“The All New Super Friends Hour: Season One, Volume Two”-Own it on DVD January 27, 2009
- Release Date: January 27, 2009
- Publisher: Warner Home Video
- Price: $19.99 on Amazon.com (Buy It
)
- Rating: Not Rated
- Run Time: 366 minutes
- Special Features: “The Wonder Twins Phenomenon: Zan and Jayna’s Impact on Pop Culture”
- Genre: Animation
Even though I have loved most of the recent superhero movies, in general I dislike watching these kids cartoons especially when they are as old as this one (it aired in 1977).While this one wasn’t all that terrible, it is far too corny and outdated for me to recommend for everyone. Still, people who have enjoyed past Warner Bros. superhero cartoon releases will probably love it.
Each week “The All New Super Friends Hour” featured four different animated shorts along with a few filler features that could include safety tips, first aid lessons, magic trick lessons, etc. Three of the four shorts mainly focused on DC comic book heroes while the other featured the famous Wonder Twins.
Since the show aired in the ’70s when networks were starting to crack down on cartoon violence, there isn’t a ton of action and virtually no conflict in any of the shorts. This hurts the show quite a bit because many of the shorts are just downright boring. The filler material saves the show from being just another cheap and boring show.
Other than the lack of conflict, the biggest problem with the show is its cheapness. The animation is pretty awful, even for a show made in the ’70s. There are also a lot of animation gaffes in most episodes. Even though the show was made on the cheap, Warner Bros. has done the best job they possibly could restoring the episodes. The colors are a bit dull and there is a bit of grain but for a cheap ’70s cartoon, I can’t complain about the results.
The only extra, “The Wonder Twins Phenomenon: Zan and Jayna’s Impact on Pop Culture,” takes a look at the infamous Wonder Twins. While it isn’t bad, I’m not really a Wonder Twins fan myself (in fact, I think they are the weakest part of the show) and I would have to say its just an okay special feature.
Since “The All New Super Friends Hour” is definitely not one of the better superhero cartoons ever made, I wouldn’t recommend this for many people. If you are a die-hard superhero cartoon fan, it’s probably worth a purchase but otherwise I would probably pass.
