8645T - Series 5-7 All Fights - Robot Wars - 2001-2003

[@Smokin_Snowman]

Dude your intro is full with so many of my favorite battles and bots of all time lol.

[@benfisher4598]

8645T could've been a half way decent flipper robot if it didn't have that axe.

[@FionaS0503]

Indeed

[@Smokin_Snowman]

That was the only bad thing about the old robot wars.. there was quite a lot of focus on aesthetics lol

[@EleanorPeterson]

@@Smokin_Snowman Yep. That was all down to the BBC's 'people first' policy. Robots are bad, mmmmkay?Anthropomorphism rules. Think of the House Robots - and you think 'personality'. 8645T had a slight 'animal/ dino-raptor/ pecking-beak/ sting in the tail' vibe going on. Sort of. I imagine there were several bots with boring old hammers, spikes, and lifters that didn't even get past the first audition. The programme producers were more interested in featuring robots with looks, charisma and personality than in featuring efficient fighting machines. The whole idea was to make Robot Wars a pantomime that would get little children whooping and screaming for their favourite characters. Yay-ing the heroes, booing the villains, just like their grannies did with Saturday afternoon wrestling. Oh, and maybe also pestering mummy to buy them a T-shirt with Matilda or Sir Peeabout on it. Merchandising. After spending so much licence-fee cash on House Robots, salaries for star presenters, unnecessary garbage and theatrical stage effects, the Beeb had some huge bills to pay. Going for looks above efficiency was a stupid way to encourage innovative engineering. And I think it's why the show went under: it repulsed its core audience. Well done, the BBC. Another winning idea. Sigh...

[@thebotbuilder]

The original bum axe

[@ThatBuilderBoi]

Could have been a great bot....... Freaking bum axe

[@EleanorPeterson]

Surely it should have been '8345T' (B-E-A-S-T) if the idea was to approximate letters with numbers... I mean, a reversed 3 is commonly taken to represent an 'E', whereas a 6 is just... silly. It's a little 'b'. And don't call me Shirley. [The 'surely/Shirley' pun was lifted from the film 'Airplane'. Always quote your sources. And always shake your ketchup and HP sauces before use. The Scottish explorer David Livingstone went in search of the Sauce of the Nile to put on his haggis carry-out, but - alas - by then he'd had his chips.]

[@renatenucum884]

I TOLD THE MANGLE TO NOT GET DRUNK, NOW LOOK!