062 Underground World

Title: Underground World
Studio: Famous
Date: 06/18/43
Credits:
Direction:
Seymour Kneitel
ANimation:
Nicholas Tafuri Reuben Grossman
Story:
Jay Morton
Musical Arrangement:
Sammy Timberg
Series: Superman
Running time (of viewed version): 2:07:02-2:15:02 (8:00)
Commercial DVD Availability: Image Superman, official DVD, etc.

Synopsis: Gentle underground river expedition ends up wiping out a previously unknown race of flying sentients. Yay?

















Comments: Reused opening animation would go on to be a staple of television animation. not that it's new (in the series or out), but I'm noting it out loud. Perry White looks pretty good. Lovely nature backgrounds, but they aren't impressive the way they have been in the other Superman cartoons of this year. And they are heavily reused in parallel scenes in this cartoon. There's something very Galactor about the underground hawkmen. Why are there _underground_ hawkmen? Clark and Lois's jodhpurs make them look like Torgo. There are many sacrificial staircases in this series. And silhouetted fire dancing. Superman's face looks a bit looser in this, which is a good thing. And that's how we made the hawkpeople extinct. (If they weren't crushed in the the rockslide, the water is going to back up and drown them.) And Perry apparently works for the government conspiracy against knowledge of the hawkmen, due to his immolating the manuscript of the story. In additional similarities to Manos, the Hands of Fate, there are lots of driving scenes (tho these are gondolas). So, driving, goat legs, and cult sacrifices.