The World's Greatest Super Friends: Planet of Oz (1979)

 

This is a strange episode but that is just why I love it. 

In this episode, Superman, Wonder Woman and Aquaman are sucked up to land of Oz. They find that Mr. Mxyzptlk transported them there. There he turns our heroes into the Tin Man, The Cowardly Lion and Wonder Woman and sends them through various dangers. 

This episode is pure corny superhero fun at its best. I may be biased as Mr. Mxyzptlk is one of my favorite villains, but he is excellent here. As is true in the best Mr. Mxyzptlk stories he is equally threatening and silly. His plan may be silly and corny, but it truly feels like a true threat to our heroes. When we learn what he is really up to, his plan makes perfect sense. That we don't find out exactly what his plan is at first, gives this episode a wonderful mystery element that works very well. All of this makes this corny idea feel like a real suspenseful superhero story. Also, the corniness adds so much to the fun. There is a real charm to how unabashedly corny this story is. It is so gleefully corny that I find it irresistibly fun. The planet of Oz is also a wonderfully atmospheric setting and gives us much of the great detailed and imaginative background art that we have come to expect from this series. The designs of our heroes as the characters from Oz are delightful and well done. I especially like Wonder Woman's Cowardly Lion design. 

This is simply a lot of fun.    

The World's Greatest Super Friends: The Super Friends Meet Frankenstein (1979)

 

A very fun episode. 

This is another episode that has the Super Friends in a story inspired by a classic work of literature. This time it is Mary Shelly's Frankenstein. In this episode the great grandson of Dr. Frankenstein creates a monster. When the Super Friends stop this monster, the evil scientist decides to give his monster the powers (plus Batman's mind) of the Super Friends. 

This episode is pure corny superhero fun at its best. The idea of the Super Friends fighting one of the most famous monsters of all time is a wonderful idea. The idea of that monster being given the powers of these famous DC Comics superheroes is simply irresistible. The design of the creature before and after his transformation is a lot of fun. It may be a very simple story but sometimes it is the simple stories that are the most fun. The evil scientist is very fun villain. He is over the top in all the best ways and it is simply wonderful to watch a villain who enjoys villainy as much as this one does. The monster himself is equally as fun. This episode also has a very good sense of suspense, making you wonder just how our heroes can possibly make it out alive. Yet the way everything is wrapped up is incredibly clever. The action scenes in this episode are also simply a lot of fun and very well staged. The episode also benefits from some wonderful artwork and a sense of atmosphere that is inspired by the classic Universal monster movies. 

The only problem with this episode is the running gag involving Gleek and his plane. The entire joke was simply him having it and how raggedly it looked. Therefore, it does not work as a running gag, because it was the same exact thing every time it was repeated. It didn't build up to anything or have any variations, making it a joke without a punch line. 

This is a very fun episode and a delight to anyone who likes corny silly superhero fun. 

The World's Greatest Super Friends: Terror at 20,000 Fathoms (1979)

 

A really fun and silly episode. 

In this episode, the evil Captain Nimoy (a character somewhat inspired by Captain Nemo from Jules Verne's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea) uses an evil robot version of Batman to get to Superman's fortress of solitude and steal some kryptonite from his vault to enhance his weapons. With Superman away at the time, the Super Friends get help from four Kryptonians from the bottled Kryptonian city of Kandor (which is from the comics). 

There is a lot to enjoy about this episode. While one-note Captain Nemoy is a very fun villain, and this episode does a good job of setting up how he can be a believable threat. The story with him using the robotic version of Batman works perfectly. This is the perfect amount of corny superhero fun. The use of the smaller Kryptonian heroes is also very clever and a fun idea. They don't have much personality but they lead to some very fun action scenes and there is a clever use of their small size. Even their designs are a lot of fun. There is also plenty of the wonderful background art that I love about the Hanna-Barbera cartoons of this time period. I love the look of Captain Nemoy's submarines both inside and out. They have a great design and the scenes inside are filled with this wonderful background art. There are even some nice little touches that are not called attention to, such as a sci-fi looking organ in one of the ships. 

Simply a lot of fun. 

The World's Greatest Super Friends: Universe of Evil (1979)

 

A very fun episode. 

In this episode, Superman tries to stop a volcano, while an evil Superman from a parallel universe tries to make a volcano erupt. The two Supermen end up switching places and finding each other in the opposite universe. The universe our Superman finds himself in doesn't have the Super Friends but the Super Enemies, in evil version of our superheroes. Meanwhile the evil Superman tries to take over his universe. 

This is in many ways the Super Friends version of a Crime Syndicate story. The Crime Syndicate are characters from the DC Comic books, who are evil versions of the Justice League and come from the parallel universe of Earth 3. This episode is not an exact adaption of a Crime Syndicate story as these characters have the same names as the Super Friends (the Crime Syndicate has different names than the Justice League) and a different line up (the Crime Syndicate has no evil version of Aquaman and the Super Enemies does not have evil versions of The Flash or Green Lantern).  

This is a delightful episode. It is simply pure corny superhero fun at its finest. The whole idea of the Super Enemies is delightfully silly in the best way. The idea that they even meet at the Hall of Evil is fantastic. I especially love the designs of these evil versions of the characters. Robin having the tiny mustache is simply a wonderful design choice. I even love Gleek the space monkey's evil design (despite not being a fan of the character). There is also something just simply charming about superheroes fighting evil versions of themselves. The idea may not be complex or original, but it is a heck of a lot of fun and this episode embellishes this idea to its fullest. Simply put this is a lot of fun.   

This episode does have one major flaw though. This is the ending. The ending here is simply very abrupt and when the episode finishes the story is not wrapped up yet. It would have been better, if this was a two-parter and there was another episode that picked up exactly where this one left off. 

Still despite this major flaw, this is still a wonderful episode. 

The World's Greatest Super Friends: The Lord of Middle Earth (1979)

 

A very fun but flawed episode. 

In this episode, the Wonder Twins and (sigh) Gleek the space monkey go on a camping trip. There they discover some trolls that are forced to serve an all-powerful villain called Mal Havok in the middle of the Earth. Mal Havok then turns the Wonder Twins into trolls. Gleek escapes to warn the Super Friends. However, when the Super Friends go down to rescue them, they are turned into trolls as well. They then go on a journey to find a magic ring which can stop him. 

While the Super Friends don't meet any characters from Lord of the Rings, this episode is clearly inspired by Tolkien's books. The trolls' designs look like how Tolkien describes the hobbits. Also the whole idea of them going on a quest for a magic ring is obviously taken from the books. There is even an attack by monstrous spiders. Even the title calls to mind Tolkien.

There is a lot to enjoy about this episode. Mal Havok is a wonderful villain. He has a great design, a well-fitting voice and feels like a major threat to our heroes. This whole episode is also full of a great sense of imagination. There are tons of creatures that the superheroes run into and all of them are wonderfully designed. I especially love the designs of the spider monsters and the giant slugs. I even love the designs of the Super Friends as trolls. This episode also features a wonderful sense of atmosphere. The way Middle Earth is designed is fantastic and the background art is often breathtakingly good. Not only is this artwork a joy to look at but it also adds makes this strange world all the more real to us. 

Unfortunately, this is a Gleek heavy episode. He is just as annoying and unfunny here as ever. I also hate the ending, as it feels like a complete cop-out. 

Despite its flaws though there is a lot to enjoy and even love about this episode. 

The World's Greatest Super Friends: Space Knights of Camelon (1979)

 

A wonderful episode.

In this episode Superman tries to stop a radioactive meteor. He finds himself on a medieval planet (called Camelon) and having lost his memory. After losing his memory he starts to believe that he is the evil Black Knight of Camelon. The other Super Friends have to stop him before he takes over the planet.

This episode is everything I love about this show. It combines a fun corniness with a real sense of suspense and some great superhero action. The idea of an outer space planet that is very much like the legendary Camelot is just the type of corny superhero fun that I love. While even a casual DC comics fan has seen the idea of an evil Superman before many times, it is still a very effective idea, and it is done very well here. To have the strongest DC hero become evil, brings a great sense of suspense. Even having all the other Super Friends against him, it is hard to picture them winning. I also appreciate seeing this idea carried out without any of the cynicism that would be seen in a modern story. Having Superman as the villain also leads to some wonderfully handled action scenes that are simply a lot of fun. The background art is always wonderful in Hanna-Barbera cartoons of this time period. However, it is especially good here. This is a very atmospheric episode and one that is simply a joy to look at. 

Also notice how this episode came out just two years after the first Star Wars film and that the characters clearly have lightsabers. 

This is a must watch for anyone who loves corny superhero fun. 

The World's Greatest Super Friends: Lex Luthor Strikes Back (1979)

 

A wonderful episode. 

In this episode, Lex Luthor escapes from prison by switching places with Lois Lane. After escaping he captures each of the Super Friends. 

This episode is one of the most normal episodes of The World's Greatest Super Friends. They do not enter a fairytale or other famous fantasy story, instead this is a straightforward superhero adventure. However it is a simply wonderful one. Lex Luthor has never felt more threatening (at least in a Super Friends episode) than he does here. His early scene in a jail cell perfectly sets up why he is one of the most dangerous villains in the DC Universe even without superpowers. This episode truly shows how he can believably be a threat to the most powerful superheroes. Because of this, this episode is truly suspenseful and does make you truly wonder how our heroes will make it out alive (if they do). This is exactly the kind of superhero story that I love. It is a simple story, well told. There is also a lot of the wonderful artwork that I love about Hanna-Barbera cartoons of this time period. The backgrounds are wonderful to look at and the designs of the sun creatures are very well done. 

This episode also benefits (at least in my opinion) by the fact that Gleek the space monkey receives very little screen time. 

The only problem I have with this episode is the voices for Luthor's sidekick and the sun creatures. However this is a small complaint. 

This is pure superhero fun at its finest. 

  

The World's Greatest Super Friends: Rub Three Times for Disaster (1979)

 

A delightful start to a delightful show. 

In this episode, the Wonder Twins discover a magic lamp with a powerful genie inside it. An evil villain from the planet Zaghdad comes to retrieve it and kidnaps the Wonder Twins. The Super Friends must save the Wonder Twins (and the planet Zaghdad) from this villain, but it will be no easy task because this villain is now the master of this powerful genie. 

Though The World's Greatest Super Friends may not be among many cartoon fans' favorite Super Friends series, it is one of mine. The reason for this is because it is so delightfully different from any other version of Super Friends. Its difference lies in that this series often puts them in fairy tale and other fantasy inspired stories. Sure, this often makes these episodes very corny, but that is another reason why I enjoy this series so much. This is the type of corny superhero fun that I simply love. 

All this can already be seen in this first episode. The corniness here is perfectly silly fun. There is also a lot besides the corniness to enjoy about this episode. The villain feels like a real threat, and this creates a true feeling of suspense. This episode is also chock full of pure imagination and creativity. This is especially true of the fantastically creative world inside of the genie's lamp. Adding to this is the wonderfully atmospheric and detailed. This makes the whole episode simply a joy to look at. The action scenes in this episode are also wonderful and a lot of fun to watch.

The only problem I have with this episode is that Gleek the Space Mokey remains just as unfunny here as always. 

A real treat of an episode.