January 13, 2010 - This Sunday sees the premiere of Human Target on FOX – a new action series based on the DC Comic book of the same name. But Human Target is hardly the first TV version of a DC hero, and we thought we'd take the opportunity to look back at all of the DC heroes who've graced the small screen in the past – or in some cases, never got further than the pilot stage (most of the time for good reason).
Keep in mind we're sticking to live-action TV projects – as a history of DC animated series is a whole other topic. We're also including only TV projects with characters who have at one point been part of the core DC Universe – so don't look for, say, the Global Frequency pilot from a few years back.
The first incarnation of Superman on TV was the longest running live-action version of Superman until Smallville. Adventures of Superman debuted in 1952, having been proceeded by the 1951 film Superman and the Mole Men, which was essentially a theatrical pilot for the series. Mole Men actors George Reeves and Phyllis Coates reprised their roles from the feature as Clark Kent/Superman and Lois Lane, though Noel Neil -- Lois Lane in the 1940s Superman serials -- would replace Coates from season two on. Definitely a product of its time, the series was a low-budget affair, and filmed in black and white the first two seasons before going to color in season three. Perry White (John Hamilton) and Jimmy Olsen (Jack Larson) also were regular characters, but the show featured no villains from the comic books, instead using various gangsters and thugs as the primary villains, with only the occasional foray into anything more fantastical. And with little money for effects, many shots of Superman flying were used repeatedly throughout the series.
Campy as it may seem now (and you'll see the term campy used a lot in this piece), The Adventures of Superman was a tremendously popular show that did a lot to increase Superman's overall popularity and recognition of the character, and though Kirk Alyn had previously played Superman in two serials in the 1940s, for most people George Reeves was the first actor to truly embody the Man of Steel and define the character for more than one generation, thanks to repeats.
Thankfully, cooler heads prevailed and The Adventures of Superpup never went beyond the pilot stage – though it has been released, as a curiosity to be sure, on DVD.
The tragic death of George Reeves in 1958 had ended Adventures of Superman, but producers were still determined to continue the popular series in one form or another. Having discarded the Superpup pilot, one other spinoff idea was entertained in 1961, with The Adventures of Superboy.
A pilot was produced for the potential series, which was the first live-action portrayal of a teenage Clark Kent, along with Lana Lang. While an entire 13-episode season was written for The Adventures of Superboy, only the pilot was produced - and it would take a couple more decades for the Boy of Steel to make it to TV.
This show holds a complicated place in the history of both Batman and comic book adaptations in general. Batman was a hugely popular series, and it's the reason Batman became one of the most recognizable and popular comic book characters in the world. Beyond that, it also made icons out of several Batman villains – The Riddler was an almost forgotten character until Frank Gorshin's gleeful portrayal and thanks to this show everyone soon knew who The Joker, Catwoman and Penguin were.
Of course where this show causes problems for modern fans is the tone – the epitome of camp, Batman, didn't take the title character, his "chum" Robin, nor anything else in Gotham City seriously. While Batman was played with mock seriousness by Adam West, this was clearly a very jokey, very tongue in cheek series. Let's put it this way: is there any other incarnation of Batman where the Caped Crusader and the Joker are in a surfing contest with each other?
Because of this show and its popularity, comic book heroes would be perceived by many in the mainstream as very silly creations, something it's taken years to undo – and there are still articles about Batman that can't resist a "Holy something, Batman!" or "Bam!" joke in the headline.
The thing about the 1960s Batman though is that it's a very well done and very funny show. The show was intentionally played a certain way, and in that respect, it's a success. There are some completely hysterical, wacky sequences throughout this show, which is very much a product of the '60s, in all its trippyness. We all now know Batman as The Dark Knight, and that's how it should be these days. But this series showed that if you did play Batman for comedy, it could be legitimately funny -- as opposed to say, Batman & Robin.
I need to at least briefly mention this special, which aired just three years before the first Superman movie would be released.
It's a Bird…It's a Plane…It's Superman was originally a Broadway production in 1966, which closed rather quickly, despite generally positive reviews. Nine years later, ABC turned the musical into a primetime special, starring David Wilson as Superman and Leslie Ann Warren as Lois Lane – Warren would later almost nab the role of Lois in Richard Donner's Superman movie.
The producers of the TV version upped the camp factor, and included an abundance of the "Bam!, Pow!" on-screen sound effects that Batman had introduced.
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