Changes: Nickelodeon Robot Wars

Revision as of 20:08, 5 May 2020

Announcer: "You want adorable baby animals?"

Dave Aizer: "You've come to the wrong place!"

— Promotional Advert

Nickelodeon Robot Wars was a spin-off of Robot Wars: Extreme Warriors, the US version of Robot Wars. It was first broadcast on Nickelodeon between August and September 2002 as part of their "Nickelodeon SLAM!" programming block, and was later rerun on Nick GaS (Nickelodeon Games and Sports for Kids). Filmed at the same time as the second season of Extreme Warriors, the one-off series ran for six episodes, and featured competitor robots from both seasons of Extreme Warriors and Series 5 of the UK series, including loanerbots leant to some of the teams that had also competed in Extreme Warriors. As with the Minor Meltdown, the competitor robots were driven by children.

Like Extreme Warriors, Nickelodeon Robot Wars was filmed in the main Robot Wars Arena in London, despite being for an American audience and featuring US series competitors.

Presenters

The show was presented by Dave Aizer, with Vivianne Collins of You're On! serving as pit reporter. Commentary was provided by Stefan Frank, who provided commentary for both seasons of Extreme Warriors.

Format

Nickelodeon Robot Wars followed a similar concept to Robot Wars Extreme and the first season of Extreme Warriors. Eight competitions were held in total, consisting of three major competitions which each had an episode dedicated to them, three minor competitions which were aired together across the remaining three episodes and two one-off battles. A significant difference was that whilst the regular US (and indeed the UK) series of Robot Wars had between five to seven fights in a usual episode, the time constraints brought by the programme's timeslot meant that the Nickelodeon version could only have four battles per episode.

Episode Guide

Main article: Nickelodeon Robot Wars/Episode Guide

Changes and Censorship

To appeal to younger viewers, a few changes specific to the Nickelodeon series were made during production. Although the arena remained the same as in the regular UK and US versions, all of the fire hazards, such as the Flame Pit and side fire jets, were disabled and replaced with CO₂ jets. However, clips showing the Flame Pit spouting fire in UK Series 4 and US Season 2 were still used in the House Robot introductions throughout this series, especially in Sir Killalot/Sir K's introduction, alongside a clip from US Season 1 used for battleboards. The Drop Zone was changed as well, with the objects used being less serious ones such as assortments of balls and old scrap metal.

Some of the House Robots were altered as well. Like the other fire hazards, the flamethrower of Sergeant Bash was disabled, making his pincers his only weapon; however, the Nickelodeon series would occasionally use clips of him with his flamethrower still enabled. Sir Killalot was also renamed "Sir K" - a name by which he was commonly referred to in video games and the original UK Robot Wars Magazine - potentially as a result of his original name being considered unsuitable for younger audiences. Instead of statistics boards, some video clips from both UK and US versions of the show were used when the House Robots were introduced.

Major Competitions

US Championship

Main article: Nickelodeon Robot Wars/US Championship

The US Championship formed the first episode of the series, and was a straightforward knockout tournament between robots fighting to become the Nickelodeon US Champion. Due to time restrictions, this championship was significantly smaller than any other Robot Wars national championship, with only four robots competing. The format of the Nickelodeon US Championship was similar to the Grand Finals of the original UK series, consisting of two one-on-one 'Eliminators', a playoff (known as the Bonus Battle) and a Grand Final.

Robots Competing: Ninjitsu, Phantasm, Probophobia, Tyranabot.

Eliminators

Tyranabot vs Ninjitsu: Tyranabot won
Phantasm vs Probophobia: Probophobia won

Bonus Battle

Ninjitsu vs Phantasm: Ninjitsu won

Final

Tyranabot vs Probophobia: Tyranabot won

International Tag Team

Main article: Nickelodeon Robot Wars/International Tag Team

As its name suggests, this tournament combined elements of the Tag Team Terror and War of Independence competitions found in other versions of the show. Eight robots - four American and four British - were paired into teams to battle each other in two-on-two battles. Only one robot from each team was allowed in the arena at a time and the teams could switch robots by 'tagging' them. Similar to the UK Series 4 Tag Team Terror, the International Tag Team competition featured two first-round 'Qualifiers', a playoff and a final between the 'Qualifier' winners.

Teams Competing:

USA: The Revolutionist & Spin Doctor, Zanzara & Run Away
UK: Ming 3 & Rick, Bigger Brother & Kat 3

Qualifiers

US - The Revolutionist & Spin Doctor vs Zanzara & Run Away: The Revolutionist & Spin Doctor won
UK - Ming 3 & Rick vs Bigger Brother & Kat 3: Ming 3 & Rick won

Playoff

Zanzara vs Bigger Brother: Bigger Brother won

Run Away and Kat 3 were unable to take part due to technical issues.

Final

The Revolutionist & Spin Doctor vs Ming 3 & Rick: Ming 3 & Rick won

Annihilator

Main article: Nickelodeon Robot Wars/Annihilator

The Nickelodeon Annihilator was held to a similar format to those found in other versions of the show, but with five robots rather than six, allowing for only four rounds. The rules for the Annihilator remained the same as in other versions; five robots began the competition, with one being eliminated from each round until only one robot was left standing.

Robots Competing: Basenji, Bunny Attack, Hannibal, Techno Trousers, The Piecemaker

Fifth: Techno Trousers
Fourth: Basenji
Third: The Piecemaker
Runner-up: Bunny Attack
Winner: Hannibal

Minor Competitions

Mayhem

Main article: Nickelodeon Robot Wars/Mayhem

As with their Extreme 1 namesake, Mayhem battles were a series of three-way melees aired in separate episodes, where one robot from each would emerge victorious. Winners of each Nickelodeon Mayhem would qualify for an 'Ultimate Mayhem', shown as the main event of Episode 5, where one robot would be declared the Mayhem Champion.

Robots Competing: Diskotek, Joker, Propeller-Head, Rigby, Rosie the Riveter 2, Techno Trousers, The Revolutionist, Vert-I-Go, Xylon

Mayhems

Propeller-Head vs Rosie the Riveter 2 vs Xylon: Propeller-Head won
Joker vs Techno Trousers vs Vert-I-Go: Vert-I-Go won
Diskotek vs Rigby vs The Revolutionist: The Revolutionist won

Ultimate Mayhem

Propeller-Head vs Vert-I-Go vs The Revolutionist: Propeller-Head won

Vengeance

Main article: Nickelodeon Robot Wars/Vengeance

A series of one-on-one battles between robots which had a grudge to settle or issued an open challenge to prospective opponents.

Robots Competing: Bunny Attack, Hoot, Joker, Probophobia, Spin Doctor, Xylon

Battles

Bunny Attack vs Hoot: Bunny Attack won
Probophobia vs Spin Doctor: Probophobia won
Xylon vs Joker: Xylon won

Challenge Belt

Main article: Nickelodeon Robot Wars/Challenge Belt

A winner-stays-on competition, where Tyranabot was given a special "belt" to defend against opponents which attempted to take it. Any robot could fight Tyranabot for the belt, and whoever won would keep it. In order to win the belt outright, three challenges had to be won by the belt holder.

Original Holder: Tyranabot
Challengers (in order of challenge): Tut Tut, Rosie the Riveter 2, Probophobia

Challenges

Tyranabot vs Tut Tut: Tut Tut won
Tut Tut vs Rosie the Riveter 2: Tut Tut won
Tut Tut vs Probophobia: Tut Tut won

Single Battle Events

Battle of the Spinners

Main article: Nickelodeon Robot Wars/Battle of the Spinners

In this one-off battle, two robots fought each other to decide which had the better spinning weapon.

Ninjitsu vs Destructive Criticism

Winner: Ninjitsu

House Robot Rebellion

Main article: Nickelodeon Robot Wars/House Robot Rebellion

In this one-off battle, two robots were given the chance to take on Dead Metal, Shunt and Sir K (Sir Killalot).

Squirmin Vermin & Humdrum vs Dead Metal, Shunt & Sir K

Winners: Dead Metal, Shunt & Sir K

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 {{series
 |series_name=Nickelodeon Robot Wars
-|image=[[File:Nickelodeon Robot Wars.JPG|200px]]
+|image=[[File:Nickelodeon Robot Wars logo.png|200px]]
 |caption=Nickelodeon Robot Wars title logo
 |presenter=[[Dave Aizer]]
@@ Line 13: / Line 13: @@
 |last_aired=September 29, 2002
 }}
+{{Dialogue a-b|Announcer|You want adorable baby animals?|Dave Aizer|You've come to the wrong place!|Promotional Advert}}
-'''Nickelodeon Robot Wars''' was a spin-off of ''[[Robot Wars: Extreme Warriors]]'', the US version of ''[[Robot Wars]]''. It was first broadcast on Nickelodeon in 2002, as part of their programming block known as "Nickelodeon Games and Sports for Kids" (or just '''Nick GAS''' for short).  It was filmed at the same time as Season 2 of Extreme Warriors, the competition consisting of whatever robots were still available to fight after the ''Extreme Warriors'' events.  It was a one-off special series in which the robots were driven by children (similar to the [[Minor Meltdown]] in the UK Series), and only six episodes were ever made. Like Extreme Warriors, Nickelodeon Robot Wars was filmed in the main [[Robot Wars Arena]] in London, despite being for an American audience and featuring US competitors.
+'''Nickelodeon Robot Wars''' was a spin-off of ''[[Robot Wars: Extreme Warriors]]'', the US version of ''[[Robot Wars]]''. It was first broadcast on Nickelodeon between August and September 2002 as part of their "Nickelodeon SLAM!" programming block, and was later rerun on Nick GaS (Nickelodeon Games and Sports for Kids). Filmed at the same time as [[Extreme Warriors: Season 2|the second season of ''Extreme Warriors'']], the one-off series ran for six episodes, and featured competitor robots from both seasons of ''Extreme Warriors'' and Series 5 of the UK series, including [[Loanerbots|loanerbots]] leant to some of the teams that had also competed in ''Extreme Warriors''. As with the [[Robot Wars Extreme: Series 2/Minor Meltdown|Minor Meltdown]], the competitor robots were driven by children.
+Like ''Extreme Warriors'', ''Nickelodeon Robot Wars'' was filmed in the main [[Robot Wars Arena]] in London, despite being for an American audience and featuring US series competitors.
 ==Presenters==
-The show was presented by [[Dave Aizer]], with [[Vivianne Collins]] of ''You're on!'' serving as pit reporter. Commentary was provided by Extreme Warriors commentator [[Stefan Frank]].
+The show was presented by [[Dave Aizer]], with [[Vivianne Collins]] of ''You're On!'' serving as pit reporter. Commentary was provided by [[Stefan Frank]], who provided commentary for both seasons of ''Extreme Warriors''.
 ==Format==
-Nickelodeon Robot Wars ran a lot like ''[[Robot Wars Extreme]]'' and the first series of Extreme Warriors, with seven various competitions held over the six shows. Three shows were each dedicated to one competition (US Championship, International Tag Team Terror and Annihilator), whilst the other three shows featured an assortment of the other competitions. A significant difference was that whilst the regular US (and indeed the UK) Robot Wars had anything from five to seven fights in a usual show, the time restraints for the programme's slot meant that the Nickelodeon version could only have four.
+''Nickelodeon Robot Wars'' followed a similar  concept to ''[[Robot Wars Extreme]]'' and [[Extreme Warriors: Season 1|the first season of ''Extreme Warriors'']]. Eight competitions were held in total, consisting of three major competitions which each had an episode dedicated to them, three minor competitions which were aired together across the remaining three episodes and two one-off battles. A significant difference was that whilst the regular US (and indeed the UK) series of ''Robot Wars'' had between five to seven fights in a usual episode, the time constraints brought by the programme's timeslot meant that the Nickelodeon version could only have four battles per episode.
+==Episode Guide==
+{{main|Nickelodeon Robot Wars/Episode Guide}}
 ==Changes and Censorship==
-To appeal to the younger generation, a few changes were made in production. Although the arena was the same as it was in the regular version, all of the fire hazards, such as the flame pit and side fire jets, were disabled. The drop zone was changed as well, with the hazards used being the less-serious ones, such as bowling balls and old car parts.
+To appeal to younger viewers, a few changes specific to the ''Nickelodeon'' series were made during production. Although [[Robot Wars Arena/Series 5-7|the arena]] remained the same as in the regular UK and US versions, all of the fire hazards, such as the Flame Pit and side fire jets, were disabled and replaced with CO<sub>2</sub> jets. However, clips showing the Flame Pit spouting fire in [[Robot Wars: The Fourth Wars|UK Series 4]] and [[Extreme Warriors: Season 2|US Season 2]] were still used in the House Robot introductions throughout this series, especially in Sir Killalot/Sir K's introduction, alongside a clip from [[Extreme Warriors: Season 1|US Season 1]] used for battleboards. The [[The Drop Zone|Drop Zone]] was changed as well, with the objects used being less serious ones such as assortments of balls and old scrap metal.
-Some of the House Robots were altered as well. Like the other fire hazards, the flamethrower of [[Sergeant Bash]] was disabled, making his pincers his only weapon. [[Sir Killalot]] was also renamed "Sir K.", a name he was commonly referred to in the original UK [[Robot Wars Magazine]]. Instead of a statboard, some video clips from both versions of the show were used when the House Robots were introduced.
+Some of the House Robots were altered as well. Like the other fire hazards, the flamethrower of [[Sergeant Bash]] was disabled, making his pincers his only weapon; however, the ''Nickelodeon'' series would occasionally use clips of him with his flamethrower still enabled. [[Sir Killalot]] was also renamed "Sir K" - a name by which he was commonly referred to in video games and the original UK [[Robot Wars Magazine]] - potentially as a result of his original name being considered unsuitable for younger audiences. Instead of statistics boards, some video clips from both UK and US versions of the show were used when the House Robots were introduced.
+==Major Competitions==
-==Events==
 ===US Championship===
 {{Main|Nickelodeon Robot Wars/US Championship}}
-This tournament had a whole episode dedicated to it. Because of time restrictions, it was significantly smaller than most normal national championships, with only four robots competing. Much like the Grand Final of the UK series, there were two one-on-one eliminators, a playoff and a grand final.
+The US Championship formed the first episode of the series, and was a straightforward knockout tournament between robots fighting to become the Nickelodeon US Champion. Due to time restrictions, this championship was significantly smaller than any other ''Robot Wars'' national championship, with only four robots competing. The format of the Nickelodeon US Championship was similar to the Grand Finals of the original UK series, consisting of two one-on-one 'Eliminators', a playoff (known as the Bonus Battle) and a Grand Final.
 '''Robots Competing''': [[Ninjitsu]], [[Phantasm]], [[Probophobia]], [[Tyranabot]].
@@ Line 37: / Line 43: @@
 *Phantasm vs Probophobia: '''Probophobia won'''
+Bonus Battle
-Playoff
 *Ninjitsu vs Phantasm: '''Ninjitsu won'''
@@ Line 43: / Line 49: @@
 *Tyranabot vs Probophobia: '''Tyranabot won'''
-===International Tag Team Terror===
+===International Tag Team===
-{{Main|Nickelodeon Robot Wars/International Tag Team Terror}}
+{{Main|Nickelodeon Robot Wars/International Tag Team}}
-This tournament was, essentially, a combination of the Tag Team Terror and the War of Independence, where eight robots, four American and four British, were paired into teams to battle each other. Only one robot from each team was allowed in the arena at a time and the teams could switch robots by 'tagging' them.
+As its name suggests, this tournament combined elements of the [[Tag Team Terror]] and [[War of Independence]] competitions found in other versions of the show. Eight robots - four American and four British - were paired into teams to battle each other in two-on-two battles. Only one robot from each team was allowed in the arena at a time and the teams could switch robots by 'tagging' them. Similar to the [[Robot Wars: The Fourth Wars/Tag Team Terror|UK Series 4 Tag Team Terror]], the International Tag Team competition featured two first-round 'Qualifiers', a playoff and a final between the 'Qualifier' winners.
 '''Teams Competing''':
@@ Line 51: / Line 57: @@
 *'''UK''': [[Ming|Ming 3]] & [[Rick]], [[Bigger Brother]] & [[Kat 3]]
+Qualifiers
-Eliminators
-*The Revolutionist & Spin Doctor vs Zanzara & Run Away: '''The Revolutionist & Spin Doctor won'''
+*US - The Revolutionist & Spin Doctor vs Zanzara & Run Away: '''The Revolutionist & Spin Doctor won'''
-*Ming 3 & Rick vs Bigger Brother & Kat 3: '''Ming 3 & Rick won'''
+*UK - Ming 3 & Rick vs Bigger Brother & Kat 3: '''Ming 3 & Rick won'''
 Playoff
-*Zanzara & Run Away vs Bigger Brother & Kat 3: '''Bigger Brother & Kat 3 won'''
+*Zanzara vs Bigger Brother: '''Bigger Brother won'''
+:''Run Away and Kat 3 were unable to take part due to technical issues.''
 Final
 *The Revolutionist & Spin Doctor vs Ming 3 & Rick: '''Ming 3 & Rick won'''
+===Annihilator===
+{{Main|Nickelodeon Robot Wars/Annihilator}}
+The Nickelodeon Annihilator was held to a similar format to [[Annihilator|those found in other versions of the show]], but with five robots rather than six, allowing for only four rounds. The rules for the Annihilator remained the same as in other versions; five robots began the competition, with one being eliminated from each round until only one robot was left standing.
+'''Robots Competing''': [[Basenji]], [[Bunny Attack]], [[Hannibal]], [[Techno Trousers]], [[The Piecemaker]]
+*Fifth: '''Techno Trousers'''
+*Fourth: '''Basenji'''
+*Third: '''The Piecemaker'''
+*Runner-up: '''Bunny Attack'''
+*Winner: '''Hannibal'''
+==Minor Competitions==
 ===Mayhem===
 {{Main|Nickelodeon Robot Wars/Mayhem}}
+As with their [[Robot Wars Extreme: Series 1/Mayhem|''Extreme'' 1 namesake]], Mayhem battles were a series of three-way melees aired in separate episodes, where one robot from each would emerge victorious. Winners of each Nickelodeon Mayhem would qualify for an 'Ultimate Mayhem', shown as the main event of Episode 5, where one robot would be declared the Mayhem Champion.
-In the Mayhem, three robots fought against each other, with the winners qualifying for an "Ultimate Mayhem" later in the series.
-'''Robots Competing''': [[Diskotek]], [[Joker]], [[Propeller-Head]], [[Rigby]], [[Rosie The Riveter|Rosie The Riveter 2]], [[Techno Trousers]], [[The Revolutionist]], [[Vert-I-Go]], [[Xylon]]
+'''Robots Competing''': [[Diskotek]], [[Joker]], [[Propeller-Head]], [[Rigby]], [[Rosie the Riveter|Rosie the Riveter 2]], [[Techno Trousers]], [[The Revolutionist]], [[Vert-I-Go]], [[Xylon]]
 Mayhems
@@ Line 77: / Line 97: @@
 ===Vengeance===
 {{Main|Nickelodeon Robot Wars/Vengeance}}
-This series of battles featured two robots who had a score to settle fighting each other.
+A series of one-on-one battles between robots which had a grudge to settle or issued an open challenge to prospective opponents.
-'''Robots Competing''': [[Bunny Attack]], [[Destructive Criticism]], [[Hoot]], [[Joker]], [[Ninjitsu]], [[Probophobia]], [[Spin Doctor (Extreme Warriors)|Spin Doctor]], [[Xylon]]
+'''Robots Competing''': [[Bunny Attack]], [[Hoot]], [[Joker]], [[Probophobia]], [[Spin Doctor (Extreme Warriors)|Spin Doctor]], [[Xylon]]
 Battles
 *Bunny Attack vs Hoot: '''Bunny Attack won'''
-*Ninjitsu vs Destructive Criticism: '''Ninjitsu won'''
 *Probophobia vs Spin Doctor: '''Probophobia won'''
 *Xylon vs Joker: '''Xylon won'''
@@ Line 89: / Line 108: @@
 ===Challenge Belt===
 {{Main|Nickelodeon Robot Wars/Challenge Belt}}
-In this competition, Tyranabot was given a special "belt". Any robot could fight it for the belt, and whoever won would keep it. In order to win the belt outright, three challenges had to be won.
+A winner-stays-on competition, where Tyranabot was given a special "belt" to defend against opponents which attempted to take it. Any robot could fight Tyranabot for the belt, and whoever won would keep it. In order to win the belt outright, three challenges had to be won by the belt holder.
-*'''Holder''': [[Tyranabot]]
+*'''Original Holder''': [[Tyranabot]]
-*'''Challengers (in order of challenge)''': [[Tut Tut]], [[Rosie The Riveter|Rosie The Riveter 2]], [[Probophobia]]
+*'''Challengers (in order of challenge)''': [[Tut Tut]], [[Rosie the Riveter|Rosie the Riveter 2]], [[Probophobia]]
 Challenges
@@ Line 99: / Line 118: @@
 *Tut Tut vs Probophobia: '''Tut Tut won'''
-===House Robot Rebellion===
+==Single Battle Events==
+===Battle of the Spinners===
-{{Main|Nickelodeon Robot Wars/House Robot Rebellion}}
+{{Main|Nickelodeon Robot Wars/Battle of the Spinners}}
-In this one-off battle, two robots were given the chance to take on Dead Metal, Shunt and Sir Killalot (Sir K.).
+In this one-off battle, two robots fought each other to decide which had the better spinning weapon.
+*[[Ninjitsu]] vs [[Destructive Criticism]]
-[[Squirmin Vermin]] & [[Humdrum]] vs [[Dead Metal]],  [[Shunt]] & [[Sir Killalot|Sir K.]]
+Winner: '''Ninjitsu'''
-Winners: '''Dead Metal, Shunt & Sir K.'''
-===Annihilator===
+===House Robot Rebellion===
-{{Main|Nickelodeon Robot Wars/Annihilator}}
+{{Main|Nickelodeon Robot Wars/House Robot Rebellion}}
+In this one-off battle, two robots were given the chance to take on Dead Metal, Shunt and Sir K (Sir Killalot).
-The annihilator was held in a similar format to the regular annihilators, but with five robots rather than six, to allow for only four battles. The rules were still the same, with one robot eliminated from each round until only one was left.
+[[Squirmin Vermin]] & [[Humdrum]] vs [[Dead Metal]], [[Shunt]] & [[Sir Killalot|Sir K]]
-'''Robots Competing''': [[Basenji]], [[Bunny Attack]], [[Hannibal (Nickelodeon)|Hannibal]], [[Techno Trousers]], [[The Piecemaker]]
-*Fifth: '''Techno Trousers'''
+Winners: '''Dead Metal, Shunt & Sir K'''
-*Fourth: '''Basenji'''
-*Third: '''The Piecemaker'''
-*Runner-up: '''Bunny Attack'''
-*Winner: '''Hannibal'''
 {{Nickelodeon Robot Wars}}
 {{Nickelodeon Competitors}}
 {{Robot Wars}}
-[[Category:Nickelodeon Robot Wars]]
+[[Category:Nickelodeon Robot Wars| ]]