RoboCop: The Animated Series

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RoboCop
Genre	Animated series
Creator(s)	Michael Charles Hill Michael Miner
Starring	Robert Bockstael Barbara Budd Len Carlson Rex Hagon
Country of origin	USA
No. of episodes	12
Production
Running time	30min
Broadcast
Original channel	first-run syndication
Original run	2 October 1988 – 1988
Links
IMDb profile

RoboCop: The Animated Series is an animated series produced in the 1980s by Marvel Animation, and is based on the character and events of the movie RoboCop. As of 2006, none of the show's 12 episodes have been released onto Region 1 DVD. The animated series was derived from R-Rated source material, a trend that was maintained by series such as Rambo and Toxic Crusaders. Among the more notable changes were the removal of bullets (replaced by laser weapons) and a more science fiction setting.

The series follows on from the movie, with Alex Murphy still fighting to save the city of Old Detroit from assorted rogue elements, and on occasion, fighting to reclaim aspects of his humanity and maintain his usefulness in the eyes of the "Old Man", president of OCP. Many episodes see RoboCop's reputation put to the test or soured by interventions from Dr. McNamara, the creator of ED-260 and the top competitor for the financial backing of OCP. He often develops other mechanical menaces that frequently threaten RoboCop.

On the home front, RoboCop is befriended as always by Officer Anne Lewis, but is also picked up and lambasted by the prejudiced Lieutenant Hedgecock, ever determined to be rid of him and his kind, whom he sees as ticking time bombs. Their rivalry comes to a fever pitch during the episode Man in the Iron Suit, where Hedgecock comes close to finally beating Murphy with the aid of a new weapons system developed by McNamara, but almost kills Lewis when she interferes, enraging Murphy into tearing Hedgecock's iron suit apart and almost crushing his skull before Lewis emerges to assure him of her safety.

The cartoon dealt with themes of racism (The Brotherhood), prejudice at work (Man in the Iron Suit), environmental espionage (Into the Wilderness), and reprogrammed assassins (The Scrambler). These all show the series had darker scripts than one would find when compared to the 1999 animated effort RoboCop: Alpha Commando. The series also had a high budget. The title sequence even features a brief animated variation on Murphy being gunned down.

[edit] Episodes

1. "Crime Wave"
2. "The Scrambler"
3. "Project Deathspore"
4. "The Brotherhood"
5. "The Man In The Iron Suit"
6. "The Hot Seat"
7. "No News Is Good News"
8. "Night Of The Archer"
9. "Rumble In Old Detroit"
10. "A Robot's Revenge"
11. "Into the Wilderness"
12. "Menace Of The Mind"

[edit] External links

• RoboCop: The Animated Series at the Internet Movie Database

RoboCop
Films: RoboCop | RoboCop 2 | RoboCop 3
TV: RoboCop: The Series | RoboCop: The Animated Series | RoboCop: Alpha Commando | RoboCop: Prime Directives
Video Games: RoboCop | RoboCop 2 | RoboCop 3 | RoboCop versus The Terminator | RoboCop
Comics: RoboCop versus The Terminator | Frank Miller's RoboCop
Characters: RoboCop | ED-209 | RoboCop 2
Organizations: Omni Consumer Products