Lists: Domo Arigato, Mr. Roboto

Posted by steve

June 26, 2008

To honor the upcoming release of the new Pixar film, Wall-E, I thought I’d take a trip with Luke Skywalker and drag some of my favorite movie robots from the Jawa scrapheap. They may be steel and wire, but they can sure warm our hearts.

So without further ado, here is my…

Top 10 Movie Robots

10. MechaGodzilla – What’s cooler than a giant dinosaur terrorizing downtown Tokyo? A giant dinosaur made of metal, of course.

Appearances: Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla, sequels

Coolest Feature: Rainbow beams!

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9. Maria – Maria is Fritz Lang’s classic robot that shocked audiences of the silent film era and inspired George Lucas’ design of a certain gold friend. Also, what’s more fun than a fembot? Created to replace a lost love, Maria leads rebellion against slave labor. Neat.

Appearances: Metropolis

Coolest Feature: The power to overthrow unjust governments.

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8. Cylons – The Cylons were slave robots created by humans who rose up and warred against them, eventually disappearing, and then once again reappearing to annihilate all humanity. And damn do they look cool. Since their liberation, several types of Cylons have been created, including humanoid and hybrid forms.

Appearances: Battlestar Galactica (1978 series /2003 Miniseries, series)

Coolest Feature: Regeneration/rebirth

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7. Bishop – Already distrustful of androids after her issues with Ash in Alien, Bishop gradually became a friend of Ripley aboard the Sulaco. Bishop might have milk for blood, but he can sure kick some Alien ass.

Appearances: Aliens, Alien 3

Coolest Feature: Error-free Russian Roulette

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6. T-1000 – Don’t get me wrong; Arnold makes a great robot. However, Robert Patrick makes a better one. Plus, I like a guy in uniform. Sent back in time to eliminate John Connor and ensure the victory of Skynet, you get some of the most awesome scenes in movie history. Even though the Arnold Terminator wins, he needs Linda Hamilton and a ratty teenager to do it.

Appearances: Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Last Action Hero, Wayne’s World

Coolest Feature: Shapeshifting and those awesome blade arms

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5. Johnny 5 – If you haven’t seen these movies. Do it now. Suffice it to say, Johnny wins over the hearts of both Steve Guttenburg and Ally Sheedy. How can you lose?

Appearances: Short Circuit, Short Circuit 2

Coolest Feature: Loves “input”

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4. Data – Starfleet’s only android, Data serves as second officer aboard the USS Enterprise. Despite not having traditional human thoughts and emotions, Data has proved time and again to be one of the most courageous and understanding individuals in the Federation.

Appearances: Star Trek: the Next Generation, Star Trek: Generations, Star Trek: First Contact, Star Trek: Insurrection, Star Trek: Nemesis

Coolest Feature: Data is fully functional in every way, and is programmed in “multiple techniques” of pleasure

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3. Robocop: He’s the perfect melding of Robot and Cop. He protects and serves your ass on a platter. Robocop creates the greatest movie about a Michigan city since Roger and Me.

Appearances: Robocop, Robocop 2, Robocop 3

Coolest Feature: Keeping Detroit in line. Something Kwame can’t even do.

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2. C-3PO and R2-D2: They’re probably my favorite robotic gay couple. One of the few characters to outlast through the entirety of the 6 Star Wars movies, this Pen and Teller duo of the future are science fiction icons.

Appearances: Star Wars Episodes 1-6

Coolest Feature: Artificially Intelligent lover’s quarrels

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1. Optimus Prime: Leader of the Autobots and all-around badass. He has a voice Barry White would be jealous of. Optimus is the coolest Transformer and the ultimate Robot. He fights for the freedom of all sentient beings and will sacrifice even himself for the better cause.

Appearances: Transformers (1986), Transformers (2007)

Coolest Feature: He can turn into a semi-truck!