In honor of Thursday’s premiere of Who Wants to Be a Superhero?, Newsday looks at five TV shows whose heroes “scored less than super ratings.” Alas, there’s no mention of Misfits of Science, Generation X, or even Manimal, but there’s at least one series that’s near and dear to my heart:
The Man From Atlantis (NBC, 1977-78) – A pre-Dallas Patrick Duffy played this superhero, the last survivor of the doomed continent Atlantis. Any resemblance to Marvel Comics’ Sub-Mariner, was strictly coincidental, of course.
Newsday also lists 1990′s The Flash, written by current Flash comic-books scribes Danny Bilson and Paul DeMeo, 2002′s Birds of Prey, and two 1960s shows I’ve never heard of: Captain Nice and Mr. Terrific (no relation to the Justice Society member, I’m sure).
July 25th, 2006 at 9:07 am
“Anything for [b]you[/b], Automan!”
July 25th, 2006 at 9:17 am
Sometimes, when I least expect it, the theme song to “Misfits of Science” gets stuck in my head. Does the Kid from “My Secret Identity” count as a superhero? He was like Smallville before there was a Smallville
July 25th, 2006 at 12:15 pm
I, for one, am glad The Man from Atlantis failed, leaving Patrick Duffy free to become he who is…Bobby Ewing.
July 25th, 2006 at 12:27 pm
He’ll always be the Man From Atlantis to me!
July 25th, 2006 at 12:30 pm
oh man, I loved Man from Atlantis! I have the books, the comics, and I wish whatever there is on video would come out on DVD.
July 25th, 2006 at 2:23 pm
I liked that the linked “Manimal” and “Night Man”. I think it was “Night Man”. The guy who was Kenny G by night, but a super-hero by even later at night. And M.A.N.T.I.S. And, as before, Automan.
July 26th, 2006 at 12:03 pm
I vaguely remember Captain Nice and Mr. Terrific from my childhood, but unfortunately (in that coincidental synchronicity that can only happen in real life without someone calling ‘Foul!’) both shows had nearly-interchangable premises, with a Wally Cox-ish protagonist being given superpowers and the resultant comedy of the serious disconnect between their superhero-ness and their real self (IIRC, at least one of those guys even shared The Great American Hero’s aversion to flying…)
August 3rd, 2006 at 7:30 pm
How about The Flash???? Ratings weren’t good there either