Captain Power

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Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future
Image:Cp-poster.jpg
Format Science fiction
Starring Tim Dunigan
Country of origin Canada
No. of episodes 22 (+3 Cartoons and Compilation TV Movie)
Production
Running time approx. 22 minutes (per episode)
Broadcast
Original run September 1, 1987 – March 27, 1988
External links
IMDb profile

Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future was a syndicated 1987-88 television series that ran for 22 episodes. During each episode there was a segment that included visual and audio material intended for the toys. Viewers could purchase the toys and then play a sort of video game interacting with the television program. Though billed primarily as a children's show, it gained more than its share of adult fans through its serious storyline, elaborate special-effects and combat themed action.[1]

Contents

[edit] Comic book

The show also spurred a short-lived comic-book of the same name illustrated by Neal Adams with stories by J. Michael Straczynski, who was also the series story editor, writing half the episodes and providing stories or outlines for many more.

[edit] General plot

The storyline was set on Earth in the 22nd century following the Metal Wars, a cybernetic revolt that had resulted in the subjugation of humanity by intelligent machines. Captain Jonathan Power and a small group of guerrilla fighters battle the machine forces that dominate a future Earth.

[edit] Criticism and cancellation

Captain Power attempted to appeal to both children and adult audiences. Ultimately, this became the show's undoing after coming under fire for being too violent for children (e.g. toys for shooting at the television, live-action violence) as well as driving away adult audiences with its more childish aspects (e.g. the show's title). Other major contributing factors included the higher cost of a children's live-action show (each episode cost an estimated $1 million to produce) compared to the cheaper production costs of a cartoon, as well as the fact that the gameplay between the show and the toys was extremely poor. Poor timeslot choices also contributed to the show's undoing -- it was sold to syndication as opposed to a regular network timeslot, which resulted in some television stations airing it in the 5-6am timeslot on Sunday mornings. The subsequent poor ratings hastened the show's demise. In an article from Starlog #128 written by Marc Shapiro with quotes from one of the writers of the show, Larry DiTillio, there are the following statements: [2]

But for all those noble sentiments, Captain Power, to the public at large, is perceived as just another excuse to sell toys. It is a notion that rubs story editor Larry DiTillio the wrong way.

"We're not writing stories with the idea of turning each episode of Captain Power into a video game," declares DiTillio. But DiTillio, a first season staff writer who became story editor when J. Michael Straczynski (Starlog #111) left the position for a similar post with the revived Twilight Zone, claimed that ramrodding the script side of Captain Power hasn't been easy.

"This show has definitely not made my life easier," chuckles DiTillio. "This is not just another kid's cartoon show. The writing is always to an adult level. There is the interactivity which has been centered mainly in the battle sequences but we aren't in a position of having to write X amount of animation and interactivity into each episode. I want to make it very clear that around here, we're working for the story."

There is a tone of desperation in DiTillio's voice as he defends the writing integrity of Captain Power. It's a desperation resulting from dealing with cliché story submissions that have come streaming in amid the confusion about how childlike or adult Captain Power is. "People are coming in with the same old stories," DiTillio laments. "I'm getting Star Trek, Star Wars and Terminator. If I wanted another Terminator, I would call James Cameron."

[3] J.Michael Straczynski commented about the show's cancellation and the planned second season.

Re: Captain Power "...Yeah, that's a show that is an example of what to strive for, and how sometimes good intentions can get derailed. We genuinely wanted to come up with a long-term story, and by and large, we succeeded. The problem was the marketing in front of the show, and the merchandising behind the show...we got killed from both sides."

"There's an entire second season of unproduced CP scripts, story edited by Larry DiTillio, in which he follows up on the arc that I and others established during the first season. You would have found out what Dread became, what happened to Power's mother, where Eden was (and there would be direct contact), what the secret was in Soaron's programming, and so on."

[edit] Story

Each episode began with the following introduction and recap of the storyline:

" 'Power On.'

"Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future.

"Earth 2147. The legacy of The Metal Wars, where man fought machines -- and machines won.

"Biodreads. Monstrous creations that hunt down human survivors and digitize them. Volcania. Center of the biodread empire. Stronghold and fortress of Lord Dread, feared ruler of this new order.

"But from the fires of the Metal Wars arose a new breed of warrior. Born and trained to bring down Lord Dread and his biodread empire.

"They were Soldiers of the Future. Mankind's last hope.

"Their leader, Captain Jonathan Power. Master of the incredible power suits, which transform each soldier into a one-man attack force. Major Matthew 'Hawk' Masterson, fighter in the sky. Lieutenant Michael 'Tank' Ellis, ground assault unit. Sergeant Robert 'Scout' Baker, espionage and communications. And Corporal Jennifer 'Pilot' Chase, tactical systems expert.

"Together they form the most powerful fighting force in Earth's history. Their creed: to protect all life. Their promise: to end Lord Dread's rule. Their name: Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future!"

By the year 2132 advanced robotic soldiers known as Biomechs replaced human soldiers in the armed forces of the world's nations. The existence of Biomechs meant that wars could be fought without significant loss of human lives, thus transforming the concept of war into a nearly harmless battle between machines. Wars became an every-day event. A group of scientists, led by Dr. Stuart Gordon Power, began working on an advanced supercomputer capable of overriding the control systems employed by the militaries of the world to operate the Biomechs, and stop them, bringing an end to war.

XT-7 Jet
XT-7 Jet

This supercomputer, known as OverMind, required an equivalent to human brain patterns to become operational. Dr. Power's closest associate, Lyman Taggart, became impatient with the slow pace of the project and hooked himself up to OverMind, using his own brain patterns to bring the supercomputer to operational status.

Both Taggart and OverMind were changed by the experience. Taggart became obsessed with the precision and "perfection" of machines, and convinced himself that the next step in human evolution involved the merging of human consciousness in perfect mechanic bodies. OverMind became sentient, and shared Taggart's beliefs. Using OverMind to take control of Biomech armies throughout the world, Taggart launched a crusade to bring his vision to life. In mere months, the world was devastated by the Metal Wars, an apocalyptic conflict between Taggart's machine legions and the rest of humanity.

Desperate, the world governments turned to Dr. Power to find a way to stop Taggart. He developed the "Power Suits", exoskeletal armors coupled with advanced weapons. But before testing this new weapon, Dr. Power died trying to rescue his son Jonathan from Taggart. Taggart himself was severely wounded, and OverMind "repaired" him by transforming Taggart into a cyborg. Discarding his previous identity, Lyman Taggart became Lord Dread.

The year is 2147. Fifteen years have passed since the beginning of the Metal Wars. Humanity was largely annihilated by Lord Dread's forces, and those who survived live miserable existences in hiding. To bring his ideal, Dread turned to "digitize" human beings, storing them within OverMind. His armies roam the world seeking humans to digitize. These Biomech armies are usually led by BioDreads, advanced sentient machines, or by human officers and troopers loyal to Dread, who controls the world from his headquarters in Volcania, somewhere in North America.

There are still human resistance groups that battle Dread's empire. Some are mere bands, and there is at least one major resistance network (the East Coast Resistance). The most famous of these groups is the one known as the "Soldiers of the Future", led by Dr. Power's son Jonathan.

Holding the rank of Captain, Jonathan Power leads a group of five soldiers against Dread's forces. His soldiers use the Power Suits developed by the late Dr. Power, making them far more effective in dealing with the Biomechs.

[edit] "Project New Order"

During the first (and only) season of the show there was an ongoing story arc involving "Project New Order"; Lord Dread's plan to eradicate human life and develop his ideal world. This plan consisted of four stages: Styx (the release of a powerful toxin into the human population), Charon (the creation of an army of advanced BioDreads), Icarus (the construction of a massive orbital platform capable of digitizing the population of entire continents at once) and Prometheus (the release of a plasma storm capable of scorching the surface of Earth).

Captain Power's group used a system of teleportation portals both to move quickly around the North American continent and to keep their base's location secret. At the conclusion of the first season Lord Dread broke the codes used to operate this system and sent forces to assault the base. Power and most of his team escaped the facility, but Jennifer 'Pilot' Chase was cornered inside and triggered the self-destruct mechanism manually.

Straczynski was the writer of the last episode of the series in which Pilot has died. He commented about it revealing that the scene was inspired by an event of his past.[4]

"I've never talked about this before -- said I was in a thoughtful mood -- but I've known several people, friends, who've taken their own lives. In one case, I spoke to her just beforehand. Tried, through the phone lines, to reach her one more time, pull her back from the edge. I couldn't. Years pass. Time comes for me to write the last filmed episode of Power."

"Jennifer Chase is going to die, partly of her injuries, partly of her own volition. Part of my life went into that scene, in the way it was constructed, and what was said. And what was not said, what never had the chance to be said, and thus still burns. I knew that, at the crucial moment of that scene, he couldn't be near her, as I wasn't near my friend...it had to be long-distance,hearing but not seeing her, and the terrible pain of arriving too late. I cannot watch that episode without crying. Ever."

[edit] Proposed second season

Had the show not ended with the first season, plans for the second season entailed an anguished Captain Power neglecting his duties as the leader of the team and becoming more of a maverick revenge seeker. Major Hawk (who technically outranked Captain Power, a fact that was never explained in the show) would have taken on more of a leadership role with the team in Power's absence, while a new female member of the team by the name of "Ranger" was to become Tank's love interest. Also, returning and ultimately joining the team would be Private Chip "TNT" Morrow.

[edit] Adult storyline

One of the most interesting aspects of Captain Power was the fact that a great majority of the storyline was filled with romance and intrigue, which was made for the adults who watched the show with their children -- who more often played with the toy (below). Thus, the story was filled with romantic kisses, sexual innuendo, and occasionally scenes which implied sexual encounters between characters. Mild profanity was also present; "damn" was said on at least one occasion, and just before her death, Pilot told Blastaar to "go to hell" in response to his order to surrender. In addition, the violent death of one of the major ongoing characters in the series (detailed above) was also an unusual development for a children's series.

[edit] Action figures & interactive game

Captain Power was an attempt to cash in on the interactive television game market by Mattel. Some ships and playsets, when firing at the screen, would interact during various segments of the Saturday morning TV program. Video releases were available as well.
In 1988, a second and slightly more scarce series was released. The Dread Trooper and Dread Commander are still unconfirmed if they were ever released. Pictures of these figures were shown in the Mattel dealer catalog.

The first interactive toy and game for the series was a toy XT-7 jet with a video cassette. There were three tapes in all. "Future Force Training", "Bio Dread Strike Mission", and "Raid on Volcania". The tapes had openings and closings in live action with the cast of the television show. The actual mission itself was animated and took place in the jet cockpit from the pilot/player's point of view. Players would hold the toy jet and face the screen. The toy was actually a sort of light gun that responded to signals from the television playing the tape. The more you fired at appropriate magenta colored targets on the screen, the more points the toy jet would rack up. The more times the sensor on the toy jet got "hit", the more points the jet would lose. Upon reaching zero points, the cockpit would eject automatically. The XT-7 also could interact with the live action television broadcast in the same manner. Since the "game" was only a VHS tape, the missions played out the same way all the time. Other interactive objects in this series were the "Phantom Stryker" Bio Dread ship, the "Interlocker Throne" for Lord Dred which consisted of a stationary tank on a tripod and an optional target viewer that could be taken on and off, and the "Power On" platform which one could plug the Captain Power figure into and whenever the transformation was triggered on screen or the base was fired at by one of the other vehicles, the toy would immediately trigger the "Power On" sequence causing the chest of the figure to glow.

  • Future Force Training
As you prepare for your flight training as one of the Soldiers of the Future, Captain Power himself takes you on a simulated flight mission aboard the PowerJet XT-7. This tape was included in some editions of the XT-7.
  • Bio Dread Strike Mission
This is the real thing ! Your target is a massive Bio Dread military industrial complex - which is manufacturing robotic troopers. Corporal Jennifer "Pilot" Chase and Captain Jonathan Power will be flying with you. Human survivors are depending on you!
  • Raid on Volcania
Soaron is leading the attack, backed up by hundreds of Interlockers and Phantom Striker jets ! Captain Power, Major Hawk Masterson, Corporal Pilot Chase and you - seem to be hopelessly outnumbered. In desperation, the team targets the battle computers in Volcania.

[edit] Episodes

Season 1

  • "Shattered"
  • "Wardogs"
  • "The Abyss"
  • "Final Stand"
  • "Pariah"
  • "The Mirror in Darkness"
  • "A Fire in the Dark"
  • "The Room" (never aired)
  • "The Ferryman"
  • "And Study War No More"
  • "The Intruder"
  • "The Rose of Yesterday" (never aired)
  • "Flame Street"
  • "Gemini and Counting"
  • "And Madness Shall Reign"
  • "Judgement"
  • "A Summoning of Thunder" (Pt. 1)
  • "A Summoning of Thunder" (Pt. 2)
  • "The Eden Road"
  • "Freedom One"
  • "New Order: "The Sky Shall Swallow Them" (Pt. 1)
  • "New Order: The Land Shall Burn" (Pt. 2)
  • "Retribution" (Pt. 1)
  • "Retribution" (Pt. 2)

[edit] The cast

  • Tim Dunigan .... Capt. Jonathan Power
    • Master of the incredible powersuits, which transform each soldier into a one-man attack force.
  • Peter MacNeill .... Maj. Matthew 'Hawk' Masterson
    • Fighter in the sky.
  • Sven-Ole Thorsen .... Lt. Michael 'Tank' Ellis
    • Ground assault unit.
  • Maurice Dean Wint .... Sgt. Robert 'Scout' Baker
    • Espionage and communications.
  • Jessica Steen .... Cpl. Jennifer 'Pilot' Chase
    • Tactical systems expert.
  • David Hemblen .... Lord Dread/Lyman Taggart
    • Feared ruler of the BioDread Empire
  • Bruce Gray .... Mentor/Dr. Stuart Gordon Power
  • Deryck Hazel .... Soaron (voice)
    • The first BioDread created
  • Tedd Dillon .... Overmind (voice)
Image:Blastarr.jpg
Blastarr
  • John Davies .... Blastarr (voice)
    • The Second BioDread created
  • Don Francks .... Lacchi (voice)
  • Kelly Bricher .... Overunit Wilson
  • Lorne Cossette .... Col. Cypher

[edit] References

  1. ^ Captain Power Controvery on CNN
  2. ^ Captain Power and the Soldiers of the Future Feature Article
  3. ^ JMSNews
  4. ^ JMS Genie Message on Oct 18 1993

[edit] External links