A Third” Netflix House” Is Announced This Time in Las Vegas ( Not exactly a theme park, not a resort ), and Netflix is slated to release a third one in 2027. Last summer, the streaming service announced that by the end of 2026, two experienced ]…]
The first article on Den of Geek was Link Tank: Netflix Theme Parks, AI-Generated Films, and the Transfer of The Dressed Gun.
As the earth ’, s main wallcrawler, Spider-Man has been known to drop off of items for a while. But for him, perhaps after 27 times, it is pushing. Yet that ’, s how long Spidey ’, s been waiting for a resolution to the cliffhanger that closed out Spider-Man: The Animated Series, the popular cartoon show that ran from 1994 to 1998 on the Fox Network.
Spider-Man followed Madame Web’s directions to find his wife Mary Jane, who had been lost in the world after being replaced by a copy in his own timeline, in episode 98. We never see the two of them actually reunited, an error that Marvel Comics will finally rectify with the release of the upcoming four-issue miniseries Spider-Man ’, 94, from legendary writer J. M. DeMatteis ( Kraven’, s Last Hunt ) and artist Jim Towe.
Spider-Man is just the most recent animation to receive a smile in recent years. Just Nicholas Hoult credited Clancy Brown ‘, s efficiency in Superman: The Active Series as an inspiration for his take on Lex Luthor, and a new Captain Planet and the Planeteers humorous book released this year from Dynamite Entertainment. There is also the feeling that is Disney+’, s X-Men’, 97 ( which we should notice also just received a green light after Marvel Comics dipped its feet into nostalgia via the X-Men’, 92 series in 2015 ). In other words, it ’, s becoming sort of clear that the ’, 90s nailed superheroes.
Let’s take a look at some of the greatest comic series of the time and what they did so well as we wait for Spider-Man ’, 94 to finally lead Spidey off that rock.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles ( 1987-1996 )
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles did indeed debut in the late 1980s and early 1990s, which set the stage for the upcoming hero increase. After all, the Turtles made their debut never in pictures, but in the pages of cartoons freely produced by authors Peter Laird and Kevin Eastman—, cartoons that began as a movie of Frank Miller ‘, s Daredevil.
The original manga were the stuff of legend for those of us who were boys at the Turtles ‘ initial boom: black and white, apparently provocative, they were a forbidden fruit that we all sought out but were concerned about what we would discover. Looking back, however, it ’, s remarkable to see how much of the goofy Turtles lore comes directly from those first comics, including the alien Utroms ( represented in the cartoon by Krang ) and the psycho vigilante Casey Jones.
Whatever one thinks of that discovery, it’s also amazing that the Ninja Turtles drew supporters to independent comics. That impulse did lead to a glut of cartoon shows based on indie comics, some great ( The Tick ) and some less so ( Wild C. A. T. S. ), but it reminded people that superheroes can thrive outside of the Marvel and DC Universes, a lesson still relevant today.
Batman: The Animated Series ( 1992–1995 )
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles does had kicked off the animated hero growth, but the motion was perfected by Batman: The Active Series. Batman: TAS, which was created by Bruce Timm and Eric Radomski, took the narrative one step further. Set in an indistinct day period and only tangentially related to the Tim Burton shows, Batman: TAS worked because of Timm’, s barrel-chested styles and great codes by artists like Paul Dini. They combined to create a hero that would remain agnostic despite the best themes and legends from earlier cartoons.
Most incidents of Batman: TAS told independent stories, not unlike those you would get in an personal concern of Batman or Detective Comics in the Golden Age or the Bronze Age. A clothed monster like the Joker or Scarecrow, or a gangster like Rupert Thorne, Batman would use all the means at his removal to prevent them.
Easy as that idea was, Batman: TAS even found useful, and even clear, ways of investigating pathos in these archetypes. Mr. Freeze went from a joke to a tragic figure, the Joker never felt so menacing ( without veering into gritty ugliness ), and Poison Ivy made her first steps toward becoming the antihero we know today —, including by, ahem, partnering up with a TAS original creation, Harley Quinn.
There are numerous spinoffs from Batman: The Active Series, including Justice League, the Batman Beyond movie, and the aforementioned Superman. The tradition continues now, not only in Timm’, s religious leader Batman: Caped Crusader, but also in every version that tries to show strong hero stories for a general audience.
The Animated Series of X-Men ( 1992-1997 )
First, let’, s address the elephant in the room. In the season one finale, where we see Mary Jane standing next to Spidey, X-Men technically overcame the Spider-Man: The Animated Series cliffhanger, which suggests that the two did reunite and make their way home.
That out of the way, let’, s talk about what X-Men: The Animated Series did really well: it brought the comics to the masses. Although Batman: The Animated Series merits praise for its economic storytelling, the original Batman: The Animated Series largely abandoned that strategy. By the early 1990s, superhero comics were often convoluted, soap operatic stories with complicated interpersonal relationships. No one else did these kinds of stories as well as Chris Claremont, who began writing the X-Men in 1975 and rose from c-listers to the top of the list by 1992.
Instead of trying to reinvent the wheel, X-Men: TAS followed the leader, adapting Claremont’, s stories and using the recent visual redesigns of superstar artist Jim Lee. It managed to make a good movie, bringing baddies like The Mutant Massacre and The Mutants ‘ Fall to the screen. It hooked a whole new era of fans. The Disney + series X-Men ’, 97, which continues the storylines of the original show and increases the political messaging, is of course the most pronounced successor to X-Men: The Animated Series. But X-Men: TAS also proved to executives that comic-accurate material was n’, t anathema to general audiences, opening the door for our current entertainment landscape, in which Disney produces billion-dollar adaptations of The Infinity Gauntlet and Secret Wars.
The Animated Series of Spider-Man ( 1994-1998 )
Obviously, Spider-Man: The Animated Series owes a major debt to X-Men: The Animated Series. Spider-Man got to recreate his overstuffed comic book adventures on the small screen like his merry mutant cousins. However, even more than X-Men, Spider-Man: The Animated Series streamlined the comic book stories in a way that set the stage for future adaptations.
Take a look at the cartoon’s handling of Venom for proof. In the comics, Spider-Man got his black suit while off-planet in Secret Wars. Peter initially chose his black suit as his new outfit, but after he became uneasy with a symbiote, he switched to his blue and red togs. In 1988, four years after the black suit debuted, new character Eddie Brock wore the costume and became Venom.
While the slower pace helps to strengthen the bond between Spidey and Venom, cartoon viewers can’t wait another four years for a fan-favorite baddie to become a reality. So in the cartoon, the symbiote attaches itself to a meteor brought to earth by astronaut John Jameson, which then jumps to Spidey and eventually Eddie Brock. Without sacrificing any of Venom’s other-worldliness, the entire story is told in three episodes. It also introduced the idea of the symbiote corrupting Peter Parker’, s persona, and making him turn toward “, dark Spider-Man. These are all elements that have been incorporated into some way in every upcoming adaptation of the Venom character, both on the big screen and in the small.
Examples such as those showed the creators of modern superhero movies and shows that you could get weird with the characters—as long as you were efficient. It served as a benchmark for Spider-Man: TAS, the first significant adaptation of the comics to successfully balance the character’s soap operatic appeal and his “, days of lives ”, romances as a twentysomething in NYC—, a fundamental component of the character, which arguably no other movie has ever balanced quite so well.
Superman: The Animated Series ( 1996–2000 )
It appears simple to say that Batman and the rest of the characters from Superman: The Animated Series are related to each other. That is, a solid cartoon series that does n’, t quite rival the original. However, Superman: TAS also revealed something important about the creation of the Superman and Batman stories: that some people ( coughZackSnyderwithManofSteelcough ) forgot: Tough Batman and his stories need to be handled differently.
Whereas Batman: TAS painted Gotham City in the dark tones of film noir, Superman: TAS draws from the optimism of old World ’, s Fair celebrations and 1950s sci-fi to make Metropolis feel like its set in some undefined future. Due to the proceedings ‘ cackling businessman Luthor and robo-women like Metallo, there is undoubtedly a quaintness to the proceedings. But that quaintness never feels outdated.
In addition, Superman: TAS demonstrated how to tell compelling stories about Superman without making the hero seem less super. Yes, this version of Superman was a little more vulnerable than his comic book counterpart, but he always fought for the powerless and did the right thing …, which sure sounds a lot like the version of Superman we’, re going to see on the big screen this summer.
Justice League Unlimited ( 2004 )
Again, we’, re cheating a bit here, since Justice League Unlimited ran in the mid-2000s. However, it is an offshoot of three significant 1990s television programs, Batman: The Animated Series, Superman: The Animated Series, and Batman Beyond, and it shares many things with them with more than it does with other 2000s television programs like Teen Titans or X-Men: Evolution.
Justice League Unlimited is the second incarnation of a Justice League cartoon based on the Batman: TAS universe. The Big Seven, which included Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Martian Manhunter, Green Lantern, Flash, and Hawkgirl, were largely focused on the first incarnation; therefore, the name” Unlimited expanded things,” hence the name. The Big Seven remained going concerns, but the stories also featured deep dives such as Hawk and Dove, the Legion of Super-Heroes, and the Seven Soldiers of Victory.
Justice League Unlimited did experiment with long-form serialized storytelling, like X-Men: The Animated Series, and had a fun, if less impressive, Legion of Doom arc. However, it taught viewers another lesson about comic books, which is that even goofy characters like Warlord and Vigilante can be compelling. Without Justice League Unlimited, we would not have Peacemaker and Metamorpho, the current DC Comics series ‘ ongoing Justice League Unlimited ( written by Mark Waid and penciled by Dan Mora ), and James Gunn might not be able to produce his endearing oddballs on screen like Peacemaker and Metamorpho.
Fantastic Four ( 1994–1996 )
Okay, the Fantastic Four cartoon isn’t that memorable. It’, s a serviceable cartoon, but the choppy animation style and rote storytelling falls far short of the vibrant imagination of the Jack Kirby and Stan Lee comics that inspired it. Fantastic Four: World ’, s Greatest Heroes stands out better, even if it isn’t very good.
But do you know what is memorable? The show’s theme song, which you will now be able to watch and have pre-loaded into your head along with The Fantastic Four: First Steps ‘ promotional material, is also available. You ’, re welcome.
The first episode of Den of Geek was titled” Spider-Man ’, 94 Comic Reminds Us the ’, 90s Were the Peak of Superhero Cartoons.”
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