ProSieben MAXX is a free-to-air German television channel which was responsible for airing Series 8, 9 and 10 of Robot Wars in Germany, as well as both of the World Series specials. It is part of the mass media company ProSiebenSat.1.
History[]
ProSieben MAXX was launched in September 2013 as the fifth sister channel to the already-popular ProSieben, airing imported animated shows during the day such as The Cramp Twins and Dragon Ball, before adult shows and sports broadcasts were shown in the evenings.
The channel often airs movies on Thursdays, with the its debut broadcast being Captain America: The First Avenger, dubbed into German for its native audience. Though its headquarters lie in Germany, the company also broadcast in Austria, Switzerland and Lichenstein.
Robot Wars[]
- "Faster, more skillful, more rabid - the fighting machines are back: The British cult series "Robot Wars" is celebrating a brilliant revival and in six episodes remotely controlled robots let loose on each other in the arena. There are some steel gladiators from the original series as well as hot new projectiles. The aim is to demolish the competition, kick it out of the arena or completely dismantle it - and all of this, of course, as spectacularly as possible."
- — The show's description on ProSieben MAXX's website, roughly translated from German
In July 2016, it was announced that ProSiebenSat.1 had acquired the rights to air Series 8 of Robot Wars in Germany, the most recent series at the time, after a deal was agreed with Passion Distribution.[1] Despite the announcement coming around the time of Series 8 airing for the first time in the UK, it was then uncertain when it would become available to the German audience.
- "We are thrilled that such a high profile partner, ProSiebenSat.1 TV Deutschland, has acquired the German speaking rights to the BBC’s exciting new reboot of ROBOT WARS. Germany is a key territory for Passion Distribution and ROBOT WARS’ mix of entertainment, technology and tough competition has all the right ingredients for the German audience and will doubtless appeal across the generations."
- — Elin Thomas, Director of Global Sales at Passion Distribution, showing excitement at the opportunity to showcase Robot Wars to a German audience in 2016
In October 2016, the first episode of Series 8 was shown and two months later, each episode of Series 8 was made available to watch on ProSieben MAXX's website. The standout change for this airing of the show was the absence of Jonathan Pearce's commentary. This was instead provided by Frank Buschmann. The website would also upload a gallery of photos to advertise and accompany each episode.[2] Series 8 would be reaired as a Christmas Eve marathon on ProSieben MAXX, running back-to-back from 10am until 4:35pm.
Series 9 would be shown nine months later, with episodes airing weekly from July 2017 and occupying a 10pm Sunday slot. ProSieben MAXX posted a brief trailer to their Facebook page to advertise the series ahead of the first episode, with Robot Wars being shown as part of the 'Tech-Sports' block with Syfy's Robot Combat League and the Drone Racing League.[3] Buschmann did not continue his commentary work into later dubbed series, and was therefore succeeded by Holger Böschen, who serves as a German presenter and commentator for WWE on ProSieben MAXX. The reasons behind this change are unknown.
In March 2018, ProSieben MAXX posted a 30-second trailer of Series 10 to their Facebook page, where it would now take up a 10:05pm Sunday evening slot, commencing on 11 March.[4] Interestingly, despite Böschen's German commentary being audible in the trailer, Jonathan Pearce can still be heard in this trailer saying the words "Battle Time".[5]
Unlike with the BBC airings of Series 10, ProSieben MAXX titled each episode as well as numbering them. This was also done for Science Channel's US dub of Series 8.[6]
| Episode | Aired (Germany) | Aired (UK) | German Title | English Translation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Robot Wars: Series 10/Heat A | 11 March 2018 | 22 October 2017 | Lasst die Spiele beginnen! | Let the Games Begin! |
| Robot Wars: Series 10/Heat B | 18 March 2018 | 29 October 2017 | Der ewige Feind | The Eternal Enemy |
| Robot Wars: Series 10/Heat C | 25 March 2018 | 5 November 2017 | Gefahr in der Arena | Danger in the Arena |
| Robot Wars: Series 10/Heat D | 1 April 2018 | 12 November 2017 | Wer zuletzt lacht, lacht am besten | Who Laughs Last, Laughs Best |
| Robot Wars: Series 10/Heat E | 8 April 2018 | 26 November 2017 | Wachablösung | Changing of the Guard |
| Robot Wars: Series 10/Grand Final | 15 April 2018 | 3 December 2017 | Finale! | Final! |
A year later, it was announced in October 2019 that Robot Wars would be shown again on the channel. Both World Series episodes were shown in December 2019, and reaired in October 2020. The episodes were later made available to be watched on ProSieben MAXX's website.[7] There is no evidence that either of the Battle of the Stars special episodes aired in Germany, likely due to the celebrities being less recognisable to a German audience, however this is unconfirmed.
References[]
- ↑ https://tbivision.com/2016/07/14/prosieben-start-robot-wars/
- ↑ https://www.prosiebenmaxx.de/tv/robot-wars/bilder/robot-wars-20163
- ↑ https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1522804677838873
- ↑ https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1734960773289928
- ↑ https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robot_Wars
- ↑ https://www.fernsehserien.de/robot-wars/folgen/10x01-lasst-die-spiele-beginnen-1147064
- ↑ https://www.prosiebenmaxx.de/tv/robot-wars/episoden/lasst-die-spiele-beginnen
External Links[]
[]
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||