 While it may seem odd to most viewers that the movies portrayal of  Popeye does not like spinach, this was also a theme used in the  original comic strip by E.C. Segar. In fact, only once during the  syndicated run of the comic did Popeye eat spinach (to boost his  already considerable strength before a fight). Popeye was not first  shown to like spinach and eat it regularly until he made his debut  as an animated character (probably more as a move on the part of his  producers to promote the animated sailor as a positive role model  for younger viewers than anything else).