Whale Wars

Ever wonder what would happen if a Real Life Animal Wrongs Group got their own show? Well, that's pretty much what Whale Wars is about. The show, which currently airs on Animal Planet, follows Sea Shepherd Conservation Society as they try to stop Japanese whaling ships from hunting whales. They do this by chasing the ships, and then disabling or throwing rotten butter at them; note that in this case, "disabling" means attempting to sink or scuttle the ships, in the middle of the ocean, which could certainly result in casualties. Because of this, the show is highly controversial.

In case you are wondering, the whales do not actually war with each other.

This article is not about whaling. It is about a TV show and the tropes it employs. Editorials on one side or the other of the whaling controversy are not useful here.

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Tropes used in Whale Wars include:

• Animal Wrongs Groups: Pretty much the textbook version of this. While causing harm to the whalers themselves is not a priority, Sea Shepherd does not seem to be particularly concerned about their safety. Even other environmental rights groups such as Greenpeace want nothing to do with the SSCS because their tactics are so controversial.
• Designated Hero: If the Sea Shepherd crews are indeed supposed to be the good guys, it would only be by being appointed to the role by the show.
• Epic Fail:
  • Due to badly-timed maneuvering, Sea Shepherd's state-of-the-art trimaran collides a whaling vessel and sinks. Cue both sides accusing each other of deliberate ramming and piracy.
  • Crewman admits to being ordered to ram the whaling ship in order to garner sympathy.
• Family-Unfriendly Aesop / Warped Aesop: This show seems to give the message that, instead of using diplomacy and enforcing regulations on whale hunting, having a hack team of environmentalists using violent and controversial means is more effective.
• La Résistance: The Sea Shepherds.
• Punch Clock Villain: The whalers.