Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego

This week a modern day hero from a 1980s video game

This week my Substack is all about Carmen Sandiego. Animated is a free Substack that takes you behind cartoons. Why not subscribe to receive animated in your inbox each week for free?

The History

Carmen Sandiego (sometimes called Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?) is an animation initially based on a video game which debuted in 1985 as a ‘mystery exploration’ and was an instant success in classroom adopting new technology. It was then rebranded as ‘edutainment.’ 

Initially, the main focus of the video game was to teach children about Geography, History, Maths, Languages and Art. After the game's success, the animation was developed and further extended into board games and comics, with the brand being translated into 20 languages by 1996.

From 1985-1997 the rights passed through five different companies, eventually laying dormant for 15 years with Houghton Mifflin Harcourt when, in 2019, Netflix commissioned the animated show and re-booted Carmen Sandiego brilliantly into the four seasons that ran from 2019-2021.

The Premise

Its premise was focused on a fictional thief, Carmen Sandiego (also known as Black Sheep), who, at the time, was part of V.I.L.E (Villains International League of Evil). This criminal organisation steals artefacts, and other valuables, from around the world. These criminals are pursued by A.C.M.E (Agency to Classify and Monitor Evildoers).

Carmen is trained by VILE, who purport to be the good guys. However, Carmen realises that they are evil and makes her escape. She then tries to stop them from committing their crimes across the globe and becomes enemy number one of the organisation. 

In the re-boot, Carmen is joined by several other characters who assist in this fast-paced yet very educational plotline, which became a popular staple on Netflix.

Organisations & Main Character

There are two prominent organisations in Carmen Sandiego, each with many characters. 

V.I.L.E

These are a dubious organisation of international criminals with the undercover name of Valuable Imports, Lavish Exports. Their HQ is in the Canary Islands, where they have an academy for training elite thieves.

The organisation is led by five main characters Coach Brunt, Dr Bellum, Countess Cleo, Professor Maelstrom, and Shadowsan, each bringing their skills to the organisation and their mission for domination.

Within the training facility, several elite thieves try to capture treasures attempting to end Carmen’s exploits of foiling their missions. The main ones are Tigress, Paper Star, Mime Bomb, Crackle, Le Chevre, Neal the Eel and El Topo, each bringing their skills to each assignment.

ACME

A top secret law enforcement agency that is generally on a mission to thwart the crimes of VILE and combat Carmen Sandiego, and her team, believing her as part of the VILE organisation.

Acme consists of several characters (all brilliantly narrated and with a good backstory): The Chief, Chase Devineaux, Julia Argent and Zari. 

Carmen Sandiego (Black Sheep), Voiced by Gina Rodriguez

Carmen’s origin story is that she was abandoned as an orphan in Argentina and joined the organisation (VILE) that trains her.  Our hero realises they are the real criminals and escapes, then seeks to dissolve the organisation by stopping them from operating and stealing back any treasures, donating money to her charity, Back Sheep Inc.

She takes her name from the brand name in the hat she uses as a disguise for her escape. As season two continues, the real story behind Carmen is revealed, but I will not put any spoilers in here as it is excellently written.

Playa (Voiced by Finn Wolfhard)

Playa is a white hat hacker (a hacker that tests systems and networks to improve cyber security). He helps Carmen set up heists, find VILE agents, and keep her safe from attacks from VILE and ACME agents, as well as giving her intel on any of the places she is going to.

Playa typically doesn’t meet Carmen but operates from his home in Ontario and has a friendship since she has been training on the island.

Zack and Ivy

Carmen has several other helpers that help her on her missions, such as Zac and Ivy, twins from South Boston. They will help with engineering, disguises and vehicles when Carmen needs them.

Plotline

Each episode moves from the previous one and has an intriguing quick-paced plotline that uses the characters well. Each character is well-developed, and the scrapes that Carmen gets into have great escape routes and excellent dialogue between characters.

Typically Carmen will be made aware of a heist that is about to happen and will try and stop VILE from committing this. She will often enlist the help of her crew, and as the plotline develops, we see her befriend others (that’s all I am saying!).

Fun Facts

• Shadowsan has the second name of Bouchard.

• Carmen Sandiego made the switch from video games to animation.

• The game came about partly because a survey revealed that 25% of American children couldn’t point to Russia or the Pacific Ocean. 

• Her pet cat, Carmine, was part of her original crew.

• In the early 1990s, Disney held the rights to Carmen and tried a live-action movie with Sandra Bullock playing the hero…it never left the planning stages.