Clark Kent has an argument on the phone with Perry White about what to cover as a reporter. Just as he hangs up, a couple of cars zoom by shooting at one another. Clark/Superman jumps on the back of one of the cars and is taken to the hideout of some German saboteurs. The police have been giving chase and have lost the trail. Out of the front car steps a beautiful blonde who demands to be taken to the police station where she tells the authorities that she is a secret agent and has infiltrated the organization and has a portfolio full of important documents that must be delivered to the proper people. She gets a a police escort but they are ambushed and she runs. What ensues is her admirable effort to hang on to the documents. Meanwhile, Clark is playing possum. By the way, this is the seventeenth and last of these Fleischer Superman cartoons.

Right, well I have to say that the 1943 "Secret Agent" animated short "Superman" feature extinguished itself from the previous many short stories in the series. The storyline in this particular short story was way more action-packed than the previous ones.

And the fact that it was made in 1943, during World War II definitely showed, as the bad guy in this short story looked astonishingly similar to Adolf Hitler, and even spoke German as well. Coincidence? Or just some hidden American war propaganda? Well, you know the answer already. And with some thrown in American patriotism as Superman flies past the American flag and salutes it. Regardless, it was a fun 8 minutes to sit through, and definitely one of the more enjoyable of short "Superman" features from the 1940s.

The art style in this 1943 short story was a bit changed in comparison to the earlier ones. There was more details added to the faces of the characters, and it looked a bit more real in a way. Definitely not a bad thing.

If you enjoy the old "Superman" animated stories, then "Secret Agent" from writers Jerry Siegel, Joe Shuster and Carl Meyer is definitely well-worth sitting down to watch.

My rating of directors Seymour Kneitel, Dave Fleischer and Steve Muffati's 1943 animated short feature "Secret Agent" lands on a six out of ten stars.

I love the Fleischer Superman cartoons. The animation is smooth and fluid with vivid colors. The distinct art-deco style, vintage science fiction imagery, and use of noirish shadows gave them a look unlike any other cartoons. The music and voice work is superb. They're fun, accessible, enduring animation classics. While this is a cartoon from Fleischer Studios' successor, Famous Studios, it still tries to maintain the Fleischer style.

The seventeenth and final of the legendary Superman shorts produced by Famous (previously Fleischer) Studios and released by Paramount. Clark Kent chases after a gang of saboteurs and is captured. Meanwhile, a blonde secret agent tells the police she has records on the saboteurs that must get to Washington. The police escort her to the airport but are ambushed by the gang. The agent flees on her own but is trapped. Having heard enough of the saboteurs' plans, Clark changes into Superman and flies off to save the day.

This final Superman short is atypical of the series. The majority of the cartoon is spent on the secret agent, cops, and bad guys. In many ways it seems like Superman was added to the script after the fact. This is the only short that Lois Lane did not appear in, although the blonde agent was voiced by the same actress (Joan Alexander). Superman does not appear until almost the end and does very little to impress when he does. However, the final shot of him flying and saluting the American flag was very cool. Overall, it's an OK entry with some good animation but not much beyond that to appeal to fans of the series.