“The reason I went to work for Ted Turner in the first place was because he gave me editorial freedom,” Pyle says, adding that she couldn’t have made Captain Planet without one other collaborator. Suffice to say, the long-running series covered issues no children’s cartoon had dared broach before. Overfishing, species extinction, wildlife poaching, irresponsible waste disposal, and whaling factored into some episodes, while others tackled poverty, unsustainable food production and consumption, land degradation, and rising ocean temperatures. These ominous words paved the way for the next 112 episodes. “They’re going to destroy my planet if they keep going on like this.” “It’s those poor, silly humans again,” Gaia laments. We see grim images of deforestation, plastic waste, and nuclear runoff, as well as pollution across the land, air, and sea. The following scenes show Gaia reflecting on human activity and unsustainable practices across the preceding 100 years on Earth. Greedly, in other words, represents corporate greed at its worst. During his quest to make millions from the oil industry, he razes a pristine forest and sends animals scampering to safety. In the opening scenes, Greedly bulldozes through a wildlife sanctuary. In many senses, the hero and his Planeteers were not fighting traditional comic-book baddies.Įpisode 1, “A Hero for the Earth,” introduced viewers to Hoggish Greedly, voiced by the late Ed Asner. The show’s premiere made it clear that Captain Planet would tackle complex problems. The entire creation of Captain Planet happened in the span of one hour.” “The first character I came up with was Gaia, and then the Planeteers came flowing out. “Well, I went bonkers and just started talking,” Pyle says. At an executive meeting with the eco-minded media mogul Ted Turner, she was shown cut-outs of a superhero and told his name would be ‘Captain Planet.’ The year was 1989, and Pyle was Corporate Vice President of Environmental Policy at Turner Broadcasting System. We had to make our eco-hero unique.”īarbara Pyle with her creation, Captain Planet, in 2011. “All I can say is thank goodness that I came up with these five Planeteers,” Pyle says. He not only exists but thrives through the combined powers of teenagers who need him. And when earth, fire, wind, water, and heart were combined, Captain Planet appeared to save the world.Ĭaptain Planet co-creator Barbara Pyle tells Inverse that, without the Planeteers, Captain Planet would be indistinguishable from any other superhero. Racially and geographically diverse, the Planeteers were gifted rings by Gaia, the spirit of the Earth. Captain Planet could only appear when summoned by a team of five young heroes, known as Planeteers. “The entire creation of Captain Planet happened in the span of one hour.” He was unlike any other superhero the world had seen. He fought villains with names like Verminous Skumm and Looten Plunder, took on corporate greed, and tackled pollution with the same valor. TBSĬaptain Planet hit the scene with skin as blue as the sky and a green mullet that symbolized nature and forests. Captain Planet emerged on the scene with skin as blue as the sky and a green mullet that symbolized nature and forests.
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