The Caring Meter is a device utilized by the inhabitants of the Kingdom of Caring to detect the levels of positive emotions present in others, including those on Earth, Care-a-Lot, and most recently the Silver Lining.
Design[]
Originally, the Caring Meter was designed as a big red heart. It first has a framed circle in the middle that displays different sizes of hearts with an arrow that points, and it is set on a Greco-Roman column outdoors with a fence (with 4 corners posted by red hearts) complete with a set of stairs. The column later changes shape by the 2nd film. By the early 2000s, the big red heart stays the same and a red ribbon is added, but the designed pictures change on the front and the arrow design changes also as well. The body changes color for the CGI as well as the dimension in the latest animation. By 2019, the big round heart changes the front and back sides to flat surrounding it with a golden frame and the arrow changes into the pointing needle.
Use & Purpose[]
Depending on how much caring there is, both in the meter and on Earth, Care-A-Lot's environment will be affected. However, if the meter gets to a point where there's a low (or dangerously low) amount of caring in the world (or Care-A-Lot itself), environmental disasters such as thunderstorms and rainbows crumbling, and sometimes the colors turning black and white will occur. If the meter were to reach all the way to zero (meaning that there's literally no caring anywhere), then Care-A-Lot will disappear completely. In a sense, it is similar to the US Military's "Def-Con" level. (Ranging from 5 to 1. 5 being at peace - 1 being Nuclear war.)
The meter can lower through various ways, including:
- 1. When someone on Earth is feeling down or troubled
- 2. An evil scheme being plotted (usually by No Heart) to take the caring out of the world.
- 3. A quarrel happens in Care-A-Lot.
Other than its role, not much is known about it, although it is shown to have mechanical inner workings. Dark Heart once attempted to ruin the Care Bears by posing as a "Caring Meter Reader", to which he sabotaged the mechanisms of the Caring Meter.
Appearances[]
The Care Bears Movie[]
In The Care Bears Movie, The Caring Meter is shown with 8 hearts, along with 3 colored zones: Red (0-3), Yellow (4-6), And Green (7-8). It has shown to have taken damage as shown by the cracks in some areas due to the cloud-quake that was caused by The Spirit.
Care Bears Movie II: A New Generation[]
The Caring Meter as it appears in the Nelvana series and A New Generation.
In Care Bears Movie II: A New Generation, as well as The Care Bears Family television series, The Caring Meter is shown to have 12 hearts, in an unnumbered clock-like fashion. Unlike the first movie, this meter has a bell inside and the meter acts like a barometer and the platform is larger in size giving it more accessibility. The pointer will move counterclockwise as the pointer drops. Depending on the number of bells the Caring Meter has tolled, the pointer will move the amount of hearts per toll. (Example: 3 tolls will equal 3 hearts.) In some episodes, some will carry a 'Caring Beeper' which is a small version of the Caring Meter that is carried in one's pocket.
The Care Bears' Big Wish Movie[]
.png){kind=link}
The meter as it appears in Big Wish Movie
In The Care Bears' Big Wish Movie, it is dubbed "The Care-O-Meter" and has two sides: the Rainbow on the right (More Caring) and the Raincloud on the left (Less caring). If the meter gets too close to the raincloud side, the Care Bears must try and prevent the meter from going even lower by going on caring missions. It is set inside the Hall of Hearts.
The meter serves as the main focus for the DVD release of the movie. While the body is red in scrapped artwork, it is a texture of sky colors in CGI. The needle starts at 0, but each time the viewer plays a bonus feature and watches the movie at least once, the needle will move. Once the needle is completely to the Rainbow side, the viewer is awarded with a song piano game.
Care Bears: Adventures in Care-a-Lot[]
In the 2007 series and specials, it is once again dubbed the "Care-o-Meter" and is part of the Care Bear Transporter used to transport bears and kids to and from Earth. The transporter will flash if a kid needs help, and the needle will move as the caring on Earth decreases.
Care Bears & Cousins[]
In Care Bears & Cousins, it is also referred to as the "Care-o-Meter".
Care Bears: Unlock the Magic[]
The meter as it appears in Unlock the Magic
Unlock the Magic follow's Big Wish Movie's suit and continues the use of the "Care-o-Meter" name. In this iteration of the series, the meter is a digital reading that links back to the main meter in Care-a-Lot where it's set in a different area, and appears on the bears' Care-Links, devices they use to communicate. It resembles a heart-shaped dial with different colored dashes that light up in succession. The more lights lit, the more severe the drop in caring is.
Breakdowns & Malfunctions[]
An interesting quark that the Caring Meter has, it tends to give false readings when problems arise with-in Care-a-lot. It will react wildly, giving massive fluctuations in readings, or simply breaking down completely.
In Care Bears Movie II: A New Generation, while the Care Bears are setting up for a party, the pointer is spinning uncontrollably as it could sense Dark Heart approaching.
In the television series, the meter has malfunctioned 2 other times:
- In the episode The Factory of Uncaring, the spike from Beastly's helmet stopped the pointer from moving (thinking that the Care Bears won't notice any problems) which caused the mechanics to stop up and smoke began to emit from the meter itself, and once Champ Bear pulled the spike out, the pointer dropped to the 6-o'clock position causing the alarm to sound with bells and whistles.
- In the episode Song-Fellow Strum and His Magic Train, the meter suddenly broken after Brave Heart Lion and Hugs & Tugs argued. This time however, the alarm didn't sound. The meter could have possibly malfunctioned due to the arguing Brave Heart and Hugs & Tugs caused.
Sabotage Attempts[]
There were several times where the Caring Meter had been sabotaged for one's gain.
- Dark Heart - Posed as the 'caring meter reader', to which he successfully sabotaged the mechanics of the entire meter.
- Beastly - Was ordered by No-Heart to completely take out the Caring Meter while Champ Bear was distracted. He tried three times to destroy it.
- First, he tried using an ax as a means to chop the meter down, but this attempt failed due to Bright Heart's remote-controlled airplane flying straight towards his direction which led to a small chase.
- The second time was when Beastly grabbed a hammer to smash the Caring Meter, but this attempt also failed due to a runaway tire rolling towards him.
- The final time was when he tried to tackle to knock Champ Bear off of the cloud, but fell through the hole where a plant was going to be put, bouncing off of a few rainbows before eventually hitting the meter's pointer.
- Bluster - When he, Robbie and Malcolm take over Care-a-Lot, he tries to rip apart the meter. But when Malcolm realizes what the Care Bears really think, he and Robbie foil his plans by allowing the Bears to stare the Blizzard Maker, freeze the Care-O-Meter and stop Bluster.
Trivia[]
- The Caring Meter has dropped to zero twice, the first being in the first movie when the caring was being taken all of the world by The Spirit, and the second time that being in the second movie when Dark Heart sabotages it.