The villains of the Imperialism era represent the fears that resulted from a globalized world. The internet is weaponized, information is power, and the mistakes of an empire have returned.

Skeletons in the Cupboard

As already mentioned numerous times in this section, the British Empire committed many atrocities over their reign as an empirical state. The full ramifications of the effects of imperialism are not yet known; however, previously colonized states struggle considerably in the modern world (Acemoğlu).

As the world became more connected through the internet, a sudden re-evaluation was undergone to recontextualize the previous role of global superpowers, chief among them Britain and America.

Alec Trevelyan, the villain of Goldeneye, is the most vivid realization of British fears of the past returning. Trevelyan’s background is that of a an orphaned Lienz Cossack. The Lienz Cossacks were Russian and Ukrainian nazi-sympathizers who were repatriated to the USSR. The repatriation of these Cossacks by Britain resulted in the deaths of nearly all of them by execution squad (Chereshneff). Trevelyan is a living memory of the countless lives lost at the hands of the British Empire.

Trevelyan even makes a direct call out to Britain’s imperialist past:

Trevelyan also symbolized Bond’s personal failure, as he was unable to save Trevelyan on a previous mission, resulting in his presumed death. Trevelyan represents the fear that the human atrocities of the British past may affect the present political climate. Interestingly, the only other famous Trevelyan in British history was a major cause in the Irish potato famine; another atrocity committed by Britain (Riordan).

Elektra King and Gustav Graves, of The World is Not Enough and Die Another Day respectively, further stress Britain’s former failures. They are both disfigured, either physically or emotionally, after the failure of an MI6 mission; they both present themselves as potential allies before enacting revenge and they both use their outward appearances as disguises for their sinister intentions.

(Gustav Graves is also notable for being the first and only villain of North Korean descent, representing a new threat on the world stage.)

The villains of this era work to remind Britain of their failures. They push a narrative that is counter to the history taught in school. James Bond acts as  the watchful guardian towards these foes and quickly reaffirms British superiority in the face of adversity.

WWW: World Wide War

The other constant threat to Britain presented during the Imperialism era is the fear that the increased connectivity of the internet can be used as either a weapon or a tool for disinformation.

The internet is first used as a weapon by Trevelyan in Goldeneye. Trevelyan captures two weaponized electromagnetic satellites and plans to target Britain through the use of hackers.

This scheme represents the growing fear of the internet, but is not the best example of weaponized information from this era.

Elliot Carver, of Tomorrow Never Dies, on the other hand, encompasses the growing informational fear. Carver’s plan is to spread fake news headlines of conflict between China and the UK by manufacturing the conflict himself. This would eventually lead to a world war and Carver would become the sole distributor of information in China.

Carver succinctly describes the fears of the imperialism era in a single sentence:

 

During the late 80s and early 90s, Rupert Murdoch rose to prominence in the British media circles. Beginning as a sub-editor in the 60s, Murdoch eventually climbed the corporate ladder to become the world’s most powerful media mogul. Due to his control of several media publications, Murdoch’s effects on public policy became larger than anticipated. He would frequently meet with Prime Minister Tony Blair to discuss policy secretly (Watt).

Carver was a reincarnation of Murdoch in the Bond universe. The speculation and fear of Murdoch’s unchecked power was manifested in a megalomaniacal Steve Jobs rip-off with a penchant for catchy headlines.

Globalization brought the world exciting new possibilities. The opportunity to explore and learn had became more expansive than ever before; however, the result of this expansion was fears of the unknown. The fear that the internet is a landscape nobody really knows of the full scope, and if used by the wrong people, could be a source for evil.