15 Superhero TV Shows That Could Have Been

[Bosco685]

Dude, I'm just happy Manimal is finally coming to DVD in November.

 

 

That was so 'Animal Man' without the title.

 

[NewEnglandGothic]

Dude, I'm just happy Manimal is finally coming to DVD in November.

 

 

That was so 'Animal Man' without the title.

Hopefully 'The Misfits of Science' gets released soon as well.

Ahhhh, the 80's.

I remember watching 'The Spirit' and 'Sable', LIVE (it was a b/w TV set, but... ).

[Doktor]

There's also the Generation X pilot that got turned into a tv movie in the 90's on FOX.

[Ken Aldred]

 

 

Interesting.

 

He looks like a medallion man version of Captain Marvel / Shazam.

[NewEnglandGothic]

 

 

Interesting.

 

He looks like a medallion man version of Captain Marvel / Shazam.

A weird but fun movie to watch as a kid. Co-starred a pre-"Sledge Hammer" Anne-Marie Martin also (an Anne-Marie funfact: she co-wrote the movie Twister with her then famous husband, Michael Crichton'!). I still have the VHS tape, with no way too watch it.

[Doktor]

That's a serious porn-stache that Doc Strange is rocking.

[rjrjr]

15 Superhero TV Shows that Almost Happened

 

Since 1937 when actor Rod La Rocque first portrayed The Shadow in a live-action show, the television industry has tried dozens of times to bring audiences’ favorite comic characters to life – some were highly successful (The Flash, Batman, The Incredible Hulk), while others didn’t make it beyond the concept stage or a single pilot episode.

 

It’s those attempts that, for whatever reason, fell to the wayside we’re going to be talking about in this piece. For a character’s show to appear in this post it’s OK if they actually had a pilot made – it could have even aired – as long as a full season of the show was never ordered by the network, then it counts. We’re also leaving off shows that are currently in development or on-hold status, such as the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. spin off and Booster Gold.

 

 

Wonder Woman (1967)

 

After his success with the Batman live-action television series in sixties, producer William Dozier wanted to produce a show with a female superhero character. Even though he had recently introduced the late Yvonne Craig as Batgirl, she was a secondary character and he wanted to make a show that was centered around a female heroine. He hired actress Linda Harrison (Planet of the Apes) to portray a rather odd version of Wonder Woman in a 4-minute short film titled Who’s Afraid of Diana Prince?

 

 

That short is just nuts! It's a good thing this never made it to TV. Was anyone else distracted by the lampshade? That thing kept bouncing around through much of this short.

[rjrjr]

Daredevil (1989)

 

In 1983, ABC paid acclaimed writer Stirling Silliphant (Perry Mason, Alfred Hitchcock Presents) to pen a -script for a live-action show but that project was quickly scrapped. However, NBC would try their hand a jump-starting a live-action series by including Matt Murdock/Daredevil in a featured role in their TV movie, The Trial of the Incredible Hulk.

 

The character, played by Rex Smith, was fairly true to the comics in tone but his origins were changed and the costume was more “ninja-inspired”, featuring an all-black outfit, minus the signature horns and famous “DD” logo on his chest. That outfit would appear twice more in the “Daredevil: The Man Without Fear” comic miniseries and the 2015 live-action show. While the network fully intended to use the movie as a backdoor pilot for the character, nothing ever materialized from it.

 

 

Isn't that the costume Daredevil uses in the Netflix series?

[rjrjr]

Solarman (1991)

 

While most comic fans have likely never heard of Marvel’s Solarman, he shouldn’t be confused with Dell Comic’s 1962 comic character Solar, Man of the Atom. Marvel’s Solarman was rather meta, as he was a teen named Benjamin Tucker who dreamed of eventually becoming a comic artist for Marvel. He receives his superpower from a stolen alien device called the Circle of Power – a bracelet once belonging to the evil villain Commander Gormagga Kraal.

 

The character was created by David Oliphant in the late-eighties and Marvel had big plans for the character in both the comic book and animated television worlds. Sadly, even with the great Stan Lee writing the scripts and artwork submitted by legendary artists Jim Mooney and Mike Zeck, the comic was canceled after only two lackluster issues. However, a pilot episode for the would-be animation series was produced and eventually aired once on Fox Kids, but the quality of the writing and animation was so poor (even for that era) that the show was never picked up.

 

 

I don't see anything in that cartoon that is inferior to Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends. What was different about this animation and writing exactly?

[Bosco685]

Isn't that the costume Daredevil uses in the Netflix series?

 

Definitely!

 

And let's not forget, there was also a Thor as part of that Hulk TV show period.

 

 

 

[Bosco685]

Den of Geeks did an article like this, and went into greater detail about the Daredevil and Thor characters as part of the Hulk TV show.

 

Remembering Old Marvel Live-Action TV Shows

 

But let's not forget Captain America. Walmart actually has the two-movie set for sale at $3.74 right now.

 

Captain America and Captain America II (1979)

 

 

The First Avenger was the star of two genuinely dreadful TV movies, both of which were intended to launch a live-action Captain America TV series. Sit down with either of these and it will become clear why that never happened. Reb Brown (you may remember him from Yor, The Hunter From the Future...or maybe not) certainly has the build to play Cap, but sadly, little going for him in the acting department. The bizarre Captain America costume in the first one doesn't help, although by the sequel that was corrected with a remarkably accurate (aside from the ridiculous motorcycle helmet) version.

 

I won't even mention the clear, semi-flexible shield that doubles as a windshield for Cap's red, white, and blue motorcyle. Oh, wait...I just did.

 

Is there a reason to watch either of these? Well, Christopher Lee shows up as the villain (a terrorist named...Miguel!) in Death Too Soooooooon, there's a few cool stunts, and Reb Brown's muscles fill out the spandex outfit in impressive fashion. Otherwise, these two Cap flicks have more in common with The Six Million Dollar Man than the comics, and there's barely enough costumed action in them to hold the attention of even the most ardent curiosity seeker.

 

I've been tempted a few times to pick it up. But then I put it down just as fast.

[Bosco685]

There's also the Generation X pilot that got turned into a tv movie in the 90's on FOX.

 

Good point! The article missed this.

 

Generation X (1996)

 

Never forget: Jubilee, Mondo, and Skin made it to live-action before Wolverine, Cyclops, Magneto or Jean Grey. Oh, how far we've come.

 

In 1996, Scott Lobdell's Generation X comic was all the rage, and with some merit...it was pretty good. And then there was this TV movie, which is...well...not as good. Between the painfully dated references to '90s culture (really? A Hootie & The Blowfish joke?), some questionable production values, and the usually-pretty-cool Matt Frewer using Jim Carrey's Riddler as the unfortunate template for his entire performance, Generation X can be a little tough to sit through all these years later.

 

[Bosco685]

What - you forgot about Nick Fury??!!

 

Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. (1998)

 

 

We'll say this about The Hoff's Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D....it tried. It tried quite hard to capture the spirit of the comics. And you know what? It almost pulls it off.

 

David Hasselhoff was on the waning end of Baywatch's inexplicable popularity, but certainly looked the part of the grizzled, cigar-chomping, Nick Fury from the comics. In fact, this TV movie isn't all that shy about its comic book roots, with a horde of (non-costumed) Hydra agents, a whole family of Von Struckers (sing it with me: "the hills are alive...with the sound of HYDRA"), and some comic-appropriate jumpsuits and weapons for the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents.

 

The Original Agents of SHIELD: The Story Behind The Nick Fury TV Movie

 

 

[NewEnglandGothic]

Isn't that the costume Daredevil uses in the Netflix series?

 

Definitely!

 

And let's not forget, there was also a Thor as part of that Hulk TV show period.

 

 

 

Currently for $5 at Walmart. Doesn't have the two extra half hour documentaries though.

I guess, if "The Trial of..." was a hit, they were gonna do a third movie with Iron Man.

It wasn't though. I remember when it was on. I didn't watch it.

[NewEnglandGothic]

Den of Geeks did an article like this, and went into greater detail about the Daredevil and Thor characters as part of the Hulk TV show.

 

Remembering Old Marvel Live-Action TV Shows

 

But let's not forget Captain America. Walmart actually has the two-movie set for sale at $3.74 right now.

 

Captain America and Captain America II (1979)

 

 

The First Avenger was the star of two genuinely dreadful TV movies, both of which were intended to launch a live-action Captain America TV series. Sit down with either of these and it will become clear why that never happened. Reb Brown (you may remember him from Yor, The Hunter From the Future...or maybe not) certainly has the build to play Cap, but sadly, little going for him in the acting department. The bizarre Captain America costume in the first one doesn't help, although by the sequel that was corrected with a remarkably accurate (aside from the ridiculous motorcycle helmet) version.

 

I won't even mention the clear, semi-flexible shield that doubles as a windshield for Cap's red, white, and blue motorcyle. Oh, wait...I just did.

 

Is there a reason to watch either of these? Well, Christopher Lee shows up as the villain (a terrorist named...Miguel!) in Death Too Soooooooon, there's a few cool stunts, and Reb Brown's muscles fill out the spandex outfit in impressive fashion. Otherwise, these two Cap flicks have more in common with The Six Million Dollar Man than the comics, and there's barely enough costumed action in them to hold the attention of even the most ardent curiosity seeker.

 

I've been tempted a few times to pick it up. But then I put it down just as fast.

Me too, I bought Jurassic Attack instead. They just look terrible in the worst way. The good Jonah Hex is in there right now, The Outlaw Josey Wales. It has some neat docs.

[Bosco685]

Currently for $5 at Walmart. Doesn't have the two extra half hour documentaries though.

I guess, if "The Trial of..." was a hit, they were gonna do a third movie with Iron Man.

It wasn't though. I remember when it was on. I didn't watch it.

 

I think a fan bought the prop suit, and still has it.

 

[Bosco685]

Me too, I bought Jurassic Attack instead. They just look terrible in the worst way. The good Jonah Hex is in there right now, The Outlaw Josey Wales. It has some neat docs.

 

It is very tempting. The shame was Reb Brown was built for the role - but not the acting.

 

 

[NewEnglandGothic]

Currently for $5 at Walmart. Doesn't have the two extra half hour documentaries though.

I guess, if "The Trial of..." was a hit, they were gonna do a third movie with Iron Man.

It wasn't though. I remember when it was on. I didn't watch it.

 

I think a fan bought the prop suit, and still has it.

 

Ahhh, yes.

The Mach -1 suit.

Doesn't the suit also boast a comic pressing feature?

[NewEnglandGothic]

Me too, I bought Jurassic Attack instead. They just look terrible in the worst way. The good Jonah Hex is in there right now, The Outlaw Josey Wales. It has some neat docs.

 

It is very tempting. The shame was Reb Brown was built for the role - but not the acting.

 

 

Is that Ted Knight he's about to kick on the Captain America poster?

 

Ironically, they wanted Dolph Lungren for the sequel, but he was already doing The Punisher.

[Bosco685]

Is that Ted Knight he's about to kick on the Captain America poster?

 

Ironically, they wanted Dolph Lungren for the sequel, but he was already doing The Punisher.

 

 

What an incredible actor wasted on a throwaway villain.