Why is it so hard to do Superman right? Despite an impressive performance at the box office, Zack Snyder's Man of Steel - starring Henry Cavill as the DC comics icon - has divided critics, just as the character's last big screen outing - Bryan Singer's Superman Returns - did in 2006.
© Warner Bros Pictures
Televisual takes on Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster's creation have been equally as contentious. Over the years, there have been many attempts to bring Superman to the small screen - some popular hits, others more divisive. Join us now for a look back at the last son of Krypton's best and worst TV outings...
Adventures of Superman (1952-1958)
Kirk Alyn gave the role a decent stab in two '40s / '50s film serials, but for many comic aficionados, the first iconic screen Supes was George Reeves - the square-jawed star brought the Man of Steel to life with a warmth and charisma that captured the hearts and minds of viewers across America in the mid-to-late 1950s.
Following 52 moody, noir-like episodes, Adventures switched to full colour and a lighter tone for three additional seasons - only the tragic death of the show's star curtailed this monster hit.
Superboy (1988-1992)
© Rex Features / Viacom/Everett
John Haymes Newton in 'Superboy'
John Haymes Newton played the not-so-Big Blue in the first season of this well-received 'young Superman' series, but was dropped by producers as part of a drastic season two overhaul. Gerard Christopher assumed the title role for the next three seasons, but ultimately legal issues derailed this impressive adaptation, leaving plans for a fifth and sixth season on the scrapheap.
Not one to give up easily, Christopher loved playing Clark so much that he auditioned for the role again - successfully - for Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman and was only dropped in favour of Dean Cain when producers outed him as a former Man of Steel - which shouldn't really have been that difficult, if they'd been watching his show...
Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman (1993-1997)
© BSkyB/ABC
Ah yes, Lois & Clark - often unfairly maligned by the comics hardcore for its tongue-in-cheek humour and soapy style, this '90s series was, at its best, pure bubblegum entertainment. And in the late Lane Smith, it also boasted - in the Week in Geek's modest opinion - the greatest ever on-screen Perry White.
True, the comic book trappings were really just a framework for the romantic tension between our leads, the aforementioned Cain and Teri Hatcher - their barbs and banter frequently accompanied on the soundtrack by some jazzy piano tinkling - but above all, The New Adventures of Superman was great fun, with a twinkle in its eye that the po-faced Man of Steel could perhaps have benefited from.
Smallville (2001-2011)
© The CW / Jack Rowand
Still the longest-running live-action Superman adaptation - and, for that matter, the longest-running comic book-based series in TV history - Smallville started strong as a traditional teen drama tinged with science-fiction overtones - in its early years, the show was essentially Clark's Creek.
But Smallville's longevity ultimately proved to be a negative - as season after season passed, and star Tom Welling visibly aged on-screen, Clark's journey stalled, frustrating many fans who'd been with the show since the beginning. Our hero finally suited up the series finale, but it wasn't enough to salvage a series that had become a poor imitation of its former self.
Comments
Post a Comment