Adventures of Superman - The Complete Fifth and Sixth Seasons

Here are the last two seasons of the series. The third and fourth seasons introduced us to color and also storylines that became much more kid-friendly. These episodes from 1955 and 1956 are much like the previous two seasons. Near the end of the last season you also began to see Reeves weary of playing the hero in red and blue. But still, it had some good episodes. In the first episode of the fifth season "Peril in Paris" we get to see Robert Shayne in a duel role. Some other good episodes were 'The Man who Made Dreams Come True', 'Disappearing Lois', 'The Town that Wasn't', 'The Magic Secret', etc. As I said in the third and season, there were still episodes where Jack Larson showed great comedic talent such as 'Whatever goes up', 'The Big Forget', and others.Another recurring character is Professor Pepperwinkle played by Phil Tead who is a loveable absent minded professor. He is also the guest star in the final episode of the series 'All that Glitters'.Some other highlight episodes are 'The Tomb of Zaharan' where we once more get to see Noel Neil in a great looking Cleopatra type costume showing off her great legs! We also have 'The Last Knight' with the only return of the great director of many of the first season episodes Tommy Carr who makes a real difference in bringing out the best in George Reeves.There is also a somewhat silly but still entertaining episode 'Divide and Conquer' where Superman visits his friend professor Lacerene who shows him how to split into two persons, each having only half the power of the other. The very next episode 'The Mysterious Cube' has the good professor returning now to teach Superman how to go through a wall! These tricks were never repeated in any other episodes.Another episode that stands apart from others is 'Superman's Wife' which guest stars the drop-dead gorgeous Joi Lansing who left us far too soon in her life.The last three episodes were actually directed by George Reeves himself: "The Brainy Burro, The Perils of Superman, and All That Glitters. Unfortunately the first (Brainy Burro) was not very memorable. But it makes up with one of the best episodes of the series 'The Perils of Superman' (arguably, of course) which is much like an old time serial adventure. And the last episode also directed by Reeves is 'All That Glitters' which shows us what may happen if both Jimmy and Lois have the powers of Superman. This final episode of the series also ends with the famous lines that seem to be perfect for the last episode: (Jimmy) Golly Mr. Kent, you'll never know how wonderful it is to be like Superman. This is followed by Clark's response and final line in the series as he touches his glasses, "No, Jimmy, I guess I never will".As like most series, there are some bad episodes and most fans would say the fifth season episode 'Mr. Zero' is the worst episode of the series. However, I would disagree. Although it is a very, very silly episode it still has its good points. Mr. Zero is played wonderfully by actor Billy Curtis who was also one of the little men in 'Superman and the Mole Men'. I also happen to really like actor Herb Vigran who plays Georgie Gleep. Actually, I would put the episode 'The Stolen Elephant' or 'Close Shave' in that category myself.Whatever you might think about the series, every season had some episodes that were great entertainment for early television viewers as well as today's viewers. After all, there must be a reason why it's been around for such a long time and shown not only in the US but in many other countries all over the world. Pick it up and find out what you think!

This is the set that brings mixed emotions. The last 26 episodes George Reeves and company did prior to his death in 1959. The color shooting in all 52 they did covering those four 13-episode seasons is not only a brilliant example of clever foresight by producer Whitney Ellsworth and his staff ; but quite revealing when it comes to what Reeves had to go through while wearing that uncomfortable Superman costume. He didn't have the more modern synthetic material Christopher Reeve and those who followed were able to wear. There are many shots in these episodes that reveal a conspicuous sweat mark on Reeves' stomach area--due to not just the material of the costume, but the full-torso padding he wore under it to simulate a heavily-muscled look. George had to wear internal padding throughout the series, even though he stayed in shape and was generally athletic. The heat generated by the suit necessitated separate shoots for all "Superman" scenes with frequent breaks to allow Reeves to cool off. And yet, he never complained except one time--half-jokingly--about the "union suit," as he called it. These final episodes also find Superman's tasks under heavier demand, too. Many times, he finds he needs help from a trusted scientist, who guides him in achieving things he'd never tried before--like dividing himself or melding into a thick metal cube to get through it. Superman's still good for the other stuff, too. He's still bullet-proof; always making wall-busting entrances; strong enough to manually pull up a bathosphere from the bottom of Metropolis harbor (from the inside); and even when weakened by a kryptonite ray, he can still levitate Lois Lane (Noel Neill) so her frame will keep the walls of an entrapping shaft from closing in on them, while Jimmy Olsen (Jack Larsen) conjures up enough bravery to climb up the enclosed walls to get out and re-direct the ray gun. The scripts remain well-written (David Chantler), with a dash of humor that's never campy or overdone. Well, Chantler does give Neill one corny line to do in "The Last Knight." Upon being told about visiting a club where the members all dress up like medieval knights, Lois responds: "What woman WOULDN'T want to date three (k)nights in a row?" And the final three episodes are directed by Reeves himself--including a finale that sees Jimmy get knocked out and dream he and Lois have picked up Superman's powers--INCLUDING flying! The sad part is that they (1.) could not afford to shoot full 26-episode seasons once GOING to color; and (2.) Reeves AND John Hamilton (Perry White) died just before they were about to go a full 26 in the fall of 1959. They'd planned to replace Hamilton to carry on the White role, but there was no replacing Reeves. There still isn't.

What I really liked about the "Adventures of Superman- 5th and 6th seasons" is that the picture seems to be clearer than the TV reruns. I watch it with my grandson (who is 3 yrs old), who also likes Christopher Reeves' version, enjoys watching with me and grandpa. He is able to know there are many Supermans, so he thinks he can be a superman. My grandson is always asking who is the "bad guy", we tell him who we think is and he tells us who he thinks it is. Then at the end of the show, he is excited to see if he was right. In these "Adventures" the bad guys are not easily identified, because they can be nice looking people, they can be less attractive people, they dress similar, yet we have to watch their behavior to "know" who is good and who is "bad". Some of these episodes are a little too deep for my grandson, but we monitor the ones we want him to watch. Yes, we love this version of Superman and I think you may love it too. Here is another reason I enjoy the George Reeve Supermans is because he was a wrestler in his early days, a boxer and very athletic. In order to show him landing from flying, he was really jumping from a tall latter down "solid landing". He also was into Judo and some of the martial arts, so it shows his athletic talent. Another interesting background on George Reeves is that he was strong, he was able to pick up two guys off the ground, not dummies, and carry them. You will see his natural strength in these episodes, not bad for a man in his late 30's and 40's. One thing written about George Reeves, is that he loved to break through the fake walls, windows, and doors. Sometimes you can see on his face, the fun he is having :)

Excelente colección que un fan no debería dejar pasar.

Region 1 so you need a multi region player seems to work fine

I love it ..great actor George Reeves.and other actors too...always been a Superman fan since my childhood and now retired and enjoying the whole series. 1-6,,,adventure,humor,danger,friend..//etc...Full color....Mr Reeves made other movies appearance...Jungle Jim episode??? and other thank you Superman...rip

Producto Estrella Superman:Precio muy económicoEnvío muy rápidoAunque en la caja especifique zona 1 para USA y Canada, se pueden visualizar los discos en reproductores zona 2Subtitulado al español, por lo que es el complemento perfecto a las temporadas 1 y 2 que si se pueden encontrar en audio en español, ya que de la temporada 3 en adelante no existe doblaje al castellano.Vendedor AAAAA+++++

In the relatively modern era this is the Man of Steel who started it all for us schoolkids of the 50's and early 60's. Sure, some of the effects are pretty cheesy by today's standards but we hung on every scene and every word uttered. George Reeves made this role his own and his death affected every fan the world over. Long live the Man of Steel!!!