LEGENDS OF THE SUPERHEROES (1979)

 

PHENOMENALITY: *marvelous*
MYTHICITY: *poor*
FRYEAN MYTHOS: *comedy*
CAMPBELLIAN FUNCTION: *psychological, sociological*

The seventies were an ambivalent time for costumed superhero movies. Even the plethora of low-budget superhero films seen in the sixties dwindled in the following decade, with DOC SAVAGE-- THE MAN OF BRONZE the standout failure of the decade's first half, while the second half was distinguished for the 1978 SUPERMAN, the first costumed hero film with a substantial budget. However, on the small screen, live-action superheroes like Wonder Woman and the Hulk, as well as "adjacent" types like the Bionic Duo, became moderately popular, though even the most successful shows were less successful in their aim than '66 BATMAN. 

Saturday morning cartoons also paled next to their sixties predecessors, but Hanna-Barbera's SUPER FRIENDS found a comfortable niche that lasted (in one form or another) from 1973 to 1985. The third SUPER FRIENDS series, CHALLENGE OF THE SUPER FRIENDS, was the first to closely follow the format of the various DC comics vis-a-vis having the Justice League square off against various established super-villains, most of whom got their first incarnation in another medium in the H-B cartoon.

I know that a lot of superhero fans liked CHALLENGE, but it may not have been particularly successful ratings-wise, since the next SUPER FRIENDS show, debuting in September 1979, went back to a format of simpler anthology-stories, not dominantly indebted to DC Comics continuity. But it's still odd that Hanna-Barbera decided to produce a sort of vaudeville-roadshow version of CHALLENGE. shot on videotape and on a paucity of sets. The two hour-long episodes, airing in prime time a week apart in January 1979, weren't in a position to court a regular kid-audience, and their silly approach to the subject matter wouldn't have pleased comics-fans-- not that comics-fans were even a demographic anyone in prime time cared to pursue. My best guess is that the producers had some idea of duplicating the success of '66 BATMAN-- "ha, ha; aren't costumed heroes and villains absurd to right-thinking adults"-- without understanding what made that show work for sixties adults, at least for a short period of time.  

The first special, titled THE CHALLENGE in emulation of the 1978 cartoon show, loosely follows the format as well, albeit with a more openly absurd premise. First a montage introduces the eight heroes, who are never called either "Justice League" or "Super Friends," consisting of The Flash, Captain Marvel, The Huntress, Black Canary, Green Lantern, Hawkman, Batman and Robin. The only significant performers here are the iconic performers of '66 BATMAN, with Adam West and Burt Ward reprising their costumed roles for the last time in a full live-action production. Then, as in the cartoon, the viewer sees the seven villains, never called "Legion of Doom"-- and here too, the one alumnus from '66 BATMAN, Frank Gorshin's Riddler, is the only actor I'm going to cite here. Riddler, Solomon Grundy, Sinestro and Giganta were the only characters who had appeared in CHALLENGE, while Doctor Sivana was almost certainly brought in as a shout-out to the Captain Marvel mythology, and Weather Wizard to that of The Flash. The seventh choice, the sorcerer Mordru, was the oddest choice, given that the character ordinarily operated in the pages of DC's LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES comic. It's possible that the writers just wanted a magician who could bring about various cheapjack effects, and so chose Mordru at random.

The writers' choice of plotlines also indicates a contempt for the superhero genre. The villains plot to blow up the world with a doomsday device-- without making the slightest comment about how they're going to avoid being destroyed as well, since they're physically located on the Earth. But they all agree that destroying the world's no fun unless they can rub it in the heroes' faces. Therefore, they send the heroes vague clues about the bomb, and when the champions run around looking for the device, the villains seek to undermine their efforts. At no time do the villains seek to kill their antagonists; they just seem to want to humiliate them. Most of the encounters play like comical blackout-skits-- Riddler poses as a psychiatrist and talks Captain Marvel into having a couch-session-- though the hulking Solomon Grundy does have some very short fights with Batman, Hawkman and Black Canary. Finally, the villains manage to cause the heroes to lose their super-powers-- but then the bumbling Grundy exposes himself and the rest of the Faux-Legion to the same depowering influence. This leads to a climactic but poorly choreographed brawl, which of course the heroes win, saving the world and ensuring that the first special, at least, falls into the combative mode. 

Certain moments of silliness in CHALLENGE might be funny to some viewers in the right mood, maybe mostly the material written for West and Ward, playing slightly more dopey versions of the '66 TV-heroes. But I don't need to spend much time on the second and last special, THE ROAST, because it's almost humor-free. It's just one roast-style skit after another, and the only bit that had some potential was an interview asking the newly married Giganta about her connubial relations with her spouse, the six-inch-tall Atom (making his live-action debut here). Even then, the punchline is basically a variation on the old, "Hey, if she dies, she dies" schtick. Again, there may be some nostalgia value thanks to the participation of West and Ward (though not Gorshin this time). Ruth Buzzi pops up playing the CAPTAIN MARVEL villain Aunt Minerva, and Mordru (Gabriel Dell of the "Dead End Kids" film-series) sings a song. Oh, and both specials guest William Schallert as "Retired Man," wherein Schallert largely reprises the "doddering old fool" type of character he'd done for the sixties GET SMART series.

A few of the costumes, like Mordru's, are decently executed. But aside from that, and the nostalgia-value of the Bat-alumni, both specials were largely worthless-- though I must admit that "so bad it's good" is in the eyes of the beholder.