THE SUPER FRIENDS TOUR

In the latter half of the 20th century, Saturday morning television was aimed solely at children.  They didn't have to go to school or church, and had a few hours of television produced just for them! In the fall of 1973, kids who read DC Comic books waited anxiously for Saturday, September 8th, 9:00am to finally arrive!  These kids (myself included) had been teased for weeks about a new cartoon that would debut that day.  It was a cartoon that would team Superman, Batman and Robin, Aquaman, and Wonder Woman!!  The producers may not have called this cartoon "Justice League", but for many of us kids, that's still what it represented!

This new cartoon was called Super Friends, and it became a huge success.  So much so that over the next 12 years it would become a franchise with 7 different versions produced and aired on the ABC network. 

I think it's time to take a deep dive into all the various iterations of Super Friends.  If this sounds like something that might interest you too, strap in and join along in this tour!

THE ARCHIE ANDREWS LIVE-ACTION TOUR

Archie Andrews is one of the most well known comic book teenagers of the 20th century.  His popularity soared in the 1950s and 1960s thanks not only to the numerous comic books in which he appeared but also to the numerous radio serials and animated television series that grew from the comics. 

In 2017 the CW Network began airing a television series entitled Riverdale, featuring the Archie cast.  It proved to be a ratings success.  For many, this was believed to be the first live-action portrayal of Archie Andrews.  But that belief couldn't be less true!

He didn't have any major success before Riverdale, but Archie did indeed have several other live-action attempts through the years.  Let's jump on board the tour wagon and check them out!

THE RED KRYPTONITE TOUR (Part I - 1949 through 1960)

Red Kryptonite!  A variation of the green kryptonite that typically fell to Earth... remnants of Superman's home planet of Krypton.  Red kryptonite's origins and effects have changed dramatically since its introduction in 1949!   

Because red kryptonite became rather prolific as a plot device in the 1950s and 1960s, this tour will be broken down into several smaller trips, each covering a specific length of time.  

On our first tour, we'll examine red kryptonite from its first appearance through the end of the 1950s.  

This tour, in its entirety, will only cover stories where red kryptonite plays some factor in the overall storyline.  Instances when Red K is seen in a display case, or simply talked about but irrelevant to a storyline, will not be included.

Do you think you know all about red kryptonite?  Let's see!  Strap in and get ready to tour red kryptonite's initial 13 appearances!

THE COMPLETE ROBIN TOUR

Batman & Robin.  These characters are bound together in the public conscience just the same as Tom & Jerry, Laurel & Hardy, or Starsky & Hutch.  They just go together. 

Robin was the very first superhero sidekick, debuting in 1940.  Robin was created with the notion that a juvenile sidekick might give the youngsters reading comic books a character they could more closely relate to.  Another benefit to having a sidekick is that it allows writers to present more dialogue and less exposition.  

Batman's original Robin was Dick Grayson, a circus aerialist whose parents were murdered.  Bruce (Batman) Wayne takes the boy in, trains him in hand-to-hand combat, and provides him with the tutelage to become a master detective.  Batman then provides him with a superhero costume and begins taking him out to fight crime in the mean streets of Gotham City.  In today's society, the notion of putting the life of a 12 or 13-year-old child in harm's way to battle evil-doers seems... well... a little nuts!  But it was a different era. 

Most casual comic book readers or television watchers are aware of Dick (Robin) Grayson.  But how many would know there have actually been over a dozen characters who have assumed the Robin mantle?  On this tour, we'll take a look at the many Robins to appear in the pages of DC Comics since Dick Grayson's debut in 1940.

THE ORIGINAL TEEN TITANS MEMBERSHIP TOUR

When I began my comic book journey at the ripe age of 9 (in 1973), I gravitated much more to group-themed titles.  The Legion of Super-Heroes was my first exposure to the medium, and from there, I quickly branched out to the Justice League of America, the Fantastic Four, and one of my all-time favorite groups... the Teen Titans.

When this group's adventures first started being chronicled the characters were very early teens.  But, by the time I was first exposed to the Teen Titans, they were hip and community-minded older teens, some in college, teaming to battle social injustice in addition to villainy.  Their group had several members who had no actual superpowers and their rank also included the first African-American character I saw represented in comic books.  As a child growing up in a very non-diverse small community in Maine, I found them all thrilling. I wanted to be one of them when I grew up!

Over the decades there have been numerous iterations of the Teen Titans or simply the Titans.  This tour will only be limited to the members, and some history, of the original version of the Teen Titans, published by DC Comics from 1964 through 1978.  

THE HIPPOLYTA LIVE-ACTION TOUR

In Greek mythology, Hippolyta (or Hippolyte) was the daughter of Ares and Otera, and she was queen of the Amazons.  She wore her father's zoster (a war belt).

When William Moulton Marston (along with H.G. Peter) created Wonder Woman in 1941, he drew upon the Greek legends and named Wonder Woman's mother Hippolyte.  She was the queen of the Amazons and a woman who had beaten Hercules in battle, thanks to her magic girdle.  The goddess Aphrodite gifted Hippolyte, and her Amazon subjects, their own island (originally called Amazonia) to grow and thrive on, away from the influence of the evil ways of men.

Over the years her name would be modified to Hippolyta, and her island would be renamed Paradise Island, and then Themyscira.  But one thing hasn't changed in over 80 years... she is the mother of Princess Diana, the young woman who becomes known outside of their island home, as... Wonder Woman.

In this tour, we will take a look at each of the actresses who have been cast to portray Hippolyta in live-action productions.  

THE FANTASTIC FOUR MEMBERSHIP TOUR

One of my earliest childhood memories is when I absconded with a copy of a Fantastic Four comic book that was included on the magazine counter in my dad's Barber Shop.  I hid it away in my room and read it over and over.  I was fascinated by the people in special uniforms who were exhibiting different superpowers!  I actually got scolded for removing it from Dad's business.  But since his Barber Shop was actually the front room of our house... it wasn't that big of a problem!

My brief exposure to the Fantastic Four spurred a desire for other visually exciting stories, so I used my first allowance to buy my own comic book!  It was a DC comic featuring the Legion of Super-Heroes.  I was hooked!  And while my young, pre-teen self gravitated more to DC, I never gave up on my Fantastic Quartet published by Marvel Comics.  I faithfully collected Fantastic Four and Marvel's Greatest Adventures (a title that reprinted older Fantastic Four tales) from the early 1970s through the mid-2000s.  

One of the unique things about the Fantastic Four was that its membership shifted and changed over time (one of the things I also loved about the Legion).  In this tour, we will take a look at all the (many more than four) heroes who have been members of the Fantastic Four.