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These are the programs that raise the greatest concerns with regard to the treatment of violence. This form of cartoon violence is characteristic of action-oriented programs that are combat driven. Fighting is the main attraction or purpose of the program and the plot only provides justification for the combat. While this is not a new genre in Saturday morning programming, the dark overtones and unrelenting combat in these shows constitute a fairly recent trend which appears to be on the rise. This is where mean, vindictive violence occurs with little to counter the message that violence is an appropriate solution to a problem. The warriors are often portrayed heroically and their actions glorified.
Sinister combat violence shows are similar to tame combat violence shows in that they always contain a battle scene between the forces of good and evil. Nevertheless, sinister combat violence shows are far more mean-spirited and typically have a considerably more exciting feel to them provided by, among other things, a driving, rock music background. The heroes or "good guys" in these programs are valued for their toughness rather than their virtues, such as sense of humor or kindness, and are made "cool" by their warrior status and ability to destroy enemies. Violent behavior is always the defining element of these characters. These shows also draw out the violent scenes much longer than necessary and feature much more hand-to-hand combat and more lethal forms of violence than the tame combat shows. In these programs, the focus is on the battle scenes which take up a large portion of the show.
While all of the above types of violence may raise some concerns depending on the particular program and the age of the child, it is our contention that sinister combat violence raises the most serious and immediate concerns. It is violence for the sake of violence. It rarely couches the violent acts in any suitable context. The message is: fight. For this first report on television violence we feel that it is appropriate to concentrate on this newer and darker form of violence. While we intensely examined all types of Saturday morning violence, this is where we focused our greatest effort because we believe it to be the most serious and disturbing type of violence. We do not mean to downplay the significance of the other types of violence, which we will continue to monitor and follow closely.
We found seven Saturday morning programs that fell into the category of sinister combat violence. They are as follows:
A new and much darker version of the adventures of the Caped Crusader and Boy Wonder began three years ago. Originally for the weekday afternoon cartoon line-up, this program is reminiscent of the "Dark Knight" series of comic books which reestablished Batman as a major comic book hero. It also follows the Warner Bros. Batman movies which abandoned the satire of the 1960s television series for the moral ambiguity of Batman's earlier days. Both the mood and lighting of Batman and Robin are dark. The stories always revolve around the dynamic duo's thwarting of various super villains and other forces of evil, but with a substantially more mean-spirited and vicious perspective than the older live-action television series.
In this cartoon, Batman and Robin show their darker side as vigilantes rather than serving as custodians of the law. In one scene, a criminal is dangling on a girder hundreds of feet off the ground. Batman could save him, but because he refuses to cooperate, the Caped Crusader walks away, leaving the man to fall to a certain death. The criminal protests that the police would not leave him dangling and Batman replies, "We're not the police."
The fight scenes are prolonged and contain realistic weapons such as guns, pipes and Batman's fists. The violence is vindictive. Batman and Robin almost always win. They are strong and silent heroes like Clint Eastwood in the Dirty Harry series of films. Both Batman and Robin are willing to do whatever needs to be done in order to get their man, always resorting to violent tactics, even if it means letting an already beaten foe die.
The violence is glorified and the fight scenes comprise the focus of the show. A very distinctive style of animation and a foreboding tone amplify the "cool" feel to the characters toughness and one gets the feeling that the heroes really enjoy thrashing their opponents.
Another series based on an enormously popular comic book is X-Men. The stories revolve around a renegade team of mutant superheroes, gifted with talents which make them brutal warriors. The X-Men battle super-villains and their robot minions throughout the show in extremely long battle scenes accompanied by fast-paced music. The scenes are filled with explosives, power beams, bladed weapons and fist fights.
The heroes themselves are malevolent and actually enjoy fighting. The show is little more than a series of battle scenes strung together by thin plot lines in which the heroes attempt to destroy their foes rather than bring them to justice.
While the violence is fantasy, the true consequences of the violence are never shown. The characters and their actions are extremely vicious and can be lethal.
This program is CBS's answer to X-Men. Also based on a popular comic book, the WildC.A.T.S. are a team of super-warriors of alien descent who have banded together to battle a secret race of aliens who are trying to take over the Earth. The program is made up of a string of violent encounters between the warring factions and consists primarily of hand-to-hand combat (punching and kicking), shooting with power beams and fighting with bladed weapons.
The heroes are all violent and never hesitate to resolve their problems violently. In fact, they appear to possess a strong zeal for combat and often assert joy at fighting their enemies. They even express a desire to kill already subdued villains. Again, the violence is not realistic nor are the consequences shown, but the message is clear: violence is the most effective and fun way to deal with problems.
This is another action-oriented program devoted to one battle scene after another. The heroes are angry and belligerent and are motivated by revenge against the leader of the Skeleton Warriors, who stole their kingdom. The heroes' objective is to destroy their enemies. They never hesitate to initiate violence or to respond to confrontations with violence.
They usually try to slay their opponents with laser guns and sometimes resort to hand-to-hand combat. There are numerous explosions and constant destruction of the evil skeleton hordes. Non-violent solutions are rarely considered nor is the idea of compromise ever examined. It is violence without hesitation.
In one episode on 2/11/95 the show ended with one of the heroes seemingly dying as he was thrown off a bridge into a valley hundreds of feet below after a very long battle scene. This is a very ominous, threatening and mean-spirited show that highlights the darkest of human emotions and actions.
One of the first combat-driven cartoons to achieve widespread success, the lighthearted Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have faded away somewhat in favor of the more sinister violent programs. At one time, the Turtles were the most popular characters for kids, particularly boys. Their first movies were enormously successful. Subsequently, their antics seem tame and juvenile in the face of some of the newer programming described above. In response to the new sinister combat violence trend, the Turtles have taken a turn to more dark and mean, unrelenting violence.
Now, there is more focus on extended karate fights and less on the comic aspects of the show. The Turtles still do battle against evil hordes of bad ninjas and evil mutants, but now they do so with a more vicious approach.
This is probably the least sinister of the action-oriented cartoons due to a heavy comedic element in the form of glib one-liners. The most prominent problem with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is that most of the violence entails hand-to-hand combat, involving much punching and kicking and the use of martial arts weaponry such as staffs, numchuks, swords and tsais-martial arts knives. The Turtles' light-hearted attitude about violent conflict makes the violence seem that much more attractive. As in the other shows, the fighting and confrontations are the central aspect of the program.
For the moment the most famous children's series in the world, The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers have been accused of inciting violent acts resulting in injury. Many feel that children all around the world are imitating the acrobatic violence of the Power Rangers. The show has become an emblem for those decrying the excessive amount of senseless violence in children's television programming. Everyone, whether they have seen the show or not, seems to have a strong opinion about the Power Rangers. The Rangers themselves have become an industry, including films, stage plays, video games and countless other forms of merchandising.
The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers has serious problems and certainly sits high on the list of shows featuring sinister combat violence. It does not, however, stand alone on the list. The problematic elements in the Power Rangers are no worse than the problematic elements in the other shows. What distinguishes this show from other combat programs is that it is a live-action show rather than an animated cartoon.
The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers has given birth to a new genre of live action, children's programming. Revolving around an ongoing battle between the forces of good and evil, the six rangers (four men and two women) engage in multiple, prolonged martial arts battles in each show. These battles involve extensive punching and kicking against evil monsters and the Putty henchmen sent by the evil Lord Zed. In every episode, the Rangers' initial encounter with the enemies involves martial arts combat. In each final encounter with the enemy, however, the Power Rangers are almost always driven to use their "super gun" to defeat the otherwise insurmountable foe.
Each episode has a very similar look and feel, always conveying the same underlying message: violence is not really horrible and no one is really hurt by it. The Rangers themselves do not fear violent interactions and never give the impression that their battles are anything to be taken very seriously. Always victorious, the Rangers appear "cool" and successful. The show leaves the impression that the Rangers' actions are socially acceptable and even redeeming. The music and special effects only serve to accentuate this message.
Because of the live action, the show seems more realistic, even though the enemies are always monsters. The characters are real people from a variety of ethnic backgrounds and, therefore, are much more likely to become role models for the young audience than are animated heroes. This is especially the case because kids build a strong bond with the characters and the entire look and feel of the show.
The problem is that this show, which appeals to so many young children, is completely driven by combat. Though defenders might argue that the Rangers emphasize teamwork and cooperation, it is always teamwork and cooperation for combat.
This is one of the numerous live action copies of The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. The violence all takes place in a quasi-virtual reality, as a team of teenage computer hackers does battle with nefarious computer viruses in the shape of evil, robotic monsters.
The heroes use martial arts techniques and assorted weapons to destroy the viruses that are sent by an evil force within the virtual reality realm. The prolonged battle scenes are the focus of the program. The same issues that are seen in the Power Rangers are present here, although to a lesser degree. Fast-paced rock music is played in the background to amplify the intensity of the fight.
Once again, this first report focuses on the more immediate problematic violence of sinister combat. These are the shows that are about combat, confrontation and violence. When asked to describe the plots of these shows, children find it impossible to do so without emphasizing the violence. When children are asked about The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers they do not mention teamwork or commitment to common goals, but they will excitedly talk about the fighting. These are shows about fighting. Rarely are options other than fighting considered in these shows and the heroes are always eager to engage in combat. Remorse and restraint are seldom seen or even considered. These are the shows that, by far, raise the largest number of concerns about violence.
It is only fair that several shows be singled out for their lack of violence and constructive messages. Where in the World Is Carmen San Diego? (Fox) is a particularly impressive show given its ability to hold children's attention and allow them to use their imaginations without relying on violence at all. Beakman's World (CBS) is also able to package educational concepts in an entertaining format. Both shows are not only violence free, they are also fun to watch. NBC's teenage shows raised no concerns about violence.
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