THE POWER IS YOURS!!!!! - New Release Tuesday brings us CAPTAIN PLANET:SEASON 1

Captain Planet And The Planeteers: Season One

"With your powers combined, I am Captain Planet!"

This Tuesday doesn't seem to be brimming with geeky new releases, but I did see that the first season of the now vintage kid's cartoon about the environment is available today. I DVR'd a whole bunch of these from Boomerang (I love that channel) a few years back and, I have to say, it doesn't really hold up as a beacon of quality, but the nostalgia factor still makes it entertaining. The theme song is especially guaranteed to crawl out of the recesses of your mind if you grew up watching this.

For those of you who were never exposed to the glory of Captain Planet and his team of Planeteers, let me explain it to you:

Gaia, the earth spirit, gives five magic rings to multinational teenagers, each with a ridiculous name, because the Earth needs their protection from a roster of Eco-Villains voiced by the likes of Jeff Goldblum, Martin Sheen, Ed Asner, and Meg Ryan plus many more. Each of these rings has a power tied to one of the four elements, with a fifth ring imbued with the ambiguous power of "Heart".

When the teens combine their powers, they bring about Captain Planet, a Superman like demigod with ridiculous hair and an extreme allergy to pollution, which saps his powers. That's good because his main purpose for existing is to fight...well... pollution. Pollution and villains who exist to make pollution. I swear I once saw an episode where one of them made a factory that seemed to make only pollution. No other products, or even energy production... just lots and lots of sludge. What kind of business model is that?

The environmental message is at times not in line with current thoughts on certain issues, and feels pretty heavy handed throughout. Still, it does encourage a positive attitude towards the environment, so that's good.

This set includes the complete first season of episodes over four discs. It's light on special features with only some concept art, and a featurette "The Power is Yours: The Story of Captain Planet."

Remember, The Power Is Yours!!!

It's finally on it's way! Star Wars on Blu-Ray!