I am – Hercules!!

Super Friends: The Lost Episodes collects the 24 6- and 7-minute shorts produced in 1983 but mostly didn’t air in the United States until 1995, when they served as components of USA’s “The Superman/Batman Adventures.” Sadly there are no documentaries or other extras on the set to explain this odd state of affairs.

1) “Mxyzptlk's Revenge.” The nigh omnipotent imp sucks Superman and Batman into his dimension, steals Superman’s cape, forces the Man of Steel to hoe a vegetable garden, and calls the Caped Crusader “Bat-chump.”

2) “Roller Coaster.” The Atom has to help the Wonder Twins intervene when Fonzie-ish thugs force a nerd to ride a dilapidated amusement park ride.

3) “Once Upon A Poltergeist.” Batman, Robin and Apache Chief discovers a Mohawk ghost is menacing a Gotham City’s tallest skyscraper, The Wayne Building.

4) “The Krypton Syndrome.” A time-hopping Superman helps destroy his birth planet in an effort to prevent the Legion of Doom from enslaving the Earth and killing every Super Friend except Robin. Wonder Woman cameos.

5) “Invasion of the Space Dolls.” Batman, Robin and the Wonder Twins have to contend with battery-powered doll-size extraterrestrial invaders impersonating action figures.

6) “Terror on the Titanic.” Aquaman and Black Vulcan must combat bizarre creatures that turn the famed sunken ocean liner into a rampaging monster.

7) “The Revenge of Doom.” Superman, Batman, Robin and Wonder Woman strike back when Luthor, Grundy, Sinestro, Riddler, Cheetah, Black Manta, Scarecrow, Brainiac, Grodd, Giganta, Captain Cold and Bizarro restore the Hall of Doom to flying condition and park it atop the Hall of Justice.

8) “A Pint of Life.” Aquaman and the Wonder Twins must hunt down an Indiana Jones-ish anthropologist in the Amazon to obtain the rare blood that can save the anthropologist’s ailing son.

9) “Day of the Dinosaurs.” When the Earth swallows up the Hall of Justice, Wonder Woman and Samurai arrive in a hidden subterranean world teeming with ape-men, mammoth lizards and a technologically advanced race of paranoid humanoids.

10) “Playground of Doom.” Superman, Batman and Robin contend with Godzilla-size alien space tots who decide to turn Earth into their playground.

11) “Space Racers.” Flash (who in this episode is permitted to fly and survive exposure to deep space) and Wonder Woman lend a hand when the Wonder Twins find themselves menaced by extraterrestrial “rocket jockeys” with no respect for authority.

12) “The Recruiter.” Wonder Woman and Superman are kidnapped by aliens who force them to compete against aliens in “spaceball” matches. Which are a lot like football matches, only in space.

13) “Warpland.” Superman and Batman are sucked into an parallel universe in which the main crimefighters are Octoman and Superfrog, who turn Superman into an Eagleman and Batman into a Manbat.

14) “Two Gleeks Are Better Than One.” Grodd and Giganta create an evil android duplicate of the Wonder Twins’ pet capable of disintegrating superheroes with its eyes. Android duplicates of Green Lantern, Flash, Hawkman, Aquaman, Wonder Woman, Superman, Batman, Apache Chief, El Dorado, Samurai, Black Vulcan and a full-size Atom all cameo.

15) “Bulgor The Behemoth.” Superman and Apache Chief spring into action when lightning transforms a TV-cartoon writer into a Hulk-ish gigantic beast.

16) “Prisoners of Sleep.” Wonder Woman uses her telepathy (!) and a coal-miner to save Superman and Batman, who are tormented in a dream prison by an extraterrestrial demon named Sleep.

17) “An Unexpected Treasure.” Hawkgirl and Hawkman help the Wonder Twins intervene when pair of young BMX riders stumble on a flying saucer buried beneath a restricted military base and pilot it toward Metropolis.

18) “The Malusian Blob.” Batman, Robin and Black Vulcan use refined sugar to defeat an alien organism after it devours a space shuttle.

19) “Return of the Phantoms.” Superman come to the rescue when a trio of ungrateful escaped Kryptonian criminals travel back to 1957 to beat up Superboy, but it’s Green Lantern’s power ring that sends the ne’er-do-wells back to the Phantom Zone.

20) “Bully For You.” After Batman loses his utility belt during a mission with Robin and the Wonder Twins, a fat nerdly teen finds the belt and uses Batman’s “molecular destabilizer” to destroy Gotham highrises.

21) “Superclones.” Brainiac programs clones of Aquaman and El Dorado to help imprison the real Aquaman and El Dorado, then disgrace the Super Friends by allowing themselves to be captured by burly seamen during a ship robbery. When “Aquaman” and “El Dorado” are put on trial, they falsely accuse Green Lantern, Flash, Superman, Wonder Woman, the Wonder Twins, Batman and Robin of being their accomplices, and all the Super Friends are found guilty of piracy.

22) “Attack of the Cats.” After cat-scientists turn Robin into a catperson, Batman watches as El Dorado drives away the evil felines by using his “holographic vision” to create the illusion of angry dogs.

23) “One Small Step For Superman.” As Superman, Batman and the Wonder Twins ponder how to help a boy stricken with a mysterious paralysis, a giant robot attacks the Man of Steel with what appears to be a chunk of Kryptonite.

24) “Video Victims.” Samurai must employ his ancient powers of illusion and wind-manipulation as well as his knowledge of modern Japanese electronics after Bizarro traps him, Superman and Wonder Woman in a video game, where they are bombarded with “photon torpedoes” and menaced by hungry Pac-Man-like balls made of Kryptonite.

Extras include:

* An ad for the Cartoon Network’s and Warner Home Entertainment’s “Batman: The Brave and the Bold” (:31).

* A docutisement for “Green Lantern: First Flight” focusing on the history of the Emerald Gladiator (3:31).

* An onscreen issue of a Super-Friends comic book (which can’t really be read because it’s presented in standard definition).

* A PDF of the same issue, which is legible on a computer screen. It contains two stories: one about the Wonder Twins helping to defeat a giant mole, and another about Marvin, Wendy and Superdog meeting the rest of the Justice League for the first time.

The CW wisely withheld the pilot of “90210” from critics. It sucked. I never watched another episode. I will, however, enter three facts in this series' defense:

1) Its first-season writing staff included no fewer than three “Freaks and Geeks” writers, namely Jeff Judah, Gabe Sachs and Rebecca Rand Kirshner.

2) Tristan Wilds, who played Michael Lee on “The Wire,” is a “90210” regular.

3) Oscar-winning “Juno” writer Diablo Cody loves “90210,” and loves it enough to appear in its 19th episode.







Herc’s Popular Pricing Pantry

John Cleese’s complete “Fawlty Towers,” arguably the funniest sitcom ever forged, just fell to 60% off. Three Four weeks ago it was $59.98; two weeks ago it was $41.99; at the moment it’s at its cheapest price ever: $23.99!!



Looking for excuses to investigate “Star Trek” mastermind J.J. Abrams early TV work? The big Disney TV sale has 50%-off “Felicity” for its cheapest price ever: $14.99/season!! and 40%-off “Alias” for its cheapest price ever: $17.99/season!!


The same sale has “The Muppet Show,” $31.49 two weeks ago, at its cheapest price ever: $16.49/season!! (That’s cheaper than used!!!)


Want to see what “X-Files” strongman Frank Spotnitz did with “Night Stalker” four years ago? The complete series was $18.49 two weeks ago but the Disney sale just knocked it down to an all-time low of $10.99!! (That’s cheaper than used!!!)


Season three of “Mad Men” starts this weekend, and the first season, $26.99 four weeks ago, is momentarily only $15.99!! ($24.99 for Blu-ray!!)


There’s a new edition of Stephen Cannell’s supercool and highly serialized FBI/mob drama “Wiseguy” arriving Aug. 25; you’d be smart to lock in its current Amazon price NOW at $9.99!! Crazy cheap the acclaimed 22-hour first season featuring Ray Sharkey as Sonny Steelgrave, Kevin Spacey and Joan Severance as Mel & Susan Profit, William Russ as Roger LoCocco and Jonathan Banks as Frank McPike; used copies of these same 22 episodes on the old half-season sets currently run you a minimum of $114.80!!!

We’re just past the 40th anniversary of the first man on the moon and “From The Earth To The Moon,” the entire extra-packed signature edition, is now $12.99!! People were paying $49 for this set last year.

The Shield’s final season was $38.99 in April; now it’s 55% off and at its cheapest price ever: $26.99!!

TV-on-Disc Calendar




Last Week
Adventures of Black Beauty 2.x
Brian Sewell's Grand Tour of Italy
Days That Shook The World 2.x
Edge of Existence: The Complete Series
Elvis Presley: The Ed Sullivan Shows: The Performances
Flight of the Conchords 2.x
Love Boat 2.x Vol. 2
Love Boat: The First Two Seasons
Marple 4.x
Project Runway 5.x
The Shape of the World: The Complete Series
Stargate Atlantis: Fan's Choice
Tim & Eric, Awesome Show, Great Job!
Unsolved Mysteries: Ghosts



This Week

Adam 12 3.x

The City 1.x

Designing Women 2.x

Life & Times of Vivienne Vyle

Life With Derek 2.x

Mistral's Daughter: The Complete Miniseries

New Detectives 4.x

90210 1.x

Pulling 2.x

Scooby Doo: Batman/Globetrotters

Super Friends: The Lost Episodes

Zorro Generation Z Vol. 2



Next Week
The Beast 1.x
Cracker (U.S.): The Complete Series
Dexter 3.x
Dexter 3.x (Blu-ray)
Dexter 1.x-3.x
Dexter 1.x-3.x (Blu-ray)
Dirty Sexy Money 2.x
Eli Stone 1.x
Everybody Hates Chris 4.x
Everybody Hates Chris 1.x-4.x
Foursome 2.x
Ghost Adventures 1.x
Gossip Girl 2.x
Greek 3.x
iCarly 2.x Vol. 1
Just For Laughs: Over The Edge
Man Vs. Wild 3.x
One Way Out 1.x
Simon & Simon 3.x

Simpsons 12.x Limited Edition
The Simpsons 12.x
Smurfs Vol. 2
Sons of Anarchy 1.x
Sons of Anarchy 1.x (Blu-ray)
Total Drama Island: The Complete Series



August 25
Batman: Brave and the Bold Vol. 1
Battles B.C. 1.x
Battle 360: Bloody Battle of Guadalcanal
Booker: The Complete Series
Californication 2.x
Dog The Bounty Hunter: Best Of 5.x
Dungeons & Dragons: The Beginning
Dungeons & Dragons: The Complete Series
1st Amendment Standup 3.x
A Haunting: Twilight of Evil (Blu-ray)
Here's Lucy 1.x
House 5.x

House 1.x-5.x
How The Earth Was Made: The Complete Series
Lie To Me 1.x
Lie To Me 1.x (Blu-ray)
Life 2.x
Man Stroke Woman 2.x
MonsterQuest 3.x Vol. 1
NCIS 6.x
New Tricks 1.x
One Tree Hill 6.x
Saber Rider and the Star Sheriffs Vol. 2
Samantha Who? 2.x
Scrubs 8.x
Smallville 8.x
Smallville 8.x (Blu-ray)
Smallville 1.x-8.x
Sonny With A Chance Vol. 1
Suite Life on Deck: Anchors Away
thirtysomething 1.x
TV Sets: Beyond the Ordinary
TV Sets: Crime & Punishment
The Universe 3.x (Blu-ray)
The Untouchables 3.x Vol. 1
Wanted Dead or Alive 1.x
Wanted Dead or Alive: The Complete Series
Wiseguy 1.x
Wreckreation Nation 1.x



September 1
Ben 10 Alien Force Vol. 4
Brothers And Sisters 3.x
Clatterford 2.x
CSI 9.x
CSI 9.x (Blu-ray)
Desperate Housewives 5.x
Doctor Who: The Deadly Assassin
Doctor Who: Image of the Fendahl
The Game 1.x
GI Joe: The M.A.S.S. Device
Heroes 3.x
Heroes 3.x (Blu-ray)
Impact: The Complete Miniseries
Meteor: The Complete Miniseries
People Like Us: The Complete Series

Plastic Man: The Complete Collection