I've mentioned a time or two that I was a comic book fan in my younger days, occasionally checking out a title or two as they catch my eye as an adult. I have long been familiar with artist & writer Todd McFarlane, primarily through some of his early work on Spider-Man. His was not my favorite of the webslinger canon, but his stories were somewhat interesting. McFarlane later broke the mold of the typical artist by breaking out on his own in order to have creative control over his work, something I'm sure most artists would prefer. Over the years, McFarlane has built an empire based on comics, movies, and toys… a ton of toys. I'm sorry… I mean action figures… a ton of action figures. It all started with a little character concept known as "Spawn." In life, "Spawn" was a government assassin by the name of Al Simmons. Long story short, he was set up by his own people, horribly burned and sent to hell. There he took on the role of Hellspawn and was expected to harvest souls for Satan.

However, Simmons rebelled and became "Spawn", enemy of Satan and evildoers. Simplistic, I know… but the original comics were anything but. I only looked over a handful in my day, but they never really grabbed me enough warrant continued readership. They were too messy to look at artistically, and the stories were often a tad incoherent.

As time rolled on, McFarlane realized there was a huge action figure market he could go after and he started hiring top sculptures to create three-dimensional versions of Spawn, as well as his friends and foes. Sales were huge, and as different versions of the character hit shelves, they continued to fly off. Now McFarlane offers characters in various genres, my favorite being the movie maniacs… of which I own quite a few.

There was also a hope that the character would eventually cross over into live action or animation, and in 1997 it actually did both. A feature film starring Michael Jai White came and went from theatres. Stylistically it looked great, but editing and pacing were a mess. McFarlane opted to direct it himself and that was probably the major mistake. At the same time, HBO premiered an animated series that proved popular enough to 'spawn' a full three seasons. Well, I say full… each season was only 6 episodes (for a total of 18). This series starred the voice talent of Keith David, who also voiced Goliath in Disney's "Gargoyles." David has also been in numerous films and his face is easily recognizable to most avid moviegoers. But it was his voice that made Spawn work. Deep and gravelly, it sounded as though it belonged to a soul once trapped in Hell… just as it should.

The artwork for the series was superlative, much better than the comics ever delivered. And talk about dark… this was not an animated series for the kids. The language and violence was often a hairsbreadth away from giving it an X rating. As if visions of Hell were bad enough, visions of Hell's Kitchen were even worse. The dirt and decay was everywhere in these streets, and those who would prey on the weak were some of the worst I've seen. Totally deserving of the 'justice' they would meet at the hands of Spawn. Then there were the psychological aspects of the character's mind gone mad, held in check by sheer force of will and the help of a previous Hellspawn who… got out of the business.

HBO released a DVD set back in 1999 that featured all of the episodes, as well as a handful of special features. But last month, in celebration of the show's 10th Anniversary, they released a whole new set. I can't say if any of the features here were carried over from the original release, but what is here is pretty good. Right off the bat, there are four commentaries by McFarlane who gets to expound on his character. These commentaries are pretty interesting, but you do get the idea that he is a little full of himself. So be it… he's an entrepreneur. There are also featurettes that look at the McFarlane's animation process and an overall behind the scenes look at the making of the series. Additionally, there is long interview with McFarlane and storyboards for the first episode. Everything comes on four discs, which are housed in a really nice tin case. The artwork is superb and is partially embossed.

The animated version of "Spawn" is certainly not to everyone's taste, but then anything spawn has that distinction. From my point of view though, this is the best version of the character and his story and one I enjoyed watching again.

Episodes:
Burning Visions
Evil Intent
No Rest, No Peace
Dominoes
Souls in the Balance
Endgame
Home Bitter Home
Access Denied
Colors of Blood
Send in the KKKlowns
Death Blow
Hellzapoppin
A Made Guy
Twitch Is Down
Seed of the Hellspawn
Hunter's Moon
Chasing the Serpent
Prophecy

Starring (the voices of): Keith David, Richard Dysart, Micheal Nicolosi
Extras: The McFarlane Process: Step by Step", "Episode One Storyboard: Frame by Frame", Todd McFarlane Interview and Behind the Scenes Featurette, Character Profiles, Four Audio Commentaries
Specifications: Full Screen, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound
Studio: HBO
Release Date: 7/24/2007
Region 1
MPAA Rating: NR
Website

We'll give Spawn: 10th Anniversary a B+.