People are drinking less orange juice every year, and on top of that, citrus crops are being ravaged by foreign bacteria that's rendering huge sections of crops worthless. All that has led Florida orange growers to completely reimagine their OJ mascot from a goofy looking orange wearing a cape, to a strapping superhero that hangs out with Iron Man and the rest of The Avengers. What could be cooler than that? Maybe an ice cold glass of fresh Florida orange juice, according to Captain Citrus, who is actually a man named John Polk who lives on an orange grove and has something called "solar pods" in his body that allow him to cheat certain death.
The new superhero was a paid project for Marvel, and the Florida's Department of Citrus hopes that the revamp to a newer, slimmer mascot will help make it a household name among kids. The group paid $1 million to help create the character as well as a small series of comics with Polk interacting with other Marvel characters like The Avengers. The first has Captain Citrus saving the world — or at least Orlando, Florida — from an attacking army of androids, something that was not possible without a glass of orange juice and enough sunlight. Sounds about right.
Here's the old model:
And here's the new one:
Who's orange, green & #AmazingInside? Captain Citrus- #FloridaOJ Hero! #NationalComicBookDay http://t.co/D9fjwo9tAR pic.twitter.com/OqbD6kamEQ
— Captain Citrus (@Captain_Citrus) September 25, 2014
You can read the first, 12-page issue of the comic here — if you dare. Two others are planned.