Is Flash Gordon a Cinematic Masterpiece? (40th Anniversary Special)

For all of the fans of 80’s B-Movie Sci-Fi, there is one that stands out above the rest as THE Must-See Cult Classic: Flash Gordon! Based on the 1934 comic strip created by Alex Raymond, Flash Gordon was intended to be the direct competitor of the Buck Rogers comic strip. Both of these classic space operas inspired many of the great works of science fiction throughout the 20th century, including Star Wars. The original comic strip ran from 1934 to 1992, following the adventures of Polo star & Yale Graduate Flash Gordon & his friends Dale Arden & Dr. Hans Zarkov, as they went on fantastic adventures across space fighting the evil Ming the Merciless. With its popularity spawning various radio, TV & film adaptations, along with several comics, magazines, & novels, no adaptation stands out more than its ridiculously glorious 1980’s movie!

Staring Sam Jones as Flash Gordon & Max Von Sydow as Ming the Merciless, Mike Hodges’ 1980 adaptation is considered the quintessential version for all sci-fi fans’ required viewing lists. Since this month is its 40th Anniversary, we thought it would be fun to look back on the wonderful camp that made this movie what it is & see why it is still held in such high regard. Find out all this & so much more on today’s edition of Dallas Geek!