Warner Archives Unveils New Titles for Fall
Warner Archive, the really cool digital library for Warner Bros and its vast array of titles, has a series of new DVD releases coming this fall for the discerning comic book fan and the lover of old school television fare.
Pre-orders are now open for Warner Archive Collection’s Blu-ray™ release of Beware The Batman: Dark Justice. Featuring the final 13 episodes of the groundbreaking, all-new CGI series’ first season, the single-disc Blu-ray™ will be released on September 30. Beware The Batman: Dark Justice pits Batman, Alfred and swordstress Katana against the underworld likes of Anarky, Professor Pyg, Mister Toad and Magpie. Over the final 13 episodes, the rogues gallery expands with appearances by Killer Croc, Man-Bat, Deathstroke and more. Produced by Warner Bros. Animation, this action-packed detective thriller deftly redefines what we have come to know as a ‘Batman show.”
Here’s a glance at other animated offerings now available at WAC and/or WAI:
BATMAN: THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD, THE COMPLETE SECOND SEASON (Blu-ray)
Bigger, bolder, blu-er! The fearsome fan-addict forces behind Batman: The Brave and the Bold fired on all bat-cylinders for this fantastic sophomore season that skillfully blends super-heroics, sly satire, and a leviathan scope for an animated concoction embracing the fun of the past with the pow! of the present. Thanks to the series first season, Batman goes even farther beyond the expected grim and grit of the Dark Knight in both their narrative approach AND in the fun. Across the 26-Episode second season – presented in HD and widescreen as it was meant to be seen – you’ll find a vacationing Aquaman, a requiem for a Scarlet Speedster, the legendary Justice Society, the celebrated Justice League International, the Super Batman of Planet X (voiced by Kevin Conroy), Batman’s Strangest Cases featuring a team-up with one snack-loving, mystery solving mutt and an overarching story arc that climaxes in a stunning battle against Starro the Conqueror! Joining Diedrich Bader (Batman) are some very special guest voices, including Adam West, Julie Newmar, Paul Reubens, Mark Hamill, Tom Kenny, John DiMaggio, Tara Strong, Stephen Root and many more! And making this collection even more fab is the fact that the episodes are presented in the producer’s preferred order for the first time anywhere – including the “The Mask of Matches Malone!” in the correct aspect ratio! Batman: The Brave and the Bold, The Complete First Season is also available via WAC.
MARINE BOY: THE COMPLETE THIRD SEASON (1967-68)
Marine Boy, the amazing aquatic hero of the American anime action classic, surfaces for a final volume of sea-faring sci-fi adventures! This 3-Disc, 26-Episode Collections rounds out Marine Boy’s excursions for the Ocean Patrol Marine Headquarters with a series of fantastic confrontations against fearsome foes side by side with some fabulous friends. Thanks to the inventions of his father, Dr. Mariner, Marine Boy is super-scuba geared up and ready for the full fathom fighting form with his propeller shoes and bulletproof wet suit, not mention his boomerangs and Oxy-gum! So take a swim with Marine Boy, his dolphin Splasher, mermaid gal pal Neptina, hero-worshiping little Clicli and the stalwart crew of supersub P-1 as they go up against evil electronic brains, haunted island, ghost cruisers, mutant plankton swarms, militarized red dolphins, and attacking icebergs. It’s just another day under the sea for Marine Boy – brave and free!
SHIRT TALES
Meet the world’s cuddliest crime-stoppers: Pammy
Panda, Tyg Tiger, Rick Raccoon, Digger Mole, and Bogey Orangutan they¹re cute, they¹re furry and they have a secret. Whenever the purple mushroom by the giant tree they call home starts to flash, they swing into action as the crime-sleuthing squad called the Shirt Tales. Racing down to their secret lair hidden underneath the tree (and under the nose of Park Ranger Mr. Dinkle), they answer the Shirt Tale Alert from the Commissioner who clues them in on the current crime via holo-phone. Then it¹s off to their shape-changing supersonic craft where they use their wiles and their fantastic gadgets to solve the mystery and nab the bad guys. While these message-wearing T-shirted critters started out as adorable greeting card characters, it took the genius of Hanna-Barbara to take the cute and mix-it up with a blend of Batman and Scooby-Doo to create a fan-and family classic. This is the 46-episode, complete series collection.
LOOPY DA LOOP: THE COMPLETE COLLECTION (1959-65)
Between leaving MGM and building a TV empire, William Hanna and Joseph Barbera served up a series of theatrical shorts about a charming, tuque-wearing French Canadian wolf by the pun-tastic name of Loopy De Loop. Distributed to theaters by Columbia, these 48 shorts depict the misadventures of wolf with a mission to change the bad image that people have of wolves, and make them appreciated as warm and generous fellow creatures. Not an easy job, even for a loup as charming as Mssr. Loopy, and the poor fellow is usually rewarded with a terrified cry for “Help!” and a clout to the head. But hope springs eternal in the heart of this un-savage beast as he tries to undo his kind¹s big, bad image by rendering aid and assistance to the likes of Little Red Riding Hood, Snow White, Little Bo Beep, Hansel and Gretel, Cinderella, D¹Artagnan, Dr. Jeckyll and more to injurious and hilarious results. Rarely seen due to their unique genesis, Loopy De Loop is an unusual charmer (Much like Loopy himself) in the illustrious Hanna-Barbera oeuvre, combining the funny animal sit-com antics of classic H-B with the kind of satire associated with the work of Jay Ward. But now’s your chance to enjoy them all with this complete collection that will have you crying “Sacre-iliac!”
GILLIGAN¹S PLANET (1982)
It¹s a brand new story about The Castaways!
Leaving their tiny island after years and months and days, they built a little spaceship, crude but it could fly. They left their home and lost their way, between the stars and sky, they went from an island to star, lost on Gilligan¹s Planet.² It¹s true The Castaways are now lost in space! They¹re all here, in this strange, new world, Gilligan (voice of Bob Denver), the Skipper (voice of Alan Hale, Jr.), the Millionaire (voice of Jim Backus), his Wife (voice of Natalie Schafer), the Movie Star (voice of Dawn Wells), the Professor (Russell Johnson) and Mary Ann (voice of Dawn Wells). Now joined by Gilligan¹s alien sidekick Bumper, they begin a whole new life on a whole new world while still trying to repair the now space-worthy SS Minnow and return home from their near-infinite three hour tour. It¹s something old, something new in this Saturday morning cartoon sit-com sci-fi romp!
MAGIC BOY (1960)
Magically-gifted boy Sasuke lives in peace, deep in the forest with his animal pals and his elder sister, Oyu. After their forest sanctuary is violated by a demon witch who devours one of Sasuke’s animal companions, he vows vengeance. Leaving the forest, the boy sets out to master his magical gifts by making a pilgrimage to the home of the wizard, Hakuunsai. While Sasuke learns the ways of magic, Yakusha, the demon witch, terrorizes the countryside, and Sasuke works to complete his training in time. Magic Boy aka Shunen Sarutobi Sasuke is a classic piece of anime history – the first full-length animated feature produced in Japan to reach the shores of the United States. With much of the original storyline left untouched and centering on pop culture staple hero Sarutobi Sasuke (think Bomba the Jungle Boy crossed with a ninja), Magic Boy is an enchanting precursor to decades of imported Japanese ani-magic. Presented in 16×9 Widescreen.
And on Warner Archive Instant …
AQUAMAN (1967)
Swim along with the King of the Seven Seas in his swingin’ sixties animated incarnation from Filmation. Aquaman, alongside teen sidekick Aqualad and his Queen, Mera, uses his astounding powers to defend the ancient undersea city of Atlantis and endangered sea life everywhere. And, to sweeten the super-action, his adventtires are presented as originally seen, with segments featuring The Justice League, The Teen Titans, The Flash, Green Lantern and more!
MARINE BOY Season 1 & 2 (1966-67)
Suit up for some undersea superheroics with Marine Boy, the original “American anime” classic! Produced in Japan but intended for first run in the US, Marine Boy lead the wave that included such color anime classic as Kimba the White Lion and Speed Racer (with whom it shares a number of voice actors). Operating out of the Ocean Patrol Marine Headquarters, superscientist Dr. Mariner has outfitted his stalwart son with all the aquatic accoutrements he will need in his quest to keep the seas safe for all mankind. From Oxy-Gum and bulletproof wet suit to flying subs and propeller shoes, Marine Boy has what it takes to face a variety of fearsome foes above and below the ocean¹s surface.
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