Quartile rating: 5.5/10 · 1 rating
The historical saga of American superheroes. Born in the period between the Great Depression and the World War II to combat the hobgoblins of the modern world, these mutant human beings with superhuman powers colonized the funny papers, radio dramas, television and films, to become a truly national industry in the United States: they gave expression to the fears and obsessions of the twentieth century and bolstered American ideals.
A competent documentary tracing the cultural history of American superheroes from the Depression era onward. The narrative arc is coherent and reasonably engaging, drawing on interviews with comic creators and industry figures to contextualize the genre's social significance. However, the cinematography is fairly standard for a TV documentary of this era — archival footage, talking heads, and comic art panels without particularly inventive visual framing. The ending feels somewhat abrupt and inconclusive, leaving the story mid-stream rather than offering a satisfying coda. As a documentary subject in 2001, the superhero-as-cultural-artifact angle was still relatively fresh, earning modest novelty points, though the execution follows familiar documentary conventions.