I had caught a few episodes of this popular show on Italian TV as a kid and, therefore, leapt at the chance of watching this seminal first series via Warners' R2 DVD. It's naïve (Clark Kent needing to go into an alley - which happens to be the same one, no matter where he happens to be at the time! - to turn into Superman, his coming through windows feet first, and the exact same flying sequences duplicated from one episode to the next) but undeniably great fun.
During the course of the series, we get some intriguing borderline horror/sci-fi ideas - while black-and-white allowed for plenty of low-budget (and often studio-bound) atmosphere; apparently, the following series jettisoned the relative violence of the first (several violent deaths occur throughout and, amazingly, Superman himself isn't above 'killing' two blackmailers who accidentally uncovered his identity, or manipulate a villain into an ambush meant for him!) and the show was gradually turned into pure kiddie fare! Thankfully, here, Clark Kent isn't the klutz depicted in both the Max Fleischer animated series of the 1940s (which I rented on DVD to go along with this set) and the Christopher Reeve films of the 1970s and 80s - with Clark and Lois Lane's banter being reminiscent, at times, of screwball comedies.
Unfortunately, however, the special effects are extremely dated and Superman is very rarely called upon to showcase his extraordinary powers - most often, he just beats the villains up like any normal person would! Still, Reeves is a credible no-nonsense Superman, Phyllis Coates an attractive and tough Lois Lane, Jack Larson a geeky but likable Jimmy Olsen and John Hamilton an amusingly irascible Perry White. Supporting casts featured a few character actors familiar from Hollywood films of the time, who were often allowed to let rip with the villainy (especially in episodes such as THE EVIL THREE and MYSTERY IN WAX).
The last entry proper, CRIME WAVE, was basically a summation of the entire first series: Superman cleans up town from the underworld scourge in a number of rapid-fire montages culled from the highlights of several of the earlier episodes. THE UNKNOWN PEOPLE PARTS I & II, which officially closed the first season, are actually a two-part TV reduction of the 1951 film SUPERMAN AND THE MOLE MEN (which, basically, had served as a pilot for the series)! The Audio Commentaries are, obviously, fan-boyish tracks by an expert on the subject who, at least, doesn't refrain from giving away technical blunders or illogical plot developments.
During the course of the series, we get some intriguing borderline horror/sci-fi ideas - while black-and-white allowed for plenty of low-budget (and often studio-bound) atmosphere; apparently, the following series jettisoned the relative violence of the first (several violent deaths occur throughout and, amazingly, Superman himself isn't above 'killing' two blackmailers who accidentally uncovered his identity, or manipulate a villain into an ambush meant for him!) and the show was gradually turned into pure kiddie fare! Thankfully, here, Clark Kent isn't the klutz depicted in both the Max Fleischer animated series of the 1940s (which I rented on DVD to go along with this set) and the Christopher Reeve films of the 1970s and 80s - with Clark and Lois Lane's banter being reminiscent, at times, of screwball comedies.
Unfortunately, however, the special effects are extremely dated and Superman is very rarely called upon to showcase his extraordinary powers - most often, he just beats the villains up like any normal person would! Still, Reeves is a credible no-nonsense Superman, Phyllis Coates an attractive and tough Lois Lane, Jack Larson a geeky but likable Jimmy Olsen and John Hamilton an amusingly irascible Perry White. Supporting casts featured a few character actors familiar from Hollywood films of the time, who were often allowed to let rip with the villainy (especially in episodes such as THE EVIL THREE and MYSTERY IN WAX).
The last entry proper, CRIME WAVE, was basically a summation of the entire first series: Superman cleans up town from the underworld scourge in a number of rapid-fire montages culled from the highlights of several of the earlier episodes. THE UNKNOWN PEOPLE PARTS I & II, which officially closed the first season, are actually a two-part TV reduction of the 1951 film SUPERMAN AND THE MOLE MEN (which, basically, had served as a pilot for the series)! The Audio Commentaries are, obviously, fan-boyish tracks by an expert on the subject who, at least, doesn't refrain from giving away technical blunders or illogical plot developments.