'Batman Returns' (1992)

Just like Batman, the DC Multicast Returns! After a multi-year hiatus, we are back to rewatch every live action DC movie ever! Just in time for the Holidays, we’re kicking off season 2 with a look at the Christmas classic, Batman Returns! Joining Keith in the festivities is movie critic Julian Lytle. Together they tackle the sequel’s highs and lows, including the return of Batmania, Michelle Pfeiffer’s iconic turn as Catwoman, Danny Devito’s take on the Penguin, how Christopher Walken’s scene-stealing Max Shreck presaged the Musk/Trump presidency, what Marlon Wayans as Robin might have meant for blerdom, and why Nike and DC need to collab on official Batman Returns-branded Jordans!

And always remember this piece of Christmas advice: mistletoe can be deadly if you eat it, but a ‘cast can be deadlier if you mean it.

'Batman' (1989)

Ooh, we’ve got a live one here! The moment you’ve all been waiting for. It’s all been leading up to this. On June 23, 1989, the course of cinema history was forever altered when Tim Burton’s Batman was released and Batmania swept the nation. Wait’ll you get a load of Keith Chow and Adam Starcaster reminiscing about the legendary film on its 30th anniversary. They talk about everything from the toys and merchandise to the Danny Elfman score and the classic Prince soundtrack. Adam also makes up a bunch of stuff that never happened (or did they?) — including a mysterious video interview featuring actors who had not yet been cast in the Batman franchise. Do us a favor. Tell all your friends about this episode.

For more, please revisit last year’s episode when Keith interviewed Batman executive producer Michael Uslan at Comic-Con.

'The Return of Swamp Thing' (1989)

Keith Chow and Adam Starcaster have finally made it to 1989! Unfortunately, they’re not talking about Batman just yet. Instead, the first DC superhero movie of this landmark year — which, coincidentally was also produced by Benjamin Melinker and Michael Uslan — was The Return of Swamp Thing, a sequel to Wes Craven’s original from 1982.

The campy follow-up starred Heather Locklear as Abbie Arcane and brought back Dick Durock as Swamp Thing and Louis Jourdan as the evil Anton Arcane (even though he died a movie prior). Joining the cast is Superman II actress Sarah Douglas. They also spend some time lamenting the cancellation of the current incarnation of Swamp Thing on DC Universe and prepare for next week’s Batman extravaganza.

'Superman IV: The Quest for Peace' (1987)

On another DC Multicast movie rewatch, Keith Chow and Adam Starcaster revisit the final Christopher Reeve Superman film, 1987’s Superman IV: The Quest for Peace. Directed by Sidney Furie, Superman IV ended the film franchise that made you believe a man could fly. It also introduced Nuclear Man (instead of Bizarro) and Jon Cryer (Supergirl’s Lex Luthor) into Superman canon. Keith and Adam also read listener mail and announce the upcoming schedule for the rest of the podcast.

Are there any redeeming qualities to this much-derided film?

'Supergirl' (1984)

This week on DC Multicast, Keith Chow and Adam Starcaster analyze the first incarnation of an extended DC Universe, 1984’s Supergirl. Directed by Jeannot Szwarc, the Salkinds attempted to broaden the universe created in the Christopher Reeve Superman movies by exploring the adventures of his “cousin” Kara Zor-El. Starring Helen Slater in the title role and Faye Dunaway — as the villainous witch Selena, Supergirl failed to meet the box office heights of its predecessors.

Despite its box office struggles, the movie will go down in history as the first mainstream female superhero film, paving the way for current franchises like Wonder Woman and Captain Marvel, as well as the Maiden of Might’s own hit television series!

'Superman III' (1983)

Keith Chow and Adam Starcaster return to Metropolis to do an audio commentary for Superman III, the 1983 sequel starring Richard Pryor and Christopher Reeve. Widely regarded as the point when the Reeve Superman franchise took a downturn, Keith and Adam discover… it wasn’t that bad.

Together, they reassess the film’s legacy: Like, how it inspired the plot to the ’90s classic, Office Space. When it seemed to repurpose the Adam West Batcave. The horrific transformation of the main henchwoman into a robot. Also, the Clark vs. Bad Superman stuff is great, as is the chemistry between Reeve and Annette O’Toole as Lana Lang. Richard Pryor also gets a bad rap because Gus Gorman is an iconic character. He’s just in the wrong movie. Speaking of rap, stay until the end when they perform the rap from Bobby Brown’s Ghostbusters II theme song around the two-hour mark!

'Swamp Thing' (1982)

After defining superhero cinema for a generation, the next DC Comics hero to hit the silver screen was… Swamp Thing? Amazingly, the titular character of the cult horror comic from the 1970s — and not, say Batman or Wonder Woman — would be DC’s follow-up to two Superman movies, though this one wasn’t produced by Warner Bros. Pictures. Three-and-a-half decades later, Swampy is returning to mainstream prominence with his own live action series on DC Universe.

On this episode, Keith Chow and Adam Starcaster return to audio commentary mode and watch the international cut of the Wes Craven-directed movie from 1982 for the first time.

'Superman II' (1981)

Keith Chow and Adam Starcaster pick up where they left off last episode as they revisit Metropolis in Superman II, the 1981 follow-up to the smash hit Superman! Often lauded as one of the best superhero sequels ever, Superman II was not without some issues. Though Christopher Reeve as Superman, Gene Hackman as Lex Luthor, and Margot Kidder as Lois Lane all returned for the sequel, the film had to deal with a lot of behind-the-scenes shenanigans that eventually took Richard Donner off the project until, 25 years later, Warner Bros. finally released the Donner Cut on home video in 2006.

This week, Keith and Adam compare and contrast the different cuts and determine whether Superman II still holds up as a superhero sequel. Be sure to give it a listen and KNEEL BEFORE POD!

'Superman: The Movie' (1978)

In another installment of Keith Chow and Adam Starcaster’s journey through the history of DC on film, they revisit the 1978 classic, Superman the Movie! Starring Christopher Reeve as Superman, Gene Hackman as Lex Luthor, Margot Kidder as Lois Lane, and Marlon Brando as Jor-El, Superman laid the foundation for every superhero film that came after it.

Directed by Richard Donner, Superman not only introduced the world to Reeve’s iconic portrayal of the Man of Steel, it made audiences around the world believe that a man could fly! Together, Keith and Adam reminisce about their childhood experiences with the movie and what it meant for the current golden age of comic book superhero films we are currently blessed with.

'Batman: The Movie' (1966)

Co-hosts Keith Chow and Adam Starcaster continue on their quest to analyze every DC movie by discussing the 1966 phenomenon known as Batman: The Movie! Filmed in between the first two seasons of the iconic television show, Batman: The Movie was the first live action theatrical feature starring the Caped Crusaders. Though the character was a staple of the movie serials of the 1940s, Batman’s technicolor adventures with Adam West under the cowl set forth the world’s first experience of Batmania!

Batman: The Movie stars West as Batman, Burt Ward as Robin, Cesar Romero as Joker, Burgess Meredith as Penguin, Frank Gorshin as Riddler, and Lee Meriwether as Catwoman. Like last episode, Keith and Adam recorded this episode as an audio commentary so pop in your DVD and follow along!

'Superman and the Mole Men' (1951)

This is the first episode in a multi-part series covering the entirety of DC Comics’ theatrical movie catalog. Joining host Keith Chow is artist and video game developer Adam Starcaster to analyze every DC movie from 1951’s Superman and the Mole Men through 2019’s billion-dollar Aquaman and beyond!

Today we will be discussing the granddaddy of them all: Superman! Just as Superman was the first comic book superhero, he is also the first superhero to star in his own theatrical feature! Predating the famed Adventures of Superman television show by a year (which we discussed on the first episode of DC TV Classics!), Superman and the Mole Men stars George Reeves as Clark Kent/Superman and Phyllis Coates as Lois Lane. Keith and Adam recorded an audio commentary as they watched the movie for the first time and kick-off a grand tour of DC movie history.