You may or may not have noticed that I have a pretty strong weakness [Oooo, oxymoron] for Science Fiction and Fantasy. I grew up on whimsical games like King’s Quest, where you can find your character stuck inside an interactive fairy tales, and Space Quest where you can interact with Alien creatures with 5 noses and pilot droids. My dream house is Crispin’s cottage from King’s Quest 5. There is something so fantastical, so appealing about things we assume not to be possible or real. I’m not trying to say that robots and androids are not real, because we’ve been making amazing technological advances when it comes to robotics! Japan is working on making a robot that looks and responds like a human being (we’re so close to a robot invasion..)
The robots I like are a bit more fictitious, but I love them all the same. I’ve always loved robots and ‘droids, so here’s a list of my personal favorites.
TOP TEN LISTS, ALL THE TIME TOP TEN LISTS.
**HONORABLE MENTION** Burton (The Spoony Experiment)
Burton is the robot from Internet Famous Reviewer and personality, Noah Antwiler. He is clearly an homage to the robots from Mystery Science Theater 3000, and it definitely does justice. Burton is amazing for a home made robot, able to move his head and open his mouth. Not only functional, but Burton is one of the more aesthetically pleasing machines. Nice blue color, attractive dust buster for a head, and red hands. RED.
10. Bender (Futurama)
Typically, I don’t like beer guzzling, foul mouthed, chauvinistic pigs. But when these kind of personalities are fused with a robot, the combination is pure win. Snarky, obscene, and strikes an uncanny resemblance to Homer Simpson. Bender is one of the most distinguishable characters within the adult cartoon circuit. Regardless of how filthy and cunning he is, I do like this character. There’s something awesome about a completely brash robot, since most of the robots on my list have a friendly nature.
9. The Iron Giant
I don’t know much about the novel, but I love the depiction in the Iron Giant animated feature film. Talk about a 180, going from the crude personality of Bender to the gentle personality of this character. I can’t imagine a better “pet” than a huge metal man. I am very jealous of Hogarth. The movie itself has a very touching ending, that I won’t give away of course, but I will say The Iron Giant is one of the best robotic heros ever conceived.
8. Rosie (The Jetsons)
If you grew up on the cartoon network like I did in the early 90s, then you must be familiar with Rosie. We share a nickname! The Jetsons was one of my absolute favorite cartoons growing up. I felt they were always in battle with The Flintstones, even though they probably were not due to the times they were created, but regardless, I was on The Jetsons side. Rosie was a staple in my childhood, and the Jetsons was one of the first shows I experienced with a prominent robot character, so I look at her fondly.
7. ROB (Nintendo)
You may be asking me “Why??” BECAUSE HE IS CUTE. LOOK AT HIM.
6. The Terminator
The Terminator is interesting due to the fact he played a bad guy, but also a good guy. Not too mention, it’s fuckin’ AHNOLD. How can you not like the Govenator? Judgement Day was one of the movies that changed my tastes on films, and I went from watching really kiddy stuff to more dramatic, impressive films like the Terminator series. We don’t *typically* think about robots as huge muscular men with Austrian accents, so this is a bit different from your fantasy robot. I like it.
5. R2D2 (Star Wars)
Most possibly one of the cutest robots of all time, R2D2 proves himself to be a smartass without even using English words. As a child, I *loved* watching R2D2 argue (and win) with his mechanical partner, C3P0. He looks sort of like a cross between a trash can, and segway. And hey, there ain’t nothin’ wrong with that.
4. Number 5 (Short Circuit)
Short Circuit. What can I say? It’s a fun, cheesy flick with Steve Gutenberg about a potentially dangerous robot gone good. He can be annoying to some, but I think his voice is rather cute, and with all that input, he may just be the smartest robot out there. Self learning, charming, and clearly a capable dancer, I would date this machine.
3. Robo (Chrono Trigger)
Playing through Chrono Trigger is one of the most amazing game experiences I’ve ever had, and I always made sure that Robo was in my team as much as possible. His story is compelling, and I enjoyed his side quests more than the other side quests. I know I am not alone in wanting Lucca and Robo to hook up…right? …..Right??
2. WD40 (Space Quest)
Maybe an more obscure choice, but Space Quest 5 is one of my favorite games of all time. Wd40 is the female equivalent of The Terminator. She starts out as evil and wanting to rip out your voice box, but joins your side after…well, blowing her up. Easy to persuade…? WD40 is also hot, IN robot form. Pretty hard to make circuits and panels of metal sexy.
1. Andy (Bicentennial Man)
I know I will get slammed for this, but my number one choice for my top ten robots is Andy, from the movie Bicentennial Man. This movie is so sincere, and really brings to life my true fantasy- a robot that has human emotions. Andy starts out a robot who realizes he is different, in that he has feelings. In order to experience life to the fullest, he undergoes an amazing transformation in which he becomes a human through means of artificial organs, and skin. It really hits a chord with me, even in its cheesiness, and I find myself yearning for a coin-operated boy of my own. The movie and character does a really nice job of merging fantasy with reality, and let’s face it: We all need a little fantasy in our reality. If you haven’t seen it, I recommend it.
And there we have it! My list of the top robots of all time. Everything is my own personal opinion of course, and so as not to get slammed by the hardcore Transformers fans, I would like to give a nod to Optimus Prime. Even though I don’t see any robots in transformers. Just trucks. …..>;)
