Show #150: Justice League (2001)

Martin Schneider shares in the festivities of our 150th episode, and what better way to celebrate an assemblage of all that is great & glorious about cartoons than with a rousing retrospective of Justice League!

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We've come a long way from our humble origins and have hopefully become something bigger & brighter than what we started as. Such is the case with Justice League, which took the baton from its DCAU forerunners and gave us a shining example of comics adaptation and excellent television, animated or otherwise. Have these merits withstood the test of time? After we get done talking about dream casting choices, indecent supervillains and sneaking filth into family friendly shows you may just find out!

THE SHORT VERSION

 Serious storytelling

Hirsute heroes

Motivation

Show #118: Superman The Animated Series

Don't call it a retcon! We tread familiar territory and beyond, this time with the help of David J Majors for a sincere salute to Superman: The Animated Series!

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Remember when folks were excited about the prospect of Superman and Batman sharing the screen together? Well you can be again if you haven't sampled the delights of this 1996 series, which does a similar admirable job to the Dark Knight's celebrated TV outing in modernising and presenting an ideal version of the monolithic hero. Bright, bombastic and bittersweet, its praises can not be sung loud enough, especially considering the groundwork it laid for future DC animated universe installments to come.

David's Twitter

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THE SHORT VERSION

World's Finest

Super-goofin'

More like JERKseid

Show #104: Teen Titans GO!

Renowned insane villain Brian Smith from Dynamite In The Brain graces us with the Most Offensive Cartoon Ever, the one and only Teen Titans Go!

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The Teen Titans, five of Earth's mightiest heroes, face the challenges of everyday life! A proven sitcom idea that pays off in spades thanks to this irreverent superhero portrayal courtesy of Aaron Horvath, Micheal Jelenic and company. The comedy only gets better as the Titans are put in ever more bizarre situations yet this only serves to stoke the inferno of internet ire, a host of people who would do well to maybe not continually expect straightforward comic book action from an obvious gag show week after week.

THE SHORT VERSION

 Jokes

 DIRTY jokes

Serious characters

Show #97: Shoot The Gun Or I'll Shoot You!

Getting weary of those lame-os at Marvel and DC? Experience the exciting alternative that is Gen 13: The Movie!

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Landing in our midst via the mystical power of Youtube suggested videos comes Gen 13, based on the Wildstorm comic of the same name about superpowered teens fighting the government. The film makes the most of its somewhat generic source material with the directorial talents of Kevin Altieri of Batman: TAS and a few standout performances from the voice cast, making for a pretty decent TV movie with a surprising amount of character.

THE SHORT VERSION

Mature content

Bad dudes

A heart of gold!

Show #88: It Sounds Like HR Giger Drew It

It's our first proper show of 2015, and Greg Driver is on hand to jumpstart the SOTSM-mobile with Batman: The Animated Series!

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A bit overdue but still not too late to celebrate the 75th anniversary of Batman, and we intend to mark the occasion with aplomb. But what more can possibly be said about this masterpiece of TV animation? Quite a bit, almost two hours worth! The shows impact on DCs successive output across a range of media, the tragic pathos of many of its villains, and just how does Greg always seem to show whenever AKOM is involved? It's all here in this giant-size issue of SOTSM!

THE SHORT VERSION

Stuper-villains

Life-changing trauma

Sad Batman

Show #46: I'm The Mom

With Zack Snyder's Man Of Steel busy being grim and gritty in cinemas around the world we delve into a more hopeful and human portrayal of the Last Son of Krypton in All Star Superman.

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Arriving a little later than anticipated due to some technical hiccups (apologies for the sound quality too) we explore this 2011 adaptation of the comic series by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely. As far as adaptations go this one does the job but never quite reaches for the same greatness as it's print forebear, with competent visuals overall and a little flatness in the voice performances. Also: will our predictions about Man Of Steel come to fruition? Listen and find out!

THE SHORT VERSION

A hot date

A couple of jerks

A lifestyle choice

Show #15: I've Got Bigger Problems Than That, Gorgeous Redhead

Not exactly faster than a speeding bullet we return, our trials and tribulations over for now hopefully. Maybe we can aspire to be something halfway as brilliant as season one of Superman: The Animated Series.

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Man, what can we say about this beauty of a cartoon? Odds are you're already aware of Superman and have seen it so you already know how crazy good it is! Unsurprisingly we are filled with naught but praise for another jewel in the DC Animated Universe crown. Watch it or indeed rewatch it if you haven't indulged in a while. This is what it's all about!

THE SHORT VERSION

Creepy

Creepier

CREEPIEST

Show #5: Or Even Better, If He Was Filled With Gunge!

We're back and making up for lost time in a big way! In our longest show to date we broach the archive of Warner Brothers DC Comics animated works, starting with a trip to the far flung era of Batman Beyond, AKA Batman Of The Future!


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Conceived as merely a means to sell more toys Batman Of The Future is as competent and well made as it's highly regarded predecessor. Striking a fine balance between surprisingly dark techno-dystopia and more comedic "Batman As High School Student" shenanigans, it's a testament to the cartoon making supergroup of Bruce Timm, Paul Dini and Co. This podcast is pretty titanic so save it for a long journey, workout or your menial task of choice!

THE SHORT VERSION

                                            Terry McGinnis, Teenage Dark Knight

                                   Old Man Bruce Wayne, with faithful Ace the Bathound

                          Blight, aka Derek Powers, whose action figure I found in the end!