History Series / CaptainPowerAndTheSoldiersOfTheFuture

* AirstrikeImpossible: The StarWars-style trench run against the control center for the Icarus Platform.

* ShoutOut: To StarWars's Trench Run during the assault on Volcania. The ending credits recycle this scene, presumably to allow kids to interact with it with the toys.

(And before anyone points it out, there were indeed earlier experiments in "interactive television", probably starting with ''WinkyDink'', or even on radio with ''Doctor Christian''. But the appearance of an interactive aspect in ''Captain Power'' seems to be part of a specific drive that went on at this time.)

The series celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2012 with a long-awaited DVD release. In late 2012, executive producer Gary Goddard announced that a revival of ''CaptainPower'' was beginning development under the name ''Phoenix Rising''. Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens have been tapped as showrunners.

The show was a relatively early TV example of [[{{Dystopia}} dystopian]] CyberPunk, and, though ostensibly aimed at children, was so dark and violent (AnyoneCanDie, which means people got KilledOffForReal) that one wonders how many parents were really comfortable letting their children watch it. All the same, it is difficult to believe that Creator/JMichaelStraczynski (later of ''Series/BabylonFive'' fame) was one of the creative minds behind it. (He did leave the show, though, when level of merchandising became ''really'' excessive in his opinion.) Other big Sci-Fi creators involved in the show were Larry [=DiTillio=] (of ''WesternAnimation/BeastWars'' fame), ''New ComicBook/TeenTitans'' creator Marv Wolfman, veteran novelist and scriptwriter Michael Reaves, and Marc Scott Zicree of ''Series/TheTwilightZone Companion'' and ''Literature/MagicTime'' fame. ''ComicBook/HowardTheDuck'' creator Steve Gerber was also slated to write for the unproduced second season.

* MechaMooks: The Dread Troopers

** TheBigGuy: Lieutenant Michael "[[MightyGlacier Tank]]" Ellis. The team's heavy weapon and StoneWall, short on character development.

* PuttingOnTheReich: Dread's Human goons are all dressed as Nazis. Interestingly, the actor playing Taggart/Dread also looks frightening similar to AdolfHitler, sans the iconic mustache.

* DownerEnding: And HOW! (But only because of ExecutiveMeddling as detailed below.)
** It doesn't count as BittersweetEnding because [[spoiler:not only is Pilot dead and the heroes' base destroyed, Lord Dread clearly won the day and is last seen preparing for an cybernetic upgrade to make him even less human, meaning the war is about to get worse.]]

* DaveBarry: He brought up the series in one of his columns and in particular noted the ship that can fire at enemies on the screen. "[A toy company spokesperson] did not say whether it also would work on Geraldo Rivera."

The series will celebrate its 25th anniversary in 2012 with a long-awaited DVD release.

In late 2012, executive producer Gary Goddard announced that a revival of ''CaptainPower'' was beginning development under the name ''Phoenix Rising''. Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens have been tapped as showrunners.

* ApocalypseHow: The series starts off at Class 2, with only isolated pockets of civilization still around. Overmind is aiming specifically for a Class 3a; given the scope and methods of Project New Order, it could end up as a Class 4.

Beyond the strobing villains, the special effects in the show made extensive use of CGI, and it was the first TV show to use CGI extensively. Watching it now, one can see why, since the computer-generated characters and sequences are of lower quality than one can achieve on the typical PC of today using only free software such as DAZ|Studio, POV-Ray and Blender. Still, at the time, it was mind-blowing.

* ExecutiveMeddling: In an article from ''Starlog'' magazine, the writers and producers talked about how the series was going to become DarkerAndEdgier (as if it weren't dark and edgy already) and break away from the half-hour commercial format that Mattel wanted. Amongst the [[WhatCouldHaveBeen highlights that were mentioned]] included Overmind and Dread simply forgetting the whole idea of digitizing humanity in favor of simply exterminating them wholesale, LaResistance picking up a DarkActionGirl (callsign Ranger) to replace Pilot's loss, Power slowly eroding towards a HeroicBSOD while Hawk ended up becoming the de facto group leader, and eventually Soaron doing a HeelFaceTurn when it becomes clear he's been replaced by Blastarr as TheDragon. Needless to say, the head honchos at Mattel were pissed at the season finale - which would have signalled the beginning of the shift - and pulled the plug on the show before we could see the transition.

[[quoteright:225:~~DramaticHalfHour ScienceFiction,ActionSeries~~]]

** TheBigGuy: Lieutenant Michael "[[MightyGlacier Tank]]" Ellis. The team's heavy weapon and PartyTank, short on character development.

In late 2012, executive producer Gary Goddard announced that a [[{{Revival}}]] of ''CaptainPower'' was beginning development under the name ''Phoenix Rising''. Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens have been tapped as showrunners.

In late 2012, executive producer Gary Goddard announced that a [[Revival]] of ''CaptainPower'' was beginning development under the name ''Phoenix Rising''. Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens have been tapped as showrunners.

Given how it eventually turned out, it may be hard to believe that pretty much everyone was convinced that it was going to involve "interactive" TV. In the future, we were told, at every commercial break, you, the viewer, would decide how you wanted the story to play out. If the hero got the girl, turn to channel 127; if he gets killed by the villain instead, turn to channel 138. It is probably not coincidental that this was around the same time that "ChooseYourOwnAdventure" books were a big thing. Early adopters of DVD may recall that there were early promises that it would also lead to this sort of thing. Of course, as it turned out, branching movies and even multiple camera angles ended up a [[TheRuleOfFirstAdopters feature utilized almost exclusively by pornography]].

* BrainUploading: Warlord-class [=BioDreads=] are equipped with Digitizers that can reduce an entire human being to data, which is then stored in Overmind. Although the process can be reversed, victims tend to [[CameBackWrong be irrevocably changed by the experience]].

** Laccki, it should be noted, is a ''terrible'' mole: he lacks anything even vaguely resembling stealth or subtlety, and Dread is suspicious of him from the very moment of his creation. Laccki is such a terrible mole, in fact, that one suspects his real purpose is not to spy on Dread, but rather to ''remind'' Dread that Overmind doesn't fully trust him.

* WellIntentionedExtremist: Lyman Taggart sincerely thought that humanity would be improved by becoming [[NoTranshumanismAllowed a cybernetic organism]]. After becoming [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Lord Dread]], [[CompleteMonster though]]...

->''"Earth, 2147: The legacy of the Metal Wars, when man fought machine and machines won. [=BioDreads=]: Monstrous creations that hunt down human survivors and digitize them. Volcania: Centre 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: [[TheHero Captain Jonathan Power]], master of the incredible powersuits which transform each soldier into a one-man attack force! [[TheLancer Major Matthew "Hawk" Masterson]], fighter of the sky! [[TheBigGuy Lieutenant Michael "Tank" Ellis]], Ground Assault Unit! [[TheSmartGuy Sergeant Robert "Scout" Baker]], Espionage and communications! And [[TheChick 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....[[TitleDrop CAPTAIN POWER]] [[MundaneMadeAwesome AND THE SOLDIERS OF THE FUTURE!]]"''

The show was a relatively early TV example of [[{{Dystopia}} dystopian]] CyberPunk, and, though ostensibly aimed at children, was so dark and violent (AnyoneCanDie, which means people got KilledOffForReal) that one wonders how many parents were really comfortable letting their children watch it. All the same, it is difficult to believe that Creator/JMichaelStraczynski (later of ''BabylonFive'' fame) was one of the creative minds behind it. (He did leave the show, though, when level of merchandising became ''really'' excessive in his opinion.) Other big Sci-Fi creators involved in the show were Larry [=DiTillio=] (of ''WesternAnimation/BeastWars'' fame), ''New ComicBook/TeenTitans'' creator Marv Wolfman, veteran novelist and scriptwriter Michael Reaves, and Marc Scott Zicree of ''Series/TheTwilightZone Companion'' and ''Literature/MagicTime'' fame. ''ComicBook/HowardTheDuck'' creator Steve Gerber was also slated to write for the unproduced second season.

The show was a relatively early TV example of [[{{Dystopia}} dystopian]] CyberPunk, and, though ostensibly aimed at children, was so dark and violent (AnyoneCanDie, which means people got KilledOffForReal) that one wonders how many parents were really comfortable letting their children watch it. All the same, it is difficult to believe that JMichaelStraczynski (later of ''BabylonFive'' fame) was one of the creative minds behind it. (He did leave the show, though, when level of merchandising became ''really'' excessive in his opinion.) Other big Sci-Fi creators involved in the show were Larry [=DiTillio=] (of ''WesternAnimation/BeastWars'' fame), ''New ComicBook/TeenTitans'' creator Marv Wolfman, veteran novelist and scriptwriter Michael Reaves, and Marc Scott Zicree of ''Series/TheTwilightZone Companion'' and ''Literature/MagicTime'' fame. ''ComicBook/HowardTheDuck'' creator Steve Gerber was also slated to write for the unproduced second season.

->''"Earth, 2147: The legacy of the Metal Wars, when man fought machine and machines won. [=BioDreads=]: Monstrous creations that hunt down human survivors and digitize them. Volcania: Centre 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: [[TheHero Captain Jonathan Power]], master of the incredible powersuits which transform each soldier into a one-man attack force! [[TheLancer Major Matthew "Hawk" Masterson]], fighter of the sky! [[TheBigGuy Lieutenant Michael "Tank" Ellis]], Ground Assault Unit! [[TheSmartGuy Sergeant Robert "Scout" Baker]], Espionage and communications! And [[TheChick 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....[[TitleDrop CAPTAIN POWER]] [[WhatDoYouMeanItsNotAwesome AND THE SOLDIERS OF THE FUTURE!]]"''

But the ''really'' cool thing the toys could do was interact with the show itself: various things in the show emitted a strobe effect which would register on the toy: villains and heroes had strobes which the jets would register as targets (Red for villains, blue for heroes), weapons fire emitted a yellow strobe that would register as a hit (and viewers were gently reminded that hiding the jets behind their backs was cheating). The "power on" sequence would both reset the damage count on a jet, and activate the "power on" cycle in the transformation booth toy. At the end of each episode, one of the characters would step through the FourthWall to tell viewers what constituted a good score. Around the same time, three animated videos were released, ''Future Force Training'', ''Bio-Dread Assault'', and ''Raid On Volcania'', which fans could "Train" on between episodes. These featured the viewer as new recruit, designated "Pilot-1", who received training from the captain himself in piloting the XT-7 fighter, and undertook some dangerous missions. These episodes were animated by [[{{AIC}} Artmic]], one of the companies responsible for ''BubblegumCrisis'' and many other anime of the late 80's, and were surprisingly well-animated (they also [[StockSoundEffects recycle sound effects]] from ''Bubblegum Crisis'').

But the ''really'' cool thing the toys could do was interact with the show itself: various things in the show emitted a strobe effect which would register on the toy: villains and heroes had strobes which the jets would register as targets (Red for villains, blue for heroes), weapons fire emitted a yellow strobe that would register as a hit (and viewers were gently reminded that hiding the jets behind their backs was cheating). The "power on" sequence would both reset the damage count on a jet, and activate the "power on" cycle in the transformation booth toy. At the end of each episode, one of the characters would step through the FourthWall to tell viewers what constituted a good score. Around the same time, three animated videos were released, ''Future Force Training'', ''Bio-Dread Assault'', and ''Raid On Volcania'', which fans could "Train" on between episodes. These featured the viewer as new recruit, designated "Pilot-1", who received training from the captain himself in piloting the XT-7 fighter, and undertook some dangerous missions. These episodes were animated by [[{{AIC}} Artmic]], one of the companies responsible for ''BubblegumCrisis'' and many other anime of the late 80's, and were surprisingly well-animated (they also recycle sound effects from ''Bubblegum Crisis'').

But the ''really'' cool thing the toys could do was interact with the show itself: various things in the show emitted a strobe effect which would register on the toy: villains and heroes had strobes which the jets would register as targets (Red for villains, blue for heroes), weapons fire emitted a yellow strobe that would register as a hit (and viewers were gently reminded that hiding the jets behind their backs was cheating). The "power on" sequence would both reset the damage count on a jet, and activate the "power on" cycle in the transformation booth toy. At the end of each episode, one of the characters would step through the FourthWall to tell viewers what constituted a good score. Around the same time, three animated videos were released, ''Future Force Training'', ''Bio-Dread Assault'', and ''Raid On Volcania'', which fans could "Train" on between episodes. These featured the viewer as new recruit, designated "Pilot-1", who received training from the captain himself in piloting the XT-7 fighter, and undertook some dangerous missions. These episodes were animated by Artmic, one of the companies responsible for ''BubblegumCrisis'' and many other anime of the late 80's, and were surprisingly well-animated (they also recycle sound effects from ''Bubblegum Crisis'').

* AirstrikeImpossible

(And before anyone points it out, there were indeed earlier experiments in "interactive television", probably starting with ''WinkyDink'', or even on radio with ''Doctor Christian''. But the appearance of an interactive aspect in ''CaptainPower'' seems to be part of a specific drive that went on at this time.)