Posted By Dan Greenfield on Aug 13, 2020 | 2 comments

But there’s still hope for the Swift and Powerful Monarch of the Ocean…

A favorite pastime these days among morbidly minded fans is guessing how long the DC Universe app will last — especially after this week’s massive layoffs at DC.

Well, one relatively minor hint is that the beautifully restored, high-definition 1967 Filmation Aquaman series — complete with its “super superhero” shorts starring the Justice League, the Teen Titans, the Atom, the Flash, Green Lantern and Hawkman — was dropped from the service at the beginning of August.

On the face of it, it’s startling and distressing news for fans like me (and you if you clicked on this). Sure, you can get these episodes elsewhere, like iTunes or on home video, but the quality is noticeably sloppier.

I was astonished that DC remastered this series to begin with and I’d hoped that the app would follow suit with the other Filmation series. Alas, that hasn’t come to pass, nor do I expect it to. (The app never did put the 1968 Filmation Batman series up, which to this very moment amazes me.)

Anyway, there’s still hope. A note on the app that updates subscribers on changes notes that “the delightful series, Aquaman (1967) will be swimming to other waters.” My guess, like much of the other DC material, is that it’s headed to HBO Max, but so far it hasn’t shown up there — or anywhere else that I can find.

Too bad, because this is such perfect summertime viewing — and the restoration was downright gorgeous, giving viewers a renewed appreciation for Filmation’s often-derided animation quality.

Still, we’ll be watching for Aquaman, Aqualad and the rest to resurface.

Cross your flippers.

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MORE

— THE FILMATION FILES INDEX of Features and Podcast Episodes. Click here.

— Podcast: AQUAMAN — Menace of the Black Manta. Click here.