RollBots is a Canadian Series created by Michael "MCM" Milligan and produced by Amberwood Entertainment for YTV in 2009. The series ended after a single season of 26 episodes, but also aired in the United States as part of The CW's Saturday morning Toonzai block.
The show is set in a World in the Sky called Flip City, which is inhabited by 11 tribes of Transforming Mecha who get around by turning into spheres and rolling (Roll-bots, get it?). Flip City is in turn protected by the Flip City Police Department (FCPD), with the series' protagonist being rookie recruit Spin. Alongside his teammates Captain Pounder, Penny, Lance, Tinny, and Bunto, Spin protects the citizenry from various criminals and villains, most prominently the notorious Vertex and his team of rogue bots.
Due to budget issues, the series was canceled after only the first season. Since then, the creator has conceived of a hypothetical sequel/reboot series called Rollbots: Refactored. A hypothetical pilot script for which can be read here.
Tropes:
- Accidental Misnaming: Ms Appy has a habit of calling Spin "Spoon" instead of his actual name.
- Affectionate Nickname: Sometimes Spin will call Penny "Pen" because they're so close.
- Animals Hate Him: Granted, we only see one robot dog in the series, but it definitely starts off disliking Spin. Who even mentions it biting him when he was in his old class. Though the two seem to get along much better by the end of the episode.
- Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking: In trying to make the other Kenchi'ku see reason, the one who acted as Tinny's botball describes the havoc that kidnapping Roboto has caused. Rioting in the streets, carnage and destruction, and, most horrific of all, trash everywhere. The last of which finally prompts the Kenchi'ku leader to release him.
- Bad Boss: Mayor Aria is highly unpleasant and elitist.
- Barrier Warrior: This is Lance's ability, but he's not good at it.
- In the series finale, Tinny discovers that he also possesses this ability as an 11th-Hour Superpower. As well as the ability to fire smaller shields/energy balls.
- Belligerent Sexual Tension: Phase makes no small show of teasing Manx the entire time he's running with Vertex's crew, all while Manx rebuffs him at every turn. Until the very end of their first reunion when he covers for the gang so they can make their escape while he holds off the Keizatsu, to her surprise. Macro even jokes about Phase liking her, which only seems to anger her again.
- Cassandra Truth: Spin can't convince Captain Pounder that Vertex is a Spider Tank. It's obvious he's well aware of it but refuses to let Spin blab.
- In "The Pirate Bay", Tinny becomes one as he repeatedly tries to convince Spin and others that he's seen Tamaki's pirate ship.
- Cast from Hit Points: Penny's healing bot mod allows her to expel a charge into whatever she's touching, to give a brief top-up or assist with other matters. But it's power draws directly from her own batteries. So using it too much can leave her totally drained.
- Chest Insignia: The various tribe insignias, though they are usually on an arm on leg. Spin doesn't have one, as he doesn't have a tribe that he knows of. Rollbots who have been exiled by or otherwise left their tribe will often have their symbols scratched out or heavily faded.
- Combat Medic: Penny is just as proficient at kicking bad guy gears as she is at healing people.
- Corrupt Corporate Executive: Gates. According to the official website, he rigs the elections for Tensai leader annually.
- Da Chief: Captain Pounder is the chief of police in Flip City.
- Didn't Think This Through: A running theme with the Tensai tribe, who often create new inventions without considering any potentially dangerous drawbacks of the technology.
- Gates greenlit a device that could rewind time in order to get more work done in the same amount of time. Even though he knew fully well that it could potentially destroy the City if used in the wrong way.
- Mayor Aria has the FCPD be the beta testers for the new Do-Right Module that the Tensai want to test, a device that will force anyone with one installed to follow the law to the letter to prevent things like speeding or violence. Without considering that the Keizatsu need to be able to go above the speed limit to catch speeders or reach emergencies, or that they'll need to uphold the law by fighting violent criminals. Which is difficult to do when you get an electric shock if you so much as think about putting your foot down somewhere you're not legally supposed to go.
- Donut Mess with a Cop: Spin and other Keisatsu are constantly seen eating lugnuts (the Rollbot equivalent of donuts). Lance in particular enjoys stuffing himself with them.
- Downer Ending: Vertex is defeated and the city is saved, but Pounder is lost on the way, and the city is left open to an invasion of spiderbots. As the series ends here, we don't get to see what happens next, but it almost certainly isn't pretty.
- Drives Like Crazy: Put Spin behind the controls of a vehicle, and you'd best expect that it'll be a heck of a bumpy ride.
- The Exile: Because she accidentally botched a surgery that Chief Surgeon Koto was performing to the point it sent him flying out a window (and worse, finished the surgery completely on her own), Penny was exiled from the Kuzuri tribe which left her without a job or home. At least until she was recruited into the Kei'zatsu. Though she eventually patches things up with him and occasionally works with him, after turning down an invitation to formally rejoin the tribe.
- Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep": The leader of the Zogen'sha tribe, "En" is her title rather than her name. Everyone calls her "En". The official website calls her "The Oracle".
- Eyepatch of Power: Pounder has an eyepatch to show how tough he is. Odd, since he's a robot.
- Face–Heel Turn: Manx was a Kei'zatsu before the series started. She rejoins them in the finale.
- Fantastic Caste System: Each of the eleven (actually twelve) tribes is designated for a specific type of role in their society (Kei'zatsu are police, Tensai are scientists, Kuzuri are medics, and so on.) And each is expected to stick to their own kind for making a living. Which means that bots who don't have a tribe (like Spin) or those who have been exiled from their tribes (like Penny) often end up with noplace to go unless they're lucky enough to be picked up by another tribe and brought into their fold.
- Flashy Protagonists, Bland Extras: All of the primary named characters tend to have unique designs or color schemes that visually make them stand out. Any other background characters tend to stick to a handful of designs that repeat themselves over and over.
- Fragile Speedster: Roboto. He's quick, and a fairly athletic botball player, but once Vett catches up with him, he gets swatted like a bug. Though this is to be expected when he's a normal bot going up against a robot spider at least four times his size.
- Free-Range Children: Tinny. He's a child who's shown to be around the same age of every other 'bot tot' that is encountered in the show. Yet he's participated in battles against dangerous criminals, runs around constantly with no mention of any parent (assuming he has any), and is generally in a lot of dangerous situations which no child should logically be a part of by running with active members of the police force.
- Genius Loci: There are many insinuation that Flip City itself is alive to some degree and can cause various events to happen across the city. Though it will only (or perhaps can only) communicate directly with Spin via beaming copious amounts of spam alerts directly into his head. At least until he yells at it to only tell him what's directly relevant and important. Then it readily complies to the request.
- Gratuitous Japanese: The tribes' names are derived from relevant Japanese words, often modified with Xtreme Kool Letterz. Some examples include (note: "<" means "derived from"): Kei'zatsu (police) < keisatsu ("police"), Kuzuri (medics) < kusuri ("medicine"), Tensai (scientists) < tensai ("genius") and Zobo'shi (firefighters) < shouboushi ("firefighter")
- Sometimes Spin will be referred to by members of the Zogen'sha tribe as "Kaiten" ("Rotation").
- Grievous Harm with a Body: Botch likes to do this with 'bots he snags using his Grappling-Hook Pistol hand.
- "Groundhog Day" Loop: The episode "Crontab Trouble" deals with one of these. When a Tensai-made device causes time to loop over and over again
- Healing Hands: Penny has a healing botmod that pops out of her hand. It can also act as a suitable weapon in a fight.
- Hidden Elf Village: One of the eleven known tribes, the Zeishi, are supposedly extreme recluses and primarily keep to themselves. Indeed, not a single member of this tribe, nor where they reside, are seen even once in the entire show.
- High-Heeled Feet: Certain female Rollbots (like Penny and Manx) will have their legs end in constructions obviously meant to resemble high heels. Complete with the "heel" part retracting into their feet as they walk.
- Intergenerational Friendship: Spin, a presumed young adult by their standards, befriends Tinny who is a much younger bot tot. To the point they frequently go places like the arcade or watch sporting events together.
- Inter-Service Rivalry: The Kei'zatsu (police) and Zobo'shi (firefighters) have a hostile view of each other and tend to argue fairly frequently when interacting.
- Jerk with a Heart of Jerk: Although Lance does have his moments where he seems more sympathetic, his negative personality traits and his behavior towards Spin and others only gets worse overtime. He's gluttonous, selfish, cowardly, and vindictive. The moment Spin is kicked off off the FCPD, he takes the first opportunity he can to arrest him and throw him behind bars. As he's been wanting to do since the day the two of them first met.
- Large and in Charge: The tribe leaders have a tendency to be physically larger than the bots they lead.
- Last of His Kind: Spin is the last of the Zushin Tribe, whom Vertex wiped out before the series began.
- Ms Appy implies that her pet Fangbot, Pikea, is the last of his own kind. However, she cuts herself off before she can properly explain what exactly he's the last of.
- Law of Chromatic Superiority:
- Spin is red and the fastest bot in Flip City.
- Roboto is the Reddest member of his all-red team, and happens to be the most famous botballer.
- Lawful Stupid: "The Do-Right Module" has the team forced to follow the absolute letter of the law at all times or they get shocked. Even if this is to the direct detriment of their ability to do their jobs and take down criminals who are actually breaking the law.
- Life Drain: Several characters (like Penny and Botch) have weapons that allow them to drain the battery charge from other Rollbots and fill up their own from it. Though some, like Penny's healing bot-mod, also allow them to give charge to others.
- Meaningful Name:
- Spin spins.
- Tinny is a tiny tin (as lampshaded by Lance).
- Pounder pounds things.
- Cable (presumably) contains cables.
- Vertex is angular, Macro is big.
- Botch screws everything up.
- Bugzilla, a computer bug detector.
- Noodle Incident: Manx claims that Phase did something that cost her her badge, presumably leading to her exile from the Keizatsu tribe.
- No Self-Buffs: Penny is usually able to heal pretty much anyone with her healing glove, but hasn't been seen able to use it on herself. Especially when she's hit with a circuit scorcher that leaves her unable to reach her own body.
- Obstructive Bureaucrat: Many of Mayor Aria's attempts to legislate and make changes in Flip City end up ranging from annoying to anyone affected to causing far more trouble than they would be intended to prevent.
- Outcast Refuge: The Kei'zatsu under Captain Pounder's leadership apparently has a tendency to take in well-meaning 'bots without a tribe to their name. Including Spin who has no tribe that he knows of, and Penny who was kicked out of hers.
- Outside-Context Problem: For over half of the series, Spin and company have no clue that the artifacts even exist, let alone what they are or what they do. So even as far as "Inferno" when Spin receives an alert about an "Artifact under threat", he assumes its just more spam until much later when he starts figuring things out.
- Parental Favoritism: Occupational Favoritism. Pounder is the team's captain and Penny is Pounder's favorite, and he's been giving her lessons in private.
- Poor Communication Kills: Halfway through the 6-part season 1 Season Finale, Spin becomes convinced that Pounder is working with Vertex.
- Portmantitle The title RollBots is a mix of the words "roll" and "robots".
- Pressure Point: Each Rollbot has an "upstream port" located on the back of their head that effectively works as one. Grabbing and twisting it can release nearly all of their stored charge, effectively rendering them unconscious.
- Red Eyes, Take Warning: Several villainous 'bots like Vertex, Manx, and Botch have red eyes to denote how dangerous they are.
- Red Is Heroic: Spin's Color Motif is mostly red, and he is The Hero of the show.
- Ripple-Effect-Proof Memory: Each time Reboot uses the Crontab to reset time, only Spin, and the Zogensha Daso, are capable of remembering the prior timelines that played out before the reset.
- Robot Dog: Ms Appy's pet Fangbot, Pikea, is one. She takes him everywhere, including with her to class.
- Running Gag: The main cast requiring a vehicle for whatever reason, which requires Spin to run out into the road to requisition one from a civilian. While the driver sits bored in their vehicle that's blasting music the whole time Spin is giving his schpiel about requisitioning it.
- Secret-Keeper: According to a flashback Spin has, Ms Appy seems to have known about Spin's origins ever since he was dropped off in her class. Though she never informs Spin of this.
- Sesquipedalian Loquaciousness: The Hai'bu, Oddball, is fluent in this.
- Shapeshifter Mode Lock: "Scorched" has several characters get stuck between robot and sphere modes, rendering them pretty helpless.
- Shout-Out: Pounder gives the command "Roll out!", known from Transformers at least once. It also counts as an Actor Allusion given who voices him.
- Spider Tank: Vertex, the Big Bad of the series. Of course, he's referred to as a "Spider-Bot".
- Taking You with Me: Vertex manages to drag Captain Pounder down with him to his death.
- Token Minority: "En" and Daso are the only ones who have a thick African accent.
- Unhand Them, Villain!: Villain to villain example. When Manx starts questioning Vett's presence and what he's doing, he lashes out and picks her up flailing off the floor. In response, Botch arms himself and demands that he put her down. Vett complies, by throwing her bodily at Botch and Macro and bowling them both over.
- Villainous Friendship: For all their arguments and infighting, Botch, Manx, and Macro have a good amount of moments where they seem to really get along. Including moments like high-fiving each other in the middle of fights after getting a good one on the Kei'zatsu. Or Botch demanding that Vett release Manx when he picks her up for mouthing off at him.
- Villain with Good Publicity: Due to some machinations of his early in the series, Vertex is seen in a good light by Mayor Aria. Which makes it all the more difficult on Spin trying to convince everyone that Vertex is a bad guy. Let alone that he's a spider.
- You Shall Not Pass!: When the FCPD manage to break through the force field he set up around Pengi park, Phase tells the villain 'bot trio to make a run for it while he holds off the Kei'zatsu from following them. Manx hesitates, but he encourages her to go on without him by telling her to consider it payback for whatever he did that caused her to lose her badge.
