World’s Greatest SuperFriends, The – Nostalgia Central

1 9 7 9 – 1 9 8 0 (USA)
8 x 60 minute episodes

Having debuted in 1973 on ABC Saturday mornings, the Super Friends series had already been through four iterations of the show (and one brief cancellation) by 1979.

Every new season seemed to bring another title change and a new tonal shift for the heroes.

From 1979 to 1983, however, the SuperFriends franchise – the longest-running animated superhero series ever – underwent four different titles.

Premiering on 22 September 1979, The World’s Greatest SuperFriends series was one hour long, with the first half containing reruns from the previous incarnations (mostly the half-hour episodes from the Challenge of the Superfriends series), and the second half presenting a new 22-minute show.

The new stories were mainly literary-based, with the heroes facing an Aladdin-like evil genie on the planet Zaghdad, battling the space knights of Camelon, and helping the trolls of Middle-earth capture a special ring to aid in defeating an evil sorcerer and his dragon.

A quartet of tiny superpowered Kandorians helped some of the SuperFriends face the evil Captain Nimoy and his watery plans for dominion, and when a descendant of Dr Frankenstein created a rampaging Super-Monster (imbued with the powers of Superman and Wonder Woman, and the costume of Superman and Batman), Robin helped to save the day.

Nearly every episode had duplicates of the heroes or transformations into trolls or monsters, and the final episode (“The Planet of Oz”) found Mr Mxyzptlk casting three heroes into the otherworldly realm of The Wizard of Oz, and turning Wonder Woman into the Lion, Superman into the Tin Man, and Aquaman into the Scarecrow!

The World’s Greatest SuperFriends ran until 27 September 1980, when it was transitioned into the next version of the show – The SuperFriends Hour.

Narrator
Bill Woodson
Superman
Danny Dark
Batman
Olan Soule
Robin
Casey Kasem
Aquaman/Orville Gump
Bill Callaway
Wonder Woman/Lois Lane
Shannon Farnon
Jayna
Louise Williams
Zan/Gleek
Michael Bell
Lex Luthor
Stanley Jones
Mr Mxyzptlk
Frank Welker