TV Guided: Who Else Deserves a Shot at Prime Time?

Redartz:  Good day, all!  Today we feature a topic suggested by our friend and frequent commenter, Charlie Horse 47: given the plethora of shows the past few years centered on and around our favorite heroes, what characters have been overlooked by the "Powers that Be"?

Martinex1:   There sure have been a lot of programs over the decades that fall into our hobby wheelhouse.  It may have seemed sparse when we were growing up, but between Saturday morning live-action shows and the occasional nighttime classic we still had some choices.   Today though with Supergirl, The Flash, Arrow, Legends of Tomorrow, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Daredevil, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., and the upcoming Defenders, it is a good thing that somebody invented the DVR.

Redartz:  Quite right! I don't know what I'd do without Netflix and CW on Demand from our cable provider. It's almost an embarrasment of riches, hero-wise. Who would have thought, thirty years ago, what we'd have to choose from today?

Martinex1:  I still have a fondness in my heart for that strange Shazam! show.   Riding the highways and biways in a Winnebago with a guy named Mentor, Billy Batson converses with animated Greek gods, yells "Shazam," becomes Captain Marvel, and fights some bullies on dirt bikes, saves a girl who loves horses,  and protects kids from falling boulders!  It is so bad it is good!

Redartz:  Back in the day, I was nuts over The Green Hornet, and of course Batman. I also liked Incredible Hulk , and watched (but was less than ecstatic about) Nicholas Hammond as Spider-Man. Now I never miss Gotham, Supergirl, Flash and Legends. It's amazing to me, each week, how much detail and attention is given in these shows to their four color origins.

Martinex1:  As far as what I would like to see some day on TV,  I will stay off the A-List and leave those characters for the theaters.   I'd like small screen versions of Monark Starstalker (from Marvel Premiere fame) in a more cerebral space adventure ala Space 1999.  Or 3-D Man in a 1950's battle with shape changing Skrulls.  Or even better, ROM's adventures against the Dire Wraiths in Clairton, West Virginia. 

I'd also like to see a fourth-wall breaking version of She-Hulk on TV. 

The only casting selections I can think of would be Timothy Olyphant as Starstalker.  And I'd like to see Lance Henriksen, Peter Weller, and Bill Paxton as Skrulls.

Redartz: What (who?) would I like to see? Like you, Marti, I'd avoid the big guns and leave them for the big screen. How about...Deadman- great potential as a crime/horror meld.  Man-Thing: could be done as a creepy anthology, kind of like Gerber's original version was. And Marti, I'd tune in to watch your 4th. wall She-Hulk every episode!

What shows would all of you schedule? Any casting suggestions?  Go for it, the networks are listening...

Animation Congregation: Quest is Best!

Redartz:  Hello everyone, and welcome to another episode of "Animation Congregation". For today's discussion, we will look at what I consider the greatest animated tv show ever: "Jonny Quest". And I specified 'animated tv show' rather than 'Saturday morning cartoon' for a reason- JQ was first scheduled as a prime time program! It originally aired on Friday nights on ABC, in the 1964-65 season. Of course, we all know it best as a longtime staple of Saturday mornings, running on each of the three American tv networks at one time or other. 

The half-hour adventure show told the story of Jonny Quest, the precocious son of Dr. Benton Quest. Dr. Quest, a brilliant scientist (who apparently was well-versed in many areas of science) was frequently called upon by the U.S. government to investigate various trouble spots. Thus agent Roger "Race" Bannon was assigned to them as protection; of course Race soon became part of the family. As did Hadji, a young Indian boy who the Quest team met and adopted during a mission to that Asian nation. The final member of the group was "Bandit", Jonny's pet dog; often the source of humorous sidelights. Incidentally, little was mentioned about Jonny's mother on the show. In 1986 Comico produced a "Jonny Quest" comic series written by William Messner-Loebs; in the second issue it told the tale of Jonny's mother and her fate. I recommend it highly.

"Jonny Quest" truly had everything going for it. Brilliant music by composer Hoyt Curtin, and the coolest intro of any show around:

It also had beautiful visuals; excellent graphics, backgrounds and character design courtesy of creator Doug Wildey. It had drama, humor, loads of action, science fiction, the whole bit. But the big draw was the fantastic array of monsters, villains, and weirdness the team faced. Among them: A mummy, a Pteranodon, a giant spider robot, stone gargoyles, glowing invisible energy creatures, werewolves, Nazi war criminals, temple looters, renegade Chinese generals, and much more.  And of course, chief among them all, was Dr. Zin- Benton Quest's arch enemy and frequent interloper into the Quest affairs. Or more accurately, the Quest team frequently interloped into , and foiled, Dr. Zin's evil plans. 

 


Excellent voice acting was another plus for the show, courtesy of:
 Tim Matheson (Jonny Quest), John Stephenson (Dr. Benton Quest), Mike Road (Race Bannon), Danny Bravo (Hadji) and Don Messick (Bandit). The show put these actors through their paces, and put them into a world of exotic locales: Egypt, The Java Sea, the Arctic, India, the Andes Mts., and much more. The use of real-world settings, and Wildey's attention to background detail, gave the cartoon an unequaled air of authenticity.



 
Catching Jonny and the Quest team was always a highlight of my Saturday mornings. It just seemed several steps above all the other adventure cartoons in all areas, in my lowly opinion. All  26 episodes were great viewing, but of course I had a few favorites; among them:

"The Curse of Anubis"- Mummies; how could you not love this one?

"The Robot Spy"- a classic episode with Dr. Zin's giant spider robot, when you think of Jonny Quest, you may well picture this episode.

"Shadow of the Condor"- magnificent episode with Doug Wildey's brilliant WWI planes and Race Bannon's dogfight. And the scene with Bandit snatched by a condor was one of the most terrifying you'll ever see on a Saturday morning show.

"The House of Seven Gargoyles"- great, moody, dramatic episode. With dwarfs, gargoyles and evil henchmen.

Over the years, Hanna Barbera studios have done several Quest updates: a 1986 series, the 1990's "New Adventures", and several tv movies. I watched 'em all, but none could ever match the strength of the original. However, the comics spawned by the series fared pretty well. In 1964, Gold Key released a single issue of "Jonny Quest", which has since become a scarce collector's item. 














Comico's "Jonny Quest" series in the later 80's was very well done, and featured several covers done by JQ icon Doug Wildey. Wildey also did a three-issue miniseries adapting several of the most popular tv episodes, The covers:

Also in 1986, fanzine "Amazing Heroes" did a cover feature on the show in this issue, chock full of articles, reviews and a long interview with Doug Wildey himself...

 Of course, enjoyable as reading the comics alway is, watching the tv show is the best way to experience "Quest". Hanna Barbera was smart enough to release the entire series on DVD several years back. It even features Jonny and Race in a "PF Flyers" shoe commercial (for those of us old enough to recall when tv shows were sponsored and the stars hawked the products). It may be the single most-watched dvd collection on my shelf. You know, I think I'll go put in a couple episodes now. "Dragons of Ashida", maybe?

Follow The Leader: Episode 6: Foods We Have a Distaste For!

Martinex1:  We've had some absolutely stellar discussions lately on Follow The Leader, from talk about Jim Shooter's impact, to Kirby's evolving style, Jackson's evolving voice and even universe building.   So you all obviously know the drill (if you don't check out previous Tuesday posts and check out the guidelines below).   And get ready because...

It is Tuesday and therefore it is Follow The Leader time!  

We will take any topic suggested and throw it out to the masses for consideration and conversation.     The challenge is to keep the conversation rolling and going, so keep in mind that sidebars, tangents, and non sequiturs are welcome! 

Here are the general rules:

1) Whoever gets here first (or even second) post a topic starter in the comments that others can jump on and discuss for the day; supply as little or as much detail as necessary to get the ball rolling.

3) The range of possible subjects is broad - comics, movies, music, television, fiction, hobbies, queries, etc.  Try to have the topic touch some aspect of Bronze Age nostalgia if possible.

4) Keep it clean and family friendly.

5) All others...follow the Leader! Your job is to keep the conversation rolling.   (As I said - follow the topic wherever it takes you; a conversation started about comics may lead to comments on jazz for all we know)!

Note:  There is one caveat... if Redartz or I notice that the suggested topic is something we already have in the pipeline, we will let you know and inform you of the projected date for that subject for discussion.  That is just so we don't double up.   Hey - great minds think alike, right?

Cheers all!

Chew the Fat: What About the Reprint Books?

Redartz:  Good day, comics fans! Today we are discussing the 'leftovers' of the comics world: the reprint books. For as long as comic books have been around, there have been reprints. Indeed, among the very first comics was "Famous Funnies", which reprinted newspaper comic strips in comic book form. So our hobby owes much to these re-tellings. 

Of course, they haven't gotten as much respect as 'first run' titles. Listings in price guides and online are always lower for reprints. And such books  tend to be found languishing in those "quarter boxes" and "dollar bins", collecting bends from being rifled over and past. I am guilty of this disrespect, as well: as a young collector, I avoided reprint books like the plague; only first printings for this fanboy. However, that viewpoint changed over the years. As original printings of many silver and bronze age books are now prohibitively expensive, and earlier books just plain scarce, reprints are a wise alternative. And today's editions are truly deluxe: I love those Omnibus editions...

Anyway, for years the earlier tales of our favorite characters have been available from the publishers as reprints. Dell, DC and Gold Key often included reprinted tales in current comics alongside the new stories. And DC would publish periodic "80 page giants" which were all reprint. Then, still later, were the 100-page Spectaculars; with Golden age as well as Silver age stories.

Marvel jumped on the reprint wagon early: "Marvel Tales", originally an annual, was reprinting the first stories of Spider-Man, Thor and others just a few short years after they originally appeared (Marvel Tales, and it's sister "Marvel Collector's Item Classics" were very cool books featuring several stories in each issue, until the page count dropped in the early 70's).  And over subsequent years, Marvel added many more reprint titles. One big negative, I must note, was the practice of shaving several pages of story from the original in order to fit the lower page count in Bronze age books. That was part of the reason I formerly avoided such books.

So...let's have a look at some of these reprint books, and see what they offered...

And let me offer a big "Thank You" to my pal Marti for his cover contributions and the accompanying comments!

Sometimes classics had modern cover re-imaginings!

Sometimes originals (1972) were reprinted in prime comics just a few years later (1975)!

Once in a while much older tales popped in: classic Silver Age and even some Golden Age stories!

 


This one actually specialized in Golden age; while also containing some fun horror/monster stories from the 50's and early 60's...

While the second volume gave us the Silver Surfer...

I always had a fondness for the covers, such as the Marvel Tales below, which depicted several covers from the original stories...

Sometimes art was changed slightly or mirror images were created for the covers!

 This is an example of a cover which, I feel, was improved by the changes for the reprint issue...














 And here are three DC  reprint comics  with some Silver Age stories. The DC Special saluting Carmine Infantino was one of my earliest comics purchases (when I had no idea who he was)...

What did you think of all those reprints? Tell us your 'marvel tales' regarding all your 'collector's item classics'...

Sunday.. A Restful Fun Day!

Sunday, Sunday, Sunday at Back In the Bronze Age!   That means rest, relaxation, and recommendations for you!  Nothing particularly new ... just some previews and review...

THIS PAST WEEK:

We were Byrned on Monday, rebuilt some universes on Tuesday, were gobsmacked with gumballs on Wednesday, ranked our villains on Thursday, debated presidential merits on Friday, and went retro on Saturday. 

There were a lot of topics covered, so if you missed any of the conversation take a look back at the posts this week!

COMING SOON:

Monday:  Looking back at reprint madness!

Tuesday:  Looking forward as you Follow The Leader!

Wednesday: On a quest for a good cartoon!

Thursday:  It is a prime time for Prime Time at TV Guided!

Friday:  We have a couple of questions for you!

Saturday:  We share what we think about the ink.   Inkers not tracers at Panel Discussion!


RECOMMENDATIONS:

Today we recommend some of our favorite albums that you may want to check out:

Difford & Tilbrook, the songwriters from Squeeze had a self-titled album during a break from the group in 1984.  It had some good tracks like  "Hope Fell Down" and "Picking Up the Pieces."   If you like Squeeze then you will like this outing.   And if you have a chance to see the band live - do it.  Lots of fun.  This album 3.25 Bronze Medallions.   Squeeze in general 4.5 Bronze Medallions.  Live in concert 4 Bronze Medallions.

It has been a long time since I listened to it, but recently pulled out Robbie Robertson, the Band member's eponymous album from 1987.   With track like "American Roulette" and "Somewhere Down the Crazy River" anchoring it, it is a memorable album.  And with musicians like Tony Levin,  Garth Hudson, Peter Gabriel, U2, Terry Bozzio, Rick Danko and Ivan Neville all contributing - it really hits great levels.   4.5 Bronze Medallions.

I think Mary's Danish hit their peak with 1991's Circa.  The L.A. band with swirling guitar and bass, pounding drums, horns, and Gretchen Seager and Julie Ritter harmonizing on complex songs like "Yellow Creep Around," "Louisiana," "Tracy in the Bathroom Killing Thrills" and "Venus Loves Leonard" drive home the era.   The defunct band had a great concert presence and it is a shame the record company deals ended their existence.   4 Bronze Medallions.

And if you like jazz... it may not be the best album of all time but I like Ellis Marsalis and Wynton Marsalis' mid-90s album Joe Cool's Blues.  The Marsalis team tackles Vince Guaraldi's Peanuts' classics like "Linus & Lucy," "Peppermint Patty," and "Little Birdie" along with some originals.  3.5 Bronze Medallions.

 Redartz:  Well, lately I've been on a Steely Dan kick, particularly "Aja" and "Royal Scam". Walter Becker and Donald Fagan offer some truly fine rock/jazz on these two. I'd  call them the Dan's "Rubber Soul" and "Revolver". That title cut on "Aja" will just carry you away. 4 Bronze Medallions each. 

Also have been playing Mike Oldfield's "Tubular Bells" at work. Apparently I'm stuck on the 70's this month.  A great recording ; familiar to most as the theme from "The Exorcist". But the whole album side containing that theme is a suite. And sweet it is, too. 4.5 Bronze Medallions. 

Cheers all!

Riding the Retro Metro: Destination January 21, 1978

Redartz:    Hello everyone; climb aboard for another excursion back to the Bronze Age! Today our trusty transport is destined for Saturday January 21, 1978. Those of us living in the US midwest don't realize it yet, but a historic blizzard is just a few days away. We would enjoy a snow break of a full week! But for today, the weather is yet clear, and your humble host (still in high school at this time) is a big follower of pop culture. Not the least of which is the Billboard pop music chart, which tells us that the top song today is:

 "Baby Come Back" by Player

Rounding out the top 5:

2.  Bee Gees- "How Deep is Your Love"
3.  Dolly Parton- "Here You Come Again"
4.  Rod Stewart- "You're in My Heart"
5.  Randy Newman- "Short People"

Not a huge fan of "Baby Come Back", but it's ok. I am more impressed by the number two song; the Bee Gees have recently dropped out of the top spot. The brothers Gibb and their record label. RSO, have been red hot lately (I may be the only kid in school who doesn't own "Saturday Night Fever"), and they aren't done yet. And I hear that in the UK, they are listening to Wings doing a song called  "Mull of Kintyre". Stateside, we have never heard of  this one...
 


As this is Saturday, we should certainly check out some of the Saturday morning cartoon offerings today. This ad shows the CBS programming. Meanwhile, ABC gives us "Super Friends" and "Scooby's All-Star Laugh-a-Lympics". NBC has "Archie and Sabrina", "Muhammad Ali", and "Thundarr the Barbarian". I still never miss "Bugs Bunny", and am enjoying "Thundarr" quite a bit. 

While watching a few cartoons and enjoying our bowl of "Lucky Charms", we take a glance at the TV guide to see what's on tonight. We see;

US Television schedule:
 ABC:  "What's Happening!", "Operation Petticoat", "The Love Boat", "Fantasy Island"
CBS:   "Bob Newhart Show", "Tony Randall Show", "The Jeffersons", "Maude", "Kojak"
NBC:  "The Bionic Woman", "NBC Saturday Night at the Movies"

BBC1: "Saturday Night at the Movies: Trapeze", "Les Dawson Show", "Starsky and Hutch"
BBC2:  "The Book Programme", "Film International- The Desert of the Tatars", "M*A*S*H"

I have to admit to watching the 'guilty pleasures' of "Love Boat" and "Fantasy Island". The latter, on the strength of Ricardo Montalban, and of course Herve Villachaize ("da plaaane, da plaaane!). Those two back-to-back are a trivia fiend's pleasure: they give a haven to every character actor, costar and veteran in show business!

Finally, let's take a look at a few of the comics on the stand today. Still 35 cents, but I think DC has the right idea with those big dollar comics...

I make a point to grab Amazing Spider-Man and Avengers (man, that book is good). Also like Showcase with Power Girl. I neglect to pick up that "Batman Family" with it's excellent cover, and soon regret my lapse. 

Alas, the 21st. Century calls. Time to bid farewell to the late 70's in all their funky splendor. I have to go get my wife to sing her version of  the "Love Boat" theme. So tune in again next time for another ride on the Retro!