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This is a work-in-progress timeline and episode guide for all incarnations of the Superfriends (or is it Super Friends) cartoon produced by Hanna-Barbera between 1973 and 1986. It’s taken from various websites (all with different orders). I made a lot of revision based upon Cartoon Network’s Boomerang channel airing many of the episodes (All New, Legendary, Galatic, World’s Greatest) complete and as they originally aired years ago. At the time I started writing this guide, Challenge of the Super Friends was the only series officially available on DVD. As I finally move this content over here from a static page, every episode is now available on DVD. Just click the series below to see more info.

DC Comic book legends Superman, Batman, Robin, Wonder Woman and Aquaman, along with their new comrades Marvin, Wendy and Wonder Dog, are called to “fight injustice, right that which is wrong and serve all mankind.” In their quest, they contend with supernatural creatures and other powerful forces in Hanna-Barbera ‘s first assemblage of famed crime-fighters from the pages of DC Comics. This hour-long animated series, narrated by Ted Knight , aired on the ABC television network from Saturday September 8, 1973 to August 30, 1974.

All 16 episodes have been released on DVD in two volumes.

1. The Power Pirate
2. The Baffles Puzzle
3. Professor Goodfellow’s G.E.E.C.
4. The Weather Maker
5. Dr. Pelagrin’s War
6. The Shamen U
7. Too Hot To Handle
8. The Androids

9. The Balloon People
10. The Fantastic Frerps
11. The Ultra Beam
12. The Menace of the White Dwarf
13. The Mysterious Moles
14. Gulliver’s Gigantic Goof
15. The Planet-Splitter
16. The Watermen

When the Superfriends returned to TV 1977, The All-New Superfriends Hour was a huge ratings success.  In this particular incarnation of the Superfriends, the DC Comic book legends Superman, Batman, Robin, Wonder Woman and Aquaman return to fight for justice.  This time the shape-shifting super-teens Zan and Jayna, along with their space-monkey Gleek were added.  The All-New Superfriends Hour, featured four animated shorts per program and aired from Saturday September 10, 1977 until September 2, 1978. Also included in various episodes were short 30-60 second Magic Tricks, Safety Tips, Health Tips and Craft Projects, that were led by the various Superfriends. Cartoon Network’s Boomerang channel recently re-aired these uncut, which led to this revised listing. I will update it to include the various shorts (Magic, Craft, Safety, and Health) in the future.


Episode 1
1.Invasion Of The Earthors
1.The Brain Machine
3.Joy Ride
4.The Whirlpool
Episode 2
1.City In A Bottle
2.Invasion Of The Hydronoids
3.Hitchhike
4.Space Emergency
Episode 3
1.Will The World Collide?
2.The Marsh Monster
3.Runaways
4.Time Rescue
Episode 4
1.Day Of The Plant Creatures
2.Doctor Fright
3.Drag Racing
4.Fire
Episode 5
1.Super Friends vs. Super Friends
2.The Monster Of Dr. Droid
3.Vandals
4.Energy Mass
Episode 6
1.Voyage Of The Mysterious Time Creatures
2.The Secret Four
3.Tiger On The Loose
4.The Antidote
Episode 7
1.Planet Of The Neanderthals
2.The Enforcer
3.Shark Attack
4.Flood Of Diamonds

Episode 8
1.The Mind Maidens
2.The Collector
3.Handicap
4. Alaska Peril Episode 9
1.The Water Beast
2.Attack Of The Giant Squid
3.Game Of Chicken
4.Volcano
Episode 10
1.The Coming Of The Arthropods
2.The Invisible Menace
3.Initiation
4. River Of Doom
Episode 11
1.Exploration Earth
2.The Fifty-Foot Woman
3.Cheating
4.Attack Of The Killer Bees
Episode 12
1.The Lionmen
2.Forbidden Power
3.Pressure Point
4.Day Of The Rats Episode 13
1.The Tiny World Of Terror
2.The Man-Beasts Of Xra
3.Prejudice
4.Tibetan Raiders
Episode 14
1.The Mummy Of Nazca
2.Frozen Peril
3.Dangerous Prank
4.Cable Car Rescue
Episode 15
1.The Ghost
2.The Protector
3.Stowaways
4.Rampage

Challenge of the Superfriends aired on the ABC television network from September 9, 1978 until September 15, 1979. This new Superfriends show portrayed the battles between the thirteen supervillains of the Legion of Doom and the eleven superheroes of the Justice League of America. Long considered the best and most popular of the animated incarnations, it was the first to receive an official DVD release.

1. Wanted: The Superfriends
2. Invasion of the Fearians
3. The World’s Deadliest Game
4. The Time Trap
5. Trial of the Superfriends
6. The Monolith of Evil
7. Secret Origins of the Superfriends
8. The Giants of Doom
9. Revenge on Gorilla City
10. Swamp of the Living Dead
11. Conquerors of the Future
12. The Final Challenge
13. Fairy Tale of Doom
14. Doomsday
15. Superfriends: Rest in Peace
16. History of Doom

The Superfriends ran as an hour-long show on ABC during the 1978-79 season. In addition to the 16 episodes of Challenge of the Superfriends , Hanna Barbera also animated another 16 episodes of The Superfriends , featuring the established core group of superheros of the previous year. In fact, these episodes actually aired during the first half-hour of The Superfriends show, followed by an episode of Challenge of the Superfriends. These episodes initially had no special title to them. Therefore in syndication, the All New Super Friends Hour intro has been used for them. The last 6 episodes of this run seem to be missing from the Superfriends archive and have not returned to the TV airwaves in reruns. Where the Challenge of the Superfriends series introduced the DC super villains as the Legion of Doom , these episodes feature must less menacing antagonists. The last episode of this series introduced Superman’s impish foe Mr. Mxyzptlk .

1. The Demons of Exxor
2. Rokan: Enemy From Space
3. Battle at the Earth’s Core
4. Sinbad and the Space Pirates
5. The Pied Piper from Space
6. Attack of the Vampire
7. Terror From the Phantom Zone
8. The Beasts are Coming
9. The Anti-Matter Monster
10. World Beneath the Ice
11. Invasion of the Brain Creatures
12. The Incredible Space Circus
13. Batman: Dead or Alive
14. Battle of the Gods
15. Journey Through Inner Space
16. The Rise and Fall of the SuperFriends

In 1979 ABC and/or Hanna-Barbera decided to discontinue the line-up used by Challenge Of The Superfriends, and return to the format of previous years. The familiar five DC Superheroes were back along with Zan, Jana and Gleek. This latest hour-long incarnation of The Superfriends featured several new episodes, but mostly comprised of reruns of The All-New Superfriends Hour which aired during the 1977-78 season. The World’s Greatest Superfriends premiered on Saturday September 22,1979 and lasted until September 27,1980.

1. Rub Three Times for Disaster
2. Lex Luthor Strikes Back
3. Space Knights of Camelon
4. The Lord of Middle Earth
5. Universe of Evil
6. Terror at 20,000 Fathoms
7. The Superfriends Meet Frankenstein
8. The Planet of Oz

After two solid seasons of producing full half-hour long episodes of the Superfriends in various incarnations Hanna-Barbera returned to producing shorts in 1980. The Superfriends Hour featured reruns from the previous six seasons, along with three new 7-minute long shorts. Abc would continue this format for the next three years. These new adventures featured regular appearances by the core group of five Superfriends, Zan, Jayna & Gleek. We were also treated to cameos by Justice League members who appeared on Challenge of the Superfriends. We also saw special appearances by brand new characters, such as Atom, El Dorado, Hawkgirl & Rima.


Season 1
1. Bigfoot
2. Ice Demon
3. Makeup Monster
4. Journey Into Blackness
5. Cycle Gang
6. Dive To Disaster
7. Yuna The Terrible
8. Rock And Roll Space Bandits
9. Elevator To Nowhere
10. One Small Step For Mars
11. Haunted House
12. The Incredible Crude Oil Monster
13. The Voodoo Vampire
14. Invasion Of The Gleeks
15. Mxyzptlk Strikes Again
16. The Man In The Moon
17. Circus Of Horrors
18. Around The World In 80 Riddles
19. Termites From Venus
20. Eruption
21. Return Of Atlantis
22. The Killer Machines
23. Garden Of Doom
24. Revenge Of Bizarro

Season 2
25. Outlaws Of Orion
26. Three Wishes
27. Scorpio
28. Mxyzptlk’s Flick
29. Sink Hole
30. Alien Mummy
31. Evil From Krypton
32. The Creature From The Dump
33. Aircraft Terror
34. Lava Men
35. Bazarowurld
36. The Warlord’s Amulet
37. The Iron Cyclops
38. Palette’s Perils
39. Colossuss
40. Stowaways From Space
41. The Scaraghosta Sea
42. The Witch’s Arcade

During the 1982-1983 season, ABC continued to run a half-hour long show entitled The Best of the Superfriends . This show consisted of reruns of shows from the previous nine seasons. These episodes were mostly half-hour long episodes (not shorts) featuring the core group of five Superfriends. By the time the 1983-1984 season rolled around, older Superfriends series were well into sydication, and could be viewed on weekday afternoons. Therefore in its ultimate stupidity, ABC decided to drop the Superfriends from the 1983-1984 Saturday morning television line-up. However, during this time Hanna-Barbera continued to produce new episodes of the Superfriends. In fact, 24 of these so-called “Lost Episodes” we animated but not aired in the United States that season. Three of these episodes were aired when the Superfriends returned to Saturday morning ABC television the following year. The remainder of the episodes finally aired in syndication year later as part of the Superman/Batman Adventures .

Season 3
43. Mxyzptlk’s Revenge
44. Roller Coaster
45. Once Upon A Poltergeist
46. Warpland
47. Two Gleeks Are Deadlier Than One
48. Bulgor The Behemoth
49. The Krypton Syndrome
50. Invasion Of The Space Dolls
51. Terror On The Titanic
52. The Revenge Of Doom
53. A Pint Of Life
54. Day Of The Dinosaurs
55. Return Of The Phantoms
56. Bully For You
57. Superclones
58. Prisoners Of Sleep
59. An Unexpected Treasure
60. The Malusian Blob
61. Attack Of The Cats
62. One Small Step For Superman
63. Video Victims
64. Playground Of Doom
65. Space Racers
66. The Recruiter

After three consecutive seasons of shorts, Hanna-Barbera ‘s next effort at showcasing DC Comic book characters in animated shorts was perhaps it’s most disappointing. These half-hour long stories contained the now-familiar superheroes Superman, Batman, Robin and Wonder Woman, along with the new Teen Titans Cyborg and Firestorm. In addition to this core group of six, episodes during this season featured cameos by old and new Superfriends. The half-hour long Superfriends: The Legendary Super Powers Show premiered on the ABC television network on Saturday September 8, 1984 and lasted one full season until August 31, 1985.

1. The Bride of Darkseid (Part 1 and 2)
2. The Wrath of Braniac / Reflections in Crime
3. No Honor Among Thieves / Mr. Mxyzptlk and the Magic Lamp
4. Case of the Shrinking Super Friends The Mask Of Mystery
5. Darkseid’s Golden Trap (Part 1 and 2)
6. The Case of the Dreadful Dolls / The Royal Ruse
7. The Village of Lost Souls / The Curator
8. Island of the Dinasoids / Uncle Mxyzptlk

In the fall of 1985, the final version of Hanna-Barbera’s Superfriends premiered. This superior show returned a more conventional, consistent and authentic line-up for the Justice League of America , with a strong focus the Teen Titan Cyborg and returning hero Firestorm. The Superfriends were once again headquartered at the Hall of Justice in Metropolis, and battled such familiar foes as Lex Luthor, Scarecrow and Darkseid. Second only to Challenge of the Superfriends, Super Powers Team: Galactic Guardians was one of the most faithful TV adaptations of DC Comic superheroes. Except wheretwo episode titles are listed, each episode was 30 minutes long. The Super Powers Team: Galactic Guardians lasted only one season and ended Hanna-Barbera ‘s 12-year run of the Superfriends on September 30, 1986.

1. The Seeds of Doom
2. The Ghostship (short) / The Bizarro Super Powers Team (short)
3. The Darkseid Deception
4. The Fear
5. The Wild Cards
6. Brainchild (short) / The Case of the Stolen Super Powers (short)
7. The Death of Superman
8. Escape From Space City

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Filmation DC 1966 Cartoon DVD MenuGreen Lantern Menu from DC Heroes DVD

In 1966, Filmation successfully launched The New Adventures of Superman cartoon. It’s success led to a number of spin-off shorts and series. Between 1967 and 1969, Filmation produced a series of 18 shorts featuring The Atom, The Flash, Green Lantern, Hawkman, the Justice League, and the Teen Titans.

Growing up, I remember seeing these on the Bozo show and years later when they began running on Cartoon Network’s Boomerang in between shows I began recording them. A few episodes were recorded off of S-VHS tapes from a friend and cleaned up and enhanced. All in all, it’s a great looking set. Here’s hoping that Warner will release this series on DVD with extras similar to the New Adventures of Superman and the Adventures of Aquaman sets.


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Justice League of America - Issue #13 Cover - Look at all those villains.

Over Father’s Day weekend, there were two big comic conventions, Heroes-Con in Charlotte and Wizard World Philly. There were tons of announcements over the weekend, but the best one has to be Dwayne McDuffie taking over writing chores on Justice League of America.

McDuffie was the guiding force on the Static Shock animated series from a few years ago and also a major contributor to the Justice League Unlimited animated (and comic) series. Both of those shows were excellent and should hopefully entice fans of those former series to check out Justice League.

Recently McDuffie penned the final three issues of the Firestorm series and is currently writing the Fantastic four at Marvel. The few issues of that series have been better than any in recent memory and really captured the “family” feel the Fantastic Four should have.

With McDuffie writing flagship books at Marvel and DC, I predict a bidding war for exclusive rights to start any day now. I’ll go ahead and say that I hope DC wins, because I do like the Justice League better than the Fantastic Four and I’d expect McDuffie to add Firestorm to the team, now that his solo series has been canceled. Plus, the fact that Dan DiDio (DC Executive Editor) stated that “Dwayne is the writer of Justice League now until he doesn’t want to write it anymore,” is exciting.

Too many comic series these days have writers that stay for only a certain amount of issues. Big name writers sign up for short arcs on popular books. Brad Meltzer is finishing up a 13 issue stint on JLA just before McDuffie. Joss Whedon is finishing up a 24 issue arc on Astonishing X-Men. While I think both arcs have been great, these short runs make for uneven reading. Let’s see someone take on 110+ issues of X-Men or JLA like Brian Michael Bendis has done on Ultimate Spider-Man or the 70+ issues that Geoff Johns has done on Justice Society of America.

Uncanny X-Men #172Comics are exciting and unique because they are a monthly, continuing work of fiction. It’s nice to see a new writer come in with fresh ideas, but even more exciting is watching a dedicated writer with a love of the character(s) continually develop those characters over years and various story arcs. I think that’s what made me love comics so much when I received my first issue (#172) of the Uncanny X-Men by subscription almost 25 years ago.

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Justice League of America - Complete Cover shows all previous teams

It's a common occurrence in comics, rebooting or restructuring a team. Members die, leave, marry off, or etc. to be replaced by news members. It helps to bring in new readers and add new dynamics to books that may be getting a little stale.

Having said that, I really like the line-up of the newest incarnation of the Justice League of America. A few years ago, DC Comics realized that for the JLA to work, it needed the "big guns" of Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman. There were several failed or lackluster attempts to have a league without those characters and it just felt like another team book and not the JLA.

Now for a little commentary on the characters selected (working clockwise, from the right):

Minus the big three, the rest of the line-up is nice. I like the addition of Red Arrow (formerly Arsenal or Speedy). One of the original League's members was Green Arrow and having his side-kick take his role in this new versions plays upon DC's history and shows that time does pass–to an extent–in the DCU.

The new Hawkgirl (Kendra Suanders) is also a welcome addition. The Hawkman solo title switched to Hawkgirl and has been horrible for about a year now, so it's good to see the character being written well in a good book.

Red Tornado and Black Lightning are two off-and-on League members that deserver a good shot at the big leagues. I'm interested to see how they resolve the current storyline with the Red Tornado becoming human. Maybe Black Lightning will get a new name to go with his new status quo.

Vixen is another great choice. She was given the spotlight on a few episodes of the JLU animated series last year and with an increased role in the League and a re-definition of her powers, she could be the character with the most to gain.

Hal Jordan, the Silver-Age Green Lantern, hasn't been a part of the League since the 90's when he was in the Justice League Europe title. The character has been through many changes in the past decade (from villain/mass murderer to dead, spirit, avenging ghost). A 2005-2006 revamp and return has brought the character hack to his roots as a fearless Air Force test pilot, but left him at odds with Batman on a few occasions.

Skip over the big three and end with Black Canary. It's the only character that I'm a little disappointed to see. Not because I don't like her, but I really like where they left the character at the end of her 100-issue arc in the Birds of Prey series, and I just don't see that lining up in the JLA. I've heard rumors of where she may go in the future, so we'll see how it all plays out.

Overall, I'm really liking the new incarnation of the Justice League. It moves a little slow compared to my other favorite title, Justice Society of America, but it's grand scale super-heroics done correctly. I could also do without the Ed Benes art. I'd like someone more "comic-book" style or classic style. It's not stopping me from enjoying the book. Having said that, the art at the top would be a great poster. Nice way of showing all the previous versions of the League, while spot-lighting the new version.

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