# Gilligan's Island Castaways as superheroes **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 3, 2019, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gilligans-island-castaways-as-superheroes/841207 "2019-10-03T14:47:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2019, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gilligans-island-castaways-as-superheroes/841207/21 "2019-10-03T17:03:00Z")
> [@PlumBob](#): > > They did a super power episode… > Radioactive vegetables: > Gilligan had super strength. Spinach > Mary Ann had super vision. Carrots > Mrs Howell had super speed. ??? > > Darn someone beat me to it… I believe the “super speed” was from eating beets. To paraphrase The Professor, they’re full of sugar, and therefore energy. **EDIT:** Ninja’d too! ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2019, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gilligans-island-castaways-as-superheroes/841207/22 "2019-10-03T17:03:41Z")
If the Skipper is wrath, who is gluttony? I always imaged the Professor was the epitome of the quiet, nice, smart neighbor who holds it all in and one day snaps. Maybe he’s the one secretly messing up the rescue attempts, scare to think of what he might do when he gets off the island. ---
**Author:** ![Biotop](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biotop/32/321_2.png) [@Biotop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biotop)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2019, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gilligans-island-castaways-as-superheroes/841207/23 "2019-10-03T17:06:46Z")
Gilligan was also The Invisible Man for an episode. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2019, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gilligans-island-castaways-as-superheroes/841207/24 "2019-10-03T22:58:03Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > I could see Gilligan as a cross between Billy Batson and Ralph Hinkley. He utters a magic word that gives him awesome powers, but he doesn’t know how to use them effectively. ::coughs:: Johnny Thunder. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2019, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gilligans-island-castaways-as-superheroes/841207/25 "2019-10-04T00:53:50Z")
Just dress up Ginger as Catwoman and Mary Ann as Wonder Woman and I don’t care what you do with the rest of them. ---
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2019, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gilligans-island-castaways-as-superheroes/841207/26 "2019-10-04T00:59:41Z")
the “Gilligan’s Planet” cartoon in the 80s did this a lot too … but threw in “alien techonology” also… like i remember one where someone had grown tired of everyone else and found a one way force field and lived in it until they were bored and realized “friendship is magic” ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2019, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gilligans-island-castaways-as-superheroes/841207/27 "2019-10-04T18:27:12Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > If the Skipper is wrath, who is gluttony? Something in the back of my brain is telling me that they at some point had Mary Ann eating a lot while not gaining any weight, due to being a farm girl. But I think I was just mixing her up with Ellie Mae Clampet. Googling around, it seems that Gluttony was likely Mrs. Howell. It uses the alternative form of gluttony that can apply to things instead of food, and is about how she constantly needs all her luxurious things around her. This frees up Gilligan to be Sloth. This is based on some book that said they really did use the Seven Deadly Sins as a template for the characters, and that it’s not just a fan invention. ---
**Author:** ![dzeiger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/46a35a/32.png) [@dzeiger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dzeiger)\ **Post date:** [October 4, 2019, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gilligans-island-castaways-as-superheroes/841207/28 "2019-10-04T20:18:26Z")
Maybe start with the Fantastic Four template? Reed Richards, the Professor: Brilliant, but useless except as needed for the immediate plot. Reed Richards can’t sure cancer, the Professor can’t fix a hole in a boat. The Thing, the Skipper: Gilligan! It’s Clobbering time! Much of Ben’s problems come from being a large collection of rocks. Even if rescued, what kind of nautical career could the Skipper have when he weighs way more than the anchor? The Human Torch, Gilligan: Not really a perfect match, but if anyone gets the group in trouble because they got in over their head without forethought, it’s Johnny Storm. Invisible Girl, Mary Ann: I mean, it’s not likely to be Ginger for that role… Not sure where to put the rest yet. ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2020, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gilligans-island-castaways-as-superheroes/841207/29 "2020-01-19T15:53:28Z")
> [@MrAtoz](#): > > You all are failing in your _Gilligan’s Island_ knowledge, because they actually did this episode. A crate of radioactive seeds wash up on the island, the castaways grow vegetables from them, and eating the vegetables gives three of them superpowers. > > Gilligan eats the radioactive spinach, and gets Popeye-like super strength. > > Mary Ann eats radioactive carrots, and gets the ability to see for miles. > > Mrs. Howell eats radioactive sugar beets, and gets super speed. They quietly omitted that the Skipper had been eating the baked beans. ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2020, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gilligans-island-castaways-as-superheroes/841207/30 "2020-01-19T17:57:55Z")
> [@MrAtoz](#): > > You all are failing in your _Gilligan’s Island_ knowledge, because they actually did this episode. A crate of radioactive seeds wash up on the island, the castaways grow vegetables from them, and eating the vegetables gives three of them superpowers. > > Gilligan eats the radioactive spinach, and gets Popeye-like super strength. > > Mary Ann eats radioactive carrots, and gets the ability to see for miles. > > Mrs. Howell eats radioactive sugar beets, and gets super speed. > > Finally, they are cured by eating soap, which counteracts the radiation, because of course it does. Thank you. I came into this thread to mention this. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2020, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gilligans-island-castaways-as-superheroes/841207/31 "2020-01-19T18:08:19Z")
> [@MrAtoz](#): > > You all are failing in your _Gilligan’s Island_ knowledge, because they actually did this episode. A crate of radioactive seeds wash up on the island, the castaways grow vegetables from them, and eating the vegetables gives three of them superpowers. > > Gilligan eats the radioactive spinach, and gets Popeye-like super strength. > > Mary Ann eats radioactive carrots, and gets the ability to see for miles. > > Mrs. Howell eats radioactive sugar beets, and gets super speed. > > Finally, they are cured by eating soap, which counteracts the radiation, because of course it does. Beat me to it. ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2020, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gilligans-island-castaways-as-superheroes/841207/32 "2020-01-19T20:30:38Z")
They all have the superpower of being able to live on sunlight. No way did they ever do enough hunting, gathering, fishing, or farming to provide enough food for them all. They did enough to satisfy a Want to eat, not a Need to eat. ---
**Author:** ![atimnie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atimnie/32/11_2.png) [@atimnie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/atimnie)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2020, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gilligans-island-castaways-as-superheroes/841207/33 "2020-01-20T00:40:49Z")
_This is based on some book that said they really did use the Seven Deadly Sins as a template for the characters, and that it’s not just a fan invention._ This, according to Sherwood Schwartz, is flat out wrong. The characters were to represent the 7 continents. Maybe someone could do a thread on which castaways represent which continents. And I don’t think you need super powers. Being on an island for that long would drive anyone to becoming a Batman type villain, the vast majority of which had no superpowers at all. So we have the professor as… The Professor. Using his superior intellect to take advantage of the others. And Ginger as The Seductress, taking advantage of the others with… if you can’t figure that out, you’re not old enough to post here. And Thurston as… Moneybags? Nah, The Hoarder, nefariously hoarding food and resources for himself. And Lovee as The Bedazzler, using shiny objects to distract everyone while Thurston does his hoarding. And the skipper and Gilligan as Fatman and Bumbler, and their assistant, Farmgirl. ---
**Author:** ![Dale\_Sams](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/779978/32.png) [@Dale\_Sams](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dale_Sams)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2020, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gilligans-island-castaways-as-superheroes/841207/34 "2020-01-20T03:29:02Z")
> [@Yllaria](#): > > They all have the superpower of being able to live on sunlight. No way did they ever do enough hunting, gathering, fishing, or farming to provide enough food for them all. They did enough to satisfy a Want to eat, not a Need to eat. Hilariously your comment touches on another episode they already did. Professor discovers they arn’t getting enough vitamins and will die unless they can grow oranges. ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2020, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gilligans-island-castaways-as-superheroes/841207/35 "2020-01-20T22:34:55Z")
I’d like to know the backstory of Gilligan’s Island in that there was plenty of evidence people had been there before. In no particular order: [ul] [li]there were plants and animals not native to Polynesia there, including a breeding pair of gorillas![/li][li]there was both a cache of US Army weaponry and an old munitions pit on the island; it definitely was occupied during WW2.[/li][li]A boat sunken in the lagoon\* contained costumes and equipment for a silent-era film.[/li][li]Somehow a preteen boy had evidently survived there on his own since toddlerhood.[/li][li]Re. the above: how many years had “Wrong Way” Feldman been on the island?[/li][li]Ditto the two above: reclusive painter Alexandre Gregor Dubov.[/li][/ul] And that’s not to even mention that plenty of people came to the island and not by accident either. So if the Skipper said the island “wasn’t on the charts”, he must have been the most incompetent person ever to hold a master’s license. After all, look at who he chose as a crew member. \*BTW: they persistently misused the term “lagoon” for what strictly speaking was a cove. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2020, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gilligans-island-castaways-as-superheroes/841207/36 "2020-01-20T22:55:41Z")
The claim that the seven characters of _Gilligan’s Island_ are based on the seven deadly sins reminds me of the claim (by Michael Ward) that the seven books of the Narnia Chronicles can be matched with the seven planets of Medieval cosmology (the Sun, the Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn). When I heard that claim about the Narnia books, I found it ridiculous. What I told other Lewis fans was that you could just as easily match the seven Narnia books with the seven _Gilligan’s Island_ characters. ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2020, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gilligans-island-castaways-as-superheroes/841207/37 "2020-01-20T23:45:50Z")
Lumpy: Wrongway spent a very short time on the island - he landed there twice during the series. There was also a Japanese soldier on the island who thought the war was still going on, but as I recall the last real holdout was discovered in the 1970s after the series was over, so GI is a little less absurd than real life in that instance. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2020, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gilligans-island-castaways-as-superheroes/841207/38 "2020-01-21T00:28:59Z")
> [@dzeiger](#): > > Maybe start with the Fantastic Four template? > > Reed Richards, the Professor: Brilliant, but useless except as needed for the immediate plot. Reed Richards can’t sure cancer, the Professor can’t fix a hole in a boat. > > The Thing, the Skipper: Gilligan! It’s Clobbering time! Much of Ben’s problems come from being a large collection of rocks. Even if rescued, what kind of nautical career could the Skipper have when he weighs way more than the anchor? He could get a job as an anchor. That’s _sort of_ a nautical career. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2020, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gilligans-island-castaways-as-superheroes/841207/39 "2020-01-21T00:43:49Z")
Mary Ann is The French Maid. :o ---
**Author:** ![Dale\_Sams](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/779978/32.png) [@Dale\_Sams](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dale_Sams)\ **Post date:** [January 21, 2020, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gilligans-island-castaways-as-superheroes/841207/40 "2020-01-21T04:23:12Z")
> [@Andy\_L](#): > > Lumpy: Wrongway spent a very short time on the island - he landed there twice during the series. There was also a Japanese soldier on the island who thought the war was still going on, but as I recall the last real holdout was discovered in the 1970s after the series was over, so GI is a little less absurd than real life in that instance. I thought the Japanese guy (and i could be wrong) came from a sub? Also re: the island…it has an active volcano or was that a different island? And is in canoing distance of a shitton of cannibals on different islands. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gilligans-island-castaways-as-superheroes/841207.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gilligans-island-castaways-as-superheroes/841207.md?page=3)