For those unaware – and it will soon be quite impossible to stay unaware – this year marks the 75th anniversary of the most all-American of superheroes: Superman. DC Entertainment and Warner Bros.will be using a newly-designed logo for all things Superman – including comics, video game, Underoos, etc. – as they get released over the next year. Check it out below, as you'll be seeing a lot of it in the future.
What we’re most interested in, though, is the animated Superman short film retrospective that will be produced by Zack Snyder, who is of course directing a little movie you might have heard of called Man of Steel. He’ll be working with superhero animation veteran Bruce Timm, Man of Steel storyboard artist Jay Oliva, WB Animation’s Peter Girardi, and DC’s Geoff Johns and Mike Carlin.
They’re keeping the details about the project secret, but according to The Hollywood Reporter, the two-minute animation could be one continuous uncut shot of Superman throughout the ages, from the old Max Fleischer cartoons to the definitive comic artists’ interpretations to the actors who portrayed him on the big and small screen. It’s too bad they won’t be incorporating the “Superman’s baby” scene from Mallrats, but I’m guessing that skews older than the audience that they’re aiming for.
Warner and DC will present an unfinished animatic cut of the short during the San Diego Comic Con this July, and the finished short will be released across various platforms this fall.
And if that’s not enough, the direct-to-video Superman Unbound came out this month, the new comic series Superman Unchained goes on sale next month, the Infinite Crisis MOBA video game will hit stores this fall, and a bunch of all-new Superman shorts will be developed by WB Animation to air all throughout the next year during Cartoon Network’s DC Nation block.
That’s a whole lot of Superman, guys. But take heed, after all this red and blue, next year begins Batman’s 75th anniversary! The future could also possibly hold a Justice League movie, but nobody’s counting their Martian Manhunters before they’ve hatched.
