History WesternAnimation / OurFriendMartin

* CassandraTruth: Before Miles and Randy go on their second time travel adventure, Mrs. Peck vaguely warns them that [[ForWantOfANail "messing with the fabric of history can result in a busted seam"]]. Miles brushes it off and goes on with Randy.

* ForWantOfANail:
** [[spoiler: Bringing Martin back to the present turns out to be a ''really'' bad idea. Racism is rampant (and so is sexism, apparently), the school is named after Robert E. Lee instead of Martin Luther King, Jr., and Miles' mother now works as a maid. Not to mention Miles' home (and the rest of North America) heavily polluted and technologically stagnant.]]
** According to Maria, Dr. King's civil rights activism would inspire UsefulNotes/CesarChavez to fight for better working conditions for Hispanic Americans which opened for new opportunites for their children. As shown in the BadFuture, [[spoiler:getting rid of Martin means Cesar (and other civils rights activists) would never be inspired resulting in future generations of Hispanic children being forced to work instead of learn]].

* AnAesop: While you can't change the past ([[spoiler:not without disastrous results, at least]]), you can change the future for the better.

''Our Friend, Martin'' is a DirectToVideo film released by Creator/DiCEntertainment in 1999. A boy named Miles is doing none too well at school, and unless he improves his grades, not only will he have to repeat the 6th grade, but his mother won't let him play baseball. One day, while with his class on a field trip to a museum, he and his friend, Randy, come across an artifact that takes them back in time to meet one of history's greatest icons, [[UsefulNotes/MartinLutherKingJr Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.]]

* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler:After seeing just how bad the future would be if he was absent from history, Martin willingly goes back in time despite knowing he'll be killed when he's an adult.]]

* MrExposition: Martin becomes this to Miles and Randy as he explains how the African American community is mistreated and oppressed throughout history. {{Justified}} since this is an educational cartoon based on Dr. King's civil rights' activism and his motivations behind it.

* W0uldHurtAChild: In the BadFuture, [[spoiler:the principal orders Randy and Kyle to attack Miles and Martin]].

* WOuldHurtAChild: In the BadFuture, [[spoiler:the evil principal orders Randy and Kyle to attack Miles and Martin]].

** According to Maria, Dr. King's civil rights activism would inspire ''[[{{UsefulNotes/CesarChavez}} Cesar Chavez]]'' to fight for better working conditions and rights for Hispanic Americans. As shown in the BadFuture, [[spoiler:getting rid of Martin means Cesar (and other civils rights activists) would never be inspired resulting in future generations of Hispanic children being forced to work instead of learn]].

* MistakenForClown: The ticket man believes Miles and Randy are circus folk due to their colorful attire.

* PayEvilUntoEvil: Turner, one of Martin's followers, tries to convince the others to do this against the white segregationists who burned Martin's home to the ground. The Good King convinces them not to use violence and should instead use more peaceful methods, like what UsefulNotes/MahatmaGandhi did in British occupied India.

* AbusiveParents: Kyle's dad.

* FantasticRacism: Since this is a movie about MLK, it shows what racism was like in the South pre-civil rights, along with what would happen in the present if MLK's civil rights work never happened.
* ForWantOfANail: [[spoiler: Bringing Martin back to the present turns out to be a ''really'' bad idea. Racism is rampant (and so is sexism, apparently), the school is named after Robert E. Lee instead of Martin Luther King, Jr., and Miles' mother now works as a maid. Not to mention Miles' home (and the rest of North America) heavily polluted and technologically stagnant.]]

* PayEvilUntoEvil: Turner, one of Martin's followers, tries to convince the others to do this against the white segregationists who burned Martin's home to the ground. The good King convinces them not to use violence and should instead use more peaceful methods, like what UsefulNotes/MahatmaGandhi did in British occupied India.

* BadFuture: Miles causes one that's filled with racism, sexism and pollution after he brings Martin to the present day. [[OppressiveStatesOfAmerica It's,]] [[Morodor utter]] [[Dystopia hell.]]

* BadFuture: Miles causes one that's filled with racism, sexism and pollution after he brings Martin to the present day.

* BadFuture: Miles causes one that's filled with racism, sexism and pollution after brings Martin to the present day.

* PayEvilUntoEvil: Turner, one of Martin's followers, tries to convince the others to do this against the white segregationists who burned Martin's home to the ground. The good King convinces them not to use violence and should instead use more peaceful methods.

* [[{{RunningGag}} Running Gag]]: Kyle always loses his shirt.

* ShoutOut: Martin sees a vision of his father in the clouds, played by Creator/JamesEarlJones, instilling some words of wisdom to him which motivate the boy to do what needs to be done. [[{{WesternAnimation/TheLionKing}} Why does that feel so familiar?]]

* DrivesLikeCrazy: Old Man Willis has a reputation as a reckless bus driver.