''Robot Combat League'' (''RCL'') is a television show on the
Syfy network about
robot fighting competitions. On the show, teams use
exosuit
A powered exoskeleton, also known as power armor, powered armor, powered suit, cybernetic suit, cybernetic armor, exosuit, hardsuit, exoframe or augmented mobility, is a mobile machine that is wearable over all or part of the human body, pro ...
s to control fighting
robots "\n\n\n\n\nThe robots exclusion standard, also known as the robots exclusion protocol or simply robots.txt, is a standard used by websites to indicate to visiting web crawlers and other web robots which portions of the site they are allowed to visi ...
. The series is hosted by
Chris Jericho
Christopher Keith Irvine (born November 9, 1970), better known by the ring name Chris Jericho, is an American-Canadian professional wrestler and singer. He is currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW), where he is the leader of the Jeri ...
, and premiered on February 26, 2013 at 10 PM EST.
Overview
Each weekly show features tournament competitions between 8-foot, 1000-pound
humanoid robots controlled by human competitors, one robo-jockey and one robo-tech per team. The series features twelve teams of individuals from diverse backgrounds. Each team is paired with a robot that they control using an exo-suit that directs its movements. Each fight goes three rounds, and the winning team advances.
There are 12 total robots.
The robots range from an axe-headed laser eyed warrior to a robot made of plexiglass and a roll cage.
The robots and the suits used to control them were created by robotics expert
Mark Setrakian.
Rules
: In the season one finale's
championship
In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion.
Championship systems
Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship.
Title match system
In this system ...
fight there were five two-minute rounds, with the winner being the first team that won three rounds out of the five.
Competitors
Each team consists of a uniquely themed robot and two human controllers.
*One human is the "Robo-Jockey,"
controlling the robot's arms and torso while standing via an
exosuit
A powered exoskeleton, also known as power armor, powered armor, powered suit, cybernetic suit, cybernetic armor, exosuit, hardsuit, exoframe or augmented mobility, is a mobile machine that is wearable over all or part of the human body, pro ...
-like harness strapped to his or her back and arms.
*The other human is the "Robo-Tech," seated in a chair while using two
joystick
A joystick, sometimes called a flight stick, is an input device consisting of a stick that pivots on a base and reports its angle or direction to the device it is controlling. A joystick, also known as the control column, is the principal cont ...
s to control the robot's feet and any other unique parts, such as the movable axe "head" on A.X.E.
Each
robot
A robot is a machine—especially one programmable by a computer—capable of carrying out a complex series of actions automatically. A robot can be guided by an external control device, or the control may be embedded within. Robots may be ...
is powered by
hydraulic
Hydraulics (from Greek: Υδραυλική) is a technology and applied science using engineering, chemistry, and other sciences involving the mechanical properties and use of liquids. At a very basic level, hydraulics is the liquid counter ...
and
pneumatic actuator
A pneumatic control valve actuator converts energy (typically in the form of compressed air) into mechanical motion. The motion can be rotary or linear, depending on the type of actuator.
Principle of operation
A Pneumatic actuator mainly ...
s. Each robot
moves on two feet, stabilized by a bar that attaches at the back of the robot, above the legs. The robots each have six actuators at the waist, and several more in each arm. The robots are all styled and painted to be unique and distinct from each other. This unique styling is especially expressed in the different types and designs of
armor
Armour (British English) or armor (American English; see spelling differences) is a covering used to protect an object, individual, or vehicle from physical injury or damage, especially direct contact weapons or projectiles during combat, or ...
that cover each robot, from sheet steel, to steel pipe
roll cage
A roll cage is a specially engineered and constructed frame built in (or sometimes around, in which case it is known as an exo cage) the passenger compartment of a vehicle to protect its occupants from being injured or killed in an accident, pa ...
s, to
carbon fibre
Carbon fiber-reinforced polymers (American English), carbon-fibre-reinforced polymers (Commonwealth English
The use of the English language in current and former member countries of the Commonwealth of Nations was largely inherited fro ...
, to
leather
Leather is a strong, flexible and durable material obtained from the tanning, or chemical treatment, of animal skins and hides to prevent decay. The most common leathers come from cattle, sheep, goats, equine animals, buffalo, pigs and ho ...
. The robots' hands are also all individually styled, and can be quickly detached to facilitate repairs between rounds, or swapped out for weapon attachments.
Several cameras may be mounted on each robot by the show staff to capture show footage, but none of the camera images were used to help control of the robot.
The robots are
controlled by the "Robo-Jockey" and "Robo-Tech" via direct
line-of-sight, from two raised platforms at either end of the arena.
The initial team seed order was determined by a timed challenge in the first episode.
Episodes
Overview
Season 1 (2013)
Season One teams and competition results
Robots
Human competitors
Tournament results
Season One team status
Semi-finals match-ups
Championship match-up
See also
* ''
Real Steel
''Real Steel'' is a 2011 American science fiction sports drama film starring Hugh Jackman and Dakota Goyo and co-produced and directed by Shawn Levy for DreamWorks Pictures. The film is based on the short story "Steel", written by Richard Mathe ...
'' – a
science fiction
Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imagination, imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, Paral ...
sports drama film
A sports film is a film genre in which any particular sport plays a prominent role in the film's plot or acts as its central theme. It is a production in which a sport, sporting event, athlete (and their sport), or follower of sport (and the sp ...
, starring
Hugh Jackman
Hugh Michael Jackman (born 12 October 1968) is an Australian actor. Beginning in theatre and television, he landed his breakthrough role as James "Logan" Howlett / Wolverine in the 20th Century Fox ''X-Men'' film series (2000–2017), a role ...
, where in the year 2020 human boxers have been replaced by robot boxers
* ''
Robot Jox
''Robot Jox'' is a 1990 American post-apocalyptic Mecha science-fiction film directed by Stuart Gordon and starring Gary Graham, Anne-Marie Johnson and Paul Koslo. Co-written by science-fiction author Joe Haldeman, the film's plot follows Achille ...
'' – a science fiction
sports drama film
A sports film is a film genre in which any particular sport plays a prominent role in the film's plot or acts as its central theme. It is a production in which a sport, sporting event, athlete (and their sport), or follower of sport (and the sp ...
about giant mechanical machines, that fight international battles in a dystopian post-apocalyptic world, piloted by "Robot
Jockeys
A jockey is someone who rides horses in horse racing or steeplechase racing, primarily as a profession. The word also applies to camel riders in camel racing. The word "jockey" originated from England and was used to describe the individua ...
" who represent their respective nations
* ''
Robot Wars''
* ''
BattleBots
''BattleBots'' (logo: Bꓭ)In season 10, the 2020-2021 TV season, the show introduced the "Bꓭ" logo is an American robot combat television series. The show was an adaptation of the British show '' Robot Wars'', in which competitors design and ...
''
*
Robot Fighting League
Robot combat is a mode of robot competition in which custom-built machines fight using various methods to incapacitate each other. The machines have generally been remote-controlled vehicles rather than autonomous robots.
Robot combat compet ...
*
RoboGames
RoboGames (previously ROBOlympics) is an annual robot contest held in San Mateo, California. The last RoboGames was held April 27–29, 2018. On July 22, 2022, Robogames 2023 was announced for April 6-9, once again in San Mateo, California.
Comp ...
*
Combots
Robot combat is a mode of robot competition in which custom-built machines fight using various methods to incapacitate each other. The machines have generally been remote-controlled vehicles rather than autonomous robots.
Robot combat comp ...
*
Robo One Robo-One is a robot competition category of bipedal humanoid robots. The first ROBO-ONE contest was held in Japan in 2002 and consisted of an initial judged autonomous "Demonstration" stage, followed by one-on-one matches. In Japan, ROBO-ONE has spa ...
*
Robot competition
A robot competition is an event where the abilities and characteristics of robots may be tested and assessed. Usually they have to beat other robots in order to become the best one. Many competitions are for schools but several competitions with ...
*
Rockem Sockem Robots
''Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots'' is a two-player action toy and game designed by Marvin Glass and Associates and was first manufactured by the Marx toy company in 1964. It features two dueling robot boxers, Red Rocker and Blue Bomber, mechanical ...
References
{{reflist
2013 American television series debuts
Syfy original programming
Television series about robots
2013 American television series endings