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Clearly Superman didn't listen to Edna ("The Incredibles")
and maybe that's why the guy who was faster than a speeding
bullet, more powerful than a locomotive and able to leap
tall buildings in a single bound fell to Earth during the
last two seasons of "The Adventures of Superman". Produced
on the cheap the show had one advantage other TV shows didn't
have-color episodes and that more than the adventures spoke
to the enduring appeal of "Superman" the TV series in reruns
more than the quality of the adventures themselves. ***
George Reeves died (reportedly killing himself because
he was despondent) while the show was still soaring in the
ratings. His fear of being typecast became a reality as
he found it difficult to find acting jobs outside of his
role. It's a pity because Reeves' breezy acting style on
"Superman" sold audiences on the show. Even if the visual
and physical effects were often cheesy Reeves projected
a strength and sense of humor that made the character that
much more believable. More than anything else the success
of the series and its impact can be measured in Reeves'
on screen performance and charm. ---
Image & Sound:
"Superman" appears a tad inconsistent. Some episodes
look quite nice while others look their age. Warner has
done a good job of trying to clean these up and make them
look as sharp and good as possible but keep in mind that
the series is nearly fifty years old. The series is presented
in its original aspect ratio. The original mono presentation
is fairly crisp and clear although during some scenes the
music sounded a bit shrill while others it sounded a bit
muffled. Overall dialogue comes across pretty clean and
clear throughout the presentation. ---
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