s (aka Batman) former bulter, Alfred. Batman has left Gotham City for reasons unknown and its up to the Birds of Prey and other crimefighters to keep the city safe.

The series stared Ashley Scott as Helena Kyle (aka The Huntress), Dina Meyer as Barbara Gordon/Oracle, Rachel Skarsten as Dinah (daughter of Black Canary), Mia Sara as Dr. Harleen Quinzel (aka Harley Quinn, Joker’s former Moll), the ongoing villian. Shemar Moore plays Detective Reese and Ian Abercrombie as Alfred Pennyworth, the loyal Butler.

Unfortunately, the series was short lived after ratings fell off abruptly following the much-hyped premiere that failed to catch on with many fans. Scripts and acting lagged somewhat behind the ambitious production and The WB Network pulled the plug in October, 2002.

Incredible Hulk

THE INCREDIBLE HULK, for those who may not know, was a popular television series that aired on CBS from 1977 until 1982. Dr. David Banner is a brilliant scientist but, one day, a lab experiment that he is working on goes terribly awry. Since that time, whenever he is under extreme stress, his body undergoes a transmogrification and he morphs into 'The Incredible Hulk.' The Hulk is about seven feet tall, hugely muscular and powerful, and has bright green skin. After destroying whatever threatens Dr. Banner, he morphs back to normal human form with only amnesia and tattered clothing as evidence of what just transpired. As you can well imagine, this situation is quite troubling for Dr. Banner and causes him no end of problems. It was based on a Marvel Comic Book about a research scientist who is exposed to an extreme amount of gamma radiation while rescuing a teenager from a nuclear testing ground. The first time he loses his temper, Dr. Bruce Banner is transformed from a mild-mannered scientist to a seven foot, green-skinned, raging creature with limited intelligence and enormous strength. This creature was dubbed, "The Incredible Hulk."