What fictional evil has great corporate branding?

November 20, 2007 1:09 AM

What fictional evil has great corporate branding? I'm knitting myself sweaters and want to use the merchandising logo of fictional and cinematic dystopian/corrupt/evil corporations or organizations.

A few examples I've thought up with a great deal of satisfaction:

Black Mesa from Half Life
Aperture Science from Portal
Umbrella Corp. from Resident Evil
uNorth from Michael Clayton
Three Bees from The Constant Gardner

I'm really interested in a fully-realized brand identity, not just any old evil corporation/organization. Ideally they'd have a nice little logo design and have short names, since it'll look better knit. It takes forever to knit up sweaters, but patterning out different logos keeps me really excited about them. Thanks!

posted by cowbellemoo to media & arts (96 comments total)

Globo Chem from Mr. Show. The company is used the same way the old WB cartoons used the Acme corporation.
Anything that sucks or is evil or stupid is being manufactured by globo chem.
There's also a list of fictional companies at wikipedia.
And of course the OCP.
posted by SageLeVoid at 1:25 AM on November 20, 2007

Blue Sun from Firefly.
posted by lou at 1:27 AM on November 20, 2007 [2 favorites]

LuthorCorp.
posted by headspace at 1:31 AM on November 20, 2007

Fox Books, from You've Got Mail.
posted by mdonley at 1:31 AM on November 20, 2007

Weyland-Yutani from Alien et seq.
posted by grouse at 1:33 AM on November 20, 2007

Complex Corporation from Kevin Smith films, with a particular emphasis on its evil nature in Dogma.
posted by Riki tiki at 1:34 AM on November 20, 2007

The Parallax Corporation from The Parallax view.
posted by oh pollo! at 1:56 AM on November 20, 2007

Zorg Corporation from The Fifth Element. Sorry, I can't do links from my current location.
posted by michswiss at 2:03 AM on November 20, 2007

Sure you can. Just type <a href="URL HERE">LINK TEXT HERE</a>.
posted by grouse at 2:10 AM on November 20, 2007 [9 favorites]

Zomcon from the zombie flick Fido.
The Ankh-Morpork Assassin's Guild from Discworld (they have a coat of arms).
Conglom-O from Rocko's Modern Life -- has a great logo: A martini glass holding a miniature Earth with a toothpick through it.
Cyberdyne Systems -- the corporation that built SkyNet in Terminator.
Momcorp from Futurama.
zOrg from The Fifth Element.
Virtucon -- Dr. Evil's company from Austin Powers.
posted by hjo3 at 2:17 AM on November 20, 2007

NERV from Evangelion. I was thinking of sticking the logo on the end of a scarf, but I realized that by the time I finished, it would be summer again.
posted by betweenthebars at 2:24 AM on November 20, 2007 [1 favorite]

CyberDyne from The Terminator movies. We actually used this as our team name in a college business-marketing simulation course and got away with it.
posted by allkindsoftime at 2:32 AM on November 20, 2007

Can not remember the name right now, but the company Joe works for in Joe Versus the Volcano.
posted by vagabond at 2:36 AM on November 20, 2007

...missed it in hjo3's answer, sorry.

How about US Robotics from I, Robot?
posted by allkindsoftime at 2:39 AM on November 20, 2007

Manpower Incorporated, the slave cloners in the Honor Harrington universe.
posted by Bruce H. at 2:49 AM on November 20, 2007

US Robotics from I, Robot
They're not evil in the book.
posted by spasm at 2:52 AM on November 20, 2007

Same idea here in tshirt form.
posted by fire&wings at 3:03 AM on November 20, 2007 [2 favorites]

Norsefire from "V for Vendetta"
posted by SpacemanRed at 3:04 AM on November 20, 2007

Acme from Looney Tunes?
posted by misozaki at 3:04 AM on November 20, 2007

Lil Lisa Recycling from the Simpsons
posted by ReiToei at 3:47 AM on November 20, 2007

The Goliath Corporation from Jasper Fforde's Thursday Next series of books.
posted by Nugget at 3:55 AM on November 20, 2007

Spectre - James Bond movies
Kaos - Get Smart
Alternative Tentacles - not evil or fictional, but a cool logo, probably with guilt about copyright implications.

Sorry I can't do links, lazy.
posted by Tixylix at 3:58 AM on November 20, 2007

Globex Corporation - From the simpsons episode with Hank Scorpio.
posted by milarepa at 4:05 AM on November 20, 2007

The bicycle thingee featured in The Prisoner?
posted by Gungho at 4:21 AM on November 20, 2007

Initech. Truly the most evil place possible.
posted by Thorzdad at 4:21 AM on November 20, 2007 [4 favorites]

OCP, Omni Consumer Products. From Robocop
posted by sandra_s at 4:23 AM on November 20, 2007

The Decepticons (Transformers)
Bad Wolf (Dr Who)
Cobra (GI Joe)
Slytheryn (Harry Potter)
The Empire (Star Wars)
posted by nalyd at 4:25 AM on November 20, 2007

Fictional Intelligence Agencies - might be worth a look at some of these.
posted by adamvasco at 4:27 AM on November 20, 2007

Conglomo, from Rocko's Modern Life.
posted by phrontist at 4:49 AM on November 20, 2007

Dunder-Mifflin from The Office
posted by DoctorFedora at 4:53 AM on November 20, 2007 [1 favorite]

Zorin Industries from A View to A Kill.
posted by ClanvidHorse at 5:09 AM on November 20, 2007

Manchurian Global
posted by TedW at 5:27 AM on November 20, 2007

Yo-Yo Dyne Propulsion Systems from Buckaroo Banzai.
posted by dobbs at 5:41 AM on November 20, 2007

Mega Lo Mart from King of the Hill.
posted by OilPull at 5:52 AM on November 20, 2007

The Psi Corps, from Babylon 5
posted by Pallas Athena at 5:53 AM on November 20, 2007

Last Exit To Nowhere has t-shirts that are precisely this, e.g. Thorn Industries (Damien), Tyrell (Bladerunner), Omni Consumer Products (Robocop), Weyland-Yutani (Alien).
posted by caek at 5:54 AM on November 20, 2007 [3 favorites]

Surprised nobody has mentioned Andrew Ryan's Rapture yet. Rapture is where Bioshock takes place. Ryan Industries is the name of the company-its VERY well branded.

I am Andrew Ryan and I am here to ask you a question:
Is a man not entitled to the sweat of his own brow?

No, says the man in Washington. It belongs to the poor.
No, says the man in the Vatican. It belongs to God.
No, says the man in Moscow. It belongs to everyone.

I rejected those answers. Instead, I chose something
different. I chose the impossible. I chose…
Rapture.

—Andrew Ryan: ruler of the city of Rapture in the game
posted by neilkod at 6:00 AM on November 20, 2007

The WESAYSO corp from Dinosaurs!

Oh, and Enron of course.
posted by TomMelee at 6:00 AM on November 20, 2007 [1 favorite]

A better image for the Weyland-Yutani, which is also my person fave.

BTW, awesome question cowbellemoo!
posted by JaySunSee at 6:01 AM on November 20, 2007

The Tyrell Corporation from Blade Runner. After all, they're all for the idea of synthetic slaves (and the termination of such).
posted by filmgeek at 6:02 AM on November 20, 2007

Libria from Equilibrium (the film) - that "T" symbol. You can also use Tetragrammaton Council if you get ambitious, as well as Prozium (the drug they produced that everybody took to stay in check). I'm pretty sure the lead cleric invented the gunkata too, so you could use that image of two guns, one pointing up and one down, with "gunkata".
posted by cashman at 6:04 AM on November 20, 2007

Equilibrium Fans for all the graphics and images.
posted by cashman at 6:11 AM on November 20, 2007

The Guild Of Calamitous Intent from the Venture Bros.
posted by waraw at 6:11 AM on November 20, 2007

U-North from Michael Clayton (the movie)
posted by notswedish at 6:11 AM on November 20, 2007

Please post pictures when you get them done - they sound awesome!
posted by i_am_a_Jedi at 6:16 AM on November 20, 2007 [1 favorite]

caek & fire&wings: Perfect! I'm totally making a Sulako hoodie.

lou: I just finished the series (and movie) and never noticed that at all! Wonderful!

neilkod: I'm a big bioshock fan. I even printed out the city motif (on the loading screen) to convert into a knit pattern, but rejected it for being too complex. I can't believe I didn't think of Ryan Industries or Fontana Futuristics!
posted by cowbellemoo at 6:19 AM on November 20, 2007

Destro, from GI Joe works for "Extensive Enterprises"
posted by Wild_Eep at 6:22 AM on November 20, 2007

GloboChem, from Mr. Show
posted by farishta at 6:30 AM on November 20, 2007

Trystereo from The Crying of Lot 49.
posted by I Foody at 6:33 AM on November 20, 2007

BigAnt from William Gibson's two latest books is morally ambiguous. I don't know if that counts. I think certain people could see what they do as evil.
posted by zennoshinjou at 6:39 AM on November 20, 2007

Silver Shamrock Novelties from Halloween III: Season of the Witch.
posted by misteraitch at 6:49 AM on November 20, 2007

Yoyodyne Propulsion Systems from Buckaroo Banzai.
posted by anansi at 6:53 AM on November 20, 2007 [1 favorite]

Dharma Initiative from Lost?
posted by slowfasthazel at 6:57 AM on November 20, 2007 [1 favorite]

The Hanso Foundation.
posted by yeti at 6:58 AM on November 20, 2007 [1 favorite]

One of my law profs had a t-shirt with the firm name and logo of the law firm from the television series Angel, I don't remember what it was called though.
posted by Salamandrous at 6:58 AM on November 20, 2007

Clamp Enterprises, from Gremlins 2.
posted by Faint of Butt at 6:58 AM on November 20, 2007

TCRI, a front corporation for unsavory aliens, from the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comic. (See issue #4, pages 13 and 14–15. ) But it's perhaps not an especially inspiring logo; wear it only to make a somewhat obscure reference, I guess.
posted by yz at 7:00 AM on November 20, 2007

Great question, great suggestions. I thought of Tyrell Corporation too: "more human than human."

Odd thing is, there may be a real one.

P.S. I think Yoyodyne has to be credited to Pynchon.
posted by Clyde Mnestra at 7:08 AM on November 20, 2007

Obey Giant
posted by breaks the guidelines? at 7:11 AM on November 20, 2007

Yoyodyne Corporation (presumably the propulsion company's mothership) appears in The Crying of Lot 49 along with the "trystero" symbol, a horn logo visible in the link.

While I can't recall a logo being described for "The White Visitation" -- sinister British paranormal researchers from Gravity's Rainbow -- some kind of school crest might be fitting.
posted by Paddle to Sea at 7:13 AM on November 20, 2007

Prescott Pharmaceuticals

The Penny-farthing from the Prisoner
posted by adamrice at 7:21 AM on November 20, 2007

Check out Conglomerated Baddies: The 22 Most Evil Corporations in Movie History, a four-part series with clips from Nerve's Screengrab blog. Not mentioned above:

Engulf & Devour from Silent Movie
Soylent Corporation
Energy Corporation from Rollerball
Connex from Syriana
posted by mediareport at 7:25 AM on November 20, 2007 [1 favorite]

i don't know if they have logos, but...

several kurt vonnegut books feature something called the ramjac corporation;

frank herbert's dune had a "choam company."

the company (name forgotten) in total recall which would provide you canned memories of your vacation to mars.
posted by bruce at 7:27 AM on November 20, 2007

The Sheinhardt Wig Company
posted by hilby at 7:30 AM on November 20, 2007

Apparently CHOAM does have a flag.
posted by yeti at 7:31 AM on November 20, 2007

That would be Rekall.
posted by cashman at 7:33 AM on November 20, 2007

Globo Gym from Dodgeball "The Purple Cobras"
posted by hilby at 7:40 AM on November 20, 2007

Angel would be : Wolfram & Hart.
posted by seanyboy at 7:44 AM on November 20, 2007

Brawndo.
posted by brownpau at 8:16 AM on November 20, 2007

Primatech Paper from Heroes.
posted by natabat at 8:20 AM on November 20, 2007

Hewes and Associates from Damages
posted by NotMyselfRightNow at 8:24 AM on November 20, 2007

Can't find a decent image of the logo itself, but Hudsucker Industries.
posted by middleclasstool at 8:44 AM on November 20, 2007

Redshift Limited from Delany's Nova.
Barrayaran Imperial Security from Bujold's Barrayaran series (they're not really evil, just awfully sinister.)
M&M Enterprises from Catch-22
posted by jet_silver at 8:46 AM on November 20, 2007

Central Services from Brazil.
posted by Zed_Lopez at 9:26 AM on November 20, 2007

Insuricare from the Incredibles.
INGSOC from 1984
posted by Scoo at 10:02 AM on November 20, 2007

Gracen & Gracen, "The Family Company" from TV's short-lived Profit.
posted by infinitewindow at 10:26 AM on November 20, 2007

Union Aerospace Corporation, from Doom
posted by nicwolff at 10:27 AM on November 20, 2007

Here's Zorg.
posted by moonlet at 11:04 AM on November 20, 2007

Ultor Corporation from Red Faction.
posted by slogger at 11:18 AM on November 20, 2007

Deep 13 from "Mystery Science Theater 3000."
posted by TheSecretDecoderRing at 11:26 AM on November 20, 2007 [1 favorite]

Let's not forget about the United Earth Directorate that runs the Earth and its neighbors in the Starcraft rts franchise.

You can spot the UED's totalitarian branding, in this sequence from Starcraft--a UED propaganda piece that conceals the truer nature of the UED as we've seen it. Blizzard has done a nice job with the atmospherics of the UED, as you can also see in the prisoner/soldier trailer of the much-anticipated Starcraft II.
posted by washburn at 11:28 AM on November 20, 2007

Versalife, from Deus Ex. The VersaLife lobby sculpture is about as corrupt as it gets. There are several other corrupt organizations in the game as well.
posted by ikkyu2 at 11:30 AM on November 20, 2007

SmileCorp from I Married a Strange Person! See this movie if you like weird shit.
posted by a_green_man at 12:28 PM on November 20, 2007

Torchwood
posted by sad_otter at 12:36 PM on November 20, 2007

Momcorp from Futurama.
posted by robotot at 2:21 PM on November 20, 2007

Not explicitly evil or a corporation, but wonderful fictional brand from a dystopian comic book: Weeping Gorilla Comix in Alan Moore's Promethea.
posted by enfa at 2:59 PM on November 20, 2007

I have heard of some of these, but most are a mystery. Of those I recognize, the only with a recognizeable (potentially knitable) logo (as the OP requested) would be NERV from Neon Genesis Evangelion.

(Also the Penny Farthing from the Prisoner, but that doesn't seem to symbolize a corporation.)
posted by Rash at 3:24 PM on November 20, 2007

You'd get to pick your own polygon, but otherwise Zephyr Holdings fits the bill.
posted by nakedcodemonkey at 4:10 PM on November 20, 2007

*smacks head*

New-Path from A Scanner Darkly. Duh.
posted by mediareport at 6:53 PM on November 20, 2007

Devlin-McGregor from "The Fugitive"
posted by Frank Grimes at 7:46 PM on November 20, 2007

Imperial logo from Star Wars.
posted by perpetualstroll at 9:51 PM on November 20, 2007

Not a company but a brand: Quietus, from Children of Men. There were also a lot of creepy ads in the periphery of the movie, so maybe something in there.
posted by secretary bird at 6:34 AM on November 21, 2007

Thanks again, gold stars all around!

Favorites are:
Guild of Calamitous Intent
Weyland-Yutani
Blue Sun
Connex
Norsefire
Tyrell Corp.
the Equilibrium stuff (schlocky, but good graphic design)
both Bioshock companies (maybe even the vending machines...great icon work on everything)

And thanks zennoshinjou for reminding me of Gibson's Maas Biotek and all the other great zaibatsus he's thought up.
posted by cowbellemoo at 7:28 AM on November 21, 2007

I'll just snark and point out that zennoshinjou actually meant that the company is called Blue Ant (whose leader is Bigend, Hubertus).
posted by i_am_a_Jedi at 8:59 AM on November 21, 2007

It's not Gibson's best. This coming from a guy who sat through New Rose Hotel. Twice. :P
posted by cowbellemoo at 7:14 PM on November 21, 2007

I'm a little late on this, but upon review: scoo has the right idea, but the link doesn't go anywhere, so I thought I'd add some.

Here are some great logos for Ingsoc (wiki link) from 1984: Ingsoc 1, Ingsoc 2.
posted by numinous at 10:16 PM on November 28, 2007