Reminiscing Part 2 (of many)

So, I've come to the conclusion that four cartoon intros/reminisces are too many to fit in one blog post. It's too unwieldy, and there's more to say than what I did say. So I'm gonna try doing one at a time, see how that works. 'Course, that might take me awhile, but oh well. Gives me something to strive for, and (relatively) new content every now and then.

Captain Planet: Originally broadcast September 1990 to May 1996

Oh yes, I went there. The ultimate in enviro-hippie cartoons, Captain Planet was about five kids with magic rings who, when needed, could summon "Earth's greatest hero." No, not Superman, but Captain Planet. Each of the kids came from a different part of the globe (Africa, North America, USSR, Asia, South America), giving the show a pretty balanced cast for an early-90s cartoon - the American, of course, was from New York City. The Soviet girl, later had her origin changed to "Eastern Europe" after the USSR collapsed - something of which I had only the very vaguest of notions. More interestingly, each ring gave command/power over one of the classical elements (Earth, Fire, Wind, Water) - with the fifth being labeled "Heart" - which always seemed to me kinda vagueish and undefined, wishy-washy, but also potentially the most powerful. Sure, the Earth guy can shape the very ground you stand on, the Fire guy can blast you with flaming destruction, the Wind girl can create a tornado, and the Water girl can potentially do all sorts of nasty things. But "Heart," from what I can recall, was some sort of empathic/mental connection type thing... usually used to make villains feel bad, or get some local critters to help, or be a general moral conscious type thing. On the other hand... it could also be used to, oh, inflame mobs, influence public opinion, even if only subtly... maybe even mind control. How fortunate that the kid with the "Heart" ring was also the most innocent/pure, morally upright... etc., etc. And of course the different elements fit with each kid's personality... steady and reliable African dude, hotheaded American, piercing/logical Russian, flexible/adaptable Asian-of-unspecified-origin (though likely Chinese I'd guess).

Other good things... oh yeah, I really wanted their solar-powered plane. And I never could figure out which ring I'd have wanted. There was a particular episode I vaguely remember that dealt with drug addiction which I found a little bit frightening.... granted, I was a little kid, but I seem to remember one of the Planeteers actually becoming an addict. After all, one of the show's messages was keeping yourself pollution-free as well. Also, I was annoyed by the PSA's at the end of each show... I'd've preferred more time for actual show and plot, and they were boringly repetitive.

Anyway though... can you imagine what people would be saying if this show debuted today? "Bleeding-heart liberals and their godless heathen tv shows..." Seriously... kids recruited by "the Spirit of the Earth" and fighting to save the planet from caricatures of all the classic environmentalist bugaboos? But you know what? I watched it, and if I'd had kids then, I'd want them to be watching something like this too. Great escapist stuff and with an important core message that Smokey the Bear would be proud of.

Oh... and Linka (the Russian girl) was probably one of my earlier TV crushes as a little eight year old. Yeah, she was a cartoon... and?

Bonus material: The end credits, and the theme song that probably is Cap's most lasting contribution to pop culture.