An annual event held throughout the world in support of environmental protection, Earth Day 2024 (April 22) is nearly upon us. For those of us who grew up in the 1990s, you may remember the TV series Captain Planet and the Planeteers that ran for six seasons.

A generation later, Gen Z says that climate change is the most important issue of their generation. Has Captain Planet's 1st appearance also increased in value?

Since Captain Planet's debut 24 years ago, environmental protection has grown more important to younger generations. According to a Pew Research report, 76% of Gen Z considers climate change to be one of their top concerns and 37% of Gen Z says it is their most important concern. Not surprisingly, Generation X and Boomers have less interest in addressing climate change.

Could this increased interest in environmental issues carry over into the collectibles market?

We may see a live-action revival of Captain Planet on the big screen.

Captain Planet is a superhero who is summoned by the combined powers of a team of individuals (the "Planeteers"). In addition to flight, super strength and speed, Captain Planet can manipulate the elements: earth, fire, ice, water, wind, and air. He has a great rogue's gallery that includes Duke Nukem (not to be confused with the video game hero), Hoggish Greedly, Dr. Blight and Looten Plunder.

And recent news suggests that we may eventually see a live-action revival of Captain Planet on the big screen; Glen Powell, now famous due to his role as "Hangman" in Top Gun: Maverick, has expressed interest in playing Captain Planet with Leonardo DiCaprio producing. Considering Gen Z's surging interest in the environment, and Hollywood's fixation on everything '90s (see X-Men '97), it seems to make sense.

Graded copies of the 1st appearance of Captain Planet sell for more than you might expect.

Considering that the 1st appearance of Captain Planet was published in 1991, you might think this comic book is worthless. But graded copies of Captain Planet and the Planeteers #1 sell for more than you might expect. While there isn't a lot of sales data since there are only 122 blue label copies of this issue on the CGC Census, the FMV of a CGC 9.4 copy is currently $160.

This FMV is primarily based on a 9.4 copy that sold on eBay about seven months ago for $155. That value may be a bit high considering that a 9.6 sold recently sold $125 in March. We don't have the final sales prices for any 9.8s, but we do know that two 9.8s were listed for $850, but the seller accepted best offers for a lower amount. It's impossible to know what the final sales price was, but I wouldn't be surprised if they sold in the $650 to $700 range. High-grade raw copies sell in the $10 to $15 range on eBay.

Considering that this issue may have had a large print-run (common for Marvel books in the 1990s), I'd bet you can still find this book in dollar bins.

Would you consider investing in the 1st appearance of Captain Planet? Please let us know what your opinion is in the comments section below!