NBC’s ‘American Odyssey’ – Anti-Corporate and Anti-Free Speech

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By James Hirsen, Special for  USDR

 

NBC has launched a new television series called “American Odyssey,” which is based on the premise that an American company that has been funding Islamist terrorist groups is covering up the scandal by using private military contractors who are ready and willing to attack U.S.  soldiers.

According to trailers for the series and posters that are being used for marketing purposes, “American Odyssey” purports to be a dramatic thriller similar to Showtime’s “Homeland.” In fact, NBC has released a publicity photo of its female star, Anna Friel, who is shown wearing a blue headscarf and looking quite similar to “Homeland” actress Claire Danes, who in that show’s publicity photos wears a headscarf as  well.

Interestingly, less than a month before the show debuted, NBC changed the name of the new TV drama from “Odyssey,” to “American Odyssey.” An explanation for the revision was not given, but insiders suggest that NBC was attempting to appeal to the massive audiences that flocked to the blockbuster film “American Sniper,” especially considering that the premiere episode of the television show was scheduled to air immediately following “A.D.: The Bible Continues.” “A.D.” is the sequel to the hit miniseries “The Bible,” both of which are produced by Mark Burnett and Roma Downey and marketed to Christian conservative  audiences.

It is important to note that “American Odyssey” is in no way conservative in nature or in substance. The show’s creators have indicated that they view the program as a means in which to exhibit their belief that the Citizens United case and U.S. business entities are sources of evil in the modern  world.

Citizens United is the Supreme Court decision that strengthened free speech in the form of campaign finance and allowed corporations, non-profits, and other entities to participate in the financial support of political  candidates.

Adam Armus and Nora Kay Foster are two of the three co-creators of “American Odyssey,” and the third co-creator is actor-director Peter Horton. Armus, a former finance attorney-turned-writer, is best known, along with Foster, for penning the television shows “Heroes” and “Xena: Warrior  Princess.”

The creators of the NBC show have made it clear that they view peril in the present world in accordance with the perspective of the far  left.

“It’s about Citizens United,” Foster told the Daily Beast. “That’s the thing that’s really polarized the country and obscured what’s really going on  everywhere.”

Armus asserted that corporations are the entities posing the greatest threat to global  stability.

“Corporations are more powerful now than a nation-state, and people are really onto the fact that our democracy has been hijacked by corporate interests, and our votes are not really counting anymore because our candidates are all who has the most money,” Armus  opined.

As a consequence of the creators’ worldview, some key characters in “American Odyssey,” namely an activist, special ops soldier, and disenchanted corporate attorney, struggle against a sinister corporation and corrupt military  contractors.

The lead villains in the series are underhanded business entities and a deceitful military officer. A revisionist romanticized version of the now-defunct Occupy Movement is somehow shoehorned into the mix, as is a diagram that one of the characters displays revealing the mastermind of a series of conspiracies to be none other than former President George W.  Bush.

“We chose to talk about private military contractors for a reason,” Armus said. “The idea of people being paid to fight on behalf of American corporations on foreign soil is a bizarre concept that we thought was  scary.”

No doubt “American Odyssey” is intent on demonizing U.S. foreign policy and disparaging American businesses. However, according to the creators of the show, that which is really despicable comes from a court decision to which they were  opposed.

“We’re trying to tap into the zeitgeist that’s out there. Ever since Citizens United and corporations became people, a lot of people felt they didn’t have a say anymore. This is about three people who could’ve been from anywhere coming together and fighting back,” Armus  added.

The first season of the show, complete with its embedded messages, will run 13  episodes.

 

 

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