RoboCop

Plot synopsis:
In the near future, Detroit, Michigan is a dystopia and on the verge of total collapse due to financial ruin and a high crime rate. The mayor signs a deal with the mega-corporation Omni Consumer Products (OCP), giving it complete control of the underfunded Detroit Police Department. In exchange, OCP will be allowed to turn the run-down sections of Detroit into a high-end utopia called Delta City.
OCP senior president Dick Jones proposes replacing the police with the ED-209 enforcement droid. At its first demonstration, however, ED-209 malfunctions and gruesomely kills a board member. Bob Morton, an ambitious employee, uses the opportunity to introduce his own experimental cyborg design, "RoboCop". To Jones's anger, the company chairman approves Morton's plan. Meanwhile, police officer Alex Murphy arrives at his new precinct following an OCP-directed transfer where he is introduced to his partner Anne Lewis. On their first patrol, they chase down a gang led by the ruthless criminal Clarence Boddicker, tailing them to an abandoned steel mill. When he and Lewis get separated, Murphy is caught and brutally shot by Boddicker's gang just before Boddicker himself executes the helpless cop. Morton selects Murphy for the RoboCop program and replaces most of his body with cybernetics, except for his brain and part of his digestive system.
RoboCop is given three primary directives: "Serve the public trust, Protect the innocent, and Uphold the law", as well as a classified fourth directive that Morton does not know of. He single-handedly and efficiently cleans Detroit of crime, earning Morton a promotion to vice president. Enraged, Jones hires Boddicker to murder Morton in his home. Meanwhile, Lewis realizes that RoboCop is really Murphy, and tells him his real name. RoboCop remembers past events from his life and returns to his former home, only to find that his wife and son have moved away. He connects to the police database, looks up Murphy's entry and discovers Boddicker's gang, who were responsible for his death.
RoboCop tracks down Boddicker to a cocaine factory and after a battle, threatens to kill him. Panicked, Boddicker admits his affiliation with Jones, verbally triggering RoboCop's law-abiding programming. RoboCop arrests Boddicker and turns him over to the police. He then confronts Jones and attempts to arrest him, but begins to shut down. Jones reveals that he planted the fourth directive, which prevents RoboCop from arresting any member of OCP's executive board. Jones explains his larger goal of taking over OCP, and confesses to Morton's murder before activating his personal ED-209 to destroy RoboCop. During the ensuing battle, Jones calls the police claiming that Robocop has malfunctioned and gone rogue. Robocop manages to escape ED-209, but is soon cornered by heavily armed police units and is nearly destroyed. Lewis helps RoboCop escape, and takes him to the abandoned steel mill. As RoboCop repairs himself, he and Lewis discuss his former life.
Under pressure by OCP and fearing their replacement by RoboCop, the police go on strike. Jones frees Boddicker and supplies his gang with anti-tank rifles and a tracking device to hunt down RoboCop. The gang converge on the steel mill, where RoboCop is able to kill most of them until he's quickly subdued by Boddicker, but RoboCop stabs Boddicker in the throat with his neural spike, killing him.
RoboCop heads back to OCP headquarters, where Jones is presenting his improved ED-209 to the board; RoboCop states Jones' guilt of murder and explains that he cannot intervene due to the fourth directive. He plays a recording of Jones' confession, exposing his role in Morton's murder along with his sinister plans. Jones retrieves a nearby handgun and takes the chairman hostage, demanding a helicopter. The chairman verbally fires Jones from OCP, whereupon RoboCop repeatedly shoots Jones, who crashes through a window and falls to his death far below. Grateful, the chairman says, "Nice shooting, son, what's your name?", to which RoboCop smiles and replies, "Murphy."

Tags: satire, sci-fi

Review:
I rather liked the series.
I saw it as an extension of the Robocop 3 humor and a good approach for a Primetime network TV series.
(A more Robocop 1- like series would fit on a HBO or other cable network and would please the Robo fan base better.) It gives a nod to the 60's Batman series in not taking itself too seriously but isn't as cartoonish as said Batman.
Camp is an acquired taste that rarely appeals to the fans who enjoyed the gritty and bloody violence of the first 2 films.
What it has going for it is that its fun, witty (the Rowdy Roddy Piper episode is a classic and I'm not just talking about the Major Market uniform either), and expanded the Robo universe in a pre-Dark Knight Returns/Spawn comic-bookish way.
I can show my kids this series and enjoy it with them and then share the movie series and the Prime Directives miniseries of movies with them when they're older.
This is a PG Robocop series and should be judged on its own merits and not compared to the R rated movies which were created for another market altogether..
Murphy's back: But in the true and original way?.
Now, I know that many people have been knocking the '94 RoboCop series.As much as I'd like to put a stop to that, I sadly cannot.
I saw the series back when I was about 10 or so, so I can't remember much, and I only saw occasional glimpses, and maybe an episode or two in '98, or around that area.I grew up with RoboCop, needless to say.
The Series had a big influence on me, and since I was 10 (around there), I was astounded.
Violence didn't matter much to me, but I always looked up to RoboCop as my hero.
RoboCop had became a household name in my family, and I can recall watching the original movie endless amounts of time when I was 5 or so.But this isn't about the original RoboCop.It's about the supposedly live-action series made in '94.
(I honestly couldn't tell the difference, I was too young.)Though I noticed that the violence had been toned down a bit, it didn't matter to me.
It was RoboCop, simply put, my childhood hero (whom is still my hero), and that was all there was to it.
RoboCop: The Series was a finely done project, and I'm sure many think that way.
Many seem to think violence is what made RoboCop so good, and I agree in many situations.RoboCop: The Series is a classic.
In fact, aside from Prime Directives, which, might I add, came out this year, or around there (I can't recollect the date.), The Series is one of the best RoboCop sequels/continuations of the 'franchise'.It goes deeper into Murphy's past, explaining much more, but it only had 23 episodes.
People just got sick of it, I guess, but, I loved every second of it.Remember, friends, before you bash RoboCop: The Series, remember the positive things about it and the little things that made it at least a smidgen good.
Brilliant and.....Criminally Underrated Series!.
I love Robocop very much.
I really love all 3 robocop movies including R2 and R3.
Many people will disagree with this one but it's my own opinion."RoboCop: The Series" is by far one of the best and unfortunately, most overlooked TV shows ever.
It's probably my all-time favorite Sci-Fi series.
Every episode was great.
They developed Murphy's inner world more, his family, wife and maybe even emotions.
Richard Eden looked great as Alex Murphy but most of all I loved Yvette Nipar.
Too bad, they made only one season.
I needed more and more Brilliant series!!!.
Action television done right.
Although there is more than one way RoboCop could have been adapted for television, this is a very good way to do it.
Although movie director Verhoeven's touch is missing on the series, the original writers Miner and Neumeier return (at least for the pilot) to put Robocop back on track.
The content is somewhat toned down over the original movie (both because of its conversion to television and because it is aimed at a younger audience), but the spirit of the original is in most ways preserved: the satire, personal drama (mostly regarding Alex Murphy/Robocop), and the good-guy vs.
bad-guy action.
The drama regarding Murphy is expanded on, as we get more exposure to his memories and to his family, and there is added a character, in the form of Delta City's new brain, who shares in many ways Murphy's plight.
Ultimately, the television series comes off closer to the original movie than either of the two theatrical sequels.The television series does take a slightly different spin than the movie, but ultimately it works out for the best.
Robocop here is more of a comic book superhero, but not necessarily in a bad way.
(Personally, I think RoboCop makes the most interesting superhero since Batman.) The villains are more comic-bookish as well, but they do not seem out of place given the change in tone.
The series can be serious and yet be silly in an almost Batman-like way at times, without the two ever seeming at odds with each other.
Also changed is the tone; the series moralizes more, and has cut the graphic violence of the original.
It is sort of RoboCop with more of a conscience.In addition to its other virtues, the series adds surprisingly high production value and more than tolerable acting (Richard Eden especially does an interesting job as Robocop - very mechanical, quite appropriate).
For fans of RoboCop or of comic-book-style action shows like Batman and Superman or hardcore sci-fi fans this is a must see.
It is a shame it only made it one season, I would have loved to see more..
One hour of great television.
When evaluating a show like this, you really have to put things into perspective.Robocop: The series was filmed in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and is one of the best shows to come out of this country and into network sindication.
(Other great shows include: Kung Fu: The Legend Continues, T and T, starring Mr. T, and My Secret Identiy, with a 13 year old Jerry O'Connel)All the actors in the show are local Toronto/Canadian actors, (now they do national tv shows and national lottery/car dealership commericals) so this was probably the only chance they got to be seen on television sets around the world.
No, the show didn't live up to the standards set forth by the movies: lots of gore, the ED209 Combat Unit, sarcastic remarks (BANG!!..."Thank you for your cooperation...!") and a corrupt multi-million dollar corporation (OCP in this series is actually made to look a little more "friendly")But it really did try to stick close to the storyline, using scenes and references from the movies (ie all Robocop's functions and directives, the COBRA assault rifle) as well as keeping the wardrobe clsoe to that of the films.
It had its own touch of originality (bringing in new ideas in terms of Alex Murphy's past...ie elaborating on the life of Nancy Murphy, his wife, Jimmy Murphy, his son, as well as Robocop's Parents).
It contained "Mediabreak" featurettes, as well as the satirical humour of the commercials you would see in the movies (funny futuristic-product commercials, talk shows, etc).
Yes some episodes were goofy, but most provided 52 minutes of great entertainment.Out of all the other Robocop TV duplicates that appeared over the years, this is by far the greater of them all.
At the time this series was released in '94, I was 14.
Most of my friends didn't like the show, but I did.
I really enjoyed seeing Robocop on his downtime or with a virtual friend (Diana).
The show was interesting to watch and what kept me coming back each week was not the violence, but wondering what new wisdom the cyborg would hand out.
I think a reunion episode is long overdue.
If you enjoy quality television with great writing, then this show is for you..
Less hardware but more style than the films.
Low-key series version of the blockbuster film does much with its far more modest resources.
The story is much the same, but the satirical elements and personal stories are done more stylishly here; they take up some of the slack left by the absence of much of the large-scale violence and futuristic hardware (necessitated by the lower budget inherent in syndicated television).
The cast is surprisingly strong:  Yvette Nipar as lead cop Madigan and Andrea Roth as Diana/Neurobrain are both highly charismatic.
Richard Eden does a fine job but is largely wasted.
The satirical elements of the show are particularly strong; I have some feeling "Robocop" would be much more successful had it been produced in 2001 or 2002 rather than 1994.
Unfortunately, only one season of episodes was produced..
Robocop - The Series has basically taken a creative and well-known character and exploited it, using it only because the creators are so dumb they cannot think of anything themselves.
The show is made for kids and the acting is diabolical, even by Robo himself.
There is no plot to any of the episodes and no genuine villains, simply guys who act like kids who happen to have bombs tied to themselves.
The film sequels were bad, but hell, they seem like a million dollars compaired to this pile of absolute garbage.
Take the excellent 1987 film and strip out all of the really good bits.Ultra-violence - Robocop the film was insanely violent and sweary ...
always a good thing in a film (laugh).Biting satire - The film was savage in its attack on corporate America.
The series tones it down to the point of being meaningless.
The sleazy managing director of the film becomes and kindly misunderstood old man in the series.
Please!To make things worse, the series introduces a "moppet" - an irritating child character to woo stupid people.
There is even a shot during the title sequence with Robocop holding a child's hand.
Argh!In it's favour, the series does expand on the motivations and feelings behind the Robocop character ...
This TV series actually manages to capture more of the original than either of the two theatrical sequels.
Okay, it's toned down for television, but the self-parodying humor is there in all the right places.
It's basically a live-action cartoon, as the like of Cray Z.
Mollardo, the E Coli Brothers, and Pudface Morgan return time and time again to battle the stone-faced Robocop.
We get a bit more on Murphy's background (although his wife shows up _way_ too often), and there are lot of parody-commercials.
Why, I ask, did they even consider making a TV series of such a slowly deminishing series of films?
The series, as entertaining as it may be to people who don't understand Verhoven's sophisticated messages in the first film, this series ruins the initial aspects of R1.
I am saddened to see that even good films are turned into money spinners after a while..
RoboCop: the Series is an excellent show..
This excellent sci-fi TV show is highly recommended for all RoboCop fans.
Casual Sci-Fi fans may find the show hard to follow, since there is not much background given outside of the opening theme sequence.
In the world there are many injustices.The fact that this lame piece of excrement ever saw the light of day is one of them.Something else could have shown which would have had more quality than this garbage.Old Robbo is given a makeover for the television screens.I'm not a huge fan of him i will say but at least in the films he was violent,but in this rubbish it's been taken out and replaced with character building tripe.I actually regret wasting time on this nightmare.Seriously what was the point of the little child?Thankfully it didn't run for too long and the viewers(if there was any)were put out of their misery.A contender for worst television series ever?Rest assured nothing comes close to this nonsense..
Watch just the pilot was a shocking experience because: this was the first time in my life couldn't watch more than the first 5 minutes of movie or Tv show.
The reason the horrible acting of every cast member (a bad acting can be resistible but a horrible acting...), the brainless script so childish as every power ranger episode.
I love every robocop movie, but this bad copy of of the saga it could only serve as a lesson of what can be do to destroy an action hero.
The most funny thing is: the lesson finally was learned and the other TV movies were so good as the first movies..
Used to watch this with my Dad. A lot of the elements from the films are here, including MediaBreak.
Captain Cash was added, and although some of the lead characters are not the same, and new crooks (Dr. Cray Z.
Mollardo - Cliff De Young and "Pudface Morgan" - James Kidnie), it's 100% Robocop.Richard Eden literally duplicated the role Peter Weller originated.
In every episode, the OCP Tech guy adds one new gadget, an excuse to see Robo use it in the episode, like crowd control foam, and bolts that anchor him into the ground in case a truck comes barreling down.
One of the more interesting things added, was "Neurobrain", a computer which runs all of Delta City, which started off as a woman, "Diana Powers" (Andrea Roth).
Yvette Nipar is Detective Lisa Madigan, who in this version of Robocop was Murphy's partner, rather than Anne Lewis (Nancy Allen).
And of course they had to add a kid, "Gadget" (Sarah Campbell) who is adopted by Sgt. Parks (The great Blu Mankuma).
Apparently "Gadget" was based on "Nikko" was Robo 3.Perhaps it was just too expensive to make this show, each episode has all kinds of animation (Commander Cash), fake news spots and commercials, and some really great special effects, much of it practical.The only thing that really differentiates this show from the Film Universe, is the lack of blatant bloodshed and maiming common to the film franchise (at least through Robo 2).
I remember the last episode, had a video of the two artists performing the song.
Purely for the kids who weren't allowed to see the movie.
I was recently at a used video/bookstore where I bought a video thinking it was RoboCop the movie.
After further inspection on the ride home, I realized I had accidentally bought the pilot episode of the old TV series I used to watch in my earlier years.
If I didn't like it, I would bring it back and buy the movie.
This pilot is so stupid and outlandlishly ridiculous, that the only plausible explanation for it was that the producers were trying to recreate a RoboCop version of the old Batman show.
That's the only way I can explain the campy quips, the ridiculous villains (Pudface Morgan, hah!) and the bad acting.
The whole experience just felt to me like something for the kids whose mothers wouldn't allow them to see the very violent, sometimes disturbing 1988 movie.
I have heard that the later TV movies and animated series were better.
Not the same as the movies.
Although this movie could have done with being made to be shown at a later time so they could have had him actually shoot people and other things like that were in the film.
On it's own just looking at it as a RoboCop series without compairing it to the movie it is very good!
It's got RoboCop, he's Robotic, he's got a gun and he knows how to use it, and you've got the evil OCP what more do you need :) The change in casting of everyone strikes you at first but you soon get used to the new chairman and other cast.
A lot of fun, I wish they would release the whole series on like 4 dvds or something.
I'd buy it :) all I have at the moment is about have the series on video.
He's certainly more robocop in this than he is in that later animated series Alpha Commando, too much expression..
The original robocop movie was the best but from there it all went downhill, the second was watchable and the third was simply terrible...
the worst was Robocop prime Directives ...
so when i started to see this series i was not expecting much ..
the pilot was a disappointing, in spite being written by the original writers ..
but midway through the series the story began to get interesting with the introduction of Murphy's family ...
it was really interesting to see Robo behave awkward in front of his wife and son ...
even his father and mother are introduced here ...the best thing about the series is about the character development of Robocop....
the background of Alex Murphy's life is given here, his family, friends...
another thing which surprised me was the production budget ....
the gadgets robo uses and the computers and graphics were pretty neat considering it was made in the early part of the nineties...
sometimes the series frustrated me because there was no violence in the series...
most of the times i wished robo will zap out his big gun and riddle the annoying villains and put them out of their misery but because this is a family series he just knocks them unconscious..
one which amused me was the outburst of Madigan who replaces Nancy Allen from the original movie in the episode of commander cash, another is the very emotional scene when Alex's father realizes the truth about Robocop...
all in all this series is a very good continuation of the franchise, it may have its faults but nonetheless i am glad it was made and it gave a lot of material about robocop and his world ...