TV Animated Superheroes (Page 2)

Jim and his heavily pregnant wife arrive in Gotham City when he secured the position of Police Lieutenant. He worries about raising a child in an increasingly violent society. After years spent abroad, Bruce Wayne watches what is going on, but feels he is not ready to don the mantle just yet. He needs inspiration and gets it when many bats smash through the window in Wayne Manor where he is sitting. One of them lands on an ornamental bust and suddenly he has direction - the way forward is clear.

Lieutenant Gordon soon learns that Commissioner Loeb and many of the police detectives are corrupt. When he refuses to be drawn down the same path, the resentment is evident. A gang of masked thugs confront him. Able to hold his own in a fight Gordon slips, allowing the men to give him a beating. But he's no fool. This is a warning, and the leader is a detective under Loeb called Flass. Shortly afterwards, he takes his opportunity to run Flass off the road in his car and comes out on top in a fair fist fight. Flass says nothing, not wishing to be ridiculed for being bested by the newbie. Instead, Flass fabricates an exaggerated story about a huge bat.

Indeed, the Batman has been seen around the city and, after a shaky start, made its presence known to the criminal fraternity. Gordon realises the Batman is trying to help, but Commissioner Loeb and his cronies want the vigilante 'taken out' without delay. When the Batman is seen in a building, not only does the media turn up but the commissioner has an explosive dropped by a helicopter. The floors falls through and the injured Batman is driven down to the basement.

Jim Gordon tries to prevent the police going in, but scores of SWAT heavily armed men go in and shoot the place up. The Batman's utility belt is destroyed but he manages to incapacitate many of the armed men before activating a powerful sonar device. He throws one officer out the front of the building and is seen briefly by the watching crowd, who cheer. The Batman manages to escape under the cover of hundreds of bats, summoned by the sonar device. Like Gordon, the Batman has become a hero to the people.

Gordon's wife, Barbara, has their baby but it is kidnapped by Loeb's thugs. Bruce is on the streets during the day and witnesses the car chase. He races across rooftops and catches-up with the kidnappers. The child is dropped over the side of a bridge, and Bruce launches himself over, catching the baby in mid-air. He hand the child to Gordon, who has lost his glasses and can't see who he is talking to. He knows it is the Batman and voices his thanks.

The corrupt detective Flass is jailed, but does a deal whereby Commissioner Loeb is implicated and indicted.

There are a couple of plot strands to the main tale. One involves Gordon's kiss with Detective Essen. Gordon comes clean to his wife and so the blackmail plot fails. The other involves the Batman's injuries. Bruce Wayne supposedly had an accident on a skiing holiday. Gordon and his wife Barbara visit him to discover that Wayne is a drinking and womanising slob. A diversion from the truth.

This one was directed by Sam Liu and Lauren Montgomery, from a screenplay by Tab Murphy. The original comic book story arc was created by Frank Miller and David Mazzucchelli. The excellent music was by Christopher Drake.

Although the running time for this fabulous adult animated movie is only 64 minutes, every minute is made to count. It is tightly structured so that no moment fails to advance and flesh-out the plot. The animation is superb, and the visuals gritty, violent and sometimes bloody. This is most definitely NOT kids' teatime cartoons. It's been made with great care and a solid cast, depicting a trained but untested Batman. I can't recommend this enough. It is one of an increasing number of quality animations from DC - something they excel at much more than Marvel, who tend to be the better at live action.

Extras include: Script to screen origin of the acclaimed comic book story, Behind-the-scenes interviews, trailers, and a quite excellent Catwoman short - animated in the same high standard.

(Original review Ty Power 2020) 

From the extensive vault of Marvel, and released by Lionsgate Films, comes this animated feature from 2009 pitting two of the strongest and angriest comic character superheroes against each other. The Hulk has been rampaging for more than a week across the Alberta region of Canada. Logan, also known as Wolverine, is called in by Department H to stop him at all costs. After tracking down the Hulk, the pair clash in one of the fights of the century. However, there are very soon new concerns as they are both captured by Weapon X – a sort of X-Men group of bad guys led by a professor who wants to experiment on the subjects in order to turn them to do his bidding. But Hulk and Wolverine cannot be held for long, and they are pretty resentful of their incarceration, momentarily forgetting their vendetta against each other.

Essentially good superheroes are often set against each other in special event graphic novels and on screen for very little valid reason other than to showcase popular characters and sell more produce. This mini film is based on a Marvel comic series storyline. You would get bored very quickly with this spectacle if it wasn’t for the distraction of the villains. Sabretooth, Wolverine’s main nemesis, is along for the ride, as is Deathstryke, but most notable is the presence of Deadpool, represented on screen for the first time. Deadpool is an exaggerated wise-cracking deadly killer with absolutely no remorse. He makes numerous puns whilst dispatching his victims. In character, imagine a wicked Spider-Man with verbal diarrhoea. He keeps on to the point that even his fellow villains get annoyed and attack him.

While Hulk and Wolverine save the day, they end the story as it began by continuing their personal battle. So it’s a little niggling nothing is really resolved. With a running time of only around half an hour, it’s over seemingly before it has started. The mini making-of documentary mentions a companion piece to this called Wolverine Vs. Hulk, but there is no sign of it here.

Just a note on animation. Although it’s absolutely fine, Marvel’s animation doesn’t appear to have progressed that much in the last decade or so. In comparison, DC has adapted and used a number of different styles, particularly for their Batman animated films. They have also targeted a more adult audience for many of them. Check out Batman: Year One, Batman: Under the Red Hood, Gotham Knight, and The Dark Knight Returns. Come on Marvel, keep up! No complaints about Marvel’s many fantastic live-action films though.

(Review originally written by Ty Power for reviewgraveyard 2013)  

The Justice League, adapted from the DC Comics adventures, follows a group of superheroes based on a space station as they fight against evil from the Earth and beyond. Here we have three episodes from the Unlimited series...

In Initiation, Green Arrow is invited to join the Justice League but gracefully refuses. The Green Lantern, Supergirl and Captain Atom (please!) agree to drop him off after they have helped with a reported nuclear accident. They are turned away by the military, but Green Arrow discovers there is a nuclear-powered robot on the rampage and only he can get close enough to pierce its weakness.

In Hawk and Dove, two sets of warring factions in a country are further divided when one side is given an unstoppable robot by a mysterious shape-shifting character. Recognising a symbol on the robot's armour, Wonder Woman visits the individual who created her own suit. He tells her he made the robot for Aries, and that he leaves a small weakness in each of his creations. Justice League members Hawk and Dove try to convince the warring leaders to talk peace, but Aries has taken over one of their identities. It takes Dove to realise the robot is fuelled by hatred and prejudice.

In Kid Stuff, Morgane LeFay shows her young son Mordred the Amulet of First Power, with which he will one day claim his kingdom. But the impatient youth snatches the amulet and uses it to banish all adults. Consequently, Batman, Wonder Woman and countless others find themselves deposited in a shadow realm. The only way to get back is to allow Morgane to turn them into children.

I'm sorry to say that, whilst the animation remains good, this new Unlimited version of Justice League has gone right down hill. When I reviewed some of the original Justice League show it concentrated on the main characters of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Flash and the Green Lantern. Now we not only have a cast of thousands (superhero overkill), but the entire format seems to be aimed at young kids who they would have you believe care nothing about characterisation or good storytelling, only whizzes and bangs. Furthermore, is three episodes amounting to seventy minutes good value for money? Probably not.

Extras consist of: Justice League Watchtower Database (spoken information on Green Arrow, Supergirl, Captain Atom, Hawk and Dove); Save Gorilla City (help Flash catch an armoured van by using arrow keys on your remote - which didn't work on mine); Rate a new cartoon called Keeping Up With the Joneses; and a short trailer for Tom & Jerry Blast Off to Mars. 

(Review originally written by Ty Power for reviewgraveyard 2005) 

From the  bottomless vault of Marvel comes another animated series released by  Clear Vision. This time it's Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends from  the 1980s; this is the Complete Season One, incorporating 13 episodes  over two discs, with a total running time of 5 hours and 10 minutes.  In this scenario Peter Parker has two room-mates, Bobby Drake and  Angelica Jones, who are actually the mutant-born Iceman and Firestar.  Within the boarding house they rent from Peter's Aunt May they have a  secret computer and science lab, and together they fight crime as...  The Spider Friends.
 

Disc one consists of: Triumph of the Green  Goblin, in which Green Goblin tries to turn the citizens of New York into  goblins; The Crime of All Centuries, in which Raven the Hunter brings  back marauding dinosaurs from the Savage Lands; The Fantastic Mr Frump!, in which Doctor Doom uses an ancient amulet to make himself all-powerful, but the power accidentally goes to old Mr Frump; Sunfire, in which an inventor of electronics uses his mutant nephew to befriend Firestar for his own nefarious schemes; Swarm, in which a  strange meteorite influences a swarm of bees to turn everyone into hive workers; Little Superheroes, in which the Chameleon plans to defeat seven superheroes by impersonating them and sowing discontent; and Video-Man, in which Electro brings a video character to life to  defeat the Spider Friends and steal materials required to control the  city.

Disc two consists of The Prison Plot, in which Magneto  attempts to free some villainous mutants from prison; Spidey Goes Hollywood, in which the Chameleon lures Spider-Man and co into taking big risks in a movie, but doesn't count on the appearance of the Hulk; The Vengeance of Loki!, in which Thor's evil half-brother seeks revenge in the form of a powerful fabled diamond; Knights and Demons, in which a demon from the Land of Shades is sent to Earth to seek the  Ebony Blade, the weapon by which the demon master can cross the  realms; Pawns of the Kingpin, in which the master criminal uses mind control to persuade Captain America and Iceman to steal a super weapon; and The Quest of the Red Skull, in which the Red Skull steals a relic which leads to a hidden stash of devastating super  weapons.

This series has some good storylines, and it  certainly rolls out some famous faces from the Marvel universe. Aside  from the regular trio, we get the Incredible Hulk, Captain America, Dr Strange, Thor and the Sub-Mariner; and on the opposite side of the coin, The Kingpin, Red Skull, the Chameleon, Raven the Hunter, Electro, the Green Goblin, Magneto and Doctor Doom.

Spider-Man and  His Amazing Friends is another animated outing which splits fans of the web-slinger. The main reason is that, although it goes all-out to entertain, it does obviously target a somewhat younger audience. Consequentially, it's a simple matter to pick fault with the inherent silliness. Here's a break-down:

The problem with Iceman and Firestar is that, like Superman, they prove all-powerful unless the plot demands that they don't. Therefore, ice or even cold air renders Firestar helpless, and any significant heat source incapacitates Iceman. Their powers also cancel each other out. Like Spider-Man, they both have secret identities but change in such public places that they must have thought the whole world would respectfully turn the other way. And as for the boarding house, how do three students create a scientific laboratory come computer room, including escape route trap doors without alerting the never very far away Aunt May. She's old not stupid.

The piece de resistance of cringe-worthiness comes with the writing-in of a hatefully cute and cowardly little dog called Ms Lion. She's in on the secret, plays the comic relief to extremes, and even winks knowingly to the viewer. This is the Scrappy-Doo of the Spidey myth; I can't imagine anyone but a  two-year-old liking this monstrosity. And finally, the superhero trilogy periodically shouting "Spider Friends, Go For It!" just makes you want to lift the carpet and hide beneath.

So, a  generally enjoyable animated series spoiled by talking down to its  audience. I certainly wouldn't turn anybody off of purchasing this set, but if you want something which takes itself a little more seriously, whilst maintaining the trademark quips, go for the 1990s series.

(Review originally written by Ty Power for reviewgraveyard 2010) 

You'll know from my review of Season 4 that this animated series from 1994 is fantastic, and knocks spots off the rather dreary X-Men series from the same period. This time around we get 13 20-minute episodes spread across two discs, which equates to a running time of 4 hours and 24 minutes. There's hardly time to breathe as Spider-Man endures all manner of hardships in his endeavours to make Manhattan and the world at large a safer place. The fighting of crime continues to interfere with his private life at every juncture. This series has cleverly incorporated many of the Marvel comic sagas in a few short episodes at a time, and simply moves on to the next. However, this isn't all about action; this animated series has real heart and shows that events in life don't always go according to plan.

In The Wedding, Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson finally tie the knot. Fisk (the Kingpin) comes forward to arrange the wedding in return for Peter saving his life. But Daily Bugle editor J. Jonah Jameson refuses to be outdone. No one has counted on the untimely arrival of the Green Goblin.

In Six Forgotten Warriors (a 4-part story), The Kingpin assembles the Insidious Six (Doctor Octopus, Shocker, the Vulture, Chameleon, the Scorpion and Rhino) to assemble the hidden keys to a doomsday device, protected by aged superheroes. Meanwhile, Peter Parker travels to Russia to clear his dead parent's name. He returns to find a new super-villain created by the doomsday device, and Captain America and the Red Skull are released from their 50-year struggle in the vortex.

In The Return of Hydro-Man (2 parts), the man who can control water discovers he is clone of the dead original. However, possessing all the memories and emotions of the original, he kidnaps his counterpart's love, Mary Jane. Under duress MJ reveals water powers herself, and it turns out MJ is a clone too, whose genetics breakdown. Not only has Peter Parker lost her for a second time, he realises that he married a clone.

In Secret Wars (a 3-part story), Spider-Man is taken by the mysterious dimension-crossing Madam Web to a powerful being called the Beyonder, who has been studying the respective strengths of good and evil. He is transported to another planet and told that the people have lived in peace for millennia and have no concept of good and evil. The Beyonder transports Doctor Octopus, Doctor Doom, the Red Skull, Alister Smythe and the Lizard to act for evil. Spider-Man must lead a force of good against them to prevent the planet being overrun. He chooses the Fantastic Four, Storm from the X-Men, Iron Man, Captain America and the Black Cat.

In Spider Wars (2-parts), Spider-Man returns to New York to find it in ruins. The Green Goblin and Hobgoblin are wreaking havoc under the leadership of another Spider-Man, who has joined with the symbiotic Carnage. This is another dimension. Secret Wars was a test of Spider-Man's skills as a leader, and now he is chosen by Madam Web and the Beyonder to put things right, aided by a group of Spider-Men from various dimensions: the eight-limbed Man-Spider, the grey-armoured Spider-Man, Octo-Spidey, the Scarlet Spider, and a curiously powerless Spider-Man.

This entire animated serial has been a joy to behold. Many of the major storylines have been covered (albeit briefly, compared with the comics of the time), making every episode equally compelling viewing for children or any adult with an interest in the character. At the end of the Spider Wars, Madam Web takes Spider-Man to the reality of the powerless Spider-Man, wherein he's a fictional character. In a cheesy moment the real Spider-Man meets creator Stan Lee and takes him web-swinging around the city. The final moment is more poignant and a great place to end the series, as Spidey and Madam Web go in search of the real Mary Jane.

*Update: The Complete Series  has been available as a set for some time, and a Blu-ray version is imminent.

(Review originally written by Ty Power for reviewgraveyard 2009) 

From the vast vault of Marvel - via Clear Vision - comes the animated series The Super Hero Squad Show. This is Hero Up! (effectively volume one) which incorporates six episodes over one disc, with a total running time of 2 hours, 13 minutes. From their base on Nick Fury's S.H.I.E.L.D. sky ship, Iron Man heads a team of super-powered heroes dedicated to finding and recovering the pieces (or fractals) of the Infinity Sword - the most powerful object in the universe - which has been splintered in a mighty battle between Iron Man and Doctor Doom. Making up the regular squad are Thor, the Hulk, Wolverine, the Silver Surfer, Falcon and Wasp - with appearances by the Fantastic Four, Captain America and Dr. Strange.

In And Lo, A Pilot Shall Come, a city-wide battle ensues over possession of a shard of the Infinity Sword; in This Silver, This Surfer, the Silver Surfer inadvertently causes problems with his cosmic power and is sent away, but only he can prevent Doom assembling an Infinity Dagger; in Hulk Talk Smack, contact with an Infinity fractal leaves the Hulk grey-skinned, intelligent and cultured; in To Err is Superhuman, a new member who can turn parts of his body into any dinosaur is introduced to the team and saves the day; in Enter Dormammu, the powerful other-dimensional being is combated with help from Dr. Strange and the Fantastic Four; in A Brat Walks Among Us!, a little girl wearing a fractal in a tiara is given phenomenal tantrum powers. Heroes and villains alike race to recover the shard without upsetting her.

This is like a toy town version of the Marvel universe, where everyone appears to be tiny, and the 'good' people live in Hero Ville and the 'villains' live in an industrialised complex dominated by a huge eye. Don't these people know that life isn't as black and white as that?

However, childlike naivety apart, this series has a lot to offer. The central theme of the Infinity Sword does not sustain itself very well, but does lead to interesting situations.

Where this concept really succeeds though is with characterisation. There is constant exploration of the main player's psyches. Like all good friends they continually make fun of each other, and it's this that predominantly makes for an enjoyable viewing experience.

Furthermore, the ever-present humour is significantly less childish than that in Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends. I look forward to the next volumes.

(Review originally written by Ty Power for reviewgraveyard 2010) 

After Seasons 1 to 3 and Season 4 Volumes 1-3 were consumed for breakfast by the Dread Dormammu (they must have been; I never received them for review), we now have Volume 4, the conclusion to the fourth season. This animated interpretation of the X-Men Marvel comics adventures centres mainly on the nucleus of Professor Xavier, Scott Summers (Cyclops), Jean Grey, Storm, Beast, and of course the perpetually bad-tempered but essentially good Wolverine. Like the recently reviewed excellent Spider-Man animated serial, this X-Men one dates from the same period. You would be forgiven for assuming then that they are of the same standard in quality. The truth is they couldn't be further apart.

Admittedly, being more of a Spider-Man and Batman comics reader as a kid, I have more knowledge of those characters and situations. But it doesn't disguise the fact that I've come across the X-Men several times before, and also enjoyed the more recent feature films (particularly the second). The first thing I noticed is that the imagery comes across as tacky and seems to be aimed at a younger audience than Spider-Man. The colours are very deep and the outlines much more prominent than is necessary. Very few of the voices match the corresponding characters in terms of tone and resonance. They uniformly sound young, and I  would even go as far as to say that Professor X comes across as slightly effeminate.

For anyone determined to press on, this disc incorporates six episodes with an accumulative running time of 2 hours, 5 minutes. Villains (and they're always super-villains) on display here include the Soviet megalomaniac Omega Red, the Shadow King spirit, and old favourite Magnito, who in the two-part Sanctuary story is outdone by Fabien Cortex. For me the best of the bunch here is Secrets, Not Long Buried. This is probably due to the fact that Cyclops loses his powers whilst tracking down an old friend in a town full of hostile mutants.

I really couldn't summon up much enthusiasm for this collection of episodes. I'm sorry but it just hasn't got the X-factor.

(Review originally written by Ty Power for reviewgraveyard 2009) 

Professor Xavier, Cyclops, Jean Grey, Wolverine, Beast, and a bunch of other mutants return ("In  Stereo!" no less!) for eight 20-minute episodes (amounting to a running time of 2 hours 44 minutes) which make up the final batch for Season 4 of this animated adventure...

In Weapon X, Lies and  Video Tape, Wolverine, Sabretooth and Silver Fox are obliged to endure enforced memories of their creation and subsequent escape, in order to trap them again. In Lotus and the Steel, Wolverine goes to  Japan to find himself... and finds himself defending villagers from  attack. Love in Vain, has bug creatures take over the X-Men and try to incorporate them into their colony. In, Have Yourself a Morlock  Little X-Mas, Wolverine and Jubilee make great sacrifices at  Christmas to help the Morlocks (yes, they did avoid being grabbed by  the Morlocks!). In Beyond Good and Evil (a 4-part story), Apocalypse kidnaps prominent X-Men through time using a stolen time travel device. He plans to unbalance time and create a new universe to his  liking.

As I've said before, I'm not a fan of this series because it fails miserably to live-up to its companion animation from the 1990s, Spider-Man. The episodes are watchable, but inspire little  more interest than that. Beyond Good and Evil attempts to be far too clever; the story is so involved that it falls over itself, the result being that it simply reduces itself to pointless whizzes and bangs. Lots of fire power and very little plot. The stand-alone episodes work better, but even then Lotus and the Steel is plagued by flashbacks to previous episodes. One thing this series has got right is placing Wolverine pretty much centre stage. After all, he is the  X-Men's most popular character.

(Review originally written by Ty Power for reviewgraveyard 2009) 

Professor X, Cyclops, Jean Grey, Storm and Wolverine return with a new batch of three adventures. As with volume 1 the emphasis is heavily on the new and younger members of the Xavier Institute: Nightcrawler, Shadowcat, Rogue and Spyke and their mischievous counterparts...

In Mutant Crush, the Blob (couldn't they have thought of a better name?) is a super-strong teenage mutant with an extremely short fuse. When Jean Grey attempts to befriend him, the formerly friendless Blob takes the relationship too far by kidnapping her. Jean uses her mind powers to call for help from the X-Men, but it is the loner Rogue (who temporarily takes on the abilities of others by touch, and was recently the subject of a power struggle between Xavier's team and the evil Mystique) that saves the day.

In Speed and Spyke, Evan Daniels is introduced to the Xavier Institute when his mutant gift of shooting bone spikes from his body materialises with unpredictable results. There is a further shock when he discovers his friend and basketball team mate is also a mutant calling himself Quicksilver. The friendship is short-lived when Quicksilver uses Spyke as a scapegoat in a crime. Now Spyke seeks retribution, but it comes unexpectedly at the hands of the X-Men.

In Middleverse, Nightcrawler inadvertently triggers a booby-trapped lab, and the only piece of equipment left intact sends him into a universe where everyone appears as insubstantial ghosts but don't see him at all. Here he meets the inventor of what turns out to be a transdimensional projector and they try to devise a means of contacting the outside world. While the X-Men search for Nightcrawler, Toad gets hold of the projector and uses it as a weapon. Again the reclusive Rogue helps out, but affiliates herself neither with the X-Men nor Mystique's henchmen.

As mentioned in my review of volume 1, this is modern-looking traditional animation with enjoyable, well-constructed storylines. The costumes and characters have been revised to make them more personable and this shines through in their very different mannerisms.

Again there are only three episodes (the six episodes comprising volumes 1 and 2 would have sat comfortably on one disc and been a more attractive package), each with the optional producer/director introductions. The one documentary relating to the artwork is interesting, enhanced by demonstration animated sketches and designs, but at only four minutes I'd barely settled in the chair before it was all over. 

(Review originally written by Ty Power for reviewgraveyard 2004) 

Here we go with another batch of episodes from this excellent animated series. For those of you who didn't get a chance to check out my previous reviews (shame on you!), this interpretation of the popular X-Men comics from Marvel is set earlier in the mutants' progression. They are nurtured by Professor Xavier at his mansion house, where they are taught to discover the full limits of their powers and to act as a team. The main characters are Wolverine, Nightcrawler, Rogue, Spyke, Shadowcat, Cyclops, Jean Grey, Beast and Storm. Regularly returning villains are Magneto and Mystique, and Sabretooth. These five episodes are the last of the second season...

In Shadow Dance, Nightcrawler is fitted with an experimental contraption which could extend his teleporting abilities. The theory is that he passes through another dimension when moving instantly from place to place. His timing is slowed down so that he can witness the environment he passes through. Ravenous beasts almost kill him, so Professor X decides to postpone the experiments indefinitely. However, the portals have not properly closed, allowing the beasts to slip through and make an entrance at the high school dance.

In Retreat, Mr McCoy (a.k.a. Beast) has a brush with the law during a night excursion into the streets and refuses to trust himself to leave the house again. Professor X suggests a nature field trip in a national park for those students a little behind with their Natural History. However, a group of hunters on the trail of Bigfoot captures Beast, forcing him and the mutant students to teach them a lesson in humility and respect - but not before they are obliged to save their lives in a flash flood.

In The HeX Factor, there's a new mutant in town. Professor X visits Wanda in an institute where they try to teach her to control her powers, which are like those of a witch. Mystique breaks her out to use as a weapon to go up against the might of Magneto, but as a test prompts a battle between the Brotherhood (the bad guys) and the X-Men, who have to learn to deal with defeat for the first time ever.

In the 2-part story Day of Reckoning, Professor X forces the X-Men into parnership against Magneto, but Cyclops hates the idea and leaves. Whilst at the mansion house Mystique manages to set a self-destruct countdown. The institute locks down; only one young student escapes and goes looking for Cyclops. Meanwhile, Wolverine has been captured and is forced to go up against the Sentinel, an unstoppable mutant-killing robot. The X-Men arrive at the scene and are forced into battle while the whole world looks on via the media. Back at the mansion Cyclops has to find a way into the building and save the young mutants, but there's only seconds left before destruction.

Extras are X-Men Evolution: Turning Point, a featurette explaining the plot differences between seasons one and two; and Toad's Test, seven easy questions which are answered before you've finished reading the question.

This is a good example of what can still be achieved with traditional animation. It's fresh, fast, exciting and quirky. Newcomers to the series might feel cheated here with the unresolved season two cliffhanger, but they can't say they're not getting their money's worth - well, not until the complete season discs arrive anyway.

(Review originally written by Ty Power for reviewgraveyard 2004)