Robotix
Robotix is a 1985 American animated series based on the original Milton Bradley toyline of the same name featured on the "Super Sunday" programming block. The toyline is of the construction type that includes motors, wheels and pincers and similar to the Erector Set and K'Nex. The series follows the conflict between the peaceful, white Protectons and the warmongering, black Terrakors on the prehistoric alien world Skalorr V in an alternate universe in the distant future and two groups of humans who get caught up in it. The show was produced by Sunbow Productions and Marvel Productions and animated  in Japan by Toei Animation, which also animated other cartoons featured on "Super Sunday". Episode summaries. Battle of the Titans. After being pursued by an Ejoornian "Zanque"-class battle cruiser, a starship referred to as the USS Daniel Boone crash-lands on a desert of the ruined planet Skalorr and its occupants left for dead. However, the crew survives, only to immediately find themselves caught up in a battle between two factions of gigantic cyborg monster dinosaurs with animal essences created to rebuild the planet known as Robotix - the Protectons and the Terrakors - that emerge from the ground. While the Terrakors  flee the scene, the Protectons befriend the captain Exeter and the crew and fix their ship. During the repair, Nara and Zarru discover that humans can interface with Robotix to enhance their abilities, while a renewed attack by the Terrakors forces Bront to put the new discovery to the test. Paradise Lost. Interfaced with Exeter, Bront uses his new abilities to rescue Argus, who, interfaced with Tauron, helps him fend the Terrakors off. In the ensuing brief moment of peace, Argus takes the humans to the Protectons’ underground base, where the history of Skalorr is related by Compu-Core, the  planet's central intelligence. Three million years prior, the organic protosaurian races of the galactisaurian Protectons and the serpesaurian Terrakors were forced to set aside their hostilities when their sun began to nova. While Nemesis planned to use Compu-Core to launch his ship, the Terrastar, to transport a select few off the planet to safety, Compu-Core itself suggested the use of underground stasis tubes to preserve the entire population. Traitor In Our Midst. The tale of Skalorr's history continues as the entire population of the planet seal themselves in stasis tubes. However, a radiation leak threatens their  lives and ruins their bodies beyond repair and Compu-Core is forced to transfer and store their essences within itself. When the radiation levels finally subside to normal several years later, she transfers the essences of four Protectons and four Terrakors into the Robotix. The ensuing battle led into the current events. As the repair of the Daniel Boone continues, Kanawk, Gaxon, Loopis and Nomo become impatiently dissatisfied with Exeter's leadership and are forced to set out on their own to find the Terrastar and offer their services to the Terrakors. A Spy Is Born. Nemesis accepts Kanawk's  offer, and the renegade humans and Terrakors interface. Shortly after the Protectons complete the construction of a new Robotix, infused with the essence of Kontor, the Terrakors stage a diversion to lure the Protectons out of their base. With the battle raging outside, Nemesis and Tyrannix penetrate the base and replace Kontor's essence with that of Venturak, who then interfaces with another turncoat human, Traxis, and is appointed as a spy within the Protecton ranks. He reveals to the Terrakors that the humans’ food supply is dwindling, resulting in an attack on their ship and the theft of their  remaining rations. Crash Landing. The reconstruction of the Daniel Boone continues apace, and success is finally achieved. However, the Terrakors attack the Protectons just as Exeter's crew blasts off. Helpless before the interfaced Terrakors, the Protectons face certain doom until Exeter's crew return to save them — only to discover that the Terrakors stole their guidance system when they took their food. The humans crash-land on the planet's desert again. Firestorm at the Oasis. With their interfaces restored, the Protectons fend off the Terrakors, but Exeter's ship is now beyond repair, and the humans are still  without food. Compu-Core releases probes to locate consumable vegetation, discovering an oasis that the humans and Protectons head for, while Argus and Venturak remain to guard Compu-Core. While the other Terrakors raze the oasis in an inferno, Nemesis invades the Protecton base with Venturak's help and captures Argus, erasing his essence. Captured. The Protectons and humans at the oasis manage to survive by burrowing their way out, but Argus's failure to respond to his radio hailing prompts Bront to return to the base to investigate. Meanwhile, Nemesis infuses Argus's body with the essence of Terragar , and they escape with Compu-Core. Bront pursues them, but is almost tricked by Terragar, posing as Argus, with the deception only being revealed by Loopis' presence at the controls. Bront seizes Compu-Core and flees into the crystalline Desert of Illusions, but, one by one, the illusions are dispelled, leaving Bront staring down Terragar's cannon barrel. The Lost Cities. Nara and Jerrok come to Bront's aid, and the Terrakors flee, leaving Terragar's deactivated body behind. Compu-Core is able to restore Argus using a back-up copy of his essence, and the Protectons begin to search  for their old city, Zanadon. At the same time, however, the Terrakors search for their own city, Terrakordia, and send Steggor to pursue the Protectons. The Terrakors then discover that it has been crushed by a glacier, and that the Terrastar is nowhere to be found. Enraged, Tyrannix turns on Nemesis and claims leadership of the Terrakors for himself, heading off with Goon to join Steggor. Meanwhile, the Protectons seek to reactivate Zanadon, turning to Kontor, as he was responsible for creating the city. However, as his essence was replaced within the Robotix by Venturak, he sabotages the turbo flow  generator and pins the blame on Bront when the generator threatens to explode and destroy the entire city. Bront Stands Accused. The Protectons only just manage to escape Zanadon as Compu-Core seals the city's dome to contain the explosion to only one of its multiple sectors. The situation is made worse by Venturak, who implicates Bront as a traitor, forcing the other Protectons to imprison him until his innocence can be proved. In the ensuing confusion, Tyrannix and Goon attempt to once again steal Compu-Core, but Venturak fights back, fearing Nemesis’ wrath. Nemesis and Steggor then re -enter the fray, and Zarru frees Bront, who convinces the other Protectons he is not a traitor by helping them claim victory in the battle. Exploring inside Zanadon, Zarru discovers an incomplete Robotix body that requires additional parts. Venturak directs the Protectons to a nearby factory that contains the parts they need, but unbeknownst to them, the Terrakors have already set up an ambush there. The Factory of Death. The Protectons struggle against the factory's various machines, while Zarru and Flexor put together the unfinished Robotix as best they can. A distress call from Argus forces them to activate  the new Robotix, infusing it with the essence of Boltar, who stomps to the aid of the captive Protectons and rescues them. However, Exeter refuses to leave Zarru in order to be Boltar's pilot, and, instead, appoints Flexor, and in an effort to prove to Exeter that he is skilled enough, Zarru sets out to locate the Terrakors. Zarru Takes the Plunge. Zarru crash lands somewhere in the icy tundra region of Skalorr, where the Terrakors have successfully located the Terrastar submerged in a lake. As they attempt to reactivate the ship, the Protectons — running low on energy — set  out searching for Zarru. Goon is given the unenviable job of launching the Terrastar, and quickly loses control of the ship, burying it in an avalanche. While moving quickly, Zarru invades Goon's control capsule, but he is then thrown from it and rescued by the Protectons. The Terrakors are forced to flee due to their own depleting energy levels, and both factions head for Siliton Mountain to locate the crystals they need to recharge. However, the Terrakors have a head start, and stage a flash flood to wash the Protectons away. Attack of the Rock Creatures. Boltar's bulk  shields the Protectons from the flood, and they continue on their search for the crystals. However, both races are captured by a bizarre race of rock creatures, who also feed on the crystals. The creatures separate the humans from their Robotix partners, and imprison them in their subterranean realm within a volcano. As the humans watch, they see the rock creatures smelt their ship (it is unexplained how the ship that was back at the Protectons ended up being where everyone was being held hostage), and it soon becomes apparent that the Robotix are to share the same fate, with  Jerrok going first. All for One. Held captive in a pit by the rock creatures, the humans are threatened by a monstrous many eyed feline, which Exeter uses to escape. After snatching a Siliton crystal, he recharges Jerrok, who saves himself and holds off the rock creatures while the humans recharge the other Robotix and interface with the nearest ones they can find. This leads to some unstable partnerships, as Argus ejects Gaxon from his control capsule for forcing him to kill the rock creatures. Goon and Bront fuse into a battering ram that smashes open a path to freedom , but when Tyrannix opens fire on the rock creatures, he triggers the volcano, forcing all the Robotix and humans to partner up correctly to most efficiently save both themselves and the rock creatures from destruction. The rock creatures lead the Protectons to safety, but the Terrakors manage to survive on their own, and once again attack Zanadon, as Tyrannix buries the city in a rockslide. Battle for Zanadon. After brief concern from the Terrakors that the rockslide may have destroyed Compu-Core, Zanadon becomes airborne, and the Protectons try to move it out of reach. While Venturak and Compu-Core  monitor city functions, the other Protectons explore various regions of the city. However, when Argus is attacked by Nemesis, he realises that Kontor has opened the city's dome to allow the Terrakors access. Tyrannix and Bront battle in the city's sporting stadium, while Steggor pursues Nara into the medical bay. Defeating Steggor, Nara discovers Venturak, the charade over, preparing to abscond with Compu-Core. No match for both Venturak and Tyrannix, Nara is defeated, and Nemesis and the Terrakors escape, with Compu-Core in their clutches. As the Protectons struggle to even close the city's domes without  Compu-Core, the now-airborne Terrastar soars overhead, and begins its attack. The Final Attack. The Terrastar razes Zanadon, but in the ensuing conflagration, the Protectons attempt to penetrate the Terrastar's hull. Nemesis directs the ship into space, into a nearby asteroid belt, knocking all but Argus and Nara off into the void. They smash their way into the ship, and Nara is quickly knocked off into space by Tyrannix, leaving Argus and Exeter alone to face the assembled Terrakors. Struggling against the airless vacuum, Exeter directs the Terrastar toward a giant asteroid, then grapples with Kanawk, as Argus  overcomes the Terrakors and comes to his aid by hurling Kanawk aside into the wall (even though any apparent deaths of a human are not shown onscreen) and escaping from the ship with Exeter and Compu-Core as it crashes into the asteroid, exploding in a giant fireball. Floating in space, Argus is picked up by the other Protectons, who have survived by combining. They return to the surface of Skalorr, and begin plans to rebuild their world, with help from the humans, who all agree to stay and help their new allies. However, in the void of space, Nemesis  still lives, along with Kanawk. Robotix: The Movie. In 1987, the fifteen six-minute long shorts were compiled together and released on video as "Robotix: The Movie", a 90-minute feature film. On July 28, 2003, it was re-released on DVD for Region 2 in the UK and Ireland. Comic book. Marvel Comics also produced a single-issue comic book written and drawn by Herb Trimpe in February 1986, which roughly followed the storyline of the first three episodes of the series. A commercial for the comic was made and aired on Saturday mornings.