Author: cansinduyan

Most of us associate violence with negativity, whether that be a deep sense of hatred, corrupt beings of power using it for control, or it being used as a justification to violently attack another being in the name of protection. Similarly, I view verbal abuse as another form of violence and most definitely one that can instigate further physical violence. Therefore, it is disturbing yet greatly interesting to witness how such a form of violence can, on the other hand, be given a platform and be celebrated.

Before we begin, I would like to point out that I don’t personally agree with or like the trash talking element within the UFC. Unfortunately, in this business, trash talking has become a successful technique as it is beneficial for fighters to build hype around their fights; thus, supplying the public with an incentive to invest their time and money into them.

One who has mastered the art of trash talking, or as he would call it ‘mental warfare’, is, of course, none other than the Notorious Conor McGregor.

How has this played out for him?

Well…

… despite opposing views, the fact remains that McGregor’s extraordinary transition from a man on welfare to becoming one of the biggest and richest stars in the UFC is a direct consequence of this showmanship.

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Cue an upset Khabib from the sidelines – “This is not trash talking sport”.

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McGregor’s personality, charisma and witty humour put him in the spotlight,  allowing him to progress much faster than most fighters. At one point after becoming champion of the featherweight division he decided to move up in weight class to lightweight, literally, leapfrogging all other contenders within this division and landing himself straight into another title fight enabling him to become the first fighter within the UFC to hold two belts simultaneously. This further proves the point that McGregor’s unprecedented ability to promote his fights through ‘trash talking’ has given him the popularity and thus power within the company to dictate his own career path, which no other fighter has ever been able to achieve. 

Following his flawless victory over Eddie Alverez, cementing him as the first ever double champion within the UFC, McGregor reached a new height of stardom making him, at the time, arguably the biggest name in all of combat sports. During the lead up to the fight, rumours emerged of a potential boxing bout between McGregor and undefeated boxer Floyd Mayweather which came to fruition the following year. This truly displayed the power McGregor held within the company as he was able to have this boxing fight whilst still under contract with the UFC. This request had never been granted to any other fighters beforehand, such as with Nate Diaz who had previously shown a similar interest, however, was promptly dismissed.

On the other hand, however, McGregor’s outspoken and often times degrading trash talk did not sit well with his last opponent Khabib Nurmagomedov. Trash talk arguably led to violence outside the legal boundaries set by the UFC. This in itself was in opposition to the purpose of the UFC, as a controlled platform which allowed fighters to explore and develop their techniques in a manner that would never be fatal. 

***Warning! This blog will contain some spoilers!***

With a serial killer on the loose, the original Channels (Channel No.1, Channel No. 3 and Channel No.5) employ more Channels into their exclusive group with the selfish intention of using them as their so-called ‘human shield’.

These Channels are immediately encouraged to mimic their superiors as well as serve them when asked to. They are dressed in pink attire, including heels that prove troublesome when running away from killers, as well as fur accessories that would have once been real but since the original Channels’ financial decline – are most probably fake.

The question is who is violently attacked and why?

Well prior to the employment of the human shields, Channel No.5 was violently attacked by the serial killer however was not ‘finished off’ per se. Considering this to be her second encounter with the killer, she as an original clearly has some valuable luck and survival skills on her side. That being said, due to her constant whining and unfortunately ‘not as attractive looks’ as the other originals, Channel No. 1had already established her as her disposable ‘friend’ in order to secure her own life. But after her second attack, Channel No. 5 no longer qualified as a strong enough shield if another attack were to occur, thus rendering her useless to Channel No. 1.

Thus, enters the new Channels:

Channel No.7, Channel No. 8 and Channel Pour Homme.

As much as these channels mimic their superiors, they will never truly attain the same value as the originals. Most obviously, is the fact that two of them are actually patients from the hospital the Channels are working at, who possess unusual and rare illnesses that instantly put them at a biological disadvantage in the discourse of value and worth.

That being said, one of these channels, in particular, Channel Pour Homme, levels up higher against the other recruits. This is due to many factors such as he genuinely looks good in the channel attire and possess the personality (selfish, egotistic, cunning and so forth) that are similar to the original channels. Strangely, this type of forced mimicry reminds me of the postcolonial theory coined by Homi Bhabha…

In this fictional American world, the construction of the idea of a superior Channelness would be crucial in defining their colonization of anyone anywhere, as a civilising mission – as in civilising the rest of the world who they view as inferior to them. The logic of such a civilising mission is to train and educate (yeh as if…)  the subjugated individuals so that they could attain the same level of character as their colonisers – the original Channels.

Obviously, this is the only way in they could be deemed worthy of hanging around the original Channels.

And if not well….

However, if this type of civilising mission were to actually be successful than the idea of one being superior to another also breaks down…which is a dangerous threat to all the original Channels and their power over others.  In this particular case, tensions already rise between Channel No. 5 who is been tamed and Channel Pour Homme who presents himself as worthy of her value and thrown as an original.

So, it’s no wonder that the biggest threat is the next victim to be violently killed off the series…Literally cut in half…as in cut in half of his Channelness points and basically falling down a game of snakes and ladders back to zero points in value.  Allowing Channel No.5 enough time to recover and reassert her power and value over others once again.

***Warning! This blog will contain some spoilers!***

Below are the rules set out by the Death Note:

I first came across the anime series in 2013 and since then have re-watched it at least three times over. The question to be asked then is, what about the Death Note is so engaging for its audience?

Firstly, let us begin with a brief introduction of the Death Note itself:

In an alternate plane of existence, Shinigamis (otherwise known as Death Gods) slouch in boredom with nothing more than endless sand and Death Notes to surround them. One Shinigami however, breaks away from this course and accidently drops a Death Note into the human world. College student, Light Yagami finds it and in doing so comes into possession of this Death Note.

He reads the RULES. He writes a NAME. He sentences a man to his DEATH.

It is not long before this law abiding young man revises his sense of justice into a radical discourse of righteousness – calling himself God of the New World. Keeping his identity hidden, he becomes ‘Kira’ (Killer) to the public who themselves reflect opposing views towards his existence and purpose. In further discussion of his character, fans in support of Light’s position have claimed that: “His intentions are noble, so he’s really more of an antihero,” “He sacrifices his soul to the Death Note and goes crazy to lower crime rates across the world,” “He’s smarter and more capable than everyone else, so he clearly knows what’s best and deserves to win against the police, who can’t even do their job right!”

Ultimately ‘Kira’ does not show any mercy. If you commit a violent crime – you are immediately executed. And because of this people are disciplined through the fear of Kira; even global crime rates reduce by over 70%. Of course, the irony is ever present – “Errm, isn’t Light like a mass murderer, isn’t he also committing violent crimes?”

Yes.

That being said, although I believe that Light’s reasons cannot be justified and he himself has become what he deems to be evil, his position as Kira is separate from society’s concept of violence and murder. I believe that Kira is not bound to the repercussions of mere human existence, much rather Kira transcends the boundaries set by the legal justice system; Kira literally overrides them…Kira is the new law and order.

I take caution here not to humanise Kira through terms of gender such as he or his, because Light is human, whereas Kira is a powerful existence that in itself is not inherently good or evil.

I believe this to be represented in the violence, or more precisely the lack of violence in the deaths set out by the Death Note. And it is this that I find to be the most disturbing, yet interesting aspect of the anime. The process in which Light practices his authority over the Death Note is in fact physically and mentally violent. His arm sets in an aggressive motion as he launches it back and forth, creating a romanticized yet forceful collision between his pen and the Death Note. In this moment of truth, his poker face distorts itself into one that can only be described as sickeningly orgasmic.  His violence and violence in itself is human.

In contrast, Kira’s act of death is quick and dispassionate. The majority of those executed are given no more than a few seconds of screen time.

The Death Note was never meant for a human, that being said one does wonder what they would do if they came into possession of it.