The History of Defenders of the Earth

[thechase]

[dav]

Good overview of the general idea. Did watch the first episode a few weeks ago and they kinda stuffed in far too much into it at once.

[thechase]

I love the one where Flash makes out with a sexy android.

[BlackoutCreature]

Still consider this one of the most underrated cartoons of the 80's. Really deserves more people talking about it then it gets.

[The Dark Order Inferno]

It always struck me as weird that Marvel were so integral to developing a series for rival superhero characters when so many of their own heroes had such a low media presence. Stuff like the Hasbro cartoons you can understand as they were being paid to sell toys, but here they were promoting someone else's heroes.

[thechase]

I'm surprised Spider-Man wasn't included on the team as he was the star of a Kings Features newspaper strip...which only just finished this year.

[James Fabiano]

I am contractually obliged to say that that's a time travelling Chris Jericho singing the theme song.

[Ultimo Gallos]

For some reason the area I grew up in got the first 5 so episodes of DoE but none of the rest. So I didn't see the show until years later when I got the dvds. Somehow I missed it when it was reran on Sci FI. But I did have the toys and the comic.

[A Platypus Rave]

It was weird to me they had no qualms sticking his wife's brain into a computer...

[Sir Woodrow]

Dec 14, 2019 11:40:50 GMT -5 James Fabiano said:

I am contractually obliged to say that that's a time travelling Chris Jericho singing the theme song.

Featuring Jack Black on the bit about Mandrake

[BlackoutCreature]

Dec 14, 2019 13:19:31 GMT -5 A Platypus Rave said:

It was weird to me they had no qualms sticking his wife's brain into a computer...

It was the in-thing to do in 2015.

[The Dark Order Inferno]

Phantom 2040 also had a grieving spouse put their significant other's brain into a computer, only that time round it was the villain and her computerised husband didn't enjoy the experience.

[Joe Neglia]

Dec 14, 2019 8:24:18 GMT -5 The Dark Order Inferno said:

It always struck me as weird that Marvel were so integral to developing a series for rival superhero characters when so many of their own heroes had such a low media presence. Stuff like the Hasbro cartoons you can understand as they were being paid to sell toys, but here they were promoting someone else's heroes.

Gateway drugs. Jim Shooter was firm believer in cross-pollination with other brands that reached the same desired demographics. Marvel did licensed stuff here and there prior to him (The Godzilla and Shogun Warriors series, for example), but some of the earliest things to emerge after Shooter took over were the Micronauts and ROM books. And then the GI Joe deal went a little nuclear, no pun intended, and brought a lot of Joe fans into Marvel and a lot of Marvel fans into Joe. Shooter was chasing all the markets, really, and for a while, it was working.

Dec 14, 2019 8:30:49 GMT -5 thechase said:

I'm surprised Spider-Man wasn't included on the team as he was the star of a Kings Features newspaper strip...which only just finished this year.

King Features doesn't own Spider-Man, they licensed him out from Marvel. KF owns everyone involved in Defenders of the Earth.

[Hobby Drifter]

*Defenders*

[MrElijah]

Dec 14, 2019 3:43:05 GMT -5 thechase said:

I can't help but think if you change some of the words, the DoE theme would fit for the Defenders from the comics.

[Deleted]

This is one of those shows where I know I watched it, but barely remember anything about it.

[paulbearer]

Shogoth the demon shouldve been in more episodes , he was cool

[Hassan bin Sober]

I never saw this show. But there was a poster featuring these guys in the nurse's office at school. I remember wondering who the hell they were.