Entertainment which depicts Satan as likable "is clear bigotry" and "intolerance"

Ladewig

I lost an avatar bet.
Ladewig
Joined
Dec 4, 2001
Messages
28,828
Entertainment which depicts Satan as likable "is clear bigotry" and "intolerance"

The American Family Association is very upset at Fox-TV's new series "Lucifer"

http://www.afa.net/who-is-afa/press...ntact-fox-regarding-blasphemous-lucifer-show/

“Lucifer,” slated to air in 2016, glorifies Satan as a caring person in human flesh who has become “bored and unhappy as the Lord of Hell,” according to the show’s description. “The original fallen angel, Lucifer Morningstar has abandoned his throne and retired to L.A., where he owns Lux, an upscale nightclub.”

While Lucifer helps the LAPD punish Los Angeles criminals, God’s emissary, the angel Amenadiel, works to convince him to return to the underworld.

[snip]

“Simply put, it is wrong to mock people of faith by depicting a likeable character that is the very face of evil,” said AFA President Tim Wildmon. “It’s clear bigotry, and shows that make light of deeply held religious and biblical views are intolerant toward people of faith. We urge FOX to cancel plans to air this damaging program.... [italics in orginal press release]​


The AFA bills itself "as one of the largest and most effective pro-family organizations in the country with hundreds of thousands of supporters." The Southern Poverty Law Center describes the AFA as a hate group based on the foundations statements on take on homosexuality. There is already a thread in the TV/Entertainment sub-forum if you want to talk about the show itself. This thread is about the idea that depicting Satan as charming and likable is bigotry and intolerance.
 
Last edited:
Ladewig said:
This thread is about the idea that depicting Satan as charming and likable is bigotry and intolerance.
Click to expand...

Or could be factual ....:eek:

One of my favourite short stories is "Displaced Person" by Eric Frank Russell. The copy I have is in a short story collection first published in 1965 titled "Somewhere a Voice" - very short and well worth a read.
 
What's not to like about Satan?

He has the best lines in the bible:

"Eve, ma babe - check out these apples!"

YHWH "Hey Satan dude, whatchoo been doin'?"

"Hey big J, I've been just walking up and down, going to and fro hanging out with my peeps, doing my thing, man."

Satan to Jesus:

"See all the world? Yeah, the whole damned thing, as far as you can see - even the elephant graveyard! It's all mine, baby."

Satan was a fun dude.

Disclosure: I may have a large number of Satanic symbols and paraphernalia at my house so could potentially be biased.

Or possessed.
 
Please do elaborate. I'm not sure how being NOT hardline about some beliefs is bigotry, or how being tolerant of other views is intolerance. The whole thing reads like north is south, up is down, and left is right.
 
Check out the long running BBC Radio 4 comedy show 'Old Harry's Game' 7 series of 6 episodes each plus some specials.
The series is mainly set in Hell and the plot usually centres on the relationships and conflicts between Satan, his various minions, the damned and occasionally God (first name Nigel) and other denizens of Heaven. It regularly features famous historical figures and celebrities, most of whom are portrayed as being less likable than (or at least different from) the version recorded by history. This includes a foul-mouthed and extremely violent Jane Austen, a sexually predatory Florence Nightingale (who also ran an international opium cartel), a less-than-heroic Samson (who actually killed only one Philistine ... a schoolboy) and a vacuous Helen of Troy (accompanied by her plain-looking friend, Daphne).
Click to expand...

Satan is the nicest person in it apart from his PA Scumspawn, a demon that has a sensitive, caring and highly artistic personality, which is a constant irritant to Satan.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Harry's_Game
 
Last edited:
Captain_Swoop said:
Check out the long running BBC Radio 4 comedy show 'Old Harry's Game' 7 series of 6 episodes each plus some specials.
Click to expand...
Pah! That's from somewhere outside of the godly America (USA! USA! USA!) so it's totally irrelevant. We're the AFA; we're only concerned about the most important, exceptional, god-blessed nation to ever exist on Earth - or anywhere else, for that matter. What you god forsaken heathens do elsewhere is of no concern to us whatsoever. Well, except maybe for deepest, darkest (ha, ha) Africa where we can find recruits and make money.

So, please, go away.
 
It's nice to see you all here. As the more perceptive of you have probably realised by now, this is Hell, and I am the Devil, good evening, but you can call me Toby ...

Norm
 
Wow, they must have hated this one.

RbnzA5n.gif
 
Ladewig said:
The American Family Association is very upset at Fox-TV's new series "Lucifer"

http://www.afa.net/who-is-afa/press...ntact-fox-regarding-blasphemous-lucifer-show/

“Lucifer,” slated to air in 2016, glorifies Satan as a caring person in human flesh who has become “bored and unhappy as the Lord of Hell,” according to the show’s description. “The original fallen angel, Lucifer Morningstar has abandoned his throne and retired to L.A., where he owns Lux, an upscale nightclub.”

While Lucifer helps the LAPD punish Los Angeles criminals, God’s emissary, the angel Amenadiel, works to convince him to return to the underworld.

[snip]

“Simply put, it is wrong to mock people of faith by depicting a likeable character that is the very face of evil,” said AFA President Tim Wildmon. “It’s clear bigotry, and shows that make light of deeply held religious and biblical views are intolerant toward people of faith. We urge FOX to cancel plans to air this damaging program.... [italics in orginal press release]​


The AFA bills itself "as one of the largest and most effective pro-family organizations in the country with hundreds of thousands of supporters." The Southern Poverty Law Center describes the AFA as a hate group based on the foundations statements on take on homosexuality. There is already a thread in the TV/Entertainment sub-forum if you want to talk about the show itself. This thread is about the idea that depicting Satan as charming and likable is bigotry and intolerance.
Click to expand...

I take it these people never saw American Gothic.
 
People get outraged at bigotry and intolerance.
We are outraged at this.
Therefore, this is bigotry and intolerance.
 
Elizabeth Hurley had to about the most likeable Satan that I have ever seen depicted.

By the way, my religious nut aunt always used to say that Satan is the most attractive man in the world.
 
Yeppers, if Satan was like Liz, I'd be abandoning my Christian faith..... Oh, wait....

Well, she did look particularly hot in the "schoolmistress" outfit.
 
Syameese said:
Or could be factual ....:eek:

One of my favourite short stories is "Displaced Person" by Eric Frank Russell. The copy I have is in a short story collection first published in 1965 titled "Somewhere a Voice" - very short and well worth a read.
Click to expand...

"Displaced Person" is here: http://www.unz.org/Pub/WeirdTales-1948sep-00077

I do faintly remember reading it. Russell is one of my favourite authors. He should be much better known.

And, what on Earth is the matter with Christians? Can't they ever forgive? :boggled:
 
Dear American Family Association:

There is no such thing as the devil, Satan, Lucifer, etc.

Glad I could help.


Yours Sincerely,

Resume
 
theprestige said:
They kind of have a point, though.
Click to expand...

I don't see how. Satan is supposed to be lord of Hell, capable of seducing others into their damnation. Wouldn't being a likable character make that job easier?
 
theprestige said:
They kind of have a point, though.
Click to expand...

No.

The use of characters from myth in ways that run counter to that myth is fair use. It's not bigotry to add your own twist to the concept--see Paradise Lost (where something like 99% of our concept of the devil comes from).

This isn't the first time such a devil has been presented to the public. It's the premise behind Ghost Rider, for example. There was also a fairly short-lived TV show a while back built on the same premise--someoen works for the devil to bring souls escaped from Hell back to Hell. The only difference is that this time, the devil is doing the dirty work himself. Speaking as someone breaking into management, the difference is negligible; management is responsible for the actions of subordinates, even if they never actually see said subordinates.

It is not bigotry to play your pet mythology straight. It's not even bigotry to twist it into a nearly unrecognizable distoration of itself. The concept of the devil as God's head jailer is an interesting one that sets itself up for really cool stories. No one is under any obligation to ignore that just because it may offend some people.

I would, however, like to caution against attributing this action to Christians as a whole. I'm reasonably certain that most don't hold such views.
 
Slowvehicle said:
Is it equally intolerant to represent religious believers as likeable?
Click to expand...


I saw a few people condemn "Falling Skies" as right-wing Christian propaganda because it contained a couple devoutly religious characters who weren't evil hypocrites. Depicting Christians who were actually good people was somehow offensive to these people.
Never mind that the show was about survivors in the aftermath of an alien invasion, for crying out loud.
 
Muslims and Jews deny the very divinity of Christ! That is even more heresy than portraying Satan as okay. Have you ever heard of such bigotry and intolerance! Gee- I hope that no TV programs or books are allowed that would support such mocking of the true believers and the one true God!
 
Ladewig said:
The American Family Association is very upset at Fox-TV's new series "Lucifer"

http://www.afa.net/who-is-afa/press...ntact-fox-regarding-blasphemous-lucifer-show/

“Lucifer,” slated to air in 2016, glorifies Satan as a caring person in human flesh who has become “bored and unhappy as the Lord of Hell,” according to the show’s description. “The original fallen angel, Lucifer Morningstar has abandoned his throne and retired to L.A., where he owns Lux, an upscale nightclub.”

While Lucifer helps the LAPD punish Los Angeles criminals, God’s emissary, the angel Amenadiel, works to convince him to return to the underworld.

[snip]

“Simply put, it is wrong to mock people of faith by depicting a likeable character that is the very face of evil,” said AFA President Tim Wildmon. “It’s clear bigotry, and shows that make light of deeply held religious and biblical views are intolerant toward people of faith. We urge FOX to cancel plans to air this damaging program.... [italics in orginal press release]​


The AFA bills itself "as one of the largest and most effective pro-family organizations in the country with hundreds of thousands of supporters." The Southern Poverty Law Center describes the AFA as a hate group based on the foundations statements on take on homosexuality. There is already a thread in the TV/Entertainment sub-forum if you want to talk about the show itself. This thread is about the idea that depicting Satan as charming and likable is bigotry and intolerance.
Click to expand...

The thing to remember about the AFA is that first and foremost they are a money making operation dedicated to fleecing the rubes based on fear of anything not written in the holy book and anybody that makes fun of the holy rules.

They used Howard Stern as pornographer and blasphemer for a whipping boy and a fundraising point for years, to the point that Stern told AFA that if they wanted him off the airwaves just pay him to retire...they didn't take him up on the offer.

http://afajournal.org/1998/0598AFAJ.pdf

He read on air the fundraising letters AFA sent out calling for the faithful to chip in all they could to fund the campaign to get Stern off the air. Facts in evidence show they must have done a piss-poor job of it. The letters themselves were full of outrage that Stern didn't bow to their sensibilities, this post 9/11 complaint is hilarious:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/525858/posts?page=62

Please note that they objected to the comment noted in the complaint, but Stern's comments on the actual 9/11 show (more/less "drop the A bomb on all of the Arabs) didn't cause dissent...
 
Armitage72 said:
I saw a few people condemn "Falling Skies" as right-wing Christian propaganda because it contained a couple devoutly religious characters who weren't evil hypocrites. Depicting Christians who were actually good people was somehow offensive to these people.
Never mind that the show was about survivors in the aftermath of an alien invasion, for crying out loud.
Click to expand...

I liked the first couple episodes but it got ridiculously absurd quick. At least Walking Dead managed to keep my attention until season three, and that show is as absurd as it gets.
 
From my reading of The Book of Job (not Heinlein's version, the other one), I thought God and Satan were bosom buddies? Wandering Heaven, making bets, murdering innocents and having a cold one afterwords.

This religion thing sure is puzzling. :confused:
 
Gord_in_Toronto said:
From my reading of The Book of Job (not Heinlein's version, the other one), I thought God and Satan were bosom buddies? Wandering Heaven, making bets, murdering innocents and having a cold one afterwords.

This religion thing sure is puzzling. :confused:
Click to expand...

It only works if you don't think too much about it.
 
Mudcat said:
I liked the first couple episodes but it got ridiculously absurd quick. At least Walking Dead managed to keep my attention until season three, and that show is as absurd as it gets.
Click to expand...
They're the same show really. I'm most of the way through season 2 of Falling Skies and I've been enjoying it so far.
 
arthwollipot said:
They're the same show really.
Click to expand...

Well, I guess they both have equally implausible premises, but I wouldn't go so far as to say that they're the same show. Falling Skies is more tokusatu than Walking Dead, for example.

arthwollipot said:
I'm most of the way through season 2 of Falling Skies and I've been enjoying it so far.
Click to expand...

Friendly alien drops out of nowhere and converts normal human weaponry into something that can stand up to the invaders and somehow convinces the secret service to let him close to the president and the last remaining bit of American government...

At some point suspension of disbelief gets stretched way pas the breaking point, and that's it for me.
 
Mudcat said:
Well, I guess they both have equally implausible premises, but I wouldn't go so far as to say that they're the same show. Falling Skies is more tokusatu than Walking Dead, for example.



Friendly alien drops out of nowhere and converts normal human weaponry into something that can stand up to the invaders and somehow convinces the secret service to let him close to the president and the last remaining bit of American government...

At some point suspension of disbelief gets stretched way pas the breaking point, and that's it for me.
Click to expand...
Whereas I judge a show more by how much I'm entertained by it. *shrug*
 
Gord_in_Toronto said:
From my reading of The Book of Job (not Heinlein's version, the other one), I thought God and Satan were bosom buddies? Wandering Heaven, making bets, murdering innocents and having a cold one afterwords.

This religion thing sure is puzzling. :confused:
Click to expand...

It helps if you think of theology as fanfic; in this case, the AFA is upset because Fox is developing a fanfic that conflicts with theirs. It's essentially "Batman could so beat up Superman!" vs the bigotry of "nuh-uh, no way!"
 
arthwollipot said:
Whereas I judge a show more by how much I'm entertained by it. *shrug*
Click to expand...

To each their own, but you do have to admit that the plot often times contradicts itself in strange ways. Take for example:

Much of the non-organic invaders have armor that can protect it from pretty much anything that humans can throw at them but have a number of weaknesses that sort of make sense. Concentrated fire on a single point, for example.

Except that it does nothing against ammunition fired at them made of the same metal, which punches straight through and demolishes the armor... I'm sorry but wait, what?

Just how were the aliens manage to conquer much of the world if they had such an easy to exploit weakness? That's worse than being a boss with big glowing weak spots and specific attack patterns.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top Bottom