Bosslogic has offered fans a look at what a Captain Planet movie would look like, and the marvelous inspiration illustrates infinite possibilities.
When it comes to superheroes and '90s cartoons, Captain Planet doesn't rank very high in either category to most people. The cartoon, despite its positive environmentalist message, was notoriously cheesy, even for its time. With annoying teen characters, hilariously awful villains and a flamboyantly ugly title hero, the show aged poorly even back when it was released. The current superhero craze has allowed several capes and comic book franchises to be adapted into intense, crowd-pleasing blockbusters. Even Aquaman, once a joke within popular culture, starred in a record-breaking box office smash hit. Now, Bosslogic has offered fans a look at what a similar treatment to a Captain Planet movie poster would look like, and the marvelous inspiration behind the piece illustrates the infinite possibilities.
GREAT GAEA
The poster features the torso of the titular hero in the background, with the highly detailed costume being a vast improvement over the original look. The chest in particular heavily resembles some of the modern looks of Superman, namely his appearance in the DCEU, as well as his costumes in the Injustice video games. What's emphasized in the foreground is the most impressive part, however. Captain Planet shows off his intricately detailed gauntlet, which dives into an Earth-shaped crest on the back of his hand. Meanwhile, his usually unadorned fingers wield all five of the planeteer rings. In the cartoon, Captain Planet, despite the title, was actually something of a minor character. He would be summoned at the climax of each episode to foil the villain's dastardly plan and was as much of a developed character as the Power Rangers' Megazord. This summoning was conducted by the Planeteers, who combined the elemental powers of their rings to bring the environmental hero forth. Their absence in this poster, and Captain Planet's wearing their rings, suggests a far different setup than the cartoon, however.
INFINITE ENVIRONMENTALISM
The emphasis on the rings, which all glow with different bright colors, is highly reminiscent of Thanos and the Infinity Gauntlet. The posters for Avengers: Infinity War similarly emphasized the Infinity Gauntlet and the Infinity Stones, with the villain finally taking center stage in the film after years of being hinted at behind the scenes. Intent more than ever on getting all of the Infinity Stones, Thanos directly takes on everyone standing in his way to bring about population balance and restoration throughout the cosmos. While it might seem weird to draw a parallel between the Mad Titan and Captain Planet of all people, a previous version of the work might explain BossLogic's... logic. This piece is actually a slight reworking of one released on Instagram in 2018, the same year as Avengers: Infinity War. The overly dramatic caption accompanying the image reveals a far darker story than the classic cartoon every showcased. The fake film's premise has the Planeteers apparently dead, with Captain Planet left in possession of their rings. The power drives him insane, causing him to enact his own environmental will upon the planet, no matter the cost. This is almost a carbon copy of Thanos' plan in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, as his goal is to eliminate the rampant consumption of natural resources caused by overpopulation. Ironically, two different episodes of Captain Planet and the Planeteers dealt with the threat of overpopulation. Many critics of the cartoon saw its environmental message as almost misanthropic, a sentiment which again matches Thanos' own lack of regard for human life. Unfortunately for Captain Planet, if this premise were to be used to actually give him a cool movie, it would literally cost him everything.
