Cat-Man Animated Series Launches on YouTube

Austin McConnell, the YouTuber and author who plans to create a cinematic universe made up of heroes from the public domain, has released the first episode of a new, web-based animated series based on Cat-Man. The character, who still appears in DC publications, entered the public domain after its copyright wasn't renewed in the late 1960s. Originally appearing in Crash Comics Adventures #4, the character quickly grew popular enough to take over the title completely. Created by Irwin Hansen, Cat-Man was published by Tem/Holyoke Publishing. After a brief period of popularity in the 1940s, the character languished for years.

More recently, the character has been revived not just by DC, but also by other publishers, including AC Comics in the 1980s and Dynamite Entertainment, where they appeared alongside other public domain characters in Project Superpowers.

You can see it below.

In 2022, just three months after first proposing a "Bargain Bin Cinematic Universe" filled with offbeat, old-timey superheroes whose rights had lapsed into the public domain, McConnell started work on Atlas, an animated feature film that will kick off that bizarre and ambitious project in earnest. In the meantime, though, he has released some smaller projects to keep interest alive and whet audience appetites.

This is hardly the first attempt to revitalize or update abandoned heroes. Whether it's Erik Larsen using them in Savage Dragon and The Next Issue Project or Dynamite's long-running Project Superpowers, the idea of bringing back these old, forgotten heroes isn't new. But it is to McConnell.

"I hadn't heard of those before doing my thing, but several comments pointed me to Project Superpowers," McConnell admitted. "I'm purposely keeping myself in the dark so as to not let their universe influence what I'm building. The great thing about the public domain is that there are an infinite number of character interpretations, and if you don't find one you like, you can make it yourself! I hope Atlas: The Animated Movie encourages aspiring writers and artists to dip their toes into the public domain, too. It's a lovely sandbox."

McConnell has made self-depreciating content an art form, making popular YouTube videos about the failure of a feature film he wrote, and a book he self-published. The success of those videos (and of his YouTube channel in general) certainly suggest he's a voice that people are interested in hearing from, but he's trying to take some of the lessons from those experiences into Atlas.

"I'm definitely learning to set realistic expectations, and I'm also learning more about what my audience is interested in seeing," McConnell said. "Most of all, I've learned to just try things, y'know? Don't let the fear of failure paralyze you from experimenting and taking creative leaps. Get an idea, try it out, learn what worked (and what didn't) and then move on to the next thing."