I promise I won't get all political as I talk about this show; I actually think it had a great idea behind it, but it starts to look really dumb if one takes a second to think about anything besides, "Oh this is a cartoon about saving the environment! Just what the world needs!"
I find the idea of a bunch of kids of different nationalities and ethnicities putting aside their differences for the greater good impeccable. Especially when their goal is something like reducing trash, pollution and deforestation and the like, because people just don't think about that kind of thing enough. But if you think about it, the way the show presents this message kind of falls apart. Think about this: we have a nigh-omnipotent planetary spirit who entrusts the future of her planet to five kids. Why does she need them to do it? Why can't she do it herself? Never says. The message of kids being in charge of saving the ecological good of the world is also hurt because they inevitably leave the hard work to somebody else, their pun-spewing genie in a bottle, Captain Planet. Seriously, even when I was a kid and really liked this show, I would be all "they really need him to help with this?" I figure the creators put him in because they figured the show's chances were better with a superhero, but I think it hurts their point that kids need to help the save the environment too if the kids they're using as models are just handing off the responsibilities left and right.
And there's other things, like characters being good or bad and nothing in between (none of them realize that if they destroyed the ozone layer and cut down all the tress they'd die), and some episodes seeming to say if you're environmentally correct you're exempt from the law (various episodes of the Planeteers breaking into and tearing apart a bad guy's office or invading private property without a search warrant, and getting away with it because they're on the side of earth), and other things that are just not healthy to teach kids. Like I said, I like the idea a whole lot. But the presentation just doesn't cut the mustard.
I find the idea of a bunch of kids of different nationalities and ethnicities putting aside their differences for the greater good impeccable. Especially when their goal is something like reducing trash, pollution and deforestation and the like, because people just don't think about that kind of thing enough. But if you think about it, the way the show presents this message kind of falls apart. Think about this: we have a nigh-omnipotent planetary spirit who entrusts the future of her planet to five kids. Why does she need them to do it? Why can't she do it herself? Never says. The message of kids being in charge of saving the ecological good of the world is also hurt because they inevitably leave the hard work to somebody else, their pun-spewing genie in a bottle, Captain Planet. Seriously, even when I was a kid and really liked this show, I would be all "they really need him to help with this?" I figure the creators put him in because they figured the show's chances were better with a superhero, but I think it hurts their point that kids need to help the save the environment too if the kids they're using as models are just handing off the responsibilities left and right.
And there's other things, like characters being good or bad and nothing in between (none of them realize that if they destroyed the ozone layer and cut down all the tress they'd die), and some episodes seeming to say if you're environmentally correct you're exempt from the law (various episodes of the Planeteers breaking into and tearing apart a bad guy's office or invading private property without a search warrant, and getting away with it because they're on the side of earth), and other things that are just not healthy to teach kids. Like I said, I like the idea a whole lot. But the presentation just doesn't cut the mustard.