Captain Planet: Hero, Monomyth, Jesus?

Captain Planet was a popular children’s television hero. He was a hero for the environment predominantly but also had moral considerations. Captain Planet was supported by five planeteers, each of which had power over the five elements – earth, wind, fire, water, heart. Together, Captain Planet and the Planeteers combatted the evil pollution of their enemies.

There are many ways in which Captain Planet is a hero based on the criteria of Campbells monomyth. Namely his call to purpose which is set out in the opening narration of the program;

"Our world is in peril. Gaia, the spirit of the Earth, can no longer withstand the destruction plaguing our planet. She sends five rings to five special young people: Kwame, from Africa, with the power of Earth... From North America, Wheeler, with the power of Fire... From The Soviet Union^note then former Soviet Union, then just Eastern Europe, Linka, with the power of Wind. From Asia, Gi, with the power of Water... and from South America, Ma-Ti with the power of Heart. With the five powers combined they summon Earth's greatest champion, Captain Planet."

Furthermore, in each episode, Captain Planet and the Planeteers face trials and tribulations that pose a threat to achieving their purpose. Supernatural power is harnessed by Captain Planet and the Planeteers through their magic rings, fulfilling another element of Campbell’s Monomyth. Captain Planet's enemies, the polluters are represented as pollutiong because they are evil or dark. The stark contrast of light and dark in this series setup a dynamic of a heroic tale.

Similarly, it is evident that there are some parallels that could represent Captain Planet as a Christic figure. His leadership of five planeteers could be seen as Christic leadership of the apostles. The Planeteers are also gathered from all corners of the world by a greater power. This resembles the open and indiscriminate nature of Jesus represented in the bible.

However, as Deacy suggests in his article, are parallels made by viewers enough to qualify a character as a christic figure? If the character is not explicitly intended as a Christic figure, is the theological or spiritual message still valid. There are too few parallels and the context is too far removed to consider Captain Planet as a Christ figure. However, Captain Planet’s popularity says much for the diversity of spirituality in today’s society.

Captain Planet - although no longer commercially aired – has seen a resurgence in pop culture of late, Particularly in social media and visual communication mediums such as memes, apps and games. No doubt, this is a reflection of the increased environmental conscience present within modern society. Increasingly, environmental concern and belief in the purpose of life being to protect the environment is revealing a new form of spirituality. As Carrette and King suggest, modern spiritualties are adapting to the state of the commercial world and negotiating its beliefs within the framework of the repercussions and issues surrounding capitalism, commercialism and globalisation.

Sources:

Carrette J. and R. King. 2102. Spirituality and the Re-branding of Religion. In Lynch G. and J. Mitchell with A. Strhan. Eds., Religion, Media and Culture: A Reader. 59-70. London and New York: Routledge

 Deacy C. 2006. Reflections on the Uncritical Appropriation of Cinematic Christ-Figures: Holy Other or Wholly Inadequate? Journal of Religion and Popular Culture, 13, Summer. http://www.usask.ca/relst/jrpc/art13-reflectcinematicchrist.html

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/WesternAnimation/CaptainPlanetAndThePlaneteers?from=Main.CaptainPlanetAndThePlaneteers

http://orias.berkeley.edu/hero/JourneyStages.pdf

Picture Source:

http://boxseattv.blogspot.com.au/2011/07/casting-gritty-captain-planet-movie.html