Captain Planet
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''Captain Planet and the Planeteers'' is an American animated environmentalist
superhero A superhero or superheroine is a stock character that typically possesses ''superpowers'', abilities beyond those of ordinary people, and fits the role of the hero, typically using his or her powers to help the world become a better place, ...
television series created by Barbara Pyle and
Ted Turner Robert Edward "Ted" Turner III (born November 19, 1938) is an American entrepreneur, television producer, media proprietor, and philanthropist. He founded the Cable News Network (CNN), the first 24-hour cable news channel. In addition, he ...
and developed by Pyle, Nicholas Boxer, Thom Beers, Andy Heyward, Robby London, Bob Forward and Cassandra Schafausen. The series was produced by Turner Program Services and DIC Enterprises and broadcast on TBS and in syndication from September 15, 1990, to December 5, 1992. Captain Planet And The Planeteers
. ''www.bcdb.com'', April 12, 2012
A sequel series, ''The New Adventures of Captain Planet'', was produced by Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, Inc., distributed by Turner Program Services and broadcast from September 11, 1993, to May 11, 1996.The New Adventures of Captain Planet
. ''www.bcdb.com'', April 12, 2012
The series was reran in later years on
Cartoon Network Cartoon Network (often abbreviated as CN) is an American cable television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. It is a part of The Cartoon Network, Inc., a division that also has the broadcasting and production activities of Boomerang, ...
and Boomerang. The program is a form of edutainment and advocates environmentalism and is known for having a number of famous actors providing voices for the villains.Captain Planet Zooms to the Rescue of the Environment, Washington Post – September 16, 1990 The show spawned a franchise consisting of a charity, and video games.


Plot

Every episode is followed up with at least one "''Planeteer Alert''" clip, often connected to the plot, where environmental-political and other social-political issues are discussed and how the viewer can contribute and be part of "the solution" rather than "the pollution".


Characters


Gaia

Gaia In Greek mythology, Gaia (; from Ancient Greek , a poetical form of , 'land' or 'earth'),, , . also spelled Gaea , is the personification of the Earth and one of the Greek primordial deities. Gaia is the ancestral mother—sometimes parthen ...
(voiced by Whoopi Goldberg in seasons 1-3, Margot Kidder in seasons 4-6), is the spirit of the planet who sends five magic rings – four with the power to control an element of nature and one controlling the element of Heart – to five chosen youths across the globe. She claims to have been asleep for the entire 20th Century and awoken to see a more polluted world than when she was last awake, however this is contradicted by a flashback episode set in the 1920s in which people get guidance from Gaia. Her physical manifestation is that of a beautiful black woman. In the two-part episode "Summit to Save Earth" where her rival Zarm had defeated her, Gaia was shown as an old, frail woman, with Zarm explaining that given the Earth's several billion years of existence, it would make sense for Gaia to be superannuated in appearance.


Captain Planet

In situations that the Planeteers cannot resolve alone, they can combine their planetary powers to summon the titular Captain Planet (voiced by David Coburn), who is Ma-Ti's magnified heart power in the form of a male blue-skinned superhero
avatar Avatar (, ; ), is a concept within Hinduism that in Sanskrit literally means "descent". It signifies the material appearance or incarnation of a powerful deity, goddess or spirit on Earth. The relative verb to "alight, to make one's appear ...
with green mullet, possessing all of the other Planeteers' amplified powers, along with more classical superhero powers such as flight, superhuman strength and invulnerability. Once his work is done, Captain Planet returns to the planet, and leaves viewers with the message: "The power is yours!" Typically, Planet only manifests to deal with the bigger crisis and then departs, but a few storylines have explored him existing beyond these moments, such as when he was summoned while Kwame and Ma-Ti were in space, with the result that the energy from their rings that created Planet could not return to its source, resulting in Planet being forced to operate on a human level, such as requiring a crowbar and handcuff keys to rescue the rest of the team.


Planeteers

The ''Planeteers'' are tasked with helping defend the planet from environmental disasters and making efforts to educate humankind to keep others from happening. In the beginning of the episodes, Gaia uses her "Planet Vision" in the Crystal Chamber to discover where the most devastating destruction is occurring (in most episodes one or more of the Eco-Villains is behind it) and sends the Planeteers to help solve the problem. The Planeteers use transportation (usually a flying machine called a Geo-Cruiser) based on
solar power Solar power is the conversion of energy from sunlight into electricity, either directly using photovoltaics (PV) or indirectly using concentrated solar power. Photovoltaic cells convert light into an electric current using the photovolta ...
to avoid causing pollution themselves.Captain Planet: Meet the characters
Mother Nature Network
* Kwame (voiced by LeVar Burton) – Hailing from Africa, Kwame possesses the power of
earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's sur ...
. * Wheeler (voiced by Joey Dedio) – From Brooklyn, New York City,
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
, Wheeler controls the power of
fire Fire is the rapid oxidation of a material (the fuel) in the exothermic chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction products. At a certain point in the combustion reaction, called the ignition point, flames ...
. * Linka (voiced by Kath Soucie) – From the
Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...
(Seasons 1 and 2) and
Eastern Europe Eastern Europe is a subregion of the European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russia, whi ...
(Seasons 3-6), Linka has the power of
wind Wind is the natural movement of air or other gases relative to a planet's surface. Winds occur on a range of scales, from thunderstorm flows lasting tens of minutes, to local breezes generated by heating of land surfaces and lasting a few ...
. * Gi (voiced by Janice Kawaye) – Hailing from
Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...
, Gi controls the power of
water Water (chemical formula ) is an inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living organisms (in which it acts as ...
. * Ma-Ti (voiced by Scott Menville) – From
Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
, Ma-Ti wields the power of
heart The heart is a muscular Organ (biology), organ in most animals. This organ pumps blood through the blood vessels of the circulatory system. The pumped blood carries oxygen and nutrients to the body, while carrying metabolic waste such as ca ...
. ** Suchi (vocal effects provided by
Frank Welker Franklin Wendell Welker (born March 12, 1946) is an American voice actor. He began his career in the 1960s, and holds over 860 film, television, and video game credits as of 2022, making him one of the most prolific voice actors of all time. With ...
) – Ma-Ti's pet spider monkey.


Villains


Eco-Villains

The Eco-Villains are a small group of antagonists who cause danger to the planet through pollution, deforestation, poaching, and other environmentally unsafe activities. They enjoy the destruction they cause to the planet and the harm they bring to obtain wealth, land, or power. The Eco-Villains tend to work alone most of the time, although they're willing to work with one another when it suits their plans. When the Eco-Villains are defeated by Captain Planet and the Planeteers, they would mostly be arrested by the authorities. Only in the two-part episode "Summit to Save Earth" did the entire ensemble of Eco-Villains work as a team with Zarm as the leader. Each of these villains represents a specific way of thought that can cause ecological problems. * Hoggish Greedly (voiced by Ed Asner) – A pig-like human who represents the dangers of overconsumption and greed, Hoggish is the first villain Captain Planet and the Planeteers encounter. In the episode "Smog Hog", it's revealed Hoggish has a son named Hoggish Greedly Jr. (voiced by Charlie Schlatter) who appears only once and had gotten affected by his polluting Road Hog plot. Because of this, Greedly had to work with Captain Planet to save his son's life. In the episode "Hog Tide," it is revealed that he has a grandfather named Don Porkaloin (portrayed as a parody of Vito Corleone from ''
The Godfather ''The Godfather'' is a 1972 American crime film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, who co-wrote the screenplay with Mario Puzo, based on Puzo's best-selling 1969 novel of the same title. The film stars Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caa ...
'' and also voiced by Ed Asner) who in the past was defeated by another group of Planeteers. Unlike Hoggish Greedly, Porkaloin became environmentally friendly as shown in the episode "The Ghost of Porkaloin Past". ** Rigger (voiced by
John Ratzenberger John Dezso Ratzenberger (born April 6, 1947)About John
from Ratzenberger's official website
is an Americ ...
) – Greedly's main henchman. He once claimed in "The Ghost of Porkaloin Past" that the main reason he works for Greedly is because no one else would hire him. He does sometime question Greedly's orders and shows concern when Greedly's actions hurt the environment though it never has any effect on his boss, and Rigger, for the most part, remains loyal to Greedly. Rigger does all the leg-work while Greedly usually sits around and eats. * Verminous Skumm (voiced by Jeff Goldblum in season 1, Maurice LaMarche in season 2–5) – The second villain to appear on the series, he is a part-human, part-rat creature who represents urban blight, disease, and drug abuse. Skumm can control rats and has his own personal
helicopter A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by horizontally spinning rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forward, backward and laterally. These attribu ...
called The Scum O'Copter. Skumm is responsible for the death of Linka's cousin Boris via drugs in the episode "Mind Pollution". In some of the later episodes, Verminous Skumm partook in war profiteering when selling weapons to different gangs. ** Rat Pack – A group of humanoid rats that work for Verminous Skumm. * Duke Nukem (voiced by Dean Stockwell in seasons 1-3, Maurice LaMarche in seasons 4-6) – A doctor who changed himself into a radioactive yellow rock-skinned
mutant In biology, and especially in genetics, a mutant is an organism or a new genetic character arising or resulting from an instance of mutation, which is generally an alteration of the DNA sequence of the genome or chromosome of an organism. It ...
who represents the misuse of
nuclear power Nuclear power is the use of nuclear reactions to produce electricity. Nuclear power can be obtained from nuclear fission, nuclear decay and nuclear fusion reactions. Presently, the vast majority of electricity from nuclear power is produced b ...
, and the third villain to appear. He is one of the few Eco-Villains, along with Zarm and Captain Pollution, able to battle Captain Planet one-on-one. Nukem generates radiation to fire off radioactive blasts from his hands and possesses X-Ray vision.
Apogee An apsis (; ) is the farthest or nearest point in the orbit of a planetary body about its primary body. For example, the apsides of the Earth are called the aphelion and perihelion. General description There are two apsides in any el ...
temporarily renamed the eponymous character of the
Duke Nukem ''Duke Nukem'' is a video game series named for its main character, Duke Nukem. Created by the company Apogee Software Ltd. (now 3D Realms) as a series of video games for personal computers, the series expanded to games released for various co ...
computer game franchise to "Duke Nukum" so as to avoid any possible trademark claims they could face from the producers of Captain Planet. The character was later found to be under no trademark and the games were restored to their original titles. ** Leadsuit (voiced by
Frank Welker Franklin Wendell Welker (born March 12, 1946) is an American voice actor. He began his career in the 1960s, and holds over 860 film, television, and video game credits as of 2022, making him one of the most prolific voice actors of all time. With ...
) – Duke Nukem's henchman, Leadsuit's name defines his appearance as he wears a full-bodied lead hazmat suit to withstand the radiation released by Duke Nukem's body. He revealed that he works for Duke Nukem because when Nukem takes over the world, he'll get to be second-in-command. Leadsuit is timid, rarely arguing with Nukem (and always losing if he objects to anything). Leadsuit is afraid of the dark and usually gives in at the slightest trouble. * Dr. Barbara "Babs" Blight (voiced by Meg Ryan in 1990–1991,
Mary Kay Bergman Mary Kay Bergman (June 5, 1961 – November 11, 1999), also credited as Shannen Cassidy, was an American voice actress and voice-over teacher. She was the lead female voice actress on ''South Park'' from the show's 1997 debut until her death. Thr ...
in 1992–1996, Tessa Auberjonois in ''
OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes ''OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes'' is an American animated television series created by Ian Jones-Quartey for Cartoon Network. The show is based on Jones-Quartey's pilot ''Lakewood Plaza Turbo'', which was released as part of Cartoon Network's 2013 Su ...
'') – The fourth villain revealed, Dr. Blight is a
mad scientist The mad scientist (also mad doctor or mad professor) is a stock character of a scientist who is perceived as " mad, bad and dangerous to know" or "insane" owing to a combination of unusual or unsettling personality traits and the unabashedly am ...
who represents the dangers of uncontrolled technology and unethical scientific experimentation. As a result of self-experimentation, the left half of her face is horribly scarred and is usually hidden by her hair. In the episode "Hog Tide," it is revealed that Dr. Blight had a grandmother named Betty Blight who assisted Don Porkaloin in his plot. In the episode "Hollywaste", it is revealed that Dr. Blight has a sister named Bambi (voiced by Kath Soucie). Bambi calls Blight by her nickname "Babs", but is called "the Headache Woman" in her Eco-Villain name. ** MAL (voiced by David Rappaport in 1990, Tim Curry in 1991–1996) – Dr. Blight's artificially intelligent husband and henchman. He has the ability to hack into other computer systems, take over them and reprogram them mainly to Dr. Blight's specifications. MAL is often the control and main power source of everything in Dr. Blight's labs as well as the vehicles she travels in. * Looten Plunder (voiced by
James Coburn James Harrison Coburn III (August 31, 1928 – November 18, 2002) was an American film and television actor who was featured in more than 70 films, largely action roles, and made 100 television appearances during a 45-year career.AllmoviBi ...
in seasons 1-3, Ed Gilbert in seasons 4-6) – A wealthy poacher and crooked businessman who represents the evils of unethical business actions. Looten is the sixth villain to appear on ''Captain Planet'' in the seventh episode, "The Last of Her Kind". He is also shown to have a nephew named Robin Plunder. His name was a play on the term "Loot and Plunder", and he was always in the ending credits of every episode when the singer mentioned "Bad guys who like to loot and plunder!", taken from footage of one episode where a disshelved Plunder sees his scheme in ruins and screams "You will pay for this, Captain Planet!". Plunder is the only eco-villain to come out on top as seen in "Whoo Gives a Hoot" where the Planeteers lose after failing to provide proof to a judge that Plunder was illegally cutting down trees in an old-growth forest. ** Argos Bleak (voiced by
S. Scott Bullock Stuart Scott Bullock is an American voice actor. Best known for voicing various characters on ‘’Danny Phantom’’ (2004-2007). Career Bullock is known for providing voices for characters, such as Eddy in the ''Barnyard'' franchise, Glow ...
) – Looten Plunder's main henchman and bodyguard, he also functions as a
mercenary A mercenary, sometimes also known as a soldier of fortune or hired gun, is a private individual, particularly a soldier, that joins a military conflict for personal profit, is otherwise an outsider to the conflict, and is not a member of any ...
and carries out most of Plunder's dirty work. Argos seems to have a military background as he is seen in many episodes flying helicopters or other aircraft, and is proficient in handling firearms. Argos even got his own episode "The Preditor", where he appeared without his boss to hunt down sharks. Another time where Plunder conspired with Hoggish Greedily, Argos Bleak was seen arguing with Rigger as to who was the better Eco-Villain. ** Pinehead Brothers (voiced by Dick Gautier and
Frank Welker Franklin Wendell Welker (born March 12, 1946) is an American voice actor. He began his career in the 1960s, and holds over 860 film, television, and video game credits as of 2022, making him one of the most prolific voice actors of all time. With ...
) – Oakey and Dokey are two oversized
lumberjack Lumberjacks are mostly North American workers in the logging industry who perform the initial harvesting and transport of trees for ultimate processing into forest products. The term usually refers to loggers in the era (before 1945 in the Unite ...
s that are Looten Plunder's henchmen in the final season of "The New Adventures of Captain Planet." * Sly Sludge (voiced by Martin Sheen in Seasons 1-3,
Jim Cummings James Jonah Cummings (born November 3, 1952) is an American voice actor. Since beginning his career in the 1980s, he has appeared in almost 400 roles. Cummings has frequently worked with The Walt Disney Company and Warner Bros., including as t ...
in Seasons 4-6) – An unscrupulous waste collector who represents laziness, ignorance, and the dangers of apathy and short-term thinking. However, as many of his schemes involve waste management, which is a legitimate environmental issue, he often uses that to gain apparent respectability. Sludge is the last villain to be revealed. He is also the only main villain to defect to the Planeteers where a recycling program of his makes a lot of money by the end of "No Small Problem." The money enables Sludge to propose plans to mass-produce an affordable, eco-friendly way to safely dispose of waste. ** Ooze (voiced by Cam Clarke) – Sly Sludge's henchman. He is often underpaid and works for Sludge because he has no other option. Like Rigger, Ooze does most of the heavy work while his boss watches. ** Tank Flusher III (voiced by
Frank Welker Franklin Wendell Welker (born March 12, 1946) is an American voice actor. He began his career in the 1960s, and holds over 860 film, television, and video game credits as of 2022, making him one of the most prolific voice actors of all time. With ...
) – Sly Sludge's strongman servant who makes his debut in "The New Adventures of Captain Planet" episode "A Mine is a Terrible Thing to Waste" Pt. 1 where he answered an ad for "A heinous henchman to serve a Machiavellian master" even though he doesn't know what it means. * Zarm (voiced by
Sting Sting may refer to: * Stinger or sting, a structure of an animal to inject venom, or the injury produced by a stinger * Irritating hairs or prickles of a stinging plant, or the plant itself Fictional characters and entities * Sting (Middle-earth ...
in 1990–1992, David Warner in 1993, Malcolm McDowell in 1994–1995) – A former spirit of the planet who left Gaia in search of other worlds and ended up laying other populous planets to ruin lacking Gaia to balance out his methods. He represents war and
destruction Destruction may refer to: Concepts * Destruktion, a term from the philosophy of Martin Heidegger * Destructive narcissism, a pathological form of narcissism * Self-destructive behaviour, a widely used phrase that ''conceptualises'' certain kind ...
. Even though Zarm does not have any henchmen of his own, he would often manipulate other people to do his bidding. He once united Hoggish Greedly, Looten Plunder, Sly Sludge, Duke Nukem, Verminous Skumm, and Dr. Blight under his leadership in the two-part episode "Summit to Save Earth." Other times he recruits and manipulates others, even the Planeteers, to work for him. Zarm is the fifth Eco-Villain to appear in the series, having his first appearance in the sixth episode. Outside of war and destruction, Zarm promoted hatred and
totalitarianism Totalitarianism is a form of government and a political system that prohibits all opposition parties, outlaws individual and group opposition to the state and its claims, and exercises an extremely high if not complete degree of control and regu ...
, which he believed were the most dangerous pollutants to mankind, as evidenced by his acting as kingmaker to a dictator named Morgar. Zarm admits he has been a guiding force for every despot of the 20th century, but admits one of them actually declined his help and challenges the Planeteers to guess who, saying "I think you'll be pleasantly surprised."


Captain Pollution

A polluting counterpart to Captain Planet named Captain Pollution (voiced by David Coburn, like his good counterpart) appears in the two-part episode "Mission to Save Earth" when Dr. Blight steals the Planeteers' rings, creates polluting duplicates of them, and distributes the duplicates to most of the other Eco-villains. Each Eco-villain received a specific ring which had the opposite power of the Planeteers: * Duke Nukem has a Super Radiation Ring (counterpart of Fire). * Looten Plunder has a
Deforestation Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban use. The most concentrated ...
Ring (counterpart of Earth). * Sly Sludge has a Smog Ring (counterpart of Wind). * Verminous Skumm has a Toxics Ring (counterpart of Water). * Dr. Blight has a
Hate Hatred is an intense negative emotional response towards certain people, things or ideas, usually related to opposition or revulsion toward something. Hatred is often associated with intense feelings of anger, contempt, and disgust. Hatred is s ...
Ring (counterpart of Heart). Each of the evil rings has malevolent faces on them, in contrast to the more element-themed Planeteer rings. Captain Pollution is weakened when he is in contact with pure elements such as clean water or sunlight, while he gains power from contact with pollutants, being able to absorb pollutant and emit radioactive rays (and is later shown to gain limitless power when in contact with pollutants after his resurrection). When he is summoned he says "By your polluting powers combined, I am Captain Pollution! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha!", and when he disappears, he declares "The polluting power is yours!" In his first appearance, he is sent by the Eco-villains to destroy the Planeteers but gets chased off by Commander Clash, and after a fight with Captain Planet, he returns to the evil rings causing them to explode. In the two-part episode "A Mine is a Terrible Thing to Waste", Captain Pollution is brought back to life by toxins of the five evil rings that seep into the planet. Captain Pollution is Captain Planet's polar opposite in personality as well as power. In contrast to Planet's generous and altruistic nature, Pollution is lazy, and arrogant, seeing himself as a god and his creators as servants rather than partners. Captain Planet sums up the difference in their outlook during their first battle by taunting that the Planeteers have no boss – they are a team – and this is why Pollution will always lose. Captain Pollution resembles Captain Planet, but his skin is pale yellow and covered in brown lesions. His hair is red and styled in a Widow's peak and he has red eyes. His costume is the same color and style as Planet's, but the globe on his chest is torn in the middle. His voice is similar to Captain Planet's, but it has a
California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...
Valley twang to it. Captain Pollution is defeated twice by Captain Planet; first in "Mission to Save Earth" by being rammed through earth, lava, air and water, and then again in "A Mine is a Terrible Thing to Waste" by being tricked into going into an underground magma chamber. Captain Pollution is destroyed by Captain Planet who throws Pollution in the water destroying him.


Other villains

* The Slaughters – A family of poachers who made their debut in "The New Adventures of Captain Planet." The Slaughters represent the endangerment of animals and the evils of poaching and are often in direct monetary competition with Looten Plunder. Mame and her family once collaborated with Looten Plunder and Argos Bleak in the episode "Horns A'Plenty" when the Planeteers ruined each one's rhinoceros poaching. ** Mame Slaughter (voiced by Theresa Saldana in the first appearance,
Mitzi McCall Mitzi McCall is an American comedian and actress. Life and career Television In the early 1950s, then known as Mitzi Steiner, McCall had the ''Kiddie Castle'' program on KDKA-TV in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She received national attention in 1 ...
in the second appearance) – The leader of the Slaughters. ** Stalker Slaughter (voiced by Charlie Adler) – One of Mame's sons and her second-in-command. He has a strong attachment to her as he needs her directions most of the time.


Episodes


Development


Conception

According to Barbara Pyle, the inspiration for the five Planeteers came from real people that she met during the show's pre-production, in 1989. The character "Gi" was inspired by Malaysian environmental activist Chee Yoke Ling of
Sahabat Alam Malaysia Sahabat Alam Malaysia (english: "Friends of Nature Malaysia", also known as SAM) is a Malaysian Non-governmental organization, NGO established in 1977 to fight for causes related to the Malaysian Environmental movement, environment. SAM joined Frie ...
, while Ma-Ti was inspired on
Paulinho Paiakan Paulinho Paiakan (1952/1953 – 16 June 2020) was a leader of the Kayapo people, an indigenous tribe of Brazil. He led the Kayapo in their protests against destruction of the Amazon rainforest. Background Paiakan was hired by the Brazilian govern ...
. Wheeler was said by Pyle to be based on her own father. She reported on making him the most environmentally unaware based on the view she had of the attitudes displayed by the US at the 1992 Rio Earth Summit. Kwame was inspired by the survivors of the
Rhodesian Bush War The Rhodesian Bush War, also called the Second as well as the Zimbabwe War of Liberation, was a civil conflict from July 1964 to December 1979 in the List of states with limited recognition, unrecognised country of Rhodesia (later Zimbabwe-Rh ...
. In a September 2012 interview with Barbara Pyle and co-developer Nicholas Boxer, it was stated that the Hope Island was located near the
Bahamas The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to 88% of the a ...
.


DIC history (1990–1992)

The original series was the second longest running US-cartoon of the 1990s, producing 113 episodes. It lasted for three seasons under the name ''Captain Planet and the Planeteers'' (produced by TBS Productions and DiC). The show's intro theme was composed by Tom Worrall. The ending theme (maintained by both DIC and Hanna-Barbera's versions) is considered one of the most memorable parts of the series due to its catchy main chorus and rock track ("''Captain Planet, he's our hero, gonna take pollution down to zero''"). Its lyrics were written by show producer Nick Boxer and is performed by Murray McFadden and Timothy Mulhollan. During the end credits, James Coburn, in character as Looten Plunder, utters the line "You'll pay for this, Captain Planet.". This is then followed by a rap from the voice actors of the Planeteers. It is akin to New Kids on the Block's " Step By Step".


Hanna-Barbera history (1993–1996)

In 1993, the show saw a production company switch, changing the title to ''The New Adventures of Captain Planet'' (produced by Hanna-Barbera Cartoons, which was acquired by Turner in 1991). During this time, it aired as part of TBS' '' Sunday Morning in Front Of The TV '' block, alongside fellow H-B toons '' SWAT Kats: The Radical Squadron'' and '' 2 Stupid Dogs''. This series revealed more of the past of each of the characters and expanded on it dramatically. The tone of these episodes was more mature than the initial series. The animation style was altered. The DiC seasons' synth-rock soundtrack was replaced by a large number of orchestral pieces, and while the end credits theme was retained, the ending sequence now showcased footage from the Hanna-Barbera episodes. Full-time voice actors replaced most of the major celebrities that had voiced Gaia and the Eco-Villains during the DiC seasons. The opening narration was spoken by David Coburn (Captain Planet) rather than LeVar Burton (Kwame) and, in the final season, was replaced by a rap by
Fred Schneider Frederick William Schneider III (born July 1, 1951) is an American singer, songwriter, arranger, and musician, best known as the frontman of the rock band The B-52's, of which he is a founding member. Schneider is well known for his ''sprechge ...
of
The B-52's The B-52's, also styled as The B-52s, are an American new wave band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1976. The original lineup consisted of Fred Schneider (vocals, percussion), Kate Pierson (vocals, keyboards, synth bass), Cindy Wilson (vocals, ...
.


Legacy

The ''Captain Planet Foundation (CPF)'' was founded in 1991, when series producer Barbara Pyle negotiated a percentage of the show's merchandising revenue to empower young people. The concept allowed schools and organizations around the world to present their environmental projects to the Foundation and receive seed money to grow their ideas. In 2001,
Time Warner Warner Media, LLC ( traded as WarnerMedia) was an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate. It was headquartered at the 30 Hudson Yards complex in New York City, United States. It was originally established in 1972 by ...
decided to shut down the CPF due to a challenging merger with AOL. Laura Seydel and her husband Rutherford Seydel worked with Time Warner to orchestrate the transition of the corporate foundation to a public charity – the Captain Planet Foundation. In 2007, CPF acquired the rights to exhibit previous episodes of Captain Planet and the Planeteers online and on-air, thus "allowing this valuable resource to reach out and educate the children of today!" , the organization's board is chaired by Laura Turner Seydel, daughter of
Ted Turner Robert Edward "Ted" Turner III (born November 19, 1938) is an American entrepreneur, television producer, media proprietor, and philanthropist. He founded the Cable News Network (CNN), the first 24-hour cable news channel. In addition, he ...
; the board includes Barbara Pyle. It was parodied in Episode 3 Season 5 of
Rick and Morty , creator = Justin Roiland and Dan Harmon , developer = , voices = {{plainlist, * Justin Roiland * Chris Parnell * Spencer Grammer * Sarah Chalke * Kari Wahlgren , composer = Ryan Elder , count ...
A Rickconvenient Mort.


Reception

In 1990, ''
The Los Angeles Times ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...
'' described the show as having "not much originality", although also saying that "there’s a passion behind this series, which adapts a conventional super-hero formula to an unconventional theme", also stating that the celebrities voicing the series "also sets the series apart". The newspaper also described the show as being part of "the increased awareness of Earth as endangered". L. Brent Bozell III, a conservative activist, accused the show of "seeking to scare children into political activism", along with accusing the show of having " leftist slants"; Barbara Pyle responded, saying "I don't think 'Captain Planet' is scary ... it shows kids that every action counts ... I consider nvironmental issuesbipartisan." Diane Holloway from Austin American-Statesman wrote, "The animation is crude and jerky, but the messages are important and clear enough for a 4-year old to understand", while Rebecca Coudret from Evansville Courier & Press said she "wondered if hildrenwere simply responding to the basic good vs. evil clash." In 1993, the episode "Dream Machine" won an award at the Environmental Media Awards, and in 1994, the episode "Gorillas Will Be Missed" likewise did. Reviewing season one in 2012, '' IGN'' gave the show a rating of 5 out of 10, describing the animation as "pretty weak" and the stories as "too hokey".


Educational goals

Various episodes were constructed to touch on relevant themes to a modern audience: * "''Mind Pollution''" The episode titled "Mind Pollution" (1991) was notable for dealing with the issue of drug abuse. This was explained by the fact that the characters thought of drug addiction as "pollution of the mind". The episode revolved around an epidemic of a designer drug known as "Bliss" created by Verminous Skumm. It included a scene of Linka's cousin Boris jumping through a window and dying from a drug overdose. * "''Population Bomb''" "Population Bomb" (1991) continued the trend of tackling controversial subject matter atypical for a children's cartoon, in this instance the problem with overpopulation. Using mice as substitutes for humans, the episode sets Wheeler on a Gulliver's Travels style adventure where he encounters a tribe of sentient mice who are destroyed by overpopulation and irresponsible leadership. It turns out that the ordeal is something that Wheeler dreamed up, though it serves as a warning for the audience about sustainability and over-consumption. * "''A Formula for Hate''" The episode titled "A Formula for Hate" (1992) was also unusual for the series in that it was the first episode in an American children's animated series to directly deal with the
HIV/AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual ...
pandemic. In the episode, Skumm and one of his rat henchmen brainwashes a local community into thinking the virus can be spread through casual contact and thus causing people to hate and fear a young man, infected with HIV, named Todd Andrews (voiced by Neil Patrick Harris, with his mother voiced by
Elizabeth Taylor Dame Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor (February 27, 1932 – March 23, 2011) was a British-American actress. She began her career as a child actress in the early 1940s and was one of the most popular stars of classical Hollywood cinema in the 1950s. ...
). Captain Planet tells the truth about AIDS to the entire basketball game with help from Todd's coach. Then Captain Planet catches Skumm and his rat henchman and hand him over to the police.


Franchise extension

Pyle and Boxer demanded that the series' merchandise be made sustainably; because of this, several of the companies producing ''Captain Planet''-themed merchandise had to completely overhaul their means of production to manufacture recycled and recyclable products.


Toys

As with many popular cartoons, ''Captain Planet'' had a line of action figures and vehicles. Released by Tiger Toys in 1990, the line ran for several years, long enough to tie into the ''New Adventures'' series. The toys were repackaged and sold by Grand Toys in Canada and Kenner throughout Europe. The toys were of average poseability, with the common five points – neck, shoulders, and hips. Finding a comprehensive list of what was released is difficult, since not all toys shown in the initial retailer catalog were even released. The collector's market is small, the toys being somewhat rare on
eBay eBay Inc. ( ) is an American multinational e-commerce company based in San Jose, California, that facilitates consumer-to-consumer and business-to-consumer sales through its website. eBay was founded by Pierre Omidyar in 1995 and became ...
. The Captain Planet Foundation still sells a small number of them online, however. There may have also been further foreign variations of certain toys which may be even more difficult to catalog. Various toys from the ''New Adventures'' waves are not as likely to be well known. The five Planeteers, five Eco-Villains, Commander Clash, and several versions of Captain Planet, each with a different gimmick or paint scheme, were released, along with several vehicles. A toy ring with lights and sound and interchangeable lenses for the five elements was also released. Four small vehicles were also sold through a
Burger King Burger King (BK) is an American-based multinational chain of hamburger fast food restaurants. Headquartered in Miami-Dade County, Florida, the company was founded in 1953 as Insta-Burger King, a Jacksonville, Florida–based restaurant ch ...
promotion.


Video games

A video game based on the series was developed for the Nintendo Entertainment System by Mindscape called '' Captain Planet''. The game, which involved a good deal of shooting, received negative reviews from game critics and thus a
Sega Mega Drive The Sega Genesis, known as the outside North America, is a 16-bit fourth generation home video game console developed and sold by Sega. It was Sega's third console and the successor to the Master System. Sega released it in 1988 in Japan as ...
(Genesis) version of the game was cancelled. A separate side-scrolling game was developed by Novalogic for the Mega Drive/Genesis, but only saw release in Europe and Australia. David Perry and Nick Bruty developed a ZX Spectrum and Amstrad CPC game using the license, a 3-level shoot 'em up. A game was also released in 1990 for the Commodore Amiga and
Atari ST The Atari ST is a line of personal computers from Atari Corporation and the successor to the Atari 8-bit family. The initial model, the Atari 520ST, had limited release in April–June 1985 and was widely available in July. It was the first per ...
, written by
Tony Crowther Antony Crowther is a former designer, programmer, and musician of Commodore 64 games. During the 1980s he worked for Alligata, Gremlin Graphics and later his own company, Wizard Development. Career The first computer game he created was a versi ...
. This was a platform game and was briefly bundled with the Amiga 500 "Cartoon Classics" pack released in 1991. A Commodore 64 game was in development but never released. Tiger Toys, owners of the action figure license, also created an LCD hand-held game. Captain Planet appears as a playable character in the fighting game '' Cartoon Network: Punch Time Explosion'' for Nintendo 3DS,
Wii The Wii ( ) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released on November 19, 2006, in North America and in December 2006 for most other regions of the world. It is Nintendo's fifth major home game console, ...
,
PS3 The PlayStation 3 (PS3) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment. The successor to the PlayStation 2, it is part of the PlayStation brand of consoles. It was first released on Novemb ...
, and
Xbox 360 The Xbox 360 is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. As the successor to the original Xbox, it is the second console in the Xbox series. It competed with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generati ...
.


Home media

Turner Home Entertainment originally released VHS tapes of the series, which contained a single episode on each. DIC's main home video distributor
Buena Vista Home Video Buena Vista Home Entertainment, Inc., doing business as Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment, is the home entertainment distribution arm of The Walt Disney Company. The division handles the distribution of Disney's films, television series, an ...
would also release single-episode VHS releases as well. A DVD with four episodes and bonus features exists but was only available as part of a "Planeteer Pack" purchased from the Captain Planet Foundation. This promotional DVD contained the episodes "A River Ran Through It", "A Perfect World", "Gorillas Will Be Missed", and "The Big Clam Up". A short clip titled " Planeteers in Action", which is about the Captain Planet Foundation, is also included. The "Planeteer Pack" special is no longer available. Shout! Factory under license from Turner and
Warner Home Video Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Inc. (formerly known as Warner Home Video and WCI Home Video and sometimes credited as Warner Home Entertainment) is the home video distribution division of Warner Bros. It was founded in 1978 as WCI Home Vide ...
released a DVD set of the complete first season in the U.S. on April 19, 2011. The DVD packaging is made of 100% recycled paper. Madman Entertainment released the first season on July 6, 2016 and the complete collection on October 25, 2017 in Australia. As of March 25, 2017, it is available on
iTunes iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mu ...
for purchase. The whole series was made available on Amazon Instant Video.


Film

Multiple attempts have been made to create a film adaptation of the series. The first occurred in 1996 when Boxer and Pyle wrote a film adaptation of ''Captain Planet'' originally titled ''Planet''. Five years later, Michael Reaves revised the concept as ''Dark Planet'' or ''Planet''. The storyline was darker than the series, and set in a post-apocalyptic time period. However, the script was lost when Turner and Warner Bros. merged in 1996. The film reached the design stage before it was abandoned. Other attempts at a film version were made in 2007, 2011, and 2013, but none of these versions came to pass. In October 2016
Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...
and Leonardo DiCaprio's
Appian Way The Appian Way ( Latin and Italian: ''Via Appia'') is one of the earliest and strategically most important Roman roads of the ancient republic. It connected Rome to Brindisi, in southeast Italy. Its importance is indicated by its common name ...
were attempting to develop a new movie and is in negotiations with Jono Matt and Glen Powell to write the script. The status of the project is unclear since there were no further news of film adaptation.


Comic books

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Comics'' in ...
published a comic series titled ''Captain Planet and the Planeteers''. The series ran twelve issues, cover dated October 1991 through October 1992.


''OK K.O.!'' crossover

In 2017, Captain Planet appeared in a special crossover episode of the
Cartoon Network Cartoon Network (often abbreviated as CN) is an American cable television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. It is a part of The Cartoon Network, Inc., a division that also has the broadcasting and production activities of Boomerang, ...
series ''
OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes ''OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes'' is an American animated television series created by Ian Jones-Quartey for Cartoon Network. The show is based on Jones-Quartey's pilot ''Lakewood Plaza Turbo'', which was released as part of Cartoon Network's 2013 Su ...
'', with David Coburn reprising his role as Captain Planet and LeVar Burton reprising his role as Kwame. The heroes battled Dr. Blight (accompanied by a silent MAL). The episode "The Power Is Yours" aired on October 9, 2017 as part of the first season.


References


External links


Planeteer Movement

Captain Planet Foundation


at Don Markstein's Toonopedia
Archived
from the original on April 9, 2012. * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Captain Planet And The Planeteers 1990s American animated television series 1990 American television series debuts 1996 American television series endings American children's animated action television series American children's animated adventure television series American children's animated education television series American children's animated science fantasy television series American children's animated superhero television series Animated television series about teenagers Eco-terrorism in fiction Environmental television English-language television shows Fictional conservationists and environmentalists Fictional sextets Television series by DIC Entertainment Television series by Hanna-Barbera Hanna-Barbera superheroes Marvel Comics superheroes TBS (American TV channel) original programming Hanna-Barbera comics Children's comics Educational comics Comics based on television series Classical mythology in popular culture Overpopulation fiction Teen superhero television series Television series by Studio T Television series by Warner Bros. Television Studios Television shows adapted into comics Television shows adapted into video games Television shows about drugs