The Creators – David Pepose – Writer, Eman Casallos – Artist, Jorge Sutil – Colours, Jeff Eckleberry – Letters

The Players – Captain Planet, Gaia, Kwame Aboagye, James Wheeler, Linda Aleksandrovina, Gi Seung-Hyun, Ma-Ti Yañez, Lucien Plunder

The Story – Someone is after the power of Captain Planet. So far, they have not been successful.

The Take – The scene is Hope Island where a force of men are after the woman named Gaia and the five powerful rings she wears. She has never used them before, but desperate times call for desperate measures and so she summons forth the avatar called Captain Planet. He saves the day, at first, but a uranium bullet puts him down and Gaia is captured. Thankfully, she sends the rings off in search of new owners, who hopefully have what it takes to wield them with the best intentions. Writer David Pepose and artist Eman Casallos take the lead on this new title from Dynamite, a new take on the animated television show Captain Planet. The book starts off with a bang and while it might slow down the pace in its final act, it remains an excellent read with a bit of a cliffhanger to keep those reading it coming back for more. Casallos tweaks the classic design of the hero just a little bit and it is for the best as he looks far more heroic in stature. Pepose also gives Planet a little bit of history, and background for those who might be new to the property or for those who grew up watching the cartoon. It seems Captain Planet is quite old and while he might have been fighting the good fight for a very long time, this modern age might hold a few surprises for him as evidenced by the man who took him down. Pepose also introduces the main cast of characters, with their full names surprisingly, and they seem like a good bunch of people though how and when they get together remains to be seen. Another big question that lies unanswered is the fate of Captain Planet. Was he recalled to that nether realm after the rings were dispersed or was he captured somehow by those villains looking to get the rings in the first place. Should he be okay, when might he make another appearance given the owners of the rings now seem to be at different corners of the Earth? Finally, what role does Gaia play in all of this and will she continue to play a role in the story or will she meet her fate before all is said and done? Suffice it to say, this was a fun read with a slightly darker tone than the television series had when it first aired. It is exactly what the book needs to keep it from devolving into something too juvenile and one can only hope that it is a title that sticks around for some time to come.

Worth It? – Yes.