User Reviews

After over a half-century of residing on earth and looking back over the vast parade of popular fictional characters featured in stories presented in Film, Radio & Television ,Printed Prose or the Printed Visual medium of the Comic Strips & Comic Books,we find that the ADVENTURES of SUPERMAN the Television Series seems to evoke the widest feelings of fond and nostalgic memories in all who were around tn those 'good old days.' This is not hard to reason why. The series was not big budget and did rely on good writing, albeit within the realm of the super hero comic book format. That is, the super hero is the selfless, ever present force for good in our world vs. evil.

The "Evil" in this format is usually supplied by Interplanetery Bad Guy Aliens, from Monster Creatures from the Prehistoric Past or from Hostile Visitors from other dimensions. All these in addition to the every day, common, run of the mill Criminal, Organized or otherwise. Generally, it was the domestic "crook" that provided the antagonists in the greatest number of scripts on the Superman show.

The sci-fi elements of space travel, super scientific inventions and time travel are all touched on, at least once. Ironically, the one episode that usually is named as 'favourite' or 'best' by the largest number of fans is PANIC IN THE SKY.

This episode came on for broadcast in about the middle of the series' second season. In a nutshell, the whole world's Scientific Community is forced to stand by as helpless spectators as a large meteor/asteroid is moving progressively toward a sudden impact with dear old mother earth, on a direct route toward ground zero in Metropolis. As the Professor (Jonathon Hale) tells Superman that the heavenly body is now falling in a direct beeline towards impact with Planet Earth, the Man of Steel tells all good bye, and flies off into space to meet the runaway extra-terrestrial body, head on. There is a great explosion, and Superman returns to Earth in a groggy, weakened, state of amnesia.

A passing Farmer Lady (Jane Frazee) gives the weakened, confused Kent a ride back to the city, where Clark is met by his co-workers; Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen and Editor Perry White. All are fearful and frustrated -concerned for the safety of the Whole World.* Kent's disabled condition is complicated because he is the one person known (in the TV Series Mythology) to be able to contact Superman. Clark is under a sort of house arrest, confined to his apartment, while hoping to recover.** While this is going on, there are world wide reports of unusual occurrences of rain storms, hurricanes, earthquakes, sand storms-all believed to be caused by the presence of this runaway asteroid's now revolving around our planet Earth like a second moon.

Meanwhile, the still Amnesiac Kent discovers his Superman costume & spare in his secret closet compartment. Being even more confused than ever, he asks Olsen if maybe the costume has the power, not the person. Jimmy relates quite emphatically that "NO!! ONLY SUPERMAN CAN DO SUPER THINGS!"***

Olsen leaves an even more perplexed Clark Kent alone, where he tries on the super suit, checking out a double biceps pose in the mirror.**** In a state of extreme frustration, Mr. Kent smashes his arm down and easily destroys the armchair he is sitting in. This shocks him back to memory of events before his collision with the approaching meteorite. Off he streaks, out the window like a bullet making a beeline to the observatory, where the Professor (Jonathon Hale, again) hands him an explosive device to be detonated on the surface of the runaway heavenly body. Superman complies, world saved, Kent better. All's well in Metropolis and the World.

The screenplay was as good as any that would be seen at that time on the TV screen. It touched all the bases necessary to making a really good Man of Steel TV episode. It showed off the hero's great power and his fragility, making him a most human Superman. This is another example of the great talents of George Reeves.

And again in giving proper recognition where it belongs, we come to the great screenplay (or teleplay if you will). The source for this greatest episode was a 12 page Superman story published in the Jan.-Feb.1954 issue of WORLD's FINEST COMICS #68 titled "The Menace from the Stars!" . This was a very good story in print and,in its adaption, Series Producer Whitney Ellsworth and company improved on the original. This was no small doing and one for which we should all be grateful.

* The world was even more helpless than we would be as demonstrated when Jimmy asks if there isn't a guided missile that our Armed Forces could shoot out into space to demolish the runaway planetoid. He is told no, there aren't any missiles in that day that could. Being 1953, they were right.

** This has to be the really fine example of the high level of acting ability and talent that George Reeves brought to this 'little' television series-at a time when television was looked down at by those in Hollywood.

*** This undoubtedly was one of the built in warnings scattered about in various episodes as not only part of the story, but also serving as warning to youthful viewers against trying any super stunts at home.

**** This is yet another great example of the great acting ability of Mr. Reeves! He appears alone in his pad, clad in the Blue, Red and Yellow costume. But, he is also wearing his glasses and displaying a most disturbed expression and body language to convey a weary, frightened and confused man.

This and the very first episode are among my favorites. The earlier black & white shows are quite well-done and better than later ones that seem to be aimed at children.

My only question is why Clark Kent, without his eyeglasses, was not immediately recognized as Superman?

*Spoiler/plot- Adventures of Superman, 1952. Panic in the Sky, aired 12/12/53. Scientists at an observatory find a giant and glowing asteroid on a collision course with Earth. They call on Superman for his help. Superman hits the giant asteroid. The impact causes the asteroid to now only orbit Earth. However, Superman is weakened severely as he returns to Earth. He manages to change back to Clark Kent (a reflex action) but he has amnesia. Meanwhile, the orbiting asteroid still presents a hazard for Earth. Only Superman can place an explosive device that will demolish the asteroid -- but no one, including Clark, knows where Superman is. He struggles through his dilemma.

*Special Stars- George Reeves, John Hamilton. Jack Larson. Noel Neill, Bill Kennedy (VO). Robert Shayne.

*Theme- Good can overcome evil.

*Trivia/location/goofs- B & W. Superman's flying and jumping file footage was taken in Los Angeles. It commonly uses the skyline of 1950's downtown with the tall city hall building. The observatory file footage is the Griffith Observatory in the hillside city park in Los Feliz area of L.A. The rocky area where Superman (Kent) is picked up by a helpful lady car driver is the Chatsworth park on the closed Iverson Movie Ranch area now call "The Garden of the Gods" or Santa Susana Pass City Park.

*Emotion- Always a bit of fun and entertainment from a "baby-boomer" kiddie's TV life. Takes one back to those carefree days. The episode still holds up and is voted one of the best of the series. It has been included is many of "the Best" of publicly offered TV Superman VHS & DVD series.

*Based On- Superman comic book series.

This was a tough rating. The show is aimed at children and from that perspective it rates a nine or ten. On the other hand, as a Physics teacher who has to fight to rid my students of scientific fallacies ingrained from years of television and movies, it rates zero. That's right, it is so bad it doesn't even rate one. I averaged the two and rated it six with the extra star being earned for excitement.

Here are the problems.

1) If Superman has amnesia, then how did he know to change into his Clark Kent clothes?

2) Perry says the object is a giant comet which the scientists are calling an asteroid. Comets are huge balls of ice that orbit the Sun like planets. Asteroids are chunks of rock left over from the formation of the Solar System, they are nothing alike.

3) Jimmy says the asteroid flew past Venus and Mars and headed straight fo Earth. Earth is located BETWEEN Venus and Mars so that course is impossible.

4) Asteroids don't fly around on erratic courses suddenly changing directions as this one did.

5) Using the information about it size and the time it took (12 hours) to circlr the Earth I caculated its altitude to be 12,500 miles and its weight to be a hundred billion tons, about a hundred million times less than the Moon. An object with that weight would have almost no effect on the Earth and could not possibly affect the other planets. Ther would not be tidal waves, eartquakes, and volcanic eruptions.

6) An atomic bomb as small as the one used could not explode with as much energy as shown, if it explode at all. It certanly would not destroy the asteroid.

7) Since the asteroid is so small, it would not have an atmosphere so there would be no sound, so Superman could not talk.

This kind of sloppy writing teaches children wrong concepts thst they accept as fact which becomes ingrained making it extremely difficult for teachers like me to counter. Children should not be trivialized by spewing false information by adults who dismiss it as okay because they are just children.