Off the Cuff - #25 – Superman, Teen Titans, and Animaniacs
By Eric Barrett
Comics, Cartoons, and all things related
looks pretty good. I like what Bryan Singer is doing with the character, played by Brandon Routh, he looks very much like the traditional Superman. And this quote inspires a great deal of confidence “With X-Men, although they had extraordinary powers, they also had physical weaknesses…The suits were for protection as well as costume. Superman is the Man of Steel. Bullets bounce off him, not his suit.”
It shows a good understanding of who Superman is, and what he is. While Singer didn’t do a 100% faithful adaptation in the X-men movies, they were still pretty true to the source material. (Although Halle Berry was a horrible choice).
I look forward to seeing this movie in about a year.
*As I was getting ready to finish typing this column I happened to run across this snippet about the movie:
“Following a mysterious absence of several years, the Man of Steel comes back to Earth in the epic action-adventure Superman Returns, a soaring new chapter in the saga of one of the world’s most beloved superheroes. While an old enemy plots to render him powerless once and for all, Superman faces the heartbreaking realization that the woman he loves, Lois Lane, has moved on with her life. Or has she? Superman’s bittersweet return challenges him to bridge the distance between them while finding a place in a society that has learned to survive without him. In an attempt to protect the world he loves from cataclysmic destruction, Superman embarks on an epic journey of redemption that takes him from the depths of the ocean to the far reaches of outer space.”
That sounds a lot more interesting than I thought it was going to. Usually I don’t get interested in what the movie studio claims the plot is going to be, but this sounds really good. This has to be my most anticipated movie of the next year-ish (much, much higher on my list than Star Wars).
I also think this confirms what I suspected from the Singer quote I lead off with. He seems to have a very good grasp of what makes Superman so special. That it’s not about his tremendous powers – it’s about his ability/inability to relate with those around him.
*Who doesn’t like Futurama? 
Well apparently enough people to get the show canned by Fox. But that’s a different post! This post is all about a computer that looks exactly like Bender. How’s that possible you say? Practice! Ha ha! Ahem.
Actually all of the technical details are on this website. Good luck reading them, since they are not in English. But there are lots of really cool pictures showing the Bender computer being built. I am duly impressed.
*Since we’ve started selling some cool Lost Toast merchandise, maybe we’ll get to see somebody make The Bug into a computer!
*A few weeks ago I mentioned a web site called Trek United that had raised over 3 million dollars in an attempt to bring Enterprise back for a fifth season. Well Paramount has finally declared that they will NOT bring Enterprise back. I am very disheartened about this, but I guess I have resigned myself to the end of this great show. Too bad.
*I saw perhaps the best episode of Teen Titans this last week. It was the episode with Control Freak as the villain. For those of you who don’t know, Control Freak is a guy who spent way too much time in front of the TV and has absorbed countless hours of TV. And because of that, all of his crimes are “TV themed.” Well in this episode he managed to suck the Titans into their televisions – making himself the ultimate controller.
This episode brilliantly makes fun of so many different genres and classic TV shows. The spoofs range from The Creature from the Black Lagoon down to Leave it to Beaver.
But perhaps the best scene was the ending. In the climactic battle between Control Freak and Beast Boy, they managed to make fun of Star Trek, Star Wars, Highlander, Planet of the Apes, and several anime shows. But they didn’t stop at just general references to the shows, they even made fun of the sounds and characters from the shows. It takes a lot of talent to do a spoof where the average viewer doesn’t realize it’s a spoof. You could have watched this episode and missed 85% of the jokes and still thought it was a good story. If you caught all the jokes, hey, that’s even better!
* I’m always a fan of writing that shows some creative humor and makes fun at itself. That’s what the Control Freak episode of Teen Titans demonstrated. Another good example of that philosophy is Stargate: SG1. The writers aren’t afraid to make fun of themselves, their characters, or their fans. And it makes the show that much better. I just wish more shows didn’t take themselves so seriously.
*Animaniacs is back on TV here in Cincinnati. And I have to say, as much as I loved that show when I was younger, I now realize just how deep it really was. I knew the writing was always good, but I didn’t recognize their brilliant ability to spoof just about anything.
Just this last week they ran an episode where they spoofed American Gladiators. I had forgotten all about that show until this episode. It’s nice to know that pop culture lives on through other pop culture! I was laughing because it was good comedy, but also because I had forgotten how lame American Gladiators was (even though I used to love that show).
*Well that’s about it for this week. I’m not sure if there will be a column next week. I have to do some emergency traveling next week, and I’m not sure I’ll have access to a computer or the internet. But if I do, I’ll try to get a column posted. In the meantime, feel free to head on over to Comixtreme.com and read my newest Beyond Fact and Fiction column. I think it’s a pretty good one.
*Oh yeah, don’t forget there’s another Marvel movie this weekend. Man-Thing is on SciFi this Saturday at 9 pm. Might be pretty good – or it could stink to high heaven.
The opinions stated in here solely reflect the opinions of the author. If you would like to comment on some of the items in this article, please feel free to post in the forum or send an e-mail. All characters, titles, and etc. are owned and ©; their respective publishers and creators- the author and StillontheShelf.com makes no claim towards them. This column is intended as an opinion piece only. Off the Cuff is ©; Eric Barrett. Please report any broken links!
Post your comments in the Forum!
