Serial

Up until 1956 there was an extra element of fun associated with going to the cinema. Not only would you get a couple of movies, the news reel, and some cartoons for your entrance fee, but you might also get to see a chapter of a serial. Yes, the serial stories that infest this show have both cinematic and literary forebears. It seems like a whole other world now, that land of double features, matinees and serials at the cinema house.

My thoughts have been turning towards serials of late after finally beginning to watch the 'Superman' serial from 1948, which along with its sequel form the live action precedent that allowed 'The Adventures of Superman' to land on television. In fact television is what killed off the movie serials, but that would be a subject for minds more learned than mine to expound upon. The serials practically were early television, but far more thrilling than the plays of the week you would find on the magic box in the living room.

How marvelous it must have been to turn up week after week, ready to get that set of celluloid entertainment you were expecting, and wondering how they would resolve that cliffhanger from the week before? Well, I'm assuming that chapters were released weekly, which seems sensible. The 'Superman' serial is brilliant, and so much fun that I'm regretting not having played the DVDs before. With 'Atom Man vs Superman' still to come, and the two Batman serials, a whole new world of fun adventure could blossom before my eyes. The titles of these golden age serials are so tantalising! Oh, how could anyone resist 'King of the Mounties', 'Zorro's Flying Legion', 'The Drums of Fu Manchu', 'Perils of Nyoka', 'Jungle Girl' and all the other serials that flashed before the eyes of all those people? Politically correct? Probably not. Fun? Certainly! Fun fun fun!

Fortunately the serials aren't gone completely; The most popular and iconic ones are out there on DVD, as are the serials that have fallen into public domain. There's even fan work in restoring some notable examples of the form and redistributing them. Oh, some day, some day, we'll all be able to dig into some of the long neglected serials that thrilled people with excitement and peril. Roll on the next job, so some money can be diverted to sampling these pulpy sequences of cliffhangers and resolutions.

Pulp, now that's a theme that's popped up a lot recently...

O.