Superman: Last Son of Krypton - NR
Common Sense Note
Forget the long-winded live action Superman: The Movie. This long, animated pilot to the popular 1990s cartoon series does a better job of explaining Superman's origins on Krypton and fleshing out his character.
Though this Superman is chock-full of action, no fatalities or injuries are shown onscreen. The steadfast, invulnerable nature of the Superman character (Kryptonite is curiously absent in this opening installment of the series) guarantees that grammar-school-age childrenwon't be worried about the outcome of the numerous violent sequences. Older children into superheroes and science fiction will enjoy Last Son; those weaned on the darker visions of the '90s Batman animated series and certain Marvel creations may find Superman's exploits a bit lacking. Teen and adult comics fans and fantasy-addicts open to kinder, gentler forms of superheroics will be entertained by Last Son.
In this video, Clark Kent must cope with the fact that he is adopted and that his birth parents have died. Families who watch this may want to talk about adoption and other alternative family systems. Parents may also want to talk about Clark's special powers, and what duties, if any, he has to society because of them.
Common Sense Review
Reviewed By: Ed Grant
On Krypton, scientist Jor-El predicts that the planet is about to explode. He and his wife Lara send their son Kal-El off to Earth in a spaceship.
In Smallville, Kansas, the boy is found and raised by the Kents. As a high school student, he gets in touch with his super-powers.
The adult Clark moves to Metropolis and works as a reporter for The Daily Planet. He soon becomes the city's "guardian angel" but is dubbed "Superman" by Lois Lane (voiced by Dana Delany), a fellow reporter. Clark has eyes for Lois, but she fancies Superman.
Superman tangles with evil millionaire Lex Luthor who has his own expensive "battle suit" stolen in order to cheat the government and aid a foreign power. Superman retrieves the suit and exposes Luthor.
While the first live-action Superman movie devoted a large amount of time to the character's origin, Last Son of Krypton does the same task more quickly, and with greater imagination.
The writers also focus squarely on Clark's feeling of confusion once he has comprehended the extent of his powers -- he complains to his adopted parents that he will have to "give up [his] life" once he becomes a public figure. Last Son moves beyond the rather dull-edged depiction of Clark that's predominated in the past -- on TV, the big screen, and sometimes in print. In this movie the man of steel is more of a distant cousin to the hyper-neurotic Peter Parker (Spiderman) and Bruce Wayne (Batman, or as Mrs. Kent calls him, "that nut in Gotham City").
Other new additions to the Superman mythos include the notion that archvillain Brainac (unseen in the movies, but important in the comic) started life as a computerized presence on Krypton and the fact that Lex Luthor used to date Lois Lane(!).
Though clearly intended as a follow-up to the Batman animated series, this Superman is far less edgy than its Gothamite predecessor. The voice cast, however, is well chosen, with Delany and Malcolm McDowell proving quite memorable.
Parents wishing to show their youngsters earlier, entertaining versions of DC comic legendary creation will want to seek out either the original cartoon adaptation, Max Fleischer's Superman, or the later TV rendition, in TV's Best Adventures of Superman.
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ViolenceNumerous fight sequences, explosions, and bursts of gunfire. Given Superman's bullet-repellent status and humanitarian instincts, it should come as no surprise that neither injuries nor fatalities of any kind are depicted onscreen. Jor-El, Superman's father, is attacked by "ice monsters," which resemble eels. The final sequence shows Brainiac attacking and disposing of aliens. |
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Social BehaviorSuperman is heroic and has humanitarian instincts. |
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