25 Iconic Robot TV Shows—including MST3K, Star Trek, Westworld, and more
We pick some beloved TV robots, androids, cyborgs, and mechanical life forms. Is your favorite on our list?
Over the decades, there have been several examples of robots on TV—including salutes to helpers and heroes, as well as warnings about evil robots. (And then you have guys like Bender that sort of fall somewhere in between.)
In case you missed it, there’s a big deal on Kickstarter right now involving a comics anthology revolving around the 1950s indie movie Robot Monster. More info here about this BIG book.
To celebrate this event, Monster Complex™ has scheduled several posts that look at robots that have appeared in movies, comics, and TV. Today we’re looking at robots from a couple dozen TV shows that are worth a look. This includes cartoons, sitcoms, and sci-fi series—ranging from classics like Astro Boy and Lost in Space, to the robots that attacked the Six Million Dollar Man and Bionic Woman, to the killer robot on The Madalorian—and LOTS more.
The ideas behind robots in stories
The idea of “artificial people” go back a long ways in mythology and folklore. Including what has been considered the first-ever science fiction novel, Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. (We have lots of articles about that classic horror book here.)
But today we’re talking here about the idea of machines that act like or talk like people. Depending on how narrowly you want to define “mechanical people,” the earliest literary example might include the singing puppet in the short story “The Sandman” by E. T. A. Hoffmann (1816). His story was adapted for the 1870 comedy ballet Coppélia, featuring a scientist who creates a life-size dancing doll.
Other examples include The Steam Man of the Prairies by Edward S. Ellis (1868) and the character Tik-Tok from the Oz series by L. Frank Baum (1907). Then there was Karel Čapek’s 1920 play R.U.R. (Rossum’s Universal Robots)—in fact, this is credited with having the first-ever use of the word “robot.”
Over the years, the idea of robots has been explored by many SF writers over the years. One key example is author Isaac Asimov, who wrote many impactful stories about robots and their relationships with humans. He is also credited with the Three Laws of Robotics, which control how robots behave.
And, of course, there have been lots of robots on TV over the years. Below are a couple dozen TV shows that have included one or more robots...
Further Reading:
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25 Robot TV Shows—including Robot Monster on MST3K, Star Trek, Westworld, and more
#1 Robot Monster on MST3K
OK—the first show with robots we’re going to talk about is Mystery Science Theater 3000, also known as MST3K. We’re going to talk more about this show below…
But right now we’re jumping to the episode where the the robots heckled the 1953 indie sci-fi movie Robot Monster. In the original movie, alien robot Ro-Man come to Earth to destroy all life. However—when he has killed all but eight survivors—he is working on his plans to finish the job when he finds himself attracted to one of the human women...
By the way, the reason this ENTIRE BLOG POST exists is to call attention to a comics anthology that celebrates Robot Monster. This in-the-works 3-D 64-page graphic novel anthology expands on and/or parodies ideas from the 1950s cult classic movie about the alien in a gorilla suit wearing a diving helmet. Find out more about the project on the Kickstarter page here!
Find out about the all-new Robot Monster graphic novel anthology!
You can also find out more about the Robot Monster book at one of these links:
Comics veteran Paul Castiglia on the ROBOT MONSTER anthology
Film archivist Bob Furmanek on getting ROBOT MONSTER more attention—including comics!
Robot Monster Comics In 3D! Cult Classic in All-New Comic Book Adventures! (First Comics News)
Robot Monster Movie Gets Graphic Novel (Previews)
And if you want to find the heckled TV version of the movie itself…
#2 Westworld
Inspired by the 1973 sci-fi movie and its 1976 sequel, the dystopian TV show Westworld revolved around tech-advanced fantasy theme parks served by androids. The park is designed to be a fantasy destination for high-paying guests.
As the series continued, the setting expanded to the real world, showing people’s lives controlled by a powerful artificial intelligence. For the most part, the show explored the idea of control. Westworld investigated the power of self-awareness and consciousness in artificial intelligence.
#3 Johnny Sokko and His Flying Robot (AKA Giant Robo)
Based on a Japanese comics series created by Mitsuteru Yokoyama, the 1960s Japanese TV show Johnny Sokko and His Flying Robot featured a boy who had control of a robot that stood as tall as a building. (It was also similar to the Japanese series Gigantor, created by the same comics creator.)
Johnny and Giant Robot helped the Earth’s guardians in Unicorn to fight the terrorists and giant monsters controlled by the Gargoyle Gang, led by Emperor Guillotine.
A couple of elements about the show that made it stand out included being a monster sci-fi show with gunfights—and, more importantly, little boy Johnny held a gun as well. (If you’re a little boy watching this show—like I was when I first saw it—that’s powerful.)
I don’t want to spoil this for you, so trust me when I say it’s full of interesting ideas for giant monsters and robots. And the first season offers a surprisingly shocking end for the series.
A short time ago, I went and re-bought some episodes and I still love this show. (Granted, I’m being sentimental.)
Further reading from Monster Complex™
#4 Bender and other robots on Futurama
One place to see LOTS of robots is the longtime animated sci-fi comedy series Futurama. Created by Matt Groening, this is a show that has come and gone—and come back—again and again. (In fact, it recently re-started on Hulu.)
Revolving around the crew of an interplanetary delivery company, one of the stars of Futurama has been Bender (voiced by John DiMaggio). Bender is a rude-talking, heavy-drinking, cigar-smoking, kleptomaniacal, ill-tempered robot who was programmed to bend metal.
Other key robots that have made an impact on the show include:
Calculon (voiced by Maurice LaMarche): This theatrical robot is famous for his over-the-top speaking and hammy behavior.
The Robot Devil (voiced by Dan Castellaneta): The ruler of Robot Hell, the Robot Devil punishes only (mostly) followers of Robotology. He’s displayed some musical abilities (part of how he torments robots) and found that gambling doesn’t always work out like he hopes.
Hedonismbot (also voiced by LaMarche): A decadent robot patterned after ancient Roman hedonists, he’s generally seen lounging (even as his lounge chair is carried around by servants). He often has a bowl of grapes close at hand, and will request his servants to cover his belly with chocolate.
Roberto (voiced by David Herman): A mentally unstable robot that likes stabbing people and robbing banks, Roberto has been Bender’s partner in crime. Of course, his crazy behavior makes him a problem.
Tinny Tim (voiced by Tress MacNeille): A robot inspired by Tiny Tim from Charles Dickens’ classic story A Christmas Carol, it makes perfect sense that his debut appearance was in the episode “Xmas Story” (episode 2.8). The unlucky orphan robot living on the streets of New New York, Tinny Tim uses a crutch (which replaces his arm) to walk. When others give him a hard time, he often apologizes for his very existence.
#5 Lost in Space
Another memorable robot from TV was a regular on the 1960s sci-fi TV series Lost in Space. Designed by Robert Kinoshita, the Robot—played by Bob May, voiced by Dick Tufeld—had no given name. A talking machine with strength and futuristic weapons, the Robot also seemed to have human emotions.
(It also looked enough like the robot from Forbidden Planet that it can be easy to sometimes misremember which is which. At least, that’s the way it was for me as a kid.)
1960s sci-fi series Lost in Space revolved around a family of space colony pioneers struggling to survive out in space. The show was a (kind of) reworking of the 1812 novel The Swiss Family Robinson and also followed the 1962 Gold Key comic book series Space Family Robinson.
Lost in Space was created and produced by Irwin Allen. (Allen’s career has also included other 1960s sci-fi shows Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea, The Time Tunnel, and Land of the Giants, plus 1970s disaster movies The Poseidon Adventure and The Towering Inferno.)
The original Lost in Space aired three seasons (1965-1968). This Robinson family included Professor John Robinson (played by Guy Williams), his wife Maureen (June Lockhart), and their children Judy (Marta Kristen), Penny (Angela Cartwright), and Will (Bill Mumy).
Also on the spaceship was U.S. Space Corps Major Donald West (Mark Goddard) and Dr. Zachary Smith (Jonathan Harris).
In the 1990s, Lost in Space was remade as a sci-fi adventure movie starring William Hurt, Matt LeBlanc, Gary Oldman, and Heather Graham. Directed by Stephen Hopkins, the movie also saw some actors from the original series make cameo appearances.
The show was also remade as another TV series 2018-2021.
#6 K9 from Doctor Who
A robot dog that appeared several times on classic British sci-fi show Doctor Who, K9 first appeared in a 1977 episode. K9 has gone on to appear some more times on Doctor Who, plus star in three TV spin-offs: K-9 and Company (a special that aired in 1981), The Sarah Jane Adventures (2007-2011), and the series K-9 (2009-2010).
Making his debut in the Doctor Who 1977 serial The Invisible Enemy, the first two incarnations of K9 travelled alongside the Fourth Doctor (portrayed by Tom Baker) until 1981.
Hoping to launch a children’s series, the producers created the K9 spin-off K-9 and Company. The pilot episode aired as a special, and featured Doctor Who actress Elisabeth Sladen in her ongoing role of Sarah Jane Smith. However, it did not lead to a series.
When the Doctor Who series was revived, K9 returned for a guest appearance in a 2006 episode. That episode also saw the return of Sarah Jane. When she was given her own spin-off TV series, K9 made occasional appearances on The Sarah Jane Adventures.
However, for contract-type reasons, K9 couldn’t make many appearances on Sarah Jane’s show. That is because round the same time, K9’s creator launched a separate (non-Doctor Who-oriented) series that ran for one season.
Related links:
#7 That Buffybot from Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Originally created to be a girlfriend for vampire Spike, the Buffybot was a robot version of Buffy Summers—the lead character on the show Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Programmed to copy Buffy’s personality and skills as a Slayer, the Buffybot was strong enough to punch through bricks without hurting itself.
When the real Buffy died (don’t worry, she came back), Willow programmed the robot to take on Buffy’s slayer duties. The Buffybot was called upon to be part of vampire patrols to make sure the bad guys didn’t find out that the real Buffy was no longer around.
The original Buffybot made its debut in the 5.18 episode “Intervention” (2001). The robot was destroyed in the 6.02 episode “Bargaining, Part Two” (2001). Granted, by then the real Buffy was back from the dead.
By the way, one of my all-time favorite action scenes from the entire Buffy series was the beginning of season six. The end of the previous season included the death of Buffy and the series changing to a completely different TV network. To kick off the new season, the Scooby gang—trying to keep Buffy’s death a secret—took the Buffybot with them on patrol. The sequence involves some fun action and some great dialogue. And the Buffybot says some funny stuff. (And punches vampires great.)
A second Buffybot made its debut in the first issue of the Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Nine comic book series. (Haven’t read it, so don’t know anything about it. Also—for some reason, these comics do not appear to be available for sale. What the heck?)
#8 Astro Boy
Astro Boy—known in Japan as Mighty Atom—is a robot boy that’s a superhero. Created by Osamu Tezuka (considered by some to be the “Walt Disney of Japan”), Astro started out in comics in the 1950s. As we talked about in 13 Rockin’ Robots from Comics, Tezuka’s original comics used the Astro stories to explore the problems that came up in the relationships between mankind and machines.
The Astro comics have been adapted in other media, including at least three cartoon TV shows:
The 1963 Astro Boy TV show was the first popular Japanese TV cartoon series that displayed what eventually became known around the world as “anime.” The black & white show lasted four seasons. However, apparently only two seasons were adapted for English language markets. (There are 89 episodes that weren’t dubbed to English.)
The 1980 Astro Boy cartoon TV show was a full-color remake of the original stories. There were 52 episodes produced.
The 2003 Astro Boy cartoon TV show included 50 episodes. Created to celebrate the birth date of Astro Boy, in Japan the show debuted on the same date as Astro’s birth in the manga (April 7, 2003).
(Apparently, there was also a LIVE ACTION show Mighty Atom from 1959-1960 in Japan! I wonder what THAT looked like! Oh—just Googled it. It looks like it was weird.)
#9 Marvin the Paranoid Android from Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
Making his debut in the hilarious classic science fiction comedy series Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, the depressed robot has made multiple appearances in more books and various other media. Created as part of a program to give robots personalities, he suffers from being bored because his “brain the size of a planet” is almost never given a challenge to keep it stable.
Created by Douglas Adams, Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy first appeared as British radio drama. The stories were then adapted into novels, then stage shows, comic books, a 1981 TV show, a 1984 text adventure game, and the 2005 feature film.
The epic story of Hitchhiker mostly follows the last surviving Earth man, Arthur Dent. Rescued just as the Earth is destroyed, he ends up traveling through space—from one odd visit to the next—with a number of aliens, an Earth woman, and the depressed Marvin the Paranoid Android.
As far as the robot’s impact on pop culture, turns out there were a couple of Marvin the Paranoid Android songs on British radio. (Haven’t ever heard them.)
That said, rock group Radiohead named one of their songs after him. The first single from the band’s 1997 album OK Computer was “Paranoid Android.” That single is often listed as one of the great songs.
#10 Data on Star Trek: The Next Generation
The android Data, one of the most popular characters in the Star Trek universe, was one of the main characters in the TV show Star Trek: The Next Generation (TNG). Played by Brent Spiner, Data later appeared in some of the Star Trek movies and on the recent streaming series Star Trek: Picard.
As part of the second Star Trek series, Data was intended to perform in much the same role as Mr. Spock had on the original series. Like Spock, Data was a really smart guy but trying to understand human emotions.
Data was also inspired by the android main character in Gene Roddenberry’s 1970s TV pilot episode for The Questor Tapes. The planned sci-fi series—set in the present—would have followed an android with incomplete memory tapes who is trying to understand his purpose. (It’s been said that Leonard Nimoy was considered to star in the role as the android.) Roddenbery and the network fought over details about the series, so it fell apart before they shot any more episodes.
Not only was Data similar in tone and behavior to the android Questor, there were a couple of scenes from The Questor Tapes pilot that were copied on ST:TNG.
Related links:
#10 Robotman in Doom Patrol
If you’ve watched the Doom Patrol TV show, you’ve no doubt seen Robotman—a cyborg man with his brain inside a robot body. Introduced in the 1960s in the Doom Patrol comic book from DC Comics, Robotman was race car driver Cliff Steele who, after a horrible car wreck, had his brain put into that robot body. He became the only character to be in every version of Doom Patrol.
In other media, this Robotman has shown up more than once on TV and in the movies. Robotman made his first live screen adaptation as a guest star on the Titans TV show. The past few years, he’s been part of the Doom Patrol TV show, voiced by Brendan Fraser. (Fraser also plays Steele in flashbacks).
Find the Doom Patrol TV show
Find Doom Patrol comics on Amazon
#11 Gigantor
Japanese 1963 cartoon show Gigantor adapted the 1950s manga comic Tetsujin 28-go, by Mitsuteru Yokoyama (also the creator of what we know as Johnny Sokko and His Flying Robot).
The Gigantor series revolves around 12-year-old Jimmy Sparks, who can control the big flying robot Gigantor with a remote control. Jimmy and Gigantor battle crime around the world.
To make the transition to the American market, some of the changes included character names and toning down the show’s violence. Also, the original title translated to “Iron Man #28”—but because Marvel Comics had already grabbed the name “Iron Man” for the English language market, the show had to change its title.
One of the earliest examples of giant robots (especially those controlled by remote control), Gigantor inspired lots of comics and other media in the years to come. In 2009, the Japan city of Kobe put up a statue honoring the robot. The statue is 59 feet tall and weighs more than 50 tons.
#12 IG-11 on The Mandalorian
One of my favorite characters on the TV show The Mandalorian was the robot IG-11. Introduced in the first episode, we first met him as a dangerous assassin droid trying to capture Baby Yoda.
When he’s destroyed by the Mandalorian, we assume he’s gone. But then he comes back—and it turns out that he was rebuilt and reprogrammed to be the “nurse and protector” of the baby.
Voiced by director and actor Taika Waititi, this updated version of IG-11 is SO. GREAT. He ends up in a great action scene and makes a big impact on the season finale. (I don’t want to give too much away. Just go watch that first season of The Mandalorian.)
#13 Twiki and Dr. Theopolis on Buck Rogers in the 25th Century
These two robots were part of the 1979 TV series that adapted the classic sci-fi hero. Twiki was the walking robot with the funny voice, and Dr. Theopolis was the talking computer they carried around that was part of Earth’s Computer Council.
While those two were unique to this series, Buck Rogers actually started off all the way back in the 1920s in a science fiction adventure hero newspaper comic strip. He was popular enough that he went on to appear in books, on the radio, in movies, and more.
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century ran on TV from 1979-1981. The show starred Gil Gerard as Buck Rogers and Erin Gray as Colonel Wilma Deering. The show went throug some format changes, so there were more cast members who came and went.
#14 Mech-X4
Sci-fi action comedy TV series Mech-X4 follows high school student Ryan Walker, who can use his mind to control tech. He accidentally awakens Mech-X4—a giant 150-foot robot that was built in secret. When giant monsters suddenly attack the city, Walker works with his brother and best friends to help him operate Mech-X4 to save the world.
Created by Steve Marmel, the series premiered on Disney Channel in 2016. The show starred Nathaniel Potvin, Raymond Cham, Kamran Lucas, Pearce Joza, and Alyssa Jirrels.
#15 The Transformers on TV
Based on the toys, The Transformers franchise stars lots of robots—including the Autobots (the good guys) and the Decepticons (the bad guys). Transformers are giant robots that can change their shapes into other stuff like cars and animals.
The first TV show in the franchise was the 1984-1987 cartoon The Transformers. That series was boosted by The Transformers: The Movie (1986), which took place between the second and third seasons.
There was a fifth season of The Transformers in 1988, featuring reruns from the original series, plus serialized edits of The Transformers: The Movie. This season also showed framing scenes with a human boy and a stop-motion Optimus Prime.
Transformers: Generation 2, which ran from 1993-1995, featured episodes of the original series repackaged as historical recordings. These edits included CGI borders and scene-transitions.
Over the years, The Transformers have appeared in lots of other media, including movies, comic books, novels, and video games.
#16 My Living Doll
The 1960s sci-fi sitcom My Living Doll starred actress Julie Newmar as experimental robot Rhoda Miller. In the series, Dr. Robert McDonald (played by Bob Cummings) was tasked with training Rhoda how to function in the human world. Hiding her from the military, he also had to keep her secret—a situation complicated by his interfering sister and his neighbor Peter.
Julie Newmar is an actress, dancer, and singer, known for a variety of stage, screen, and TV roles—including Batman, Star Trek, Twilight Zone, F Troop, Bewitched, The Beverly Hillbillies, Get Smart, The Monkees, It Takes a Thief, Hart to Hart, Columbo and The Bionic Woman.
In an interview with StarTrek.com to discuss her appearance on Star Trek: The Original Series, Newmar shared how much she enjoyed her work on My Living Doll:
“I also did a series that I was very fond of called My Living Doll [which ran on CBS from 1964-1965]. I played a character named Rhoda the Robot. The show was in black & white and it was just before Batman and Star Trek. It was a tour de force for me, and probably the most important work that I’ve done. That was a wonderful, wonderful show and it was probably my best work.”
Related link: How a robot Julie Newmar EXCITED viewers in this overlooked 60s sitcom before she was Catwoman
#17 Robot cops on Almost Human (and more shows)
Almost Human was a sci-fi/crime drama that featured a police detective unhappily partnered with an android. Set in the year 2048, the rule then is that every cop must partner with a robot. Detective John Kennex (played by Karl Urban)—just now returning to work after waking up from a long coma—must get used to his new android partner (played by Michael Ealy). Unfortunately, Dorian is a discontinued model that has unexpected emotional responses. Even worse, Kennex also has to get along with his new colleagues.
The 2014 series lasted a single season—but fans wanted more. The Guardian wrote that it was a shame the show was cancelled so quickly, because it was “better than most of the cop shows currently on TV.” They also said, “The scenes where they roll around in their police cruiser needling each other are so absorbing and entertaining—a wifi-enabled bromance—that the additional solving of future crime begins to feel more like an imposition than an imperative.”
Of course, there have been several short-lived “robot cop” shows over the years. That list includes Holmes & Yoyo (1976-1977), Future Cop (1977), Star Cops (1987 BBC series), Mann & Machine (1992), Total Recall 2070 (1999), and Humans (2015-2018 British-American version of the Swedish show Real Humans).
In 2018, there was also the video game Detroit: Become Human.
#18 Rosey the Maid and other robots on The Jetsons
Set in the distant future—when robots could be normal characters—The Jetsons was a cartoon family sitcom that originally aired 1962-1963. Living in the space age, The Jetsons family often had normal-life incidents that included robotic tech, aliens, holograms, and (crazy) inventions. New episodes were added 1985-1987. The show’s finale was the 1990 film Jetsons: The Movie.
Robots on the series included the family’s housekeeper, Rosey. In fact, Rosey actually made her debut in the show’s first episode. She was generally a hard-working robot.
Rosey had a romance with the robot Mac, who was built to help maintain Skypad Apartments. (Of course, he usually broke more than he fixed.)
Another robot on the show was Uniblab, working at the same place where George Jetson worked, Spacely Space Sprockets, Inc. Built to be the office supervisor, Uniblab generally gave an appearance of being hard working—but would actually work selfish angles at the office.
Special note: Speaking of The Jetsons, they guest starred in one of my favorite comic book series EVER. The Scooby-Doo gang are pulled into a couple of time-travel mysteries—and in a double-issue event, meet the Jetsons AND the Flinstones! Those issues are available in this great collection, Scooby-Doo Team-Up (2013-) Vol. 2, where Scooby also teams up with Superman, Jonny Quest, Secret Squirrel, Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn.
#19 Kryten on Red Dwarf
Another TV robot worth talking about is the hilarious android Kryten from the British sci-fi comedy Red Dwarf. The series started out set millions of years in the future, and revolved around the crew of the ship Red Dwarf, which included the last surviving human, a hologram of his dead roommate, and a man evolved from a pet cat.
In the second season, they rescued the sanitation android Kryten, who had been spending years serving another ship’s crew without understanding that they were long dead.
Launched in 1988, Red Dwarf went through a number of updates over the years. And although it went away after like a dozen seasons, it has been reported that Red Dwarf is actually coming back again... for the first time in 15 years.
#20 Various robots on Six Million Dollar Man and Bionic Woman
Inspired by Martin Caidin’s 1972 novel Cyborg, the sci-fi TV show Six Million Dollar Man (1973-1978) featured cyborg Steve Austin. He was a former astronaut who was in a major crash, and the government fixed him with bionics. Now a man with machine body parts, Austin worked for the U.S. government as a secret agent.
The series also led to the spin-off Bionic Woman (1976-1978), which featured Jaime Sommers as another bionic agent working for the U.S. government. There were also a number of reunion movies from 1987-1994.
Most episodes of the two series featured these part-robot people living in an otherwise normal world. But as shows about people with robot body parts, it’s no surprise that the two series occasionally featured actual robots as the problem.
On Six Million Dollar Man, “Day of the Robot” (episode 1.4) starred John Saxon as a friend of Steve’s who is replaced by a robot. The episode led to a very cool fight scene between the bionic man and the robot!
Another cool episode of Steve vs Machine was “Death Probe” (episode 4.13), where Steve must deal with an out-of-control Russian probe that had been sent to Venus and malfunctioned when it returned to Earth.
There was a sequel to this story: In “Return of Deathprobe” (episode 5.14), another country copies the Russian’s probe and sets it loose on America.
Meanwhile, on the Bionic Woman story “Doomsday Is Tomorrow” (episode 2.13), Jaime is inside a computerized complex fighting to keep it from destroying the world. While, technically, this might not be what we would consider a “robot,” it was a thinking computer with access to lots of ways to attack Jaime. (Another cool episode.)
Another robot character that turned up a few times was…well...Bigfoot. Appearing on episodes of both Six Million Dollar Man and Bionic Woman, it turned out that the folklore monster Bigfoot was actually a guardian working for aliens visiting Earth. Either an alien cyborg or a robot—I don’t actually know which he was—Bigfoot showed up on the two-part episode “The Secret of Bigfoot,” the two-part crossover episode “The Return of Bigfoot,” and the episode “Bigfoot V.”
Of course, the most epic robot story on the two series was the three-part “Kill Oscar” crossover between Six Million Dollar Man and Bionic Woman. These episodes featured the Fembots, a group of intense female-looking androids that had replaced co-workers at Steve’s and Jaime’s government headquarters.
Take note: Although they were called “Fembots,” there was also at least one male android. The bad guys replaced boss Oscar Goldman—leading to one of the best fight scenes, with Steve fighting his boss and them punching through walls.
There was also a follow-up story on Bionic Woman where she faced another generation of Fembots in the two-part episode “Fembots in Las Vegas.”
Find Six Million Dollar Man and Bionic Woman on Amazon
Find out on JustWatch whether you can stream these shows
#21 Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go!
Super Robot Monkey Team—or Super Robot Monkey Team Hyperforce Go! if you want the FULL name—is a Japanese-American TV show influenced by anime. On the planet of Shuggazoom, five cyborg monkeys and human boy Chiro protect their planet—and the universe—from the forces of evil.
Created by Ciro Nieli—who worked on Teen Titans, and was the showrunner and executive producer of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles— Super Robot Monkey Team premiered on Disney channels worldwide in 2004.
Chiro is empowered by the supernatural energy of the Power Primate. With the help of the five Robot Monkeys, Chiro’s mission is to save the city from the evil Skeleton King and any other evil forces that threaten it.
#22 Cylons and Muffitt on Battlestar Galactica
For much of Battlestar Galactica, the humans are on the run from the terrifying warlike robots known as Cylons. Introduced in the original 1978 series, Cylons are a category of robots created by aliens that died after making them.
Assorted versions of Cylons have appeared in different eras of this show, including the original 1978 series, the 1980 series, the 2004 re-imagining, and the spin-off prequel series Caprica.
The original series also had Muffit II—a robot pet that looked kind of like a dog. He was created to replace a pet that had died.
#23 Small Wonder
The 1985-1989 sci-fi sitcom Small Wonder shared the story of litle girl android V.I.C.I. (pronounced “Vicki”), and the family that passes her off as their adopted daughter. Vicki has strength and speed, an AC outlet under her right arm, a data port under her left arm, and an access panel in her back.
As the young actress continued to grow during the series production, the android needed to be “upgraded” to explain why she was looking different.
#24 Voltron: Defender of the Universe
Making its TV debut in 1984, cartoon show Voltron revolved around a team of space explorers piloting the giant super robot Voltron. A work that actually adapted more than one Japanese TV show, the first season was adapted from the series Beast King GoLion. The second season was adapted from the unrelated series Armored Fleet Dairugger XV. (A third adaptation was apparently in the works but never got finished.)
A big hit with American viewers, Voltron: Defender of the Universe led the way to follow-up shows, comic book series, and lots of toys. (There has also been talk over the years of doing a live action movie.)
#25 XJ-9 (well, Jenny) on My Life as a Teenage Robot
The TV show My Life as a Teenage Robot—an animated science fiction superhero comedy series—revolves around robot super-heroine named who protects the Earth while trying to live the normal life of a teen. Living in Tremorton, XJ-9 (or Jenny, as she would rather be called) is a state-of-the-art sentient automaton robot dealing with typical teen issues. And, you know, being a superhero.
BONUS: MST3K—again
OK, we finished this article and realized we had only mentioned the robots from Mystery Science Theater 3000 in passing. So, let me add a bit more here. In case you don’t already know all about it.
Mystery Science Theater 3000 (often called MST3K) is the sci-fi comedy show where a human trapped on a satellite is forced by evil scientists to watch old movies. The human test subject is accompanied by ROBOTS that help the person to heckle the movies. At various points of each movie, the prisoner and the bots step out of the movie for a break and generally have a conversation or a sketch involving the movie they’re watching.
The main bots on MST3K are Tom Servo and Crow T. Robot. The other robots on the satellite include GPC (formerly called “Gypsy”) and Cambot.
Launching in 1988 on a local TV station in Minneapolis, Minnesota, MST3K quickly got upgraded to be broadcast on networks—and over the years has played on The Comedy Channel, Comedy Central, The Sci-Fi Channel, and Netflix. There have been more than 200 episodes of the show, plus a theatrical movie, and even live shows.
The show now airs new episodes on its own streaming platform, Gizmoplex. And you can stream classic episodes of the show on Tubi TV (free with ads), as well as Amazon Prime (some episodes also free with ads, plus episodes you can buy), and YouTube (including their official MST3K channel), and more. And you can also buy the show on DVD from Amazon.
MST3K’s human prisoner has changed a few times—including characters played by Joel Hodgson, Michael J. Nelson, Jonah Ray, and Emily Marsh. There have also been a few different mad scientists involved in forcing the experiment on the human test subject.
MST3K has been applauded by the likes Entertainment Weekly (“25 Best Cult TV Shows from the Past 25 Years”), Time magazine (“100 Best TV Shows of All-TIME”), and TV Guide (“25 Top Cult Shows Ever!”). MST3K also won a Peabody Award in 1993, and has been nominated for Emmy Awards and for the CableACE Award.
The show has also led to a number of follow-up projects that also heckle old movies (including some with former MST3K cast members) including The Film Crew, RiffTrax, and Cinematic Titanic.
Perhaps more importantly, MST3K also brought attention back to some older movies that had largely been forgotten….like Robot Monster. Which is where we started this list.
Oh—and did I mention that Robot Monster is becoming a comic book anthology? Just sayin’:
Find out about the all-new Robot Monster graphic novel anthology!
More from Monster Complex™
How a robot Julie Newmar EXCITED viewers in this overlooked 60s sitcom before she was Catwoman
14 Significant Sci-Fi Movies with Robots—From the Amazing to the Weird
Johnny Sokko and Giant Robo—Theme Song, The History, and The Giant Monsters
Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur: 13 Facts Behind the Disney+ Series
Quiz: Was That Monster On An Episode Of X-Files Or Buffy The Vampire Slayer?
Further Reading Online
100+ Robots Movies, TV series & Anime of All Time (Robotics24)
100 Best Movie Robots of All Time (Paste Magazine)
15 Greatest Robots of Movies and Television, Ranked (Collider)
Top 50 robots and AI computers in the movies (Den of Geek)
10 Friendliest TV Robots (CBR)
10 Funniest Robots in Film and TV (Watch Mojo)
Top 10 TV Robots (Watch Mojo)
50 Greatest Robots in Pop Culture History 25-1 (Silicon Repuclic)
12 Best Robots in TV & Film (House of Geekery)
Ridiculously Human Robots (TV Tropes)
10 Coolest Robots from Film & TV (Pop Matters)
10 Most Lovable Robots In Sci-Fi TV History (Screen Rant)
Over the decades, there have been LOTS of robots on TV—including helpers and heroes, plus warnings about evil robots. We look at robots from a couple dozen TV shows, including sci-fi series, cartoons, and sitcoms.