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Adventures of Captain Marvel
- Captain MarvelWhen I was young, I was an avid comic book fan. I am also old enough to have seen the original in our local theater. The "Captain Marvel" serial was very good, a real "comic book" character. The DVD arrived in very good time, and in excellent condition.
Rating:
- Well deserving of its great reputationThis 1941 Republic serial has the reputation of being the finest serial of them all. My experience with serials is limited but I won't quibble with that judgment. It's a fine piece of work.
This serial is divided into 12 episodes forming one complete story. The viewer must watch the various episodes exactly (presumably) as they were shown theatrically. Every episode has its opening credits, recap (except the first, of course), and closing credits complete with FBI warning, etc. Additionally all but the first episode "rewinds" to set up the previous cliffhanger. This is not quite as tiresome as it sounds because most of the cliffhangers are "cheats"; you see scenes in the resolution that most definitely were not in in the setup. Some viewers might have wished for a strung together feature option but in my opinion the DVD producers made the proper call here. The cliffhangers lose all impact otherwise and one misses a large part of the charm of the serial format.
It should be noted that the running time is quite long - over three and a half hours. The episodes run between 15 and 20 minutes apiece except for the first which is more like 30 minutes. One can select each episode from the DVD menu and each episode is broken down into 5 scenes except the first which is 8 scenes. The only extra is a theatrical trailer.
I have no idea what kind of restoration was done but the DVD is quite watchable. The sound quality is typical of that era (1942) but not horrible. It goes without saying that it is black and white and full screen (4:3) format.
The story itself is quite engrossing. An archeological expedition finds a magical device with incredible powers. Pieces from the device are shared amongst the expedition members. One of them is secretly a delightful power mad villain who schemes to possess the device. But the device has a protector in the person of Captain Marvel.
One wonders whether the story was written around Captain Marvel or whether Captain Marvel was inserted into a preexisting script. It is hard to imagine Superman being wedged into this story and still being recognizable as the Siegal and Shuster creation. Liberties were taken with the origin of Captain Marvel but the essence of the character is intact.
All in all fine entertainment for those prepared to accept the serial formula. It is easy to see how kids of that era would be drawn back to matinee after matinee to see how it all played out. Highly recommended.
Rating:
- The hype is honest!No pale, smiling Superman is our Captain Marvel! Cap is a bonafied FORCE OF NATURE, and he hands out death to his foes as if he were passing out free candy. Standing too close to the edge of a roof or a dam? GET AWAY QUICK, because Captain Marvel will pick you up and THROW YOU TO YOUR SCREAMING DEATH! Cap walks - jaw set and fists clenched - into the gunfire of a gang of thugs. Each step he takes is clearly just another nail in their coffin. He seems furious that any of these fools would dare oppose him! Bullets bounce off his chest, and one of the gangsters just screams and runs for it! In one scene a gang of horsemen are shooting at him from a machinegun nest, and he charges straight into the bullts, tosses the men out of the nest, hefts the machinegun off the tripod...and shoots the men with their own gun...
Captain Marvel...not a man to mess around with. Tom Tyler look GREAT in the costume, and his natural strength shows in scenes where he hefts a man off his feet and throws him like a ragdoll. The stuntwork is excellent. The flying scenes are well realized with the tech of the era. The villain (a robed fellow called the Scorpion) is one of the top ten to EVER appear in a serial, and the fight scenes are all top notch. A simple story with clear direction and interesting supporting cast. Even one of the suspects servants gets into a great fight with the Scorpions gangsters, with "Action Butler" slugging thugs left and right in defence of his masters property.
All I'm saying is...if you've never watched a serial before, or aren't sure if you'd like to...give Captain Marvel a try.
Rating:
- BonnieAnother oldies series my husband likes. If you are a fan you'll enjoy too.
Rating:
- Lives Up to its Reputation as the Best Serial Ever Produced"The Adventures of Captain Marvel" is often considered, in many quarters, the best serial ever produced. I think I have to agree. The clunkiness of the 1930s serials, though charming (think Flash Gordon and those little space ships on strings), is gone and it wouldn't be until the 1950s when serials started looking a little threadbare and dry of ideas. In between all that is Captain Marvel ... a lavish, smart and genuinely exciting cliff-hanger involving a masked villain, an Egyptian arheological dig, men in pith helmets and, of course, Captain Marvel, played by Tom Tyler with few words but lots of brawn. Young Billy Batson is given the power to summon tons of superpowers whenever he utters the word "Shazam!" That's when smoke appears and young Batson is turned into the tights-donning, cape-wearing Captain Marvel. He flies (and the flying looks really terrific, even today) and he pummels and he basically gives the hat-wearing, gun-toting, cigarette-smoking thugs beatings they won't soon forget. What's so funny about this superhero serial (in fact, just about all superhero serials) is the fact that the un-superheroed Billy Batson fights just as much as his alter ego and does just about as well, so you wonder why he even needs to utter "Shazam!" Go back to the Batman serials and Captain America and you'll see the same thing ... guys who are superheroes but don't really need the costumes because they fight pretty well in their sportcoats and fedoras. But it's all great fun, and Captain Marvel is greater fun than most. Real craftsmanship went into this one, from jaw-dropping special effects, to a script that actually displays some wit. Even today, Captain Marvel has the power to ... well, marvel.
Adventures of Captain Marvel
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