1966 WEEK! A 60th anniversary tribute to a charming series… — UPDATED 9/10/26: It’s 1966 WEEK! Filmation’s The New Adventures of Superman debuted 60 years ago, on Sept. 10, 1966. Perfect time to reprint this piece from September 2020! For more 1966 WEEK festivities, click here. Right on! — Dan — — Welcome to THE FILMATION FILES, a recurring series that takes a deep dive into some of the most entertaining cartoons ever – the DC Comics segments first broadcast in the ’60s but which were also a staple of ’70s syndication. Click here for the complete index of features, as well as links to our podcast with John S. Drew. — If you love Superman and cartoons, you’re pretty lucky. The Man of Steel has been animated since his earliest days and can still be found in DC’s direct-to-video films. The quality has always varied, but for sheer goofy charm, you can’t do any better than The New Adventures of Superman, Filmation’s 1960s take on the Man of Tomorrow. The show ran Saturdays on CBS for three seasons in various permutations, starting Sept. 10, 1966 — 60 years ago. I first encountered the cartoons in syndication in the ’70s and have long had a soft spot for them, even though I prefer Filmation’s 1968 Batman series. (Because of course.) But in anticipation of the program’s anniversary, my son Sam and I spent a good part of the summer binging the whole run and we came up with THE TOP 13 FILMATION SUPERMAN CARTOONS — RANKED. Two things to be aware of: The first two seasons featured shorts while the third season contained two-parters, but we felt it was fair to judge them all equally. On the other hand, we left out the Superboy shorts because that felt like comparing red apples to green apples. So let’s go… up, up and away! — 13. The Men from A.P.E. (Season 1). Who doesn’t love a good villain team-up? Lex Luthor, the Toyman, the Prankster and the Warlock – who would have made a great villain in the comics – combine forces to create Allied Perpetrators of Evil. Naturally, it doesn’t work out. — 12. Luthor’s Lethal Laser (Season 3). Moon madness reaches Filmation Superman as Luthor builds a gigantic laser cannon to attack Earth from the lunar surface. And Brainiac...
Scott and Dan pick the comics they’re most looking forward to… — Dan Greenfield, editor, 13th Dimension Batman & Robin: Year One — Dynamic Duos #2, DC. Man, what a freakin’ great cover by Chris Samnee. The story’s barely gotten started but it is so much fun to see Catwoman in her classic purple dress. Samnee even manages to make it look almost practical. I would love this as a virgin variant, but mayhap there will be a second printing. Scott adds: So great to see the return of the Golden Age/Bronze Age Catwoman costume. Speaking of variants, there have been so many great ones going back to the beginning of the first series that I think DC would do well with a collection of them. I’d even make it in comic-book form, if I were Boss for a Day. This one is a new one by David Talaski: — Batman #251 Facsimile Edition, DC. The second Facsimile release of the greatest single comics issue of all time (I will brook no dissent). What makes this a must-buy is that, like all of DC’s Facsimiles now, the UPC symbol is on the back. Just as importantly, we get this Neal Adams beaut — one of his best two or three covers ever — in foil for the first time. Plus, a sweet-looking logo sketch cover. Check out BATMAN #251: Towering Evidence the Bronze Age Is the True Golden Age and BATMAN #251: How Fans Reacted to the Return of THE JOKER. Scott adds: One of Neal Adams’ most famous Batman covers is hard to pass up. — Batman: Bad Seeds — Gotham Central #1, DC. You had me at “Gotham Central.” It’s not a return of that fantastic series, mind you, but this two-ish offshoot of the current Bat-event focuses on Officer Jim Gordon and his young partner. And that’s good enough for me. — Green Lantern Corps #20 ‘Lanterns’ Variant Cover, DC. Are you watching Lanterns? You should be watching Lanterns. (Cover by Jahnoy Lindsay.) — Barbara Gordon: Breakout #5, DC. I’m just going to assume that at some point, this will morph into Barbara Gordon: Batgirl. Because she can’t stay in prison forever, right? And it is called Breakout, right? Right?? — Doomquest #4 Steve Rude Variant Cover, Marvel. The House of Ideas takes a 2000 illo by...
Over at the original blog, I was proud to be the first dude in America to get his hands on the first wave of Mattel’s Batman 1966 action figures. They’re out now but I still have to share:
I promise you – no “Holy —-!” jokes – but this is the column I’ve waited to write for, oh, I don’t know, just about MY ENTIRE LIFE!