Plot Details: This opinion reveals major details about the movie's plot.
Superman: The Animated Series gave new life to the Superman mythology when it made its debut back in 1996, following suit of the critically-acclaimed Batman: The Animated Series. The series took the best parts of the Superman lore and presented it in a truly unforgettable fashion. Two-bit villains like Metallo, Toyman, and Mr. Mxyzptlk got a reworking to make them more of a threat while the A-class villains of Lex Luthor and Brainiac were taken to new heights. And it’s the latter two that create problems for the Man of Steel in Superman: Brainiac Attacks, a direct-to-DVD movie made by the creators of the animated series.
But there is a problem, quite a huge one right off the bat. For those sharp enough to notice, the problem lies with the opening credits. The main man overseeing the DC Animated Universe—Bruce Timm—is absent. This may not seem like anything at all, but when the heart & soul is gone, the work suffers. Curt Geda, who directed this movie and is actually part of Timm’s original crew, missed to make his mark with this feature, and it greatly shows in this movie.
Super Disaster
I’m usually confident, most of the time, that the producers of the DC Animated Universe will create great, quality shows, and for the most part they have delivered on that promise. There have been a few duds here and there, but even their “duds” is someone else’s best work. I can’t say the same with Superman: Brainiac Attacks. I never thought I would feel a bit disappointed and somewhat let down with what was presented.
The most jarring part of the movie is Lex Luthor and Brainiac. Both of these characters have been craftily established as being the best of Superman’s villains. I didn’t see it in this movie.
Luthor took the role of comic relief from the beginning to the end; he was totally out of character, and it almost erased everything that Timm and company brought to this character before watching this movie. This wasn’t the Luthor that was always a couple of steps ahead of everyone. And this wasn’t the Luthor that was ruthless and scheming. All those qualities seemed to be an afterthought. It was also disconcerting to hearing someone else voicing Lex Luthor other than Clancy Brown (or Mr. Krabs as my wife calls him… if you know the reference I feel sorry for you). Brown has the menacing tone that was sorely missed, but if he read this script and refused to do this movie, then who could blame him. I would have done the same in his shoes. Instead of Brown, Powers Boothe fills the role. I have nothing against Boothe. I like him as Gorilla Grodd in Justice League Unlimited or even Senator Roarke in Sin City. However, Lex Luthor he is not. He just can’t compare to Clancy Brown, and I never realized how good Brown really is.
If Luthor was written out of character, then why shouldn’t Brainiac be as well? I didn’t like how Brainiac was used at all in this movie especially since he’s supposed to be the main villain. His icy, cold, calculating demeanour was replaced with the super-robot of the week out to get Superman. It was really sad to watch. He reminded me more of Metallo who likes to talk with his fists than the distant Kryptonian supercomputer that even Darkseid feared. Regular voice actor Corey Burton was a no-show for his role and instead Lance Henrickson was used. What was even more disturbing than the voice switch was Brainiac’s personality… he was even cockier than Luthor, something that was extremely out of character since Brainiac doesn’t emit emotions.
The plot itself was fairly weak that ended up being a slugfust between Superman and Brainiac for almost the entire movie. However, the subplot proved to be more interesting as Superman had to make a decision whether or not to reveal his secret identity to Lois Lane. But he could be too late in doing so when Lois contracts a deadly kryptonite poison that doesn’t give her much time to live. The only way to cure her is to find a very rare ingredient, and it’s located in the Phantom Zone. Even if Superman survives does find the cure, he still has to contend with both Brainiac and Luthor.
Duane Capizzi, writer of Superman: Brainiac Returns and supervising producer for the animated show The Batman, has stated that even though he used the designs of the DC Animated Universe series, it isn’t part of the continuity. Instead, he tried to follow the original Richard Donner Superman movies. As you can imagine, fans are in an uproar because they felt that this was very misleading. Why not use the designs of The Batman instead so people knew that this was a different Superman altogether?
Bad plot and story aside, it was great to hear Tim Daly voice the Man of Steel again. I didn’t realize how much I missed him until hearing his interaction with Dana Delany (Lois Lane). They have such a great chemistry together, and even though the script itself didn’t get into anything too deep, they easily fell back into the groove.
I was also excited that Perry White got more screen time. I think this was the most I’ve see “The Chief” take an active role like this one. And thank goodness the animators decided to give jimmy Olsen a haircut. He no longer sports that awful mullet.
Despite the few joys, the movie was riddled with problems, mostly from poor execution of the plot and annoying music. This movie upset a lot of fans that they are labeling this movie as the animated equivalent to Schumacher’s Batman & Robin. That may be a harsh comparison but given the level of excellence that has been produced by these creators, I can see how disappointment would rear its ugly head. I wouldn’t go that far in that comparison, but Superman: Brainiac Attacks falls short on expectations. The kids will probably love it, which, incidentally, was really made for them. But for those expecting to see Superman: The Animated Series, look again. This isn't it at all.
Side note: The best part of the whole DVD was the special feature (which really isn’t anything much but trailers). One trailer in particular is a small clip of Superman portrayed throughout the years featuring Christopher Reeve, George Reeves, Dean Cain, Tom Welling, and the Superman Animated cast, all complete with John Williams’ theme song. It then segue ways into the Superman Returns trailer. It’s just a great piece to watch over and over again. The essence of Superman is preserved in this short clip. Thank goodness for small favours.
With Lex Luther and Braniac facing him, Superman has to get a whole lot tougher in this full-length animated film. Tim Daly and Dana Delany from the T...More at Buy.com Marketplaces
With Lex Luther and Braniac facing him Superman has to get a whole lot tougher in this full-length animated film. Tim Daly and Dana Delany from the TV...More at Family Video
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