marino-90915-surfmarino-90915-face MARINO

Real Name: Marino

Identity/Class: Alternate reality (Earth-90915) superhuman humanoid (see comments)

Occupation: Self-appointed protector of the oceans

Group Membership: None known

Affiliations: Gi, marine life (especially dolphins)

Enemies: Anyone polluting the ocean
    formerly Gi and all humanity

Known Relatives: None

Aliases: None

Base of Operations: The Earth's oceans; at least the oceans around an unspecified coast of Australia

First Appearance: Captain Planet and the Planeteers#8/2 (June, 1992)

Powers/Abilities: Living beneath the ocean's surface, Marino can breathe and is conditioned to live underwater (presumably including seeing in the darkness of the ocean's depths and enduring great pressures and cold).
    He can also breathe, speak and exist on land for extended periods of time without obvious difficulty.

    Presumably superhumanly strong (likely enhanced human, perhaps lifting 1000 pounds or more), Marino can swim against powerful waves or even whirlpools.

    He can skate or surf atop waves without a surf board.

    Marino can control marine life, including at least dolphins, and he can animate seaweed to bind others.

    He can apparently control water to the point of directing powerful waves.marino-90915-full

Height: Unrevealed (approximately )
Weight: Unrevealed (approximately )
Eyes: Green
Hair: Black
Skin: Pale yellow
Other distinguishing Features: Pointed ears

History:
(Captain Planet and the Planeteers#8/2) - Living beneath the ocean's surface, Marino resented how humanity polluted the beaches and oceans.

(Captain Planet and the Planeteers#8/2) - During an Australian surfing competition to raise awareness of environmental issues, Marino -- not appreciating the competition's intent -- resolved to stop it, and sent a pod of dolphins to knock the surfers off their boards. Skating or surfing boardless atop the waves, Marino introduced himself to the surface dwellers and proclaimed that this contest would not take place. He further announced that he was tired of the surface people polluting the beaches and oceans and that it must stop now.marino-90915-wave

    Gi, the water-powered member of the Gaea-empowered Planeteers, who had come to Australia to participate in and support the competition, surfed out to confront Marino, telling him to stop attacking the surfers. Reiterating his anger at the surface people polluting the beaches and oceans, Marino told her that he lived beneath the waves, that the ocean was home and -- generating a wave to knock her off her surfboard, that she was not welcome in his home.

    Gi retaliated by projecting a watery blast that knocked Marino off of his feet, but Marino laughed, calling Gi "Pretty one" and telling her that he could not be beaten in the ocean as water was his element. Gi next generated a whirlpool to contain him, and Marino acknowledged that she was clever, but he proved able to swim against the tide.

     Marino then summoned seaweed to wrap around her; however, Gi then pointed out to him that the dolphins he had previously controlled had beached themselves.

    Marino suspected that they had done that on purpose to get his attention, and Gi -- after suggesting that they perhaps disagreed with his methods -- told him to free her, and she would help him save them. Considering his own squabbles to be meaningless if they endangered even a single sea creature, Marino freed Gi, and together they created a wave of water that pulled the dolphin back into the ocean.

    Marino apologized to Gi for attacking the surfers but reiterated his frustration with all of the pollution going into the ocean. Gi appreciated this but explained that this surfing contest was being held to raise money and awareness to help clean up the oceans and beaches. She invited him to stick around and watch the competition if he was not doing anything else.

(Captain Planet and the Planeteers#8/2 (fb) - BTS) - To prevent others from accusing her of using her water-powers to cheat, Gi gave Marino her ring that granted her her water-controlling powers.

(Captain Planet and the Planeteers#8/2) - After Gi won, Marino gave her ring back to her in full view of the crowd.

    Later, as they walked the beach together, Gi told Marino that she hoped that he saw that at least some of the surface people were making an effort to clean up the Earth: "It won't happen overnight, but we're trying." He understood what she was saying and acknowledged that he still had much to learn about the surface world.


Comments: Created by Barry Dutter and June Brigman.

    Other than his saying that he lived beneath the waves and was tired of surface people polluting the ocean, we don't know his origins.
    Was he:
     He was fairly clearly inspired by the young Namor the Sub-Mariner, even using his phrase of surprise, "Sufferin' Shad!"

    Courtesy of Loki, who was kind enough to provide background on the series and suggest Marino to represent Captain Planet.

    Captain Planet and the Planeteers was a cartoon that aired for three seasons and 65 episodes between 1990 and 1992, immediately followed by a sequel series The New Adventures of Captain Planet, which ran for another three seasons and 48 episodes from 1993 to 1996. An environmentalist show, the opening narration sums up the premise more concisely than I could:

    Our world is in peril. Gaia, the spirit of the Earth can no longer stand the terrible destruction plaguing our planet. She sends five magic rings to five special young people. From Africa, Kwame with the power of earth. From North America, Wheeler with the power of fire. From the Soviet Union, Linka with the power of wind. From Asia, Gi with the power of water. And from South America, Ma-Ti with the power of heart. With the five powers combined they summon Earth's greatest champion - CAPTAIN PLANET!

    The five teens constantly run into the Eco-Villains, crooks with an intent to pollute the planet and very unsubtle names - Hoggish Greedly, Verminous Skumm, Looten Plunder, Doctor Blight, etc. The kids then use the combined powers of their rings to summon (or generate) Captain Planet. 

    Marvel published a twelve issues series. Based on the story names, at least some are adaptations of TV episodes, though not all the comic story names match TV stories, so some of the comic tales may be brand new. Marvel UK also published a series - comics.org claims six issues but lacks details or even covers for all of them, and this usually reliable site --  Boys Adventure Comics: UPDATED - Captain Planet and the planeteers -- has thus far only found four. comics.org also doesn't index the UK issues, but the link I provided does list some story titles, and comparing those they seem to match the US series. However, Toxic Terror in UK #2 (26th October 1991) has a British writer, Ian Rimmer, so I compared dates and spotted that it appears in US issue #7, cover dated April 1992 - so in other words it seems to be similar to Transformers, where some stories originated in the UK but got reprinted in the US. There are other Ian Rimmer stories in #8 through 11 of the US title and one by Simon Furman in #12, so it does seem likely those come from the later issues of the UK title. 

    There was also a UK annual, but that wasn't published by Marvel, and in more recent years Dynamite published a sequel comic, but again not Marvel. 

    In terms of characters to cover, I'd go with options that don't also appear in the TV show. So options include a one shot dragon, Smog, in #2, or the Polluto-Bots in #5, or Marino in the second story of #8. Of them, I think Marino (or, as I like to think of him, Jaundiced Junior Namor) is probably the easiest to cover as he's only in a six page story. 

   This profile was completed 03/27/2026, but its publication was delayed as it was intended for the Appendix 25th anniversary 's celebratory event.

Profile by Snood.

CLARIFICATIONS:
Marino should be distinguished from:

images: (without ads)
Captain Planet and the Planeteers#8/2, pg. 2, panel 3 (skating on wave);
       pg. 3, panel 2 (full);
          panel 3 (face);
          panel 4 (generates wave)

Appearances:
Captain Planet and the Planeteers#8/2 "Catch a Wave" (June, 1992) - Barry Dutter (writer), June Brigman (penciler), Roy Richardson (inker), Rob Tokar (editor)

First posted: 09/18/2026
Last updated: 03/27/2026

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

Non-Marvel Copyright info
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