The DC Animated Universe Weekly Review - Superman: The Animated Series

Superman: The Animated Series

Episode 24

Solar Power

 

Edward Lytener bust out of prison and starts calling himself Luminus.  He turns the sky red via hacked LexCorp satellites to make the atmosphere like in Krypton and Superman starts losing the power he gets from the yellow sun.  That’s a brilliant plan; power Superman down.  Superman losing his powers still decides to help which is really what makes him Superman.   Anyone who’s invincible can fight bad guys.  A real hero does it when he isn’t invincible.  One of the rare occasions Superman is in actual danger and not just pulling his punches. 

 

The plot is stretched thin a little when it’s revealed Lex Luthor is in on the plot to depower Superman.  Lex had originally fired Lytener for being a whistle blower. It is likely Lex hates Superman more than Lytener and decided the enemy of my enemy is my friend.  So he hooks Luminus up with a bunch of tech, helps him bust out of prison, gives him access to the LexCorp satellites to take out Superman. 

 

Superman struggles through Luminus’ hideout, over comes the booby traps, eventually takes him out.  The episode ends with Superman getting his powers again.  This is the second time a villain in Superman starts out as a regular guy then ups the antagonist to get revenge on Superman.  Metallo started out as a regular guy then got super powers, Lytener was attacking Lois then enhanced his powers via tech to take out Superman.  It’s a logical concept that people who cross paths with Superman and lose learn from it and try to level up to take him out.  Very smart of the creators to keep raising the stakes when utilizing foes for Superman.

 

Written by
Joseph Ammendolea
Owner/President
“I Like To Play With Toys” Productions®
ILikeToPlayWithToysProductions@Yahoo.com

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The DC Animated Universe Weekly Review - Superman: The Animated Series

 Superman: The Animated Series

Episode 25

Monkey Fun

 

This is another a good episode, it’s another Lois Lane central episode.  We get to learn about her childhood.  We meet her sister and father.   It’s lighthearted but still exciting.  As an eight-year-old child Lois had a chimpanzee named Titano that her military dad was caring for.  Titano is being used in the space program for testing.  Despite her dad’s assurances nothing would go wrong, something goes wrong and Titano is believed to have died in space.

 

Twenty years go by and we learn Lois Lane is 28 years old.  Superman is working with his buddy Professor Emil Hamilton to stop some asteroids from causing problems to a space station.  He discovers Titano in suspended animation.  They bring him to Earth, he’s bummed out, sees Lois and gets happy again.  Everyone accept Lois thinks it’s a good idea for her to care for Titano.  The chimpanzee wrecks her apartment, she scams Jimmy Olsen into chimp sitting while she gets a massage.  The chimp starts growing in size and becomes the size of a building. 

 

Superman and Professor Hamilton discover this is occurring during their research of Titano’s condition. Superman rushes off just in time to save Jimmy Olsen as he causes himself to fall out the balcony of Lois’ apartment.  Titano gets the blame for that but Jimmy was running away from the supersized chimp toward the balcony, slipped and fell. 

 

Titano runs around Metropolis causing problems and fighting with Superman.  Eventually the Special Crimes Unit (SCU) shows up along with recurring cops Dan Turpin and Maggie Sawyer.  They come up with a plan to gas the monkey.  A bunch more action occurs, Titano gets gassed, STAR labs stops his growing issue, and he is safely taken to an island where he can roam around with no issues. 

 

In the comic book it is based off of they had to kill Titano.  Since this is a cartoon for kids they couldn’t do that.  So Superman saves the day with a happy ending.  Apparently cartoons have no problem with the planetary genocide of Krypton and its billions of people but killing extremely large chimpanzees is not allowed.   

 

Written by
Joseph Ammendolea
Owner/President
“I Like To Play With Toys” Productions®
ILikeToPlayWithToysProductions@Yahoo.com

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The DC Animated Universe Weekly Review - Superman: The Animated Series

 Superman: The Animated Series

Episode 27

Ghost in the Machine

 

This has one of the most impactful moments in the DCAU and you’ll miss it if you blink.  Brainiac is back after uploading himself into LexCorp system before getting destroyed in his last appearance.  He screws up some test Lex Luthor was running and Superman saves the day. Lex is super pissed and starts investing what happens.  He discovers Brainiac is rebuilding himself and needs Luthor’s help for the final touches.  

 

Clark Kent grows wise to Luthor’s disappearance and uses his sleuth reporter skills to inform Mercy Graves, Lex’s bodyguard.  Then Superman is on the case and is working with Mercy to find Lex.  Superman tries to convince Mercy to ditch Lex because he’s a total douche.  Mercy makes a plea that Lex is awesome and brought her up from nothing.  

 

They find Lex in a closed off section of LexCorp.  Superman busts in and does his thing.  He fights an incomplete Brainiac.  While the structure is collapsing around them Lex and Mercy make a run for it.  Mercy gets trapped and Lex leaves her to die.  Mercy gives Superman advice on how to take out Brainiac, he uses some special weapon kills the robot in a horrifying fashion (since there are no standard and practice rules on the death of robots), saves Mercy from being trapped, saves Lex while climbing a ladder. 

 

Mercy goes back to work for Lex like someone trapped in an abusive relationship.  Lex learns nothing from his experience and is only concerned about harvesting all the Brainiac tech which was built with LexCorp supplies. 

 

It’s a great episode, one of the best. Lex gets shot with a blast from Brainiac.  It actually injects him with nanites that gradually influence his thinking until in culminates into some awesomeness in Justice League Unlimited. That’s years away though.  The main issues is how Lex left Mercy to die after being trapped.  Lex Luthor is far from a coward but he is callous and selfish.  This moment made him look more cowardly but one could argue he calculated her odds of survival and determined she was a lost cause.  Either way, Lex is a douche and the bitter ending of Mercy still working for him after that is so exponentially a Batman: the Animated Series ending, it is what makes the episode amazing.  

 

Written by
Joseph Ammendolea
Owner/President
“I Like To Play With Toys” Productions®
ILikeToPlayWithToysProductions@Yahoo.com

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The DC Animated Universe Weekly Review - Superman: The Animated Series

 Superman: The Animated Series

Episode 23

Double Dose

 

A fitting name for this episode, it’s the return of Livewire and she teams up with Parasite for revenge against Superman.  Livewire bust out of her holding cell due to janitorial incompetence.  She really shouldn’t have been locked up to begin with since she had a solid case for insanity in her debut episode.  Her rematch with Superman makes her realize she needs some more power.  Livewire tracks down Parasite and promises him a taste of her electric powers if he helps her kill Superman.

 

Parasite agrees and after he breaks out tries to molest her throughout their partnership, all told through allegory of course.  But it’s clear as day he keeps sexually harassing her and she’s thwarting his advances.  Superman covers himself in a clear rubber suit that is immune to their powers. Not sure if they ever made a toy out of it but it seems like they were trying to sell something.  

 

The villains destroy his suit and start roughing him up.  Parasite betrays Livewire and sucks her dry and takes her out of commission.  Superman then uses Livewire’s weakness against Parasite and fries him with some water.  Both villains are defeated, the day is saved.

 

It’s a nice follow-up for both villains.  The writers always felt the need to team parasite up with someone to fight Superman.  Perhaps they painted themselves in the box because Parasite doesn’t have much motivation to commit crimes.  He was a slow-witted crook who became a monster via a freak accident.  Livewire wants revenge against Superman for turning her into a freak but as stated in her origin episode her new look is a vast improvement and she can harness electricity.  

 

Written by
Joseph Ammendolea
Owner/President
“I Like To Play With Toys” Productions®
ILikeToPlayWithToysProductions@Yahoo.com

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The DC Animated Universe Weekly Review - Superman: The Animated Series

 Superman: The Animated Series

Episode 22

Mxyzpixilated

 

One of the few people that can truly mess with Superman is Mxyzptlk.  He’s a magical being from the fifth dimension who likes to annoy Superman.    The only way to get rid of him is to trick him into saying, writing, spelling his name backwards, Kltpzyxm.  Superman easily tricks him time and time again into doing this.  Eventually Superman is growing tired of being annoyed and makes a deal that if Mxyzptlk does the backwards thing twice in a row he’ll leave forever.  Superman tricks Mxyzptlk into doing that.  The episode ends.  Mxyzptlk is home and all pissed off but his wife Gsptlsnz convinces him to let it go in exchange for sex. Mxyzptlk embraces the exchange but still secretly holds a grudge against Superman.  

 

Mxyzptlk is beyond annoying in the comic.  The show get’s his introduction story spot on!  The episode is funny, clever, well made.  It’s a fun episode to watch. Gilbert Godfried was the perfect casting as the character. 

 

Written by
Joseph Ammendolea
Owner/President
“I Like To Play With Toys” Productions®
ILikeToPlayWithToysProductions@Yahoo.com

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