Superman - The Golden Age of Animation 

kaiju_kun64 The 40s Superman cartoons were the shit.

Snow White was animation for more than comedy, in 1937. Even then, Disney was putting drama into shorts, like Flowers and Trees. And every source I've read indicated that Godzilla was inspired by american monster movies like The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms. So much so that Godzilla was going to be stop motion, until budget constraints forced the man-in-a-suit effects. I'm not entirely sure what Kristian's source is, but I want to smoke some of it.

Warren JB in an interview the guy directing Godzilla stated that when designing the character itself he came across the Superman cartoons.

Rotoscoping was not invented by Fleischer for Superman. It was invented in 1919 by Fleischer for Koko The Klown.

@@42ndblaze43 Link?

Too bad Zack Snyder didn't get the memo!

+Who Dat Ninja Try doing the right thing, and overwhelmingly the world doubts you or even plots to kill you, and the parents and SO who believe in you can't even tell other people.

+David W. even with all that shit, he need to have some level of carisma, he dosen't need to be serious all the fucking time like... for a lack of a better word... batman. and thats why they fail, because they both have to be polar opositives, and they are the same character in the movies, so there isn't any rivaliry or dualism, between the two

He quoted Snyder's BvS line, how ironic.

Marq Vince what line?

Eh, I would say the Superman Animated series understood that. Justice League, too.

HPMcQueen I would say that the TimmVerse version understands that... Maybe because The DCAU understands every single DC characters... Perfectly.

Worth It!

It’s called having talents and Capitalism

Dreamstate aim high hit low. Aim real fucking high and the low is still pretty high apparently.

That’s the way it should be. Don’t half ass a story or animation. This is how you are remembered forever.

@@11jcarter it’s hard as fuck for a lot of people to get the amount of resources necessary to carry out their vision like the Fleischers

Its better than some animation in present day. I would love to see tht 1940s animation type, but high res. It would be amazing.

Yeah, that's better then some animation today.

Can we buy it?

+Versace pancakes Thank you so much!

Ross T it looks so fluid and clean

Honesty. That looks a hell of a lot better than today's cartoons and shit.

+Carlton Banks The Batman series where Mark Hamil voices The Joker is pretty solid in many of the same ways he points out in this video.

Which is impressive in its when right when you consider where cartoons were at in the 90's budgetarily and qualitatively. Batman the Animated Series offered roughly 25 minute episodes with consistent animation, atmospheric lighting and shading hardly seen in cartoons since Hannah-Barbera dumbed things down to Fisher Price levels all accompanied by strong, intelligent scripts that treated its audience with respect. BtAS is essentially the spiritual successor to Fleischer's Superman. And it innovated in the opposite direction: Though it did not invent new animation techniques, it informed the standard of writing and character development in western animated shows all the way up until now, where arguably cartoons are at an all time high in terms of sophistication and theme. Seriously, DC's line-up of cartoons has done so much to influence and advance the medium of animation it is mindblowing.

+Kire-Kitsune Maybe they should just call it quits with the live action shit and start putting the animated stuff in theaters.

If the talent behind the Justice league cartoon from the 2000's were involved at all times, I'd say go for it. lol It would blow away the competition. Seriously, catch a few episodes of Justice League. It stands up against most shows geared toward adults with ease. (it's probably a bit more mature, too. lol)

Ever watched smallville

Well said Carl very well said .

plus you've got this constant god- effect they keep piling up on him like its the only thing they can think to add stakes or conflict to his character. What does Superman in that universe ever think about this, because I would think he would highly disagree like Kristian said "he's just a dude from Kansas doing the right thing" but constantly they ignore that and focus on his raw power, sci-fi exposition and some "we live in a society" bs and then you've got a bunch of themes but they're being focused through a one- dimensional, carboard character that nobody can really relate to.

@@ramlamunye5900 somebody save me!!!!

It's mostly due to the fact that people mix up the messiah figure for the savior figure. Superman is not the messiah type, he's the savior type. He does not tell anyone he's sent by God nor that he will punish them if they don't adore him.

I agree the animations were groundbreaking I just don't think CG doesn't have the capability of producing subtlety. In time, in time..

That's bc ppl don't get jobs based on talent anymore . it's who you know etc

Disney's early 40s animation was stunning too. Take a look at Pinocchio, Fantasia and Bambi

@@jsavak99 how many boxes you tick

I nearly agree, except for the bit about CG not making robots look amazing. I'd say there's some really good VFX that exists.

"solely"? Hum...

I know right compared to some of the material that has come out today. Honestly how dose something from 80 years ago look better than some of the shit that comes out today in modern cinema and tv it just baffles my mind

Excuse me ? That was the great age of animation in Hollywood.

Robo9400 I would say the 1920's until the mid 50's.

JAKphoenixify That's Max Fleischer for you

POPEYE was the genesis of action cartoons.

That shit looks better than the animation in DBS

+Nerdwriter1 You have no idea how happy this made me

+kaptainkristian Nerdwriter loved your video... Time to get famous!

+kaptainkristian You got this

i love your comment

What a crossover this is :0 !!!

Lukas Sprehn Yeah basically the 20s to 50s were a time when cartoons were mainly for adults being shown in theatres before feature films considering how violent the of tom and Jerry was and the Looney Tunes, Mad Doctor (Mickey mouse) and such. I believe it was the Flintstones released in the 60s that gave the distinction that cartoons were for kids.

@@alfa01spotivo Ah no, again. Originally, THE FLINTSTONES was supposed to be an animated sitcom aimed at an adult audience. You will notice that the first two seasons had stories that were more centered on domestic conflicts, and the sponsors were adult products such as Winstons cigarettes and Miles Laboratories.

needs more research in general. this is made in the popular "dramatic essay" format that seems popular on youtube. but only some of the information is present, and the reading is too low in tone to be valuable. stop trying to be dramatic dude that made this, and get your message across. also source your material, and do broader research. i give it a C for effort.

I also wanna stress that Family Friendly, which Walt always asked for his own company’s shorts to be, doesn’t translate directly to “Made for children” or even “with children in mind.” It’s more that he wanted them to be timely, inoffensive and universal.

Ummmm no

+Cool Cat ummm yes way better the killing joke animation is lazy

yeah i was all for defending it and saying it's not THAT bad... but after seeing this and how good this animation is from so long ago... there's really no excuse for the animation in killing joke

Yes there is. Money. Direct to DVD movies won´t make near enough money to get that amount of work on them. They are outsourced and done in a short amount of time. The Superman cartoons were like half a movie budget and was done at the right time before and during WW2. People went and saw them in theatre over and over again with kids and families. A direct to DVD movie is lucky to get even and some people watching it. 1 day in cinema or maybe two if I heard right. But if you whould compare the animation in Killing Joke to another DC direct to DVD movie then you have a point.

ResistReact yup still hurts to know how bad that movie was when there was such great animation over 50 years ago and considering the magnitude of that book but the poor adaptation in almost every way that it was handled .

Vintage Fan I wonder if the NC will do a tribute or review of his works.

Vintage Fan I completely agree. He invented rotoscope. Ex machina used rotoscope

I agree. Look at how the truck lifts up as it bounces on it's shocks at 6:50.

I am grateful to have grown up watching his work!They were a very successful family

I already did

I have this comic that came free with cornflakes back in the seventies. A black kid wanted to play Justice League with his friends, (but couldn't, because he was black). Superman overhears the kids arguing and explains his origin, and reveals that he's not even human. I loved that book when I was a kid...

@@michaelcarter9395 remember what Superman says thats unAmerican talk

*Superman:* "I grew up in Kansas, General. I'm about as American as it gets."

And why is the DCEU afraid of this, while the MCU embraces this aspect of Captain America and people love it? RED SKULL: So, what made you so special? STEVE: Nothing. I'm just a kid from Brooklyn.

I think there's a bit more of a perception that Superman is kind of a jerk. Partly just because he's SO powerful. (While Captain America -- while above average, is a bit more of an every man.) Superman: Animated Series hit such a nice balance with the character, though. But ultimately he was still a 'guy from Kansas trying to do the right thing'.

+Walter Kovacs Edited: With a lot of juice rushing through my veins. 😂

+Walter Kovacs didn't you catch the line in BvS? "Maybe he's just a guy trying to do the right thing"

Marq Vince I did catch that, but just because it's said in a news interview doesn't mean it's what the character is. He seems to be a guy trying to threaten and bully Batman into quitting. That's what drives him. "Or be none of it. You don't owe this world a thing." (To be fair, Batman is an awful person in this universe. But Superman should still be saving and protecting people, not concerning himself with politics and PR.)

Everdark Entertainment respect! Superb!

+ScottyMiLad Thanks! I appreciate every view

+kaptainkristian awesome work on both video's . Keep it up man!! Good Luck

I watched it two times so far and I think I'll go back to this vidoes when the next comes out.

PLEASE DO A VIDEO ON STUDIO GHIBLI !!!!!!!! PLEASEE !!

yes!

agreed

And its not like he gradually got to this level. He entered the ring cooking up fire

Is this his first video of this channel?

Exactly!

Agreed

@@DuckoftheDraw can’t agree. It all depends on how it’s done. Ultimate Spider-Man goes on for a long while but it’s fantastic

@@DuckoftheDraw I’m talking about the comic ultimate Spider-Man, not that crappy tv show full of bad jokes.

@@DuckoftheDraw I think he’s referring to the excellent comic series, not the substandard ultimate Spider-Man show

Cuphead is actually based more on the 30s era than the 40s...

+OverTGW you don't know? doing the christ on the cross pose is required every 5 minutes. failure to comply results in internment at one of the many SYMBOLISM camps.

Well Jesus was just a guy from Nazareth trying to do the right thing. The point of the christ comparisons in the Snyder films, especially in Batman v Superman, is to portray Superman as a god ironically. The humans of the world projected that god-like image onto him while Clark was still just a regular guy. In BvS there's a montage of Superman being superman in scenes that are almost straight out of renaissance paintings, and then it immediately cuts to Clark in a sweatshirt in his apartment. And also, Superman has always been a religious metaphor, don't act like this is a new thing. Superman is just a big smorgasbord of Moses, Jesus, and Heracles.

+Victor Knievel in Donner's he literally did nothing until visited Fortress of Solitude, in MoS he saved bus and then Johnathan Kent said him to hide his powers until he will be truly ready because people will be scared of him (which he actually said the same in Superman #1 (1939) ). If anyone does understand Superman it is Snyder and Goyer. And god's theme always was in Superman's core as well as Christ-imagery (All-star Superman, Supergods, Superman for tomorrow etc.) Moses theme was originally implied by Siegel.

I think people in the Superman world can speculate and be afraid of Superman but Superman himself should really look at himself and say he is just a Kansas boy. He even says that in MOS after crashing the satelite so I don´t get why they had him be dopey in B v S.

Stef Tep We was pretty sad trough out the whole BvS movie. Or neutral rather. But he did try to smile but most of them was during his bathtub scene with Lois. Then when he thought of sacraficing himself against Doomsday which I thought fitted. But a faint smile once that barely was visible like the one you mentioned ain´t enough if we want to say that this Superman acted like a hopeful Superman. I have nothing against him getting a bad recive from people. But he dose´t even try to be chearful. But I guess that´s hard when Zack killed one of Superman´s best friends in the begining of the movie.

nahh

+Mark Meason What are you talkinga about!? That piece of garbage doesnt have the value a few *seconds* of this cartoon does!

+Mark Meason agreed

+Swoop Snatch much worse than I thought. Save your money and watch it on home video. It would have been so much better if it was just a solo Batman movie but they tried to fit so much into the film it became a real incomprehensible mess.

+Swoop Snatch yes definitely save your cash

That's because it tells an original story. Yes, we know why Batman became who he is, but, in Batman Begins, we really don't know what's going to happen and, also, the whole movie is an origin story. In Man of Steel, it is just a long, dragged out intro that adds nothing and has no bearing on the later movie, just an excuse to feature Russell Crowe and show a lot of FX.

There is always an exception to every rule, but generally what he said was correct. Most origin stories are completely unnecessary, and pretty much every movie franchise today believes it has to start with an origin story of some type.

Dave Teves Wonder Woman is not boring, the first spider-man is not boring, first avenger is not boring, iron man is DEFINITELY not boring.

that shit is overrated batman sounds like a drunk dog trying to speak

Yes it absolutely is. All 3 of Nolan's movies are boring.

No, what made Superman super was he was his heart of steel.

Yeah but that movie was made to be a self contain story. Most superheroe movies give for granted they are going to have a sequel and they make terrible decisions with the narrative because of that. The Matrix trilogy is the best example of that. excuse my english

Neo-Mad Dog Easy for him to say there is a tomorrow when he is an immortal inivicible being.

TheAlamla That's the point of Superman. He models the peak of a hman being. Sure a human can't fly or punch a building to the ground. But he's the peak of morality. He's strong, yet gentle. Invincible, but vulnerable. He's the man you can talk to about anything, who will stand up for anyone. We should all want to be Superman.

Neo-Mad Dog right? Doesn’t have to save the world, just the day. He’s the neighbor we all want. The man little boys want to be.

Neo he doesn't model the peak human being. He models what we want to be. An inspiration. This time they just made him come from human origins.

I was so mad at him in injustice

This video came later though

Here comes the unnecessary Batman v Superman hate!

+Hoque Productions I think you mean warranted hate.

GameLark In what ways does it warrant the hate? (Also before you say I like the MCU films and have no problem with Marvel whatsoever)

+Hoque Productions Because it's clear DC doesn't understand their own characters.

Progressive House Worldwide Then count me as a weirdo too. I frickin love origin stories ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

*intense nodding*

I don't like how origin stories are told; I'd prefer to know the origin story first rather than know in the middle of a story, because going forth, back, then forth disorients the focus of a story. The way most media implement an origin story is not subtle, rather, it's in your face like you NEED to know. Look at J.R.R Tolkien's books, his stories' contexts stay relevant and chronologically straight. There are some sorts of origin stories in there, but they're told in such a way that makes it sound like folk lore, not requiring the reader to look into it unless they are choose to-- out of curiosity.

They are fundamental, but when done wrong fail terribly

Same

+pdrafter Thank you! The next one will be up in 2 weeks.

+kaptainkristian Great work man really inspiaring. keep it up

+kaptainkristian whoa this is your first video nd its already trending congrats to you

+EpicBeard815 I disagree with the part that Superman doesn't need to be complex. Again there is difference between keeping Superman simple and having him be simplistic. Keeping it simple doesn't mean disregarding complexity but making complex ideas simple to understand.

neosoontoretro I think by "simple" the implication is pure. His motivations should be pure, his outward character should be pure. The situations he gets in may provoke some complex emotions and thoughts, but he should always return to that state of absolute good. That's what I think, any way.

EpicBeard815 I don't know about absolute good, because when you take it that far it makes Superman hard to identity with. Maybe objectively good is a better way to look at it. You want Superman to be something to aspire to but you also want him to be someone you can relate to as well.

neosoontoretro That's fair. I think a lot of superheroes are more "relatable" because they're fantasies of having no responsibilities weighing them down (basically Batman written poorly), whereas Superman is a character who takes his responsibilities in stride. As I get older, I find that sort of inner strength and discerning morality more and more relatable and worth striving towards. I think that falls under "just a dude from Kansas doing the right thing"

EpicBeard815 "That's fair. I think a lot of superheroes are more "relatable" because they're fantasies of having no responsibilities weighing them down (basically Batman written poorly), " Actually, for me it's the exact opposite, characters like Batman are weigh down by their responsibilities not the lack thereof. "whereas Superman is a character who takes his responsibilities in stride." Well, to be fair it's easy when you're almost invincible and not mere mortal like Batman.

You are wrong old man we will rise

I believe more do than don't; its just about how they're done and this guy's gripe seems to be that of time consumption on how one became who they currently are

what about Wolverine Origins, that movie was straight garbage

Chaasad Bailey what are you implying?

True. But that story may have been great with a good script. Wolverine and Sabretooth as young men bonding through brotherhood and warfare because their own families' selfishness and ego destroyed themselves would make for a FASCINATING look at the characters. If I had my chance, I'd make a comic that examined that Sabretooth really just wants Wolverine to understand that, like him, they're both immortal creatures whose only respect belongs to others like them whereas everyone else (humans, mutants, and everyone in between) are unworthy since they don't have the understanding of seeing everything through the lens of seeing through history. It's why I LOVED The Wolverine film so much (especially that unrated extended cut) because it focused so much on the character of Wolverine.

CH Gorog​ wow you have... Shit taste

well they put half a million into these cartoons, which in today's money is close to 8 million. You get plenty of great animation for 8 millions worth.

+gdf40 the half a million is already adjusted for inflation. no need to adjust it again.

+kaptainkristian He mentioned it in his show today. more specifically your Adult Swim video

+kaptainkristian Is this your first channel on RU-vid? Because this is seriously very well made.

+K-C Rhoder IN THE YEEEAAAR 2016!! Plenty of people. He's still great.

ookjbhhyyyy8waq91iw8

Please make a playlist that has all of your videos in order, including ones that you didn't upload to your page, like "Spider-Man: The Lessons of Heroism".

They had bigger budgets

Half million dollar per episode is huge number and the talent behind it is crazy

I actually have to agree. that portion of the story was more to set up the villain than to be an origin story. But MoS completely failed in their representation of Superman or the Kents. The Kents contantly hammered Clark to always try to do teh right thing. In the MoS Pa Kent tells Clark that he should've left a bus full of kids to die.

Darkhoof I think they were trying to be realistic. Pa Kent wasn't really telling Clark to let the kids die. In MoS he just wanted to protect Clark from the dangers that comes with being who Clark is, like most parents would I feel and he died doing that. Of course life throws situations at you were that is very difficult. Pa Kent's initial reaction, "you need to keep this side of yourself a secret", suggesting as you mentioned that he wanted him let his mates die was just out of fear. The fact that Kent saved them and questioned his adopted father's remarks showed they did raise Clark to always do the right thing. What they also taught him and what I loved is that they made it clear the significance of who he is. So the Kents in MoS were really great parents.

***** Sorry, but I disagree. They weren't portrayed as selfless individuals that instilled in Clark the idea of helping the other. You may infer that, but they weren't portrayed like that. The image that we got from the Kents in the MoS was the polar opposite of who they are in the comic books simply because in the movie they decided to focus on the wrong characteristics of the Kents. Being overly protective of Clark, constantly telling him that he can just run away and hide and that he doesn't have to help others is the polar opposite of what they are in the books. They may have been going for realism but in that effort they completely misportrayed them as characters. Just as they did with Superman both in MoS and in BvS. If Superman represents hope and idealism it's because the Kents instilled those qualities in their son. We didn't see that in MoS and that's one of the reason why the movie felt off. It's a shame because just by changing a few ways in which the characters were portrayed with a few of the actions they took the movie could've had a story/plot as strong as its visual effects.

I also kind of resent the idea that "realistic" means "pessimistic". It's like Snyder took one small, modernized, aspect of Jonathan Kent--paranoia about someone locking Clark up in some lab--and just re-tooled the entire character around that because the story is darker that way. The Lois and Clark TV show from the 90s did something similar, but it was clear that Jonathan believed being supportive of Clark and how he chose to live his life was more important than his own feelings. It paints the character with a more realistic and nuanced brush, but still retains the core idea of what Jonathan and Martha Kent are supposed to represent: that Clark is a good person because of his upbringing. But Snyder apparently thinks that he has to darken everything up in order to make it more realistic, so he ends up sacrificing these core ideas and producing characters that don't ring true to the ideas they're supposed to represent.

Totally agree. I didn't care for BvS but MOS is such a pessimistally misunderstood film.

I had to go back and pause it I had never been so confused

kaptainkristian there was an attempt.

whoa! great video...just when i thought i knew geek lore you gotta spring this on me. just ordered the last dvd set on amazon 5:15 Dr.Who Return of Mystero also homages that part

ok, i thought i was tripping.

kaptainkristian Reddit let me to you and this video just made me subscribe cause I want more

How has no one noticed this before?

Holy crud XD

Who is that?

Gucci mayyne?

I have no explanation

I mean, to be fair, I think that killing a new Uncle Ben every reboot is kinda old hat at this point. It seems to have happened, and nothing more needs to be said about it. Peter seems to have learned the great power, great responsibility lesson, too. That was why Stark was drawn to Peter in the first place.

@@andyknightwarden9746 Thank you I agree that was the right approach superheroes with common knowledge origin stories

@@andyknightwarden9746 I get your point, and if they wanted Tony to be the new Uncle Ben, that'd be fine. Not as strong as Uncle Ben himself, but fine. However, they don't go far enough with that. Tony doesn't have that connection with Peter that the future movies (Infinity War and Endgame) wants us to think they have. I cringe every time I watch the Endgame battle and it has to stop for Tony and Peter acting like they've gone through like twelve movies together lmao

Homecoming actually was going to have a scene that directly mentioned Ben. The writers decided that Ben was far too important to namedrop him once in a movie that had nothing to do with him (much like TASM 2 did). The writers have much more respect for Spidey’s origins than some people recognize. I legit think the monologue in Civil War does a better job at explaining his motivation than the two movies dedicated entirely to them. Which is the problem with origins mentioned in this video: a motivation that can be perfectly established in seconds so as to make room for the actual story is instead spread thin to last an hour. Plus, it’s not so much Ben’s actual death as it is Peter’s desire to be greater after it that is the core of the character.

+dkmfan442 You are very kind. I'll try not to blow it

Not really. If you adjust the budget for the best 1940 animation with today, it's a crazy amount of money for an animated movie, let alone an animated show. Half a million per episode is too much today.

nerd writer kinda sucks tho

He's content has gone down hill recently; I must agree. But if were talkin' 10 Months ago....

Not saying that Nerrwriter1 sucks, but I think that this is better than Nerdwriter1. Among other things, videos like "The Perils of Worldbuilding" don't have any actual point other than to make a contrived point for the sake of making a contrived point. That guy tries way to hard to make his opinions unique. What he does, he does really well, but I stopped watching his videos because I no longer learned anything meaningful from him.

Exactly! *Superman:* "I grew up in Kansas, General. I'm about as American as it gets."

Completely agree. I love this video, but I disagree with the sentiments about MoS. I thought giving Krypton a more rich backstory was genius. Letting the viewers see what it was like on the planet makes you understand Kal-El a lot more, and you also understand why Zod is the way he is. Not necessarily a bad guy, but a guy who thinks he's doing what's best for his race, his people.

Exactly. It sets up Zod's purpose in life. He was born and raised to do have a certain purpose. And without that beginning scene, he would just be a mustache twirling villain. But with it, he's a well rounded character that you understand.

you know that both the donner film and the animated series did the same? the only difference is that they both have patient to establish the main focus of the film and it had more develop of the people in kripton. Man of steel is everyrhing is rush as hell, as they don't give a crap about the backstory, and they just want to blow shit up

+Taha Shujaat I agree. Zack Snyder and David Goyer don't have a clue who the Superman character is. Man of Steel was trash and in that movie they metaphorically killed him. I don't know if you've seen BvS yet so I won't spoil the movie for you but they do an even worse job with Superman in that film.

+Antonio Chasten I haven't yet but from what I gathered, he does seem to understand the character to some extent but I don't think he knows how to translate him to the big screen. Or atleast give him some scenes/lines that makes him awesome

He doesn't. He did something in BvS and he explained in an interview I saw last week as to why he did it to start Superman on his hero journey. But what he did to start him on that hero journey was just stupid. The motivation he gives Superman to start this journey told me something that I knew when I watched Man of Steel. Zack Snyder and David Goyer do not know the character or what makes him special.

Taha Shujaat I do agree that you should see BvS and make up your own mind about how you feel about the movie but I have to warn you. While it is a beautifully shot movie which is a treat to look at...it's a hot mess. It is terribly edited, sloppy plot holes, scenes that don't make sense, dumb dialogue (mostly coming from Superman) and ALOT of killing. Gal Gadot is the bright spot in this movie (for me she was) and I can't wait to see her solo movie and James Wan's Aquaman with Jason Momoa.

Lupe Walker Yeah, exactly what this video recommends, having a complex story around this simple character. But saying BvS is shit is cool right?

TheAlamla Who said BvS is shit?

Half the comments here?

I get that point. Except the execution wasn't right. Superman in BvS was not at all expressive at telling people he's not a god because he's such a stoic mess. I'd imagine him at least yelling at Luthor "You're wrong about me" or "You don't know anything about me", but that didn't happen. Instead he stayed quiet and was being deaf to every criticism people made. Due to the shoddy representation of Superman, There's no wonder why even audiences get so easily convinced by Luthor and Batman, who threw the words "god" and "alien" around like there's no tomorrow.

kid nobody missed the message since how much it's shoved in your face. it's how shit the whole movie was.