Max Fleischer's Superman (Blu-ray)

I've been a massive fan of these cartoons since I got a crappy PD VHS of 3 of them in 1987. These cartoons sent me down the animation rabbit hole. They are far and away my favorite cartoons made by any studio. I've easily viewed some of these 100s of times over the last 35 years. There have been a lot of assumptions going on surrounding these toons. First, I have the new blu ray set. It looks absolutely outstanding. It's equally the better of the WB DVD set as that DVD set was the better of the next best comp, the Bosko DVD. There is film grain in this set. It's a very fine grain and more noticeable in some scenes than others...it's there. Reading the early reviews and seeing the screencaps posted, I was not seeing what reviewers were seeing as far as the lack of detail was concerned. All the detail is there, and more. My concerns were that the image was soft. When I finally viewed them, I didn't see any of that softness in motion. The picture is crisp and clear, not quite as sharp as what is shown in the new featurette, but not far behind..... Speaking of that featurette, I'm fairly certain that the clips contained therein are from the previous DVD version, uncompressed. The idea that these are "raw scans" came from a declarative supposition from the first person that reviewed them, and everyone else has simply assumed that was true. They look just like the DVD versions. I did an experiment and raised the sharpness on my TV just a teeny bit for the new versions and I like that better, but they were just fine before. for all we know, the unprocessed shorts don't look much different than what's on this Blu-ray which contains a new 4k scan from the negatives. I've seen some toons done by Steve Sanchfield (Thunderbean Animation) from 35mm negs that look so clean and grain free they could be confused for digital. We also don't know what was used for the DVD versions. They didn't put much work into them. They look to me like very colorful, but very worn 35mm print scans. Again there is grain here, it's just very unobtrusive. there is so much detail that I'm now noticing small animation and ink and paint errors that I've not noticed in 35 years of viewing these. And yes, I've checked older versions to confirm. The lower fidelity of previous versions made it difficult to see those errors, but they are there. This release is not without its issues, however. Sound issues. based on the myriad of versions of these cartoons I've seen over the years, I'd guess that like a lot of Fleischer cartoons, the beginning and end titles were cut when they were sold to TV in the 1950s, and it looks like these were cut from the negatives. The Bosko release did manage to pull (washed out) prints that had all of the titles and original sound for each cartoon intact, with the exception of The Mummy Strikes. For this release, I'm guessing (which is all any of us can do since mum seems to be the word on how WB processes these) that they simply opted to go with whatever was the best sources they had for each cartoon, which means that for most of them, the beginning and ending titles have sound that often inelegantly cuts out or fades out. the good news is with a couple of exceptions, the body of the cartoons are fine (The Mad Scientist and Underground World are the only exceptions I've noticed so far...Mad Scientist has been an issue for decades). Also, the featurettes... I'm not sure we really needed 2 telling us the exact same thing "They're great". I really would have liked one that went into the nuts and bolts of how these cartoons were made great... basically, how they were made. If you are on the fence, absolutely buy this. If you insist on very noticeable grain in your image, probably you'll want to pass.

Max Fleischer was a master of animation, and this series of Superman shorts he produced have never looked or sounded better (and honestly, they are still a golden standard for cartoons). A great collection that is well worth the purchase.

Wonderful vintage cartoons vibrant colours amazing.

High quality transfers of the wonderful Superman cartoons from the Fleischer Studios. These cartoons were made in the 1940’s with outstanding production values; the Animation is really well done, and voice acting and music are superb.

The Fleischer Superman cartoons of the 1940s are among the most influential theatrical film productions in the history of animation and comic book media. They were produced by Max and Dave Fleischer (Dave as director) in between 1941-2 and subsequently, when Fleischer Studios dissolved after the first season of nine installments, they were tackled by Famous Studios from 1942-3, completing the next eight productions. These short films were shown in theatres as compliments to the screening feature films, and the Fleischers were given a big budget of $50,000; resulting in some of the most lavish, bright and meticulously plot-driven animated shorts produced during the golden age of American cinema. Originally distributed by Paramount Pictures, these seventeen shorts have garnered much praise as the first animated visual depiction of the Man of Steel, being in only three years of publication at the time, alongside his supporting cast of Lois Lane and Perry White. As such, the Fleischer shorts portray a Superman who is slightly different from his modern-age incarnation and, in my eyes, he is more of a representation of the original Superman of Earth-Two within the pre-crisis DC Multiverse (in which DC's golden-age characters reside). This Superman hails from a Krypton that was inhabited by a highly advanced civilisation before it's destruction, with abilities that far outweighed its Earthen counterparts, such as near-impenetrable skin, super strength and the ability to leap long distances in the blink of an eye. At this time of the character's publication, Superman was merely portrayed as leaping and jumping and it was the Fleischer series of shorts that gave him his famous flying ability, as this would apparently look far more visually aesthetic than having him leaping everywhere in a somewhat limited manner. Bud Collyer and Joan Alexander provide the voices of Clark Kent/Superman and Lois Lane, respectively, in the same vain as they voice their characters in the 'Adventures of Superman' radio show and, subsequently, during the first season of the animated, Filmation produced 'New Adventures of Superman' in 1966. Regarding plots, the generic make-up of each short generally includes having Lois becoming embroiled in some sort of trouble whilst attempting to scoop a lead story ahead of Superman's altar-ego, Clark Kent. He, then, changes in the shadows to Shelley Timberg's iconic musical score, into the Man of Steel before dispatching of the story's villain(s) or threat(s). In the first series of nine shorts, produced by the two Fleisher brothers, the plots are driven with a more science-fiction theme with robotic machinations, Godzilla-esque beasts and mad scientists bent on global corruption. The second series of eight shorts, which were handled by Famous Studios on behalf of Paramount, turn away from science-fiction elements and focus more on war-time topicality, having Superman go up against stereotypical portrayals of Japanese saboteurs and Nazi soldiers, with Hitler, himself, making a cameo appearance at the end of 'Jungle Drums'. It must be noted that, of course, these portrayals can be seen as grossly stereotypical and racially offensive by today's standards. However, it is important to remember that this type of war-time propaganda is part of our world history and it must be seen through the eyes of a 1940s audience. Lest we forget, this was a time in which the whole world was up in arms and the Nazi threat was all around. The world has moved on, and the racial stereotypes presented here are simply a reminder of a time in which the world was heavily divided. As such, this particular DVD set has been deemed as 'intended for the adult collector and...not suitable for children'. Because of all seventeen shorts falling into the public domain after their copyright policies were not renewed, there have been a plethora of home video releases on VHS and DVD, which still continue to be churned out to this day. However, these releases are neither official nor authorized by the current owners of the master prints (Warner Brothers) and they are usually of variable quality. This two-disc DVD set, entitled 'Max Fleischer's Superman: 1941-1942' and released in April of 2009, is the first official and authorized set of the Fleischer shorts, distributed by Warner Brothers and 'remastered from superior, original vault elements'. The animation has been cleaned up to a more than reasonable standard, and the rotoscopic motion of the characters seem much more fluid, with environments that show detailed precision. As opposed to the many unofficial releases in circulation, this set is a true testament to the Fleischer brothers, presenting their work in the way these iconic short theatrical films should be seen - in vivid and bright detail. The seventeen entries, lasting 145 minutes in total, are presented over two disks, with the first disk holding the first nine instalments of the series produced by Fleischer Studios, and the second disk holding the eight remaining Famous Studio-produced series of shorts. There are optional subtitles provided for the English hard-of-hearing and for the French-speaking audience, and the shorts are presented in full-frame format, 'preserving the aspect ratio of their original theatrical exhibitions'. Regarding special features, Warner has provided an exclusive sneak peek at the, then, upcoming DC Universe animated feature 'Green Lantern' on the first disk, which gives some background information on the origins of the Green Lantern character, as well as storyboard concepts and cast and crew interviews exploring their motivations for crafting the film. On the second disk, two featurettes are provided, lasting roughly ten minutes or so each. 'The Man, the Myth, Superman' explores the tradition of superhuman heroes on the page and screen, stretching from the ancient Roman and Greek myths of Hercules and Mercury to the more contemporary comic-book adaptations that are so prevalent in both literature and in the media. The final featurette, entitled 'First Flight: The Fleischer Superman Series', explores the origins and influence that these shorts have had on past, present and future interpretations of the Man of Steel and on animation and storytelling in general. Among the many DVD releases that contain the Fleischer Superman shorts, this official and authorized set stands tall above the rest. For golden age animation fans and lovers of comic-book lore, 'Max Fleischer's Superman: 1941-1942' finally provides these historic theatrical thrills with a worthy outlet and gives the heartened collector an appreciative nod in the process.

These DVDs are GREAT!!! I was concerned about picture quality because I saw some janky reviews on Amazon but BOY, was I pleased with these. I rip CDs and DVDs and copy them to my network. It's just easier to watch the content that way, although I do miss out on the "director's commentary track", which is fine, I guess. Now, I've seen these episodes a number of times on YouTube but you know that YouTube is not reliable. I wanted this in my library. I'm glad that I have this and other series on DVD.

Timely arrival great reproduction of a classic piece of film history. The cartoon that gave Superman his flight. Before Max had a hand in it, Superman could only leap tall buildings and jump around. This was the cartoon that gave Superman the ability to fly.

This is one of the best superman ever and the dvd came in perfect condition and also the tracking system is really broken they have to fix that but 5 stars

Very good blu ray to watch

For anyone researching this product and reading the reviews for insight, be aware that there seems to be some major discrepancy between the reviews listed and the actual product on this page. I cannot say for certain, but it seems to me that many of the older reviews you'll find here appear to be describing various other editions and releases of the same cartoons. My best guess is that either the product has changed several times but Amazon kept the same page intact, and so all of the old reviews for the old product remained; or, because there seem to be several listings for similar products put out by different publishers, it's possible those past reviewers posted their reviews on the wrong page. Either way, all I can say is that the new blu-ray edition put out in May of 2023 by Warner Brothers is what I just received today, and it's everything I had hoped it would be and more. Again, some older reviews I've read for this and other similar products had complained about their edition being reformatted into a pseudo widescreen presentation, thus destroying the integrity of how they were originally supposed to look. I've also read reviews claiming their edition had some horrendous watermark in the corner of the screen, totally ruining the viewing experience. And a couple others I've come across complained of audio not syncing with the picture. You'll be pleased to know that this specific edition doesn't have any of those issues. To the contrary, I didn't expect it to look as good as it does. I'm going to be honest with you: when I first began watching, my initial thought was it looked *too* good. Well, it so happens that I have a much older edition of the cartoons on DVD, so I decided to run the experiment myself, and with 2 TVs and 2 players, I played both editions side-by-side and observed the difference. It seems the reason why something felt off to me was that the DVD edition (and incidentally the same versions I remember so vividly from my childhood) were far, FAR more degraded than I had ever realized. This new blu-ray edition does such an astonishing job at touching up the picture that, for real, it honestly looks like it could have been animated yesterday. The sound quality is also nicely cleaned-up as well. I am beyond pleased with this purchase. I think I'm still going to keep my old DVD for the sake of preserving a record of other versions, and admittedly, there's something about the grainy, degraded aesthetic that is kind of charming; but if you're looking to watch the cartoons in the best quality they've been presented in since they were brand new, this Warner Brothers blu-ray edition absolutely delivers.

La edición es excelente. Aunque se trata de unos dibujos animados con bastantes años de antigüedad, se encuentra editada con una muy buena calidad de imagen, a pesar de los pequeños defectos que presenta en algunos momentos la imagen debido al estado de conservación del original. La pena es que el Castellano no se encuentra entre los idiomas disponibles.

La cúspide de la animación del Hombre de Acero llegó muy temprano con esta serie, la cual ha intentado replicarse decenas de veces a lo largo de los años, sin lograr capturar por completo el encanto, el detalle y la dimensión que la hicieron tan magnífica desde el principio. La remasterización en Blu-ray es hipnotizante: los colores son vibrantes y el audio, nítido y disfrutable. Definitivamente, no debe faltar en la colección de ningún fan de Superman o de la animación en general.

These short animated films have been given new life and vitality in 1080p. Jaw dropping detail, colour, and depth. I have a theory as to the mixed reactions to this set and the transfer by Warner. I believe that the display settings are the key to success. First one must turn off all filters, enhancers, motion controls, everything! Television setting must be cinema home or something similar depending on the make and model, and auto 24p(very very important for film based materials). Color range or space settings are the final key, combined with setting HDMI to full range, not auto. The same must be done on the blu-ray player, but in this case the settings must be auto. Turn off the HDMI deep colour setting and all HDMI controls. Truth be told there are way too many settings and features on new home cinema components but if one starts with these suggestions and is willing to read a manual your home theatre experience will be revelatory.