Superman Movie Minute #8 – Lonely Journey

SUPERMAN MOVIE MINUTE #8 - Lonely Journey

Fire and Water Network All-Stars Chris Franklin and Rob Kelly bring you SUPERMAN MOVIE MINUTE, where they analyze, scrutinize, and you'll-believe-a-man-can-fly-ize the classic 1978 film starring Christopher Reeve, Gene Hackman, Margot Kidder, and Marlon Brando, five minutes at a time!

In minutes 36:00 - 40:00, Clark makes his long, lonely journey north. Special Guest: Michael Bailey!

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20 responses to “Superman Movie Minute #8 – Lonely Journey

  1. You can count me in as another icicle chucking kid, who never got his ice fortress. I think the problem is that I could never find a green icicle. I found plenty of yellow snow, but no green icicles. In hindsight, that’s probably a good thing. If a giant ice fortress had sprung up in my front yard, then 1) it wouldn’t have made for a very secret hideout, and 2) it probably would have destroyed my house and all my toys.

    Kidding aside, the journey north and Clark’s time in the Fortress of Solitude were some of my favorite scenes from the movie, when I was a kid. As a young introvert, I imagine I found the idea of a quiet retreat like the Fortress to be very appealing.

    Keep up the good work, gentlemen.

  2. I believe the 1st comic book to ever feature Ma Kent as the title character was a 2006 prequel tale leading into Superman Returns. It connects back to the 1978 film and fills us in on what Martha had been doing back in Smallville. You can read the details here:

    http://sequart.org/magazine/3821/superman-returns-prequel-2-ma-kent/

    Veteran character actor James Karen was to play Ben Hubbard in Superman Returns but his scenes were cut from the film. There was to be a small subplot where Martha and Ben were planning on marrying and selling the Kent farm,

  3. I respectfully disagree with the esteemed Mr. Bailey, Honey Nut Cheerios are inferior to the original. However, both fall short to the mighty Frosted Cheerios.

          1. Fruity Pebbles are nice, but they’re no Froot Loops. Fruit is deliberately misspelled because their awesomeness has suspended the rules of the English language!

          2. What Chuck Coletta said about the 1979 debut of Honey Nut Cheerios. Plain old Cheerios was what we had before then.

        1. Well, no wonder. If you have two bowels, Cheerios will hit twice as hard. Remember to use wisely. Check with your doctor to see if Cheerios are good for you.

  4. Guys! This was a great episode! I thought I was the only kid (and adult) when I see an icicle I threw it in the snow to create the fortress. As a kid I did this over and over. Thanks Chris Franklin I’m confessing it too.

    My hypothesis why the crystal is green. It is a slow crystallized release of kryptonite that regulated baby Kal-El’s growth during his voyage. It took many years potentially decades for the ship to reach Earth. By having kyrptonite slowly stunting the bay’s growth he was still young when he reached the planet. My theory also is supported by the age that supergirl arrives on Earth, much older than Kal-El.

    It is a hypothesis that has holes in it and Bailey is free to shoot it down. I am sticking to it so give me my no prize so I can regift it for secret Santa this year!

    -lucien

    1. You’re welcome Lucien. Nothing to be ashamed of though. A little childhood whimsy carried into adulthood keeps a heart pure. As this very network will attest to.

      Interesting hypothesis about the crystal. I think it’s just my own hang-up as to it’s color. If you go with the usual Kryptonite origin, that it’s fragments of the planet irradiated by its explosion, then I’m not sure it works. The crystal was green pre-explosion.

      BUT, who’s to say Kryptonite didn’t work a little different in this movie? That’s whats so great about this film, they don’t explain everything. Just enough for fans to theorize and create their own backstory.

  5. 1. I am not a fan of this movie. 2. I am a fan of Rob Kelly and Chris Franklin. 3. I am enjoying this podcast tremendously! I am a Superman fan from before this film, and I was disappointed in so many aspects of it. Yes, I’m one of THOSE fans. I don’t want to get into a Diabolu Frank-like diatribe about this, and I’ve already caused Michael Bailey to sigh derisively, so I’m not going to be a wet blanket. Permit me to state a couple of things pertaining to this part of the film. First, Kansas. Ever since this movie, Smallville is explicitly in Kansas. Geographically speaking, yes, it is the center of the (continental) country. Thus it is thought of as “the mid-west.” Culturally and historically speaking, and cinematically speaking, it is the West. The West of cattle drives and Dodge City. Cowboys and Indians. If Ryan Daly let me be in charge of just one thing, I’d declare that Smallville is in Ohio. Ohio is the Mid-West. It’s got farmland, small towns, caves, forests, etc. So many backgrounds for young Clark Kent stories. It is also the birthplace of Superman. So there. (i just deleted a Frank-like rant. You’re welcome!) Next, the Fortress. I never cared for monochromatic, chrystalline Krypton, and I didn’t like the magic Fortress from the tube of Prell. AND ANOTHER THING! Who’s Ben Hubbard? Where is Pete Ross? Where are Chief Parker and Dr. Lang? Grrrr.
    I did greatly appreciate the mention of Tom DeHaven’s “It’s Superman.” I remember enjoying that book, and especially his description of Pa Kent. Pa! He’s called Pa! (Also recommended for the comics literary crowd, DeHaven’s “Derby Dugan” trilogy. Great stuff with the history of American comic strips as the background.)
    Fellas, I really am loving this podcast, and I especially love your enthusiasm! Now, you’ve got me wanting to watch this movie again! Keep up the great work!

  6. CHEERIOS – I was 22 when the movie was released and hugely disappointed – not in the blatant product placement of Cheerios, but in the fact that the box they showed was from 1978. Despite what was said on fabulous podcast, these events took place around late 1950’s/very early 60’s and Cheerios had a significantly different looking box. Yeah – I’m the guy that believes a man can fly but gets annoyed at the anachronistic cereal box.
    This is as far as I’ve gotten on the podcasts and am enjoying them immensely.

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