Franchise Detours

Just a year after Batman Begins relaunched the Caped Crusader back into Gotham's crime-ridden streets, Superman Returns flew into theaters, attempting to bridge the gap between Richard Donner’s Superman and the modern superhero era.

Starring Brandon Routh as the Man of Steel, the film honors Christopher Reeve’s legacy while paving its own path. Film critic Sara Michelle Fetters joins us to explore its ambitious vision, the risk of its nostalgia-fueled approach, and how it fits within Superman’s cinematic journey.

Join us as we bid farewell to the last son of Krypton with a Superman film like no other!

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For the penultimate stop on our Superman mega-series, Franchise Detours takes flight with 1987’s Superman IV: The Quest for Peace.
 
Christopher Reeve not only dons the cape once more but also contributes to the story this time around, though the result isn’t exactly what he had in mind.

Due largely to Cannon Films’ budget cuts, Reeve’s final flight became one of the most infamous superhero sequels ever made. Now we unpack why this well-intended effort fell so very flat. 

Dallin Curtis, The Film Fanatic, joins us as we revisit perhaps the Man of Steel’s most controversial hour. Does The Quest for Peace deserve its reputation, or is there more to appreciate beneath the rubble?

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1984’s Supergirl attempted to expand the Superman cinematic universe with a new hero, fresh mythology, and a bold new direction. But did it live up to its promise?
 
On this episode of Franchise Detours, Robert Yaniz Jr. welcomes The Vern from Cinema Recall to discuss Helen Slater’s debut as Kara Zor-El, the film’s campy villain turn from Faye Dunaway, and where this underrated entry fits into the legacy of superhero cinema.

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It’s a bird, it’s a plane… it’s a tonal shift! Robert is joined by Sandro Falce of Oldie But a Goodie to discuss Superman III, the movie that trades high-stakes heroics for slapstick hijinks.

From Richard Pryor’s chaotic tech wizardry to Clark Kent’s trip down memory lane, the third Christopher Reeve Superman film is as infamous as it is fascinating. We talk evil Superman, high school reunions, synthetic kryptonite (with… tar?), and why this sequel's weirdest legacy might be inspiring Office Space.

The final entry in the franchise to definitively turn a profit, Superman III also marked the beginning of the end for the Donnerverse. But how does it play decades later?

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On this episode of Franchise Detours, we continue our deep dive into the original Superman film series with 1980's Superman II — both the theatrical cut and the 2006 Richard Donner Cut.

Darin Lundberg of NostalgiaCast and Back To Bluey joins us to explore how the behind-the-scenes turmoil affected the film’s tone and vision, from Richard Lester’s more comedic approach to Donner’s darker, character-driven version. We'll also discuss Superman’s (Christopher Reeve) relationship with Lois Lane (Margot Kidder), the legacy of Terence Stamp's General Zod as a villain, and what both versions reveal about the evolution of superhero storytelling.

Did Superman II essentially create the template for modern superhero sequels? Perhaps. But whichever version you prefer, this episode has something for every fan of truth and justice.

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