Anyone Think "Corproate Raiders" Was A Commentary On Scientology?
 

I just finished watching it again, and if what I think of it now is accurate, it's shot up from number six in my top ten to number two. The whole quasi Xenu-esque "Grand Arising", weathly members, brainwashing....

..Sensetive subject of course, so tread carefully

Any and every cult in general. Not necessarily Scientology specifically.

It's all about Scientology. It's a well know fact that Clint Eastwood was once a big man in the faith, thus Casey being brain washed.


That was a joke, btw. :P

What cult isnt?:lol:

Propaganda
 

It look like it's about propaganda and brainwashing in general, whatever it's religious, political, economic or philosophic. Brainwashing is in much science fiction. But it's also about capitalism.

I doubt it was addressing Scientology exactly. Scientology has not really been a hot issue for very long, only for about the last few years when Tom Cruise started acting crazy.

Actually, it's been a recurringly frequent big deal. They had a small boost in the 1980s

1990's
 

Wasn't scientology a hot issue in the 1990's (even if this episode first aired in 1989).

Off hand, maybe....

I took a lot of it as a commentary on corporate America.... you know, how companies are bought up by larger companies, and they change their practices to something that's not so wholesome...

Political
 

It's one of the more political episodes, but all "good VS evil" fictional stories are somehow political, since the bad guys always want to rule the world).

Lol, I never would have made this connection, but I do agree Zarius. David Wise wrote it, if anyone ever gets an interview with him we should ask.

Actually, the events of "The Big Blow-Out" all but gurantee Krang's Taliban were gonna waste the world.

er, I guess I'll be a boob and ask what "Scientology" is. because I have no idea what the meaning is or how it's talked about.

Wow. Just...wow.

It's only the most hated religion/cult in the world right now

Jim Jones
 

But in the 1970's and 1980's a lot of sects were around, like http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jim_Jones. (Many young people entered the sects). And in the 1990's a lot of sects were around like that Comet Hale-Bopp sect and many millennium sects. It has always existed.

Yeah... but if he reveals that it was, there's a very good chance he could be blacklisted or something.

I'm gonna have to watch this again later and check it out, now that I k now what to look for....

Though:

Shredderville
 

And "Shredderville" can be seen as a commentary on dictatorship states.

I agree. It was probably an exaggeration of the effects of corporate America. Kind of an embellished way to say that in everyone's attempts to make it to the top they may become "brainwashed" by the pursuit of getting up the corporate ladder.

Other 1980's shows
 

Is their any plot like this in any other 1980's shows (cartoons)?

it's little tidbits like this that make me love the classic series. In the depths of all the wisecracking and quirkiness they had little naugets of serious issues sprinkled here and there. The same could be said about the character Casey Jones, you might say that his character was a representation of anti-bueracracy and organised law force, with his vigilante ways. OT Casey probably wanted a world of anarchy.

You could also say that Leonardo the Renisance Turtle is a commentary on peope's willingness to give up basic civil rights to law enforcers where a ultimate harsh system of marticial law is enforsed so they can feel safe from crime. Until your right keep getting chipped away little by little until you are under taliban like dictatorship. Like with that cop robot that was so strict about obeying the laws it became tyrical in it's waysand suddenly every one is a criminal.

Serious
 

There are some more "serious" episodes of the 1987 cartoon

Splinter No More - Racism
Take Me to Your Leader - Leadership/Earth in danger and nobody cares
Corporate Raiders from Dimension X - Capitalism/scientology
Shredderville - Dictatorship states
Shredder's Mom - Global warming
Michaelangelo Meets Mondo Gecko - Why some people become bad dudes

all of the old toon seemed to be a thing on racism and intolerance. Just Check out "Turtles On Trial" and see how propaganda was shown. It was like a modern day witch hunt.

TMNT concept
 

Racism and intolerance is an important part of the entire TMNT concept.

Or just how terribly things are being run politically are anyway. I just loved the realism of someone taking over the world and not being able to do anything about it because of budgetary reasons.

And there has to have been some commentary on drugs... seems like the TMNT have always had an anti-Drug stance some way or another.

Mutants
 

Shredder blamed the mutants so people shouldn't think of that it was he who was the real bad dude. The same with Adolf Hitler and the nazis in Germany during the 1930's, they blamed the jews, but it was the nazis who were the real bad dudes.

"Turtles on Trial" was a love letter to Mortin Downey Jr.

Commuism
 

And how the police were after communists in the 1950's and 1960's, even in countries with democracy.

Well.. that was third season episode AND Casey's second appearance.. it was most likely aired 1990/1991.

1989
 

It originally aired in 1989, see http://www.ninjaturtles.com/cartoon/1989.htm but there was probably some scientology debate around even in the 1980's. Scientology has been around since 1953 according to Wikipedia, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientology.

I'm suprised no one has mentioned the Turtleoids episodes yet. I felt there was alot of under tones of social commentary on groups of people and society and corruption, in it. A peaceful utopia where the inhabitants know nothing of aggression or violence but have a resouce that most societes want. A big reciepe for trouble. I found it interesting that Donatello saw this Shellreela society superiour to the one he lived in because of it being inhabitated by turtles instead of humans and their supposed "superiour" more peaceful ways than human society. So much so that he didn't want to leave even after getting thrown in jail. But it was shown that two of the members of Shellreela wheren't so peaceful and where pretty greedy

I think this episode was a commentary on how no one soceity or group of people is better than another because they are supposedly more peacuful and nonviolent than another. To bad Donatello didn't figure this out in these turtleoid episodes. He seemed to think that because the turtoids where "turtles" they where naturally better than humnaity and their society because they wheren't greedy and as willing to kill each other as humnans are. But what happened in thse episodes? The turtloids have gold and every major society has a lust for it and greed to use it for what they want. But yet the turtloids where a pacifist group that where basically made victims of stronger more violent people that wanted what they had, but where able to hold onto their pacifist life style because of thewir isolation from these more violent societes.

And when they came to the attention of other groups of people they suddenly had problems and even more dire because they couldn't defend them selves. After being repeatedly being made helpless the turtloids try to make fighting bots to defend them and when that doesn't work Kerma makes the proclaimation that he and his people are going to change and that "woe to any one that tries any thing with the turtleoids" leaving the Don, Mike, Raph and Leo a little uneasy. The once peaceful turtloids are now going to becomewar like in order to pretect their society and their gold, and probably going to become exactly like the human society that Donatello was disdainful of in the first turtloid episode.

So what does all this say? Well I think what these Turtloid episodes where trying to get across eighther consciencely or unconsciensly is that, it's easy to cultivate a peaceful nonviolent way of life when you live away from violence and corruption and easy to say "oh this soceity or group of people are better than this society and group of people because they aren't violent and greedy like they are" when they actual reality is the only reason they can live that way is because they aren't living in a place of threat. Even gentle nonagressive people will become violent if threat is introduced into their society. The turtleoids them selves wheren't better then humnaity because being a turtle made them less prone to violence than people. So it wasn't a genetic superiourity the turtloids had over humans for being more pacifist, it was that they didn't have the same violence introduced into their society as humans did. The very last episode of the turtleoids shows Kerma with a new resolve to be millitant if a threat should come to his planet again, which would only lead to thre turtleoids soceity to become more war like and violent over time.

I think these episdes showed that one group of people aren't better than the other because of being none violent and any one is capable of being violent and war like regardless of who they are. It's to bad Donatello didn't see that. He saw the turtoids as better just because they where turtles.

Any one see what I'm talking about?

Funny, They Shrunk Michaelangelo
 

And "Funny, They Shrunk Michaelangelo", that captain was sent out of the US navy, now he wants revenge.

to chime in on what Sage Ninja said do you think the turtloids where more influenced to become agressive by the bad guys threatening them or the turtles? If the turtles hadn't shown the turtloids that they can be a turtle and fight would the turtloids would have become warlike on their own or would they have let them selves be wiped out?

Unhappy kids
 

Also, don't forget those "Unhappy kid" stories like "Michaelangelo Toys Around" and "Poor Little Rich Turtle".

You know, why this is debatable, anyone ever see the Rescue Rangers episode "Case of the Cola Cult?" If that wasn't a blatant stab at Scientology, I don't know what was. And no one complained to Disney. One of it's most publicized members is gonna be the voice of a dog in a CGI movie.

Cola Cult
 

I saw that episode. I recall a song in the episode too.