Judge Doom

Analysing Evil: Judge Doom From Who Framed Roger Rabbit

"....what is there to say about the dreaded Judge Doom? 

He was a being of exceptional cunning and intelligence with a broken mind who was so utterly without care for any and all Life, that he was willing to eradicate all of his fellow Toons in a veritable genocide, in order to enrich himself and exact his revenge upon Them. 

While much of the terror of Judge Doom can be found in his appearance and mannerisms, it's these traits compounded by a cynicism and self-serving ways that truly drive home how horrendous he is and while the story of Baron von Rotten, his tragedy, the insane brutality following his transformation into Doom is terrifying and he has without a doubt earned his place as one of the most iconic and Sinister villains ever to appear on the Silver Screen —  

But that's not all there is to say about Judge Doom and his machinations; while this story presents us with a villain who serves as a demented antithesis to the happiness and joy brought by his Toon bretheren, Judge Doom's plot is more so meant to Showcase one of the flaws that's inherent to Capitalism, the ramifications of unrestricted greed and his plot was actually inspired by real world events — 

In the film Judge Doom talks about buying up The Redcar, which was a nickname that people used to refer to The Pacific Electric Company's line of streetcars — Interurban cars and buses which at the time was the largest electric Railway system in the world.

There's a conspiracy theory that theorises, that during the same time period the film takes place, multiple companies operating in the Greater Los Angeles area, in tandem with the local and state governments conspired to buy all the land that was occupied by Pacific electrics rail system and run them out of business, so they could build the gargantuan Freeway system that now dominates Southern California — 

While this might seem like an aggressive yet innocent enough business plan that's more akin to a hostile takeover than anything, you have to keep in mind the exchange between Eddie and Judge Doom —

When he's explaining his plans to him Judge Doom states that the advent of this Freeway System will allow for a string of gas stations inexpensive motels restaurants that serve rapidly prepared food Tire salons automobile dealerships and billboards; and while The Freeway System in practice is a fantastic way to facilitate faster and more efficient automobile travel; It's also a gateway to immense profits for the many industries that are required to keep The Freeways maintained and for the ones that provide the passengers of these automobiles with basic necessities as they Traverse these roads —

Eddie remarks upon hearing this plan, that no one is going to drive on this ‘Freeway’ when they can take The Redcar for a nickel; and now we've arrived at the nefarious nature of both this imagined and possibly real plot — yes, by its nature alone Capitalism is a tool that people can use to present their ideas to The Populace and if those ideas are perceived well by The Public anyone is more than welcome to usher in their new Innovations by getting rid of any old ones.

However, when you cut out the middleman and conspire with a group of other capitalists to eliminate a competitor product or service that serves as a roadblock to your plans in order to influence The Public's perception of the events surrounding the advent of your new product, you run into a bit of a gray area morally speaking —

It’s fair game if two competing companies present their ideas to The Public and The Public decides whether or not these companies will prosper but it's not so fair game if one company decides to undermine another in order to overcome their competition by forcing them out of business — not only that but by eliminating a rival without The Market playing out its natural course, you've now deprived people of a product that might have been useful and more efficient so you could enjoy larger profits.

With The Freeway system there are a few ways in which the advent of such A System can have an effect on people — you have of course the elimination of a cheap transportation system that people could rely on and while cars provide people with more personal efficiency as far as transportation is concerned, not everyone can afford a car.

But you also have to consider how much land that such a massive construction project like a freeway is going to require and that might require people to be coaxed out of their homes to facilitate this new project or if they aren't, their living situation might be impacted by the surrounding businesses or The Freeway itself also, with the closure of The Redcar —

I'm sure many people lost their jobs and while most people in this situation will eventually manage to find employment elsewhere, some might not have, which could lead to a whole host of issues; and for those that did they surely experienced some sort of hardship immediately after losing their jobs —

So is this type of business-practice evil? Well, that honestly depends on your own views on the matter, but the fact remains that engaging in this type of business strategy requires the perpetrator to negatively impact the lives of others in some way, in order to realise their ambitions and just as Judge Doom is a Toon willing to harm Toons for the sake of profit albeit in a rather extreme way, there are plenty of humans who have done much the same to other humans and I, for one believe that isn't right; and just like Judge Doom, his plans and any plans like them deserve to be called 'evil'. 

Thank you all for tuning-in to this episode of Analysing Evil.