in the eighth month of 2000, comedy central gave the american people a very amazing, yet short-lived television show: BattleBots. competitors would design and build their own remote-controlled machines to fight against others in the BattleBox. these machines were armored and had an array of weapons to use, but that’s not all. inside the BattleBox were numerous hazards that could come out of the ground or the walls, such as the Kill Saws, Ramrods, and Hell Raisers.
BattleBots lasted for five seasons, spawning 94 episodes. the last season aired starting in august of 2002. there was a problem with the show, though. people wanted to see more of the robots fighting, instead of the show focusing on the robot builder’s backstories and their “wacky” reporters (former Baywatch actresses Carmen Electra and Traci Bingham, and former Playboy playmate Heidi Mark, to name a few). i hope, for the sake of BattleBots, they weren’t talking about the show’s “technical expert,” Bill Nye. that would be a heinous crime. then, on a sad day in late 2002, Comedy Central terminated their contract.
being unheard of for a little over five years, BattleBots received an offer that could possibly put them back in the hearts of kids across America (and possibly adults too). in february of 2008, ESPN offered to televise a “Collegiate BattleBots Championship,” with competitors coming from as many as 160 colleges. originally supposed to be held this past summer, the competition has been delayed until November to give the challengers more time to prepare.
this just might be the biggest event of the year, even topping the presidential election. who cares about politics anyway? i’d rather focus on remotely operated vehicles waging war against each other in the most badass arena since the Colosseum. wouldn’t you?
here’s a clip from the good ol’ days. hopefully, these collegiate engineers will be capable of reviving an amazing pastime. see you in november.
to each their own 