Challenge of the Super Friends - The First Season (DC Comics Classic Collection)

Starring:Jack Angel, Marlene Aragon, Lewis Bailey (III), Michael Bell, William Callaway, Ted Cassidy, Melanie Chartoff, Henry Corden, Danny Dark, Al Fann, Shannon Farnon, Ruth Forman, Bob Hastings, Bob Holt, Buster Jones, Stan Jones (II), Casey Kasem, Don Messick, Vic Perrin, Renny Roker
Director: Ray Patterson, Carl Urbano
Studio: Warner Home Video
Product Type: DVD

Editorial Review:
Amazon.com
Challenge of the Super Friends is the ultimate animated all-star contest of good versus evil. The original Super Friends (running from 1973 to 1977--Wonder Twins and Gleek anyone??) was made up of the greatest DC Comics superheroes fighting together to uphold justice for all mankind. Overall, it was a pretty good show, but getting stale very fast. In 1978, the superhero animation bar was raised high when the first (and only) season of Challenge of the Super Friends hit the Saturday morning circuit. Immediately these 16 episodes made up the best that Super Friends had to offer for one reason alone: the creation of the Legion of Doom, banding together the 13 most sinister villains of all-time from remote galaxies. Led by the sinister genius of Lex Luthor, the Legion of Doom was dedicated to take over the universe, and only the Super Friends, led by Superman, Wonder Woman and the Dynamic Duo, dared to challenge this intergalactic threat and bring them to justice.

Amazon.com

Challenge of the Super Friends is the ultimate animated all-star contest of good versus evil. The original Super Friends (running from 1973 to 1977--Wonder Twins and Gleek anyone??) was made up of the greatest DC Comics superheroes fighting together to uphold justice for all mankind. Overall, it was a pretty good show, but getting stale very fast. In 1978, the superhero animation bar was raised high when the first (and only) season of Challenge of the Super Friends hit the Saturday morning circuit. Immediately these 16 episodes made up the best that Super Friends had to offer for one reason alone: the creation of the Legion of Doom, banding together the 13 most sinister villains of all-time from remote galaxies. Led by the sinister genius of Lex Luthor, the Legion of Doom was dedicated to take over the universe, and only the Super Friends, led by Superman, Wonder Woman and the Dynamic Duo, dared to challenge this intergalactic threat and bring them to justice.

There is no denying that animated superhero shows have come a long way since Super Friends. The Challenge of the Super Friends is very '70s in presentation, riddled with inconsistencies and drawing mistakes, and allowing heroes to fly even if they couldn't fly in the comics. However, there is no denying the staying power of the stories, its concept, the superheroes/villains pairing and its overall charm. Included in this set are a couple of nice features, particularly the superheroes/villains biographies, each with their own mini-video. There is also a good, brief documentary of today's comic book and TV show creators reflecting on their impressions of Challenge of the Super Friends and its influence on their careers. If you want to take a trip down memory lane to the Hall of Justice or the swamps of the Hall of Doom, you will not be disappointed by this set. --Rob Bracco

Customer Reviews:

love it!.......2007-06-04

We love watching these episodes. They're a flashback to our childhood Saturday morning cartoon viewing. Our son enjoys them, as well. It's classic fun with the superheroes.

...later...at the Hall of Justice..........2007-04-22

I never grew up watching the Superfriends as most of the reviewers have. I do remember catching it in re-runs on weekday afternoons...usually at 3:30...so i never caught it on the Saturday morning line-up. I had always liked the shows...i liked all the versions of SUPERFRIENDS that i have been able to see through the years. The one that sticks out by far is CHALLENGE OF THE SUPERFRIENDS. As one reviewer put it, the villains and their over-the-top zeal at everything they do, make the show even more enjoyable. Another thing i like is the narration by Bill Woodson...his voice is heard in every episode as the narrator plus in several episodes, specifically FAIRYTALES OF DOOM on DVD #2, Woodson gives voice to Captain Nemo. That scene takes place inside the book 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. Toyman had created a device that inserted people into fairytales and the Superfriends only had a certain amount of time before they become permanent characters inside the fairytales: Jack and the Beanstalk {Hawkman}, Gulliver's Travels {Superman}, and Alice in Wonderland {Wonder Woman}. I love the episode REVENGE ON GORILLA CITY and i also like THE SECRET ORIGINS OF THE SUPERFRIENDS, THE TIME TRAP, INVASION OF THE FEARIANS, and SWAMP OF THE LIVING DEAD. I do however want to clear up something about Flash. Several have noted that he flies...well, in my eyes, he isn't "flying" as Superman would...Flash i think creates enough super-energy to lift himself into the air...especially on the episode when the Fearians and the Legion of Doom trick the Superfriends into changing the atmosphere of the Earth to make it like Venus. In that episode, Captain Cold goes on a freezing spree...Flash defrosts all of the cities which causes the air to become smoggy. In another episode, dealing with an invention called Liquid Light, Bizarro {the backwards version of Superman} dumps it out and it begins to devour everything in it's path. Flash circles around at high speed and it acts as a vaccum and sucks the Liquid Light up and it falls back to the earth "in the form of harmless falling stars" as narrator Bill Woodson explains. Green Lantern's power ring, i think, enables Aquaman and the others to appear to be "flying"...especially in the episode called GIANTS OF DOOM where Captain Cold freezes the regular-size Superfriends and Toyman "airmails" the Superfriends to the planet, Saturn. In that episode, it frequently shows Aquaman up in the air with the rest of them...flying...as with Flash and the others. I liked all of the episodes and i give the entire collection 5 stars. As far as the animation goes, i am aware of the mistakes. There are several...i can't make any excuses for it beyond saying whoever looked over the final cuts before they were aired on Television didn't pay close attention to detail. Outside of those errors that have been talked about, everything else about this series is great. This collection is billed as the First Season but it's the ONLY season...so any newcomers to all things Superfriends, do not look forward to a second season of CHALLENGE OF THE SUPERFRIENDS because there won't be one. Another thing about the animation before i conclude the review...this is 1978 animation...i know how superior and technically advanced animation has become since 1978 so there's no comparison...but the lack of superior animation shouldn't dictate what one would watch...at least for me it doesn't.

Good for the memories.......2007-04-18

I get upset with people who slam these collections on the basis of comparing them to today's standards. There is no debate that Justice League and the Unlimited incarnations of these characters are simply wonderful examples of how we've advanced as a culture in the past 30 years.

That said, I have to admit that going back in time through this little collection (4 episodes) while nostalgic, certainly does reveal many of the limitations of 1978 animation. Most notable are the overly simplistic storylines that require thorough narration of what is clearly taking place on screen. Next, after the viewer is brought "up to speed" by the narration itself, we are then treated to another set of explanations usually from the villain at hand who audible hatches his scheme to the rest of the Legion of Doom.

The other major flaw in the Superfriends (aside from the standard Hanna Barbara sound effect library shared with Scooby-Doo, The Flintstones, and Captain Caveman to name a few) is the lack of character depth. The unfortunate reality is that all of the members of the Justice League of America are basically cardboard cutouts. There is almost no discernable personality between heroes other than their abilities which are often cheaply used for resolve.

Oh well, it's all in good fun and there is no denying that this is the closest thing to real-life time travel we have. Slipping in the Challenge of the Superfriends simply begs its viewer to get into their pajamas and pour themself a tall bowl of sugary cereal.

THE COMPLETE SEASON. BUT NOT THE FIRST.......2007-03-05

The various series of the SUPER FRIENDS ran from 1973-1986 this set is actually the third incarnation in the SUPER FRIENDS franchise. It is however, the season that was called CHALLENGE OF THE SUPER FRIENDS. And it is complete in its original running order. The real first season of THE SUPER FRIENDS featured Wendy, Marvin, and Wonder Dog. Remember them? For those reviewers that lambasted this show in comparison to JUSTICE LEAGUE and JUSTICE LEAGUE UNLIMITED,(which in fact are awesome shows) that's a very unfair assessment. Not only was the budget limited so was the general additude of the animation industry at that time. Remember these were cartoons, and "cartoons" were geared to small children on Saturday Mornings. Back then 12 year old boys were expected to mow lawns and rake leaves not sit around watching tv. But now with the advent of DVDS giving us back the Satudays Mornings we lost, we expect the production values to be low, but the fun invaluable. Sometimes simple animation with cut and dried stories of good vs evil is what we need to get us through the rough times in our lives, no matter how old we are.

CHALLENGE OF THE SUPER FRIENDS-SEASON 1.......2007-02-15

I remember growing up as a child, sitting in front of the television on Saturday mornings watching these cartoons. I loved it back then and I still do now! The electrifying musical score under the supervision of Paul DeKorte and the direction of Hoyt Curtin prepared you for what was about to take place, as well as the narration voice-over from Stanley Jones. It was an amazing feat to gather 13 villians to go up against the Super Friends! I think William Hanna and Joseph Barbera did well and the show really reflected the time, which was 1978. Yes, there are a few blunders in the animation, but the scripts are well-written, although you will find that some of the dialogue, again reflected the time in which it was made. All in all, it is a very good show.
My favourite episodes are " The Time Trap, The Monolith Of Evil, Secret Origins Of The Super Friends, Swamp Of The Living Dead, Fairy Tales Of Doom, Super Friends: Rest In Peace and History Of Doom."
The transfers and the audio are quite good for the time and the age(1978) of the prints, although Warner Brothers should have done some restoration work on this collection. The audio should at least be in 2.0, but they gave us 1.0 with this collection. The special features are good, espically "Saturday, Sleeping Bags & Super Friends: A Retrospective."
All in all, it is a very good collection. I will never forget my memories of watching these cartoons growing up as a child. These were my Super Heros and i am so happy that they have finally been released on DVD!

DVD:

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