Superman/Shazam!: The Return of Black Adam (2010)

• Year: 2010
• Released: 09 Nov 2010
• Country: USA
• Adwords: N/A
• IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1701223/
• Rotten Tomatoes: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/supermanshazam_the_return_of_black_adam
• Metacritics:
• Available in: 720p, 1080p,
• Language: English
• MPA Rating: PG-13
• Genre: Animation, Short, Action, Adventure, Fantasy, Sci-Fi
• Runtime: 25 min
• Writer: Michael Jelenic, Jerry Siegel (character created by: Superman), Joe Shuster (character created by: Superman), C.C. Beck (character created by: Captain Marvel), Bill Parker (character created by: Captain Marvel)
• Director: Joaquim Dos Santos
• Cast: Zach Callison, James Garner, Josh Keaton, Danica McKellar
• Keywords: super power, superhuman strength,

	7.0/10
	62% – Critics
	62% – Audience

Superman/Shazam!: The Return of Black Adam Storyline

The film opens with a young couple overlooking the city from a hillside as an apparent meteor streaks across the sky, and into the Earth. It smashes into the couple’s car, with them still in it, on a hillside beside the lookout over Fawcett City. It’s revealed that that meteor is in fact Black Adam returning to Earth from his long exile. The film then cuts to young Billy Batson living in a seemingly rundown slum with very little food and rats for pets. He rises from his bed wearing a fan t-shirt bearing the Superman crest. He goes to his kitchen to find food, but only finds potato chips, which he ends up feeding to the rats. On his way to rendezvous with Clark Kent in a nearby diner, he sees three bullies robbing a homeless man. After attempting to defend the homeless man, Billy himself earns a black eye for his trouble. The homeless man thanks Billy for his intervention, and calls him “The Captain”. Billy responds by telling him he always try to do the right thing. Billy gives him the only currency he has – a subway token. On arriving at the diner, Clark buys the boy three breakfast specials, and tells him his intended story will bring the plight of him and those in his situation to public light. Billy tears into his plates ravenously. He tells Mr. Kent that he tries to be good no matter what. As the conversation continues, neither notice that Black Adam has appeared, hovering above the ground outside the diner and causes a destructive force by clapping his hands together and blowing a hole in the side of the diner. Clark attempts to protect the boy, but a blow from Black Adam sends him through several walls. He emerges from beneath the rubble and transforms himself into Superman. Adam stalks young Billy through the streets stating his surprise over the Wizard’s choice to become the next Marvel, but Billy is completely unaware of what he means. Black Adam picks up a passing fire engine, but Superman appears and intervenes before Black Adam can use it to crush him. Billy then makes good his escape. Superman gets blasted by a bolt of electricity from Black Adam’s fingertips, and after pulling himself free of the building he lands and realizes Adam’s powers are magically based, and he is vulnerable to it, placing him and Adam at somewhat equal footing. Black Adam begins to use this to his advantage, but Superman responds with powers the magical being doesn’t have – i.e. heat vision powers. After briefly subduing Superman, Black Adam continues his pursuit of Billy, who runs into a subway platform, first encountering the homeless man he attempted to help. The man gives him a subway token and tells him he told him he would pay him back. Billy runs further into the subway station, jumping onto the tracks with Black Adam in pursuit. Billy is standing on the tracks when a train appears and apparently runs Billy over, causing Adam to leave. Billy opens his eyes to find he is on an empty subway car. The token begins to glow in his pocket and when he takes it out he begins to crackle with lightning. In the lightning, Billy sees flashes of his past life; his parents headstone and the orphanage where he was placed. He gets off of the subway car and into the chamber with the statues of the Seven Deadly Sins. Billy finds his way to the Wizard Shazam who relays to the boy that he is the next Chosen One. He explains that Adam had been the champion he had chosen 5000 years ago, but Teth-Adam had used his power for personal gain and corrupted the gift. He was then banished to the farthest star in the sky, and now Adam has returned seeking vengeance. The Wizard then causes a cave in, telling him that he wishes to atone for the mistake of creating Black Adam, but tells Billy that should he need him, he has only to speak the Wizard’s name. Billy narrowly escapes the cave as it collapses. Outside, the battle rages on between Superman and Black Adam. Superman is barely able to hold his own against the magical based powers of his foe. Superman is again subdued by his adversary and is rendered unconscious. Billy encounters Black Adam and defiantly tells Adam to leave Superman alone. He attempts to strike an amused Black Adam, who is about to kill Billy. Billy anxiously shouts “I could use a little help here, Shazam”, which summons the lightning and Billy is transformed into Captain Marvel. He quickly counters an attack by Adam with his newfound abilities. Finally, Black Adam is forced to stand against his true equal. Billy has only the duration of the fight to discover his powers; i.e. speed, strength and flight. He also discovers that randomly saying the Wizard’s name takes the powers away as quickly. A now recovered Superman is unsure of what to make of the appearance of this new scarlet clad person, but they soon discover they are on the same side. The battle is now two on one and the World’s Mightiest Mortal and the Man of Steel engage Adam in full on combat. Black Adam starts resorting to destroying a dam which will flood nearby Fawcett City, intending to separate Marvel and Superman for a better chance of success. Landing on the street, Black Adam attacks a passing car, flipping it and removing it’s female driver as a hostage. He tells Billy he must surrender himself in his mortal form, and he will release the hostage. Billy complies, and Black Adam throws the hostage into the air. But before Billy can say his magic word, Black Adam grabs him by the mouth to silence him. From out of nowhere, Adam is blasted by heat vision by Superman, who has completed his task of preventing the flood and saved the hostage after quickly freezing the flood with super cold breath, another ability that Black Adam does not possess. Another fight ensues between Superman and Adam, but Billy has reached his tolerance point and utters the magic word. Adam is beaten by Marvel who stomps him into a crater in the street. Superman talks him out of murdering Adam to prevent further acts of evil. Adam tells him angrily that only death will stop him. It is then that the homeless man appears once again and reveals himself to be the boy’s guardian angel Tawky Tawny. Tawky reverts to his true form as a tiger and tells him that he will ensure that the Wizard will send him so far across the universe this time, it will take Adam ten thousand years to return. To evade being banished even farther from Earth, Black Adam shouts “Shazam” turning him back into his mortal form Teth-Adam whose mortal body was unable to withstand the amount of time that has passed and turns to dust in an apparent act of suicide. It was an apparent bluff, as Tawny admits the Wizard is indeed dead. As Tawny walks away, Superman looks at Captain Marvel and says “You have some unusual friends.” Billy finds himself encountering the bullies again in the alley as before. The bullies push Billy against a wall, and defiantly dare him to talk back; daring him to say “…just one word.” To which Billy replies “Shazam…”

Superman/Shazam!: The Return of Black Adam Photos

Superman/Shazam!: The Return of Black Adam Torrents Download

Superman/Shazam!: The Return of Black Adam Subtitles Download

Superman/Shazam!: The Return of Black Adam Movie Reviews

Pretty Good For A Short

Superman/Shazam! L The Return Of Black Adam is the fourth short in a collection of DC Showcase films, short adventures usually packaged with the direct-to-video DC animated films. Released as part of a four film collection which also contains three DC Showcase shorts previously on past releases, this short tells the story of Black Adam’s return to Earth after being banished, and soon, he goes on the hunt down Billy Baston, an orphan in Fawcett City whom the wizard who banished him is choosing to inherit his power. However, Superman is there, as he is interviewing Billy on his situation in his guise as Clark Kent, and protects the youth, but struggles due to the new villain using magic, one of his two weaknesses, but soon gets help from Billy, who gains the power of the wizard Shazam and saying his name, can transform into an adult with the powers of the god that goes by the name of Captain Marvel (as this was before he was renamed to avoid legal problems with Marvel Comics, who got the rights to use the name for one of their superheroes).

For a short, it’s pretty neat. Basically the same length as an episode of Superman: The Animated Series (under 25 minutes), the film wastes no time getting to the action as. George Newbern voices Clark Kent/Superman, a role he has performed in Justice League and Justice League Unlimited,and Jerro O’Connell voices Captain Marvel (with Zach Callison voicing Billy Baston). This short is notable for being James Garner’s final performance before his death, as he voices the wizard Shazam. This is a good short that is exciting, and worth checking out.

Short But Sweet

First off, I’m a huge fan of all things DC and have loved all the animated series and movies they’ve done. Some of the newer ones have had a noticeably different look or feel to them, which is kind of nice sometimes.

I’m going to mention the negatives of this movie first, since that might be of particular interest to some fans. The main feature is actually only about a half hour long, with three additional “DC SPotlight” shorts, about 20 minutes each, featuring Green Arrow, Jonah Hex, and The Spectre.

The Spectre short was my least favorite, simply because he is more of a supernatural entity rather than a superhero, and you don’t have the same kind of conflict in this one that you do with the others. He’s not really fighting anyone, but rather acting as sort of a physical manifestation of “karma” and making sure three criminals get their just rewards.

I was particularly pleased with both the Green Arrow and Jonah Hex shorts. I thought the western setting for an animated movie seemed particularly cool and natural, and I hope someone follows up with some animated work in this setting, since it’s quite rare. Both shorts have some particularly visceral action, and the Green Arrow one has one of the best fights I’ve seen in any animated movie before.

This movie was animated very well and the character models were very good. The overall appearance, especially the backgrounds, had a slightly hazy, washed-out look to them at times, giving it an almost anime-style look. They do some really cool animation during the fights between Superman/Cap. Marvel and Black Adam, such as some slow motion effects during a couple of the really hard hits, that really punctuate the impact. The voice acting and choices of the actors were quite good (especially Arnold Vosloo as Black Adam), but my only complaint is they didn’t use Tim Daly for Superman, again. George Newbern isn’t bad, actually, but Daly is the original Superman voice and I just prefer him. I’ve always thought Black Adam was a really cool bad guy, and his personality and voice were pretty much as I’ve always envisioned them to be, and I thought the ending was particularly interesting and surprising.

If you haven’t seen the other shorts before, as I hadn’t, then this is a definite must-see. The main feature was pretty short, but it was still very good and I hope they give us more Captain Marvel in the future.

Superman/Shazam! The Return of Black Adam: Too big a story for a short

This DC Showcase short is a tad longer than the rest, it stands at around 25 minutes and is about Billy Batsons rise to become the superhero known as Captain Marvel.

We see Superman jump in and save young Billy from Black Adam, but my biggest complaint is that this is a big story and 25 minutes simply doesn’t suffice.

Alike the other showcases this is very well animated, has a great voice cast and is well written. Sadly it all feels rushed and I struggled to get into it.

Well worth a watch for fans of the DC Showcase shorts, but I feel it was a bit underwhelming.

The Good:

Well animated

The Bad:

Story is simply too big for 25 minutes

Things I Learnt From This Movie:

This has actually made me want a live action Shazam movie, but I fear I’ll regret saying that