History Main / CaptainSuperhero

* Super-powered anthropomorphic rabbit [[Comicbook/CaptainCarrotAndHisAmazingZooCrew Captain Carrot]] is the greatest hero of Earth C, home of DCComics's funny animal characters.

* He started as a toy, but was incorporated into DC and Marvel comics, but Captain Action certainly counts. Basically he's a guy in tights wearing a sea captain's cap (complete with boat anchor insignia) and wields a laser pistol and a "lightning sword," a sword with a blade shaped like a lightning bolt. He possesses super-strength as well as the ability to change his appearance to look like almost anyone. His toy line and comic series didn't do so hot in the 60's, or when they tried to revive him in the 90's. They're trying again with a new figure and darker and grittier comics.

[[caption-width-right:234:''He's our hero!'']]

* Captain Celebrity of ''Manga/VigilanteMyHeroAcademiaIllegals'' is a Pro Hero with FlyingBrick powers. Unfortunately, he's a [[ReallyGetsAround womanizing]] SmugSuper who's in the hero business just [[GloryHound for the fame and glory it brings him.]]

* ''WesternAnimation/CaptainCavemanAndTheTeenAngels''

* Champion City's beloved superhero Captain Amazing in ''Film/MysteryMen'', despite being an effective crime-fighter and media darling, is actually a self-important snob more interested in the endorsement deals he lands after averting high-profile crimes than actual justice and public safety. He even arranges for dangerous supervillain Casanova Frankenstein to be paroled from prison just so he'll be able to defeat him yet again. This backfires spectacularly....

* WesternAnimation/CaptainCaveman, a Hanna-Barbera character from TheSixties, is exactly what you might expect - a hairy prehistoric superhero, transplanted to more modern settings.

The notoriety of this naming convention also named the tropes CaptainEthnic, CaptainGeographic, CaptainPatriotic, CaptainObvious (which was named outside this wiki), CaptainOblivious, CaptainErsatz, and several other members of the JustForFun/TVTropesSuperheroTeam.

* Parodied in ''Film/{{Deadpool}}'': while brainstorming aliases with Weasel, Wade happens to [[LineOfSightName glance at the bar's "dead pool" board]] and decides to call himself "Captain Deadpool". Weasel gives him a blank stare and says "Just 'Deadpool'", to which Wade agrees.

* ''Comicbook/CaptainMarVell'', who, actually ''did'' hold a Kree military rank equivalent to captain before being exiled to Earth. Same goes for [[ComicBook/UltimateMarvel Ultimate Captain Marvel]], who explained it this way: "My name is Geheneris [=HalaSon=] Mahr Vehl, rank of Pluskommander, officer of the Kree Void Navy. Pluskommander is a rank roughly analogous to Captain".
** After Mar-Vell's death, his codenamed was taken up by ComicBook/MonicaRambeau and, later, ComicBook/CarolDanvers. Carol had reached the rank of full bird colonel by the time she quit the Air Force, meaning that she's more than earned the title.

* ''Comicbook/CaptainMarVell'', who, actually ''did'' hold a Kree military rank equivalent to captain before being exiled to Earth. Same goes for [[ComicBook/UltimateMarvel Ultimate Captain Marvel]], who explained it this way: "My name is Geheneris HalaSon Mahr Vehl, rank of Pluskommander, officer of the Kree Void Navy. Pluskommander is a rank roughly analogous to Captain".
** [[ComicBook/MsMarvel Carol Danvers]] has recently taken up the mantle of Captain Marvel. She had reached the rank of full bird colonel by the time she quit the Air Force, meaning that she's more than earned the title.

* ''Comicbook/CaptainMarVell'', who, actually ''did'' hold a Kree military rank equivalent to captain before being exiled to Earth.

** The original version of Captain Action, Clive Arno, has no real reason to have the "captain" title, as he was an archeologist before getting his powers. However the newer Captain Action, Miles Drake, is a former Navy SEAL so the title makes sense.

* Captain Britain; as well as his sister ''ComicBook/{{Psylocke}}'' when she briefly took the mantle of Captain Britain.

* Champion City's beloved superhero Captain Amazing in ''Film/MysteryMen'', who despite being an effective crime-fighter and media darling is actually a self-important snob more interested in the endorsement deals he lands after averting high-profile crimes than actual justice and public safety. He even arranges for dangerous supervillain Casanova Frankenstein to be paroled from prison just so he'll be able to defeat him yet again. This backfires spectacularly....

* The title character in ''Film/TheReturnOfCaptainInvincible'', of course. The question just in whose forces he supposedly earned the rank does come up early in the movie when he's being interrogated by his detractors shortly before his original disappearance. (It's never actually answered, though since it's clear that he ''is'' very much an acclaimed UsefulNotes/WorldWarII hero and crimefighter the question itself comes across as appropriately petty.)

-->'''Bank official:''' Ah, a captain. Well, we offer peferential loans for veterans. What part of the forces did you serve in?

* ''Series/WhoseLineIsItAnyway'' The names of "Weird Superheroes" often dip into this trope. Colin was once memorably dubbed "Captain [[NonIndicativeName Hair]]."

* Lampshaded in ''Film/{{Epoch}}'', where the protagonist is being escorted to the BigDumbObject by Captain Tower of the US Army. He mentions to his companion that it sounds like a superhero name. Subverted in the sequel where [[spoiler:Tower dies from a single shot to the gut]].

'''Again, this is not simply a captain of a ship or military group,''' although it can occasionally overlap when a costumed superhero holds the actual rank of captain.

'''Again, this is not simply a captain of a ship or military group.'''

The notoriety of this naming convention also named the tropes CaptainEthnic, CaptainGeographic, CaptainPatriotic, CaptainObvious (which was named outside this wiki), CaptainOblivious, CaptainErsatz, and several other members of the TVTropesSuperheroTeam.

[[folder: Anime and Manga ]]

[[folder: Comic Books ]]

* Captain Marvel, former moniker of Comicbook/{{Shazam}}

* Captain Britain; as well as his sister ComicBook/{{Psylocke}} when she briefly took the mantle of Captain Britain.
* Comicbook/TheFlash rogues Captain Cold and Captain Boomerang are villainous examples.
* Another villain is [[Comicbook/{{Shazam}} Captain Marvel]] foe Captain Nazi.

-->'''The Captain:''' I was Captain Power for a while. But then I got sued. Something about [[Series/CaptainPowerAndTheSoldiersOfTheFuture a cartoon]]. Then I changed it to Film/CaptainRon. And got sued. Changed it to [[ChurchOfHappyology Captain L. Ron]]. Got beaten up by Tom Cruise. I was Captain Universe, but it turned out there was already a ComicBook/CaptainUniverse. Captain Ultra. There was already one of those. A plumber, would you believe. Broke into my apartment and left a horse's head in the water tank as a warning. Captain Avenger, taken. Captain Avalon, I had to give up. [...] I tried Captain Marvel. [...] There've been, like, eight Captain Marvels. One of them was an adult movie actor with a yellow lightning bolt tattooed on his... anyway. There was a Captain Kerosene. I mean, I was scraping the bottom of the barrel, and there was already a Captain Kerosene. That's my luck, right there. I wasn't Captain Rectitude. But I was pretty much all of the other Captains at one time or another. So I gave up. I decided I was just The Captain. And then some Marine-looking melon-farmer tracks me down and says, ''"I was The Captain first!"''. I had to pay him money in the end.

* ''ComicBook/CaptainConfederacy''. Lampshaded in the backup strip "Saks and Violet", where comic artists in the Free City of New York briefly consider a "Captain NYC" character, and one asks why superheroes never seem to rise above Captain.
* Slightly averted in the Johnson-era satire ''[=SuperLBJ=] and the G.R.E.A.T. Society'', where Goldwater is depicted as "COLONEL America". (The real Goldwater's reserve rank was Major General.)
* ''ComicBook/CaptainCanuck''

* He started as a toy, but was incorporated into DC and Marvel comics, but Captain Action certainly counts. Basically he's a guy in tights wearing a sea captain's cap (complete with boat anchor insignia) and wields a laser pistol and a "lightning sword," a sword with a blade shaped like a lightning bolt. He possesses super-strength as well as the ability to change his appearance to look like almost anyone. His toy line and comic series didn't do so hot in the 60's, or when they tried to revive him in the 90's. They're trying again with a new figure and darker and grittier comics.
** The original version of Captain Action, Clive Arno, has no real reason to have the "captain" title, as he was an archeologist before getting his powers. However the newer Captain Action, Miles Drake, is a former Navy SEAL so the title makes sense.
* ''ComicBook/{{Empowered}}'' has [[GratuitousSpanish Capitan]] Rivet, the metallic leader of the Superhomeys.

[[folder: Fan Fic ]]

[[folder: Film ]]

* The 1980s comedy ''Film/HeroAtLarge'' had Captain Avenger. John Ritter was an actor hired to play the in-universe-fictional Captain Avenger to promote an upcoming movie. When Ritter foils a robbery in-character, the hero becomes "real."
* Lampshaded in ''Film/{{Epoch}}'', where the protagonist is being escorted to the BigDumbObject by Captain Tower of the US Army. He mentions to his companion that it sounds like a superhero name. Subverted in the sequel where [[spoiler:Tower dies from a single shot to the gut]].
** Maybe because he got promoted.

* Champion City's beloved superhero Captain Amazing in ''Film/MysteryMen'', who despite being an effective crime-fighter and media darling is actually a self-important snob more interested in the endorsement deals he lands after averting high-profile crimes than actual justice and public safety. He even arranges for dangerous supervillain Casanova Frankenstein to be paroled from prison just so he'll be able to defeat him yet again. This backfires spectacularly....

[[folder: Literature ]]

* Literature/CaptainUnderpants plays with this. In George and Harold's Superman-style origin comic for the character, his first name is revealed to be "Captain" after his adopted parents' favorite cereal.

[[folder: Live Action TV ]]

* Captain Terrific in an episode of ''Series/ImaginationMovers''

* ''{{Series/Dinosaurs}}'': When Earl gained superpowers and decided to be a superhero, he wanted a superhero name more impressive than [[ShowWithinAShow "Captain Action Figure"]], Baby's favorite superhero. He became "Captain Impressive".

* ''Series/WhoseLineIsItAnyway'' The names of "Weird Superheroes" often dip into this trope. Colin was once memorably dubbed "Captain [[NonIndicativeName Hair]]."

* In the French series ''Series/HeroCorp'', which parodies the superhero genre, many characters are named like this, usually with a ridiculous noun, like Captain Extreme Sports or Captain Shampoo.
* An episode of ''Series/TheATeam'' had Murdock, Face and BA driving taxicabs. Murdock being Murdock, he soon drives around wearing a tablecloth as Captain Cab.

* ''Series/HenryDanger'' - The protagonist is the sidekick to superhero Captain Man. Apparently, he chose the most common prefix and suffix for superhero names and left out the middle part.

[[folder: Music ]]

[[folder: Newspaper Comics ]]

* ''ComicStrip/{{Curtis}}'' has the [[ShowWithinAShow [[=SuperCaptainCoolMan=]] comic.]]

[[folder: Pinball ]]

[[folder: Video Games ]]

[[folder: Webcomics ]]

* In ''WebComic/DocRat'', [[http://www.docrat.com.au/default.asp?thisItem=753 Captain Kerpow]].

[[folder: Web Original ]]

--> '''Captain Hammer:''' [''mocking Billy/Horrible''] You see, little Penny's giving it up, she's giving it up hard. 'Cause she's with Captain Hammer. [''holds up his fists''] And these are not the hammer. [''walks away from Billy, but then returns''] [[DontExplainTheJoke The hammer is my penis.]]
* Discussed in the three-part series ''Captain Dynamic'', made by Rooster Teeth to promote ''VideoGame/CityOfHeroes'', the titular character claims that heroes often use the word Captain in their names because it gives people a sense of the military and gives them the power to marry people on a boat.
* SuperheroSchool [[Literature/WhateleyUniverse Whateley Academy]] specifically forbids students from using an unearned title as part of their code name, so Alvin "Captain Canada!" Cuthbert (his insistence on including that exclamation point is a good indication of his general level of doofusness) is forced to use "Cerebrex" until he graduates, assuming the other Canadian students don't beat him to death for making them look bad, which is a distinct possibility since Whateley has a lot of Canadian students and he does tend to make them look bad.

[[folder: Western Animation ]]

* Captain Crandall from ''WesternAnimation/TeamoSupremo'', calls himself "Captain Crandall".
* Captain Sunshine from ''WesternAnimation/TheVentureBrothers''
* Captain Super Captain from the ''WesternAnimation/PennZeroPartTimeHero'' episodes "I'm Super!" and "I'm Still Super!"
* The English dubbed version of the animated [[Series/ElChavoDelOcho El Chavo]] series refers to "El Chapulín Colorado"[[note]]Another of Creator/{{Chespirito}}'s creations / characters.[[/note]] as "Captain Hopper" because of the "CH" on his costume.[[note]]It's actually the Spanish letter "ch" ("cheh"), which Chespirito regularly incorporated into his productions, mainly as the names of some of his characters.
* Captain Atomic from ''WesternAnimation/AtomicPuppet'', not to be confused with ''ComicBook/CaptainAtom''. His former sidekick Mookie goes by Sergeant Subatomic.
[[/note]]