Who the hell are the Red Bamboo?

[Camdigidy]

Most people would call the Red Bamboo from Ebirah: Horror of the Deep a terrorist organization. They enslave Pacific natives and run a nuclear weapons factory. Bad dudes.



They have a very James Bond villian feel to them. And that may have very likely been their inspiration. You're not supposed to think about it TOO much. But it's fun to do so, so I found myself thinking more about the organization.

So first, these are unlike most terrorists I've seen. THEY HAVE UNIFORMS. And a strict order of rank. They also have a fairly advanced nuclear facility with professional looking staff. They obviously have a lot of money. This leads me to ask how they are being funded.

To have such an advanced facility, I speculate that the RB is secretly funded by a nation or a major corporation interested in having or selling nuclear weapons.

This part of my theory may be a stretch and some may think I'm a complete idiot, but hear me out. All the soldiers and staff (as far as I remember) were Japanese...
(No sh!t, dumbass. It's a japanese movie) BUT, within the context of the movie, I thought it was strange. Where did this well funded Japanese terrorist group come from? A rogue unit after WWII (ala Atragon)? That doesn't explain the wealth for me.

My hypothesis: the Reb Bamboo are a secret operation being funded by either a Japanese corporation or... the Japanese government themselves. What if the 1% of Japan threw their honor and ethics aside for profit? The people of Japan would never have this, especially not in 1966, so it had to be kept secret and done through a proxy/ sockpuppet organization?

So let me know if you see any holes in my theory or if you have your own about the Reb Bamboo.

[MechaGoji Bro7503]

I really, really like this theory!

My headcanon was that some alien race was giving them wealth somehow....... but I always thought it was a bit of a stretch.

[Camdigidy]

I really, really like this theory!

My headcanon was that some alien race was giving them wealth somehow....... but I always thought it was a bit of a stretch.

That's actually an idea I had saved for a future fanfic. The RB teaming up with one of the alien races sounds awesome. If they had more advanced technology or if they had bigger plans than building and maybe selling nukes, I'd buy that as a possibility more.

[Ivo-goji]

90% sure they're supposed to be a proxy for Communist China. Their jets are Chinese and Akira Takarada has a Chinese dragon on his eyepatch. They're Chinese.

[GalacticPetey]

90% sure they're supposed to be a proxy for Communist China. Their jets are Chinese and Akira Takarada has a Chinese dragon on his eyepatch. They're Chinese.

I mean, they are the "RED" bamboo. And considering the time the film was made, communism seems like a logical influence for a villainous group.

[Maritonic]

90% sure they're supposed to be a proxy for Communist China. Their jets are Chinese and Akira Takarada has a Chinese dragon on his eyepatch. They're Chinese.

I mean, they are the "RED" bamboo. And considering the time the film was made, communism seems like a logical influence for a villainous group.

Always the assumption I made.

[Camdigidy]

90% sure they're supposed to be a proxy for Communist China. Their jets are Chinese and Akira Takarada has a Chinese dragon on his eyepatch. They're Chinese.

I hadn't noticed that before! That's really interesting and makes sence in the context of when the movie was made. Japan and China have always kinda been at one another. I'm not too familiar with Japan/China relations.

But WHAT IF, in the context of the film, China was using the Red Bamboo to covertly supply their allies with nuclear weapons? I'm ashamed of my ignorance, was China tight with North Korea in 66?

[edgaguirus]

That's not a bad theory, Cam. It could be a covert Chinese operation, or even a coalition of communist countries working together to amass a nuclear arsenal. Personally, the coalition idea sounds very possible. It would explain the rank and organization of the group, as well as their access to resources and weapons.

[SpaceG92]

Wasn't the common portrayal of terrorists in Japan during this era all "hierarchy based" and using uniforms?

Look @ Shocker from Kamen Rider.

[LegendZilla]

90% sure they're supposed to be a proxy for Communist China. Their jets are Chinese and Akira Takarada has a Chinese dragon on his eyepatch. They're Chinese.

I think you mean Akihito Hirata.

[The One and Only]

With the "Red" adjective, and the 1960's being smack dab in the middle of the Cold War. Like Clint Werner went with in his Godzilla fan fics from back in the day. The Red Bamboo was actually a militant organization of hardline communists seeking to overthrow the capitalist Japanese government. In his tales, the Red Bamboo had been actually funded by the Soviets to both fulfill their goals of instituting a communist regime in Japan. Thus giving the Soviets an ally in the Pacific Rim while also denying the United States a strategic location, and ally in the region. Later, Werner, with the fall of Soviet Union, had the group, now bereft of U.S.S.R. funding, had them a bit smaller, but while leaner and meaner. Were not without allies, and support in the region.

The Red Bamboo could also be actually holdouts from the Second World War. Like the Sunrise Society(http://marvel.wikia.com/wiki/Sunrise_So ... Earth-616)) from the Marvel Comic Shadowmasters. Looking to take control of the Land of the Rising Sun, and get its course reset on resuming its Imperialist ways.

[Rhedosaurus]

90% sure they're supposed to be a proxy for Communist China. Their jets are Chinese and Akira Takarada has a Chinese dragon on his eyepatch. They're Chinese.

You could even argue that they are a metaphor for Communist regimes in Asia as a whole, really. Stalinist North Korea, North Vietnam, Burma, Indonesia, etc. Japan never really had a major communist/socialist movement and a lot of that was because of how Marxism never really appealed to Japanese people as a whole. The whole anti-tradition thing that Marx preached really didn't vibe. That and with the the fascists/ultra-nationalists crushing them and how Stalin's plan to make Japan a communist state failed (All the Japanese prisoners that were capture when the USSR 'liberated' Northeast China and Korea were brutalized. Most were never seen again, but Stalin released a few in hopes that they would preach the glories of communism, but the NKVD thugs pushed them WAY too hard and instead, the released prisoners spoke about the horrors and brutalities of the Soviet gulags.) the movie was in many ways a anti-communist movie.

[Ian_1954]

I agree that they are a proxy for communist China. This would make sense with the long standing grudge between the two nations. Although I always viewed them a terrorist organization separate from China's government. This would make sense why they would select such a remote island instead of being closer to China. That was my personal impression at least.