Few things rally people behind a film like a good score. Even on the idiot box, the proper theme can make a TV show unforgettable. Both TV and Film producers shell out big bucks trying to find a piece of music that will resonate with audiences. Some of these themes are sing-alongs, others are orchestral movements driving audiences to cheer. Being that the Thor The Dark World is hitting theaters this week, I thought a glance at some memorable superhero themes would be in order. So, apropos of nothing, here are The Ten Most Memorable Superhero Theme Songs.
One of the greatest superhero cartoons to ever emerge, Superfriends introduced many young people to the world of comic books. With Ted Knight as the narrator, and classic one-liners such as “Great Scott” and “Holy (Insert Something Here) Batman”, Superfriends was instantly iconic. To kick off such greatness, one needs a masterful theme that screams superhero adventure. Composers Hoyt S. Curtain and Will Schaefer did a bang up job.
Following Captain America Mondays, came Thor on Thursday. While Iron Man and Hulk were also part of the weekly series, none of the theme songs came close to being as memorable as this parable about the God Of Thunder. It’s also impressive to note that the theme song writers crammed all of Thor’s main history into twenty seconds.
As cliché as it might be, you really can’t have a list like this without the Neal Hefti surf/spy rock classic. The Batman theme became so iconic, The Who, The Jam and Voivod covered it. I stuck it up high on the list because it’s a constant on any theme song rundown. That being said, it’s still an incredible slice of TV history
While most of the fanfare for Tim Burton’s original Batman film goes to Prince, you can’t sleep on Danny Elfman’s amazing orchestral soundtrack. I don’t even like the Tim Burton Batman films, but I do love this theme. Dark, brooding, with peaks of high adventure, Elfman nailed the thematic ideas of Batman in this tune.
Another superhero theme song that you can’t help but sing along to. Granted, these turtles are a lot friendlier than their comic book inspirations, but that doesn’t change how good the theme song is.
Superman, The Hulk and more on Page 2!
