SUPERMAN FLIES AGAIN (1954)
Article 3144 by Dave Sindelar
Viewing Date: 1-17-2010
Posting Date: 3-24-2010
Directed by George Blair and Thomas Carr
Featuring George Reeves, Noel Neill, Jack Larson
Country: USA
What it is: More “Adventures of Superman” edited into a movie

Superman has more problems to contend with. He must save a kidnapped jet pilot from spies. Then he must deal with the fact that a dog he saves is able to identify his alter ego. Lastly, he must catch a criminal impersonating a clown who means to steal the money from a telethon.

Once again, I’ve taken the approach of watching the three episodes of the series that made up this movie; they are “Jet Ace”, “The Dog Who Knew Superman”, and “The Clown Who Cried”. One disadvantage this compilation has is that it lacks a single epic story like SUPERMAN OF SCOTLAND YARD’s “Panic in the Sky”, and the meanest of the criminals (the spy in “Jet Ace”) is in the least interesting story. The story about the clown has an interesting premise, but the real winner here is the middle story, which, though the basic premise is the slightest of the bunch, still manages to be clever and charming, and even has a touch of heart to it. As for the series itself, I’ve begun to notice the sometimes witty ways they use Superman’s powers; for example, during the first story, Lois catches Clark Kent looking up at the ceiling and asks him if he thinks he can see the jet plane through it. Even if I’m not quite watching the real movie, I’m finding the series itself to be very enjoyable in its own right.