- "In the BattleBots arena, armor is shredded, sparks fly and robots are torn to pieces. When the smoke clears, the teams are left with the carnage that remains..."
- — The introduction for BattleBots Resurrection, followed by a unique synopsis of the episode
BattleBots Resurrection was a short-lived series filmed parallel to World Championship III. It was available to watch on Discovery's website from October 2018, exclusively to a US audience at first, before being released worldwide via the network's YouTube channel.
Each episode of BattleBots Resurrection centered around behind-the-scenes action during the 2018 season, focusing on teams as they strived to repair, upgrade and test their bots between Fight Night battles. The episodes typically ran for eight to ten minutes in length, and were released five months after their respective main season episodes. BattleBots Resurrection would show breakdowns of highlighted robots, picking up on key statistics such as Monsoon's 250mph tip speed on the weapon and Kraken's 20,000lbs of crushing force.
Episodes[]
Episode 1: Monsoon Gets Stormed[]
- "Team Monsoon won the match, but lost their weapon. As they race to repair it before the next fight, Mecha Rampage catches fire and Bale Spear has a last minute emergency in the BattleBox."
- — The description for Episode 1
The first episode of BattleBots Resurrection was the only one to put the spotlight on three different teams, whereas future episodes focused on two. The protagonists of this episode are Team Monsoon, who despite beating Red Devil by a judge's decision, were left smoking towards the end of the fight. Monsoon's Tom Brewster and Tim Rackley showed off post-match damage where Red Devil had left paint on the British bot. The team eventually diagnosed the smoking as an issue with the weapon belts, ahead of their next fight against pit neighbors Petunia. The team were later in search of fresh lithium polymer batteries, and ultimately loaned some from Team HyperShock.
Also featuring in this episode was long-time competitor Christian Carlberg and Mecha Rampage following their debut rumble against DUCK! and Free Shipping. Mecha Rampage caught fire during the match, and their segment honed in on the team's attempts to extinguish the bot outside of the venue. Now cooled down, Christian Carlberg figured the cause of the fire was forcing too much current through the bot's electrical system, so rushed to replace Mecha Rampage's battery packs prior to their next battle.
The third team highlighted during the episode was Bale Spear, led by Earl Pancoast III. Just fifteen minutes away from their fight, the team notice smoke emitting from the bot and pull it back into the pits. A handful of other BattleBots teams rushed to help, including Sean Irwin of Ultimo Destructo, Ravi Baboolal of Red Devil, Matt Spurk of Kraken and Randy Farmer of Bombshell. The team quickly test Bale Spear's drive while on its safety cradle and rush it to the BattleBox for their next fight, much to the delight of fellow competitors.
Episode 2: Witch Doctor Gets Cursed[]
- "Team Witch Doctor smokes its motors and faces a major overhaul of the design in order to fix it. As they race to repair it before the next fight, Petunia is hit with a devastating setback minutes before their match."
- — The description for Episode 2
This episode began with an introduction to Team Witch Doctor's Andrea Suarez (now Gellatly), who explained their struggles against Yeti. It became apparent that Witch Doctor's drive motors had been put under immense stress and were smoking as a result. Eventually, they gave way, and the bot was immobilized. Mike and Andrea elaborated on their previous attempts to resolve this issue, but were unsure exactly how to fix it for good. Ultimately, they opted to machine new parts to accommodate new, more reliable 24V motors. Witch Doctor was shown being tested with less than an hour before their next fight, but luckily for the team, the bot was working as intended once again.
Elsewhere, Petunia captain Mischa de Graaf was shown assessing his bot following their fiery loss to Monsoon, following the events of the previous BattleBots Resurrection episode. As it happened, Monsoon had managed to get through Petunia's 3mm HARDOX rear armor and sliced a hose responsible for powering the crushing weapon. This caused an oil leak, which caught fire and spread to the batteries, which in turn resulted in the blaze towards the end of their match. The episode continues to show Petunia's team repairing this damage outside of the pits, welding new pieces into the frame and working on electronics ahead of their next match. With just fifteen minutes to go, their hydraulic crusher fails on the team. Despite production asking Mischa de Graaf for an ETA, the issue was undiagnosed until teammate Ysbrand Otjes highlighted a potential electrical issue. Ultimately, the issue boiled down to a single loose wire, and this was repaired ahead of their battle versus Captain Shrederator.
Episode 3: HyperShock Gets Grounded[]
- "Team HyperShock has their robot completely gutted in the battlebox. As they race to repair it before the next fight, Kraken can't get its sea legs in its first match and soon finds itself drowning in repairs."
- — The description for Episode 3
The third episode of BattleBots Resurrection opens up with Matt Spurk diagnosing post-fight issues with Kraken, who had come off the back of a rumble loss to Sharkoprion. The team analyzed the bot's electronics and attempted to find a long-term solution for their crushing fangs breaking off, and opted to weld them in place rather than rely on set screws.
- "How did we lose to a stinking shark? We're a sea monster for Christ's sake."
- — Matt Spurk venting his frustrations towards Kraken's debut defeat
Kraken discover the issue with their drive was the result of metal flakes left in the bot after drilling holes for their wheelie bar making contact with their speed controller, shorting their circuit. The team repair Kraken, but then notice one side was still not working. Matt Spurk reckons this is down to a spray coating applied to prevent slithers of metal causing similar issues again, which inadvertantly covered several terminals within the bot. Ultimately, the issue concerned their speed controllers, which were set to the incorrect option. Upon fixing this, they throw a tire into the test box to trial their welded teeth, which proved successful.
Elsewhere, Team HyperShock show off their post-fight damage after a brutal loss to Paul Ventimiglia's Bite Force. Team member Isaac Lubarsky explains the reason behind HyperShock's guts spilling out, which was the result of shock-absorbing wubs holding the top panel in place came off rather than taking the brunt of the impact. Captain Will Bales is also seen diagnosing drive issues that they experienced during the fight, and attempting to resolve them before of their next battle. He and team member Tyler Bond later discover damage caused to the housing of their drive motors, and the team take HyperShock apart completely just a few hours before their next battle. With sixty minutes to go, they take HyperShock to the test box and spin up their weapon while driving around. The test is successful, and HyperShock is fit to face their next Fight Night opponent.
Episode 4: Skorpios Gets Stung[]
- "Team Skorpios has their primary weapon decapitated, and is forced to improvise a replacement. As they race to build it before their next fight, Axe Backwards gets split in two."
- — The description for Episode 4
This episode begins with Kurt Durjan and Axe Backwards following their destructive loss to WAR Hawk. He explains his understanding for why the motor mounts failed to secure that side of drive upon landing on their wheel and states his plans to repair the robot.
Attention then turns to Skorpios, whose primary weapon was torn off by ROTATOR in their previous fight. Victor Soto of ROTATOR is seen bringing the decapitated arm and saw of to the team as they plan to repair the bot with under 24 hours before their next battle. Team captain Orion Beach explains that Skorpios suffered early damage in the fight which prevented it from being able to capitalize on opportunities to attack from overhead, prior to its arm being ripped away.
Returning to Axe Backwards, Kurt Durjan is seen producing a fresh new part on a lathe to better support its drive motors for future fights. After regreasing the gearbox, inserting the new piece and rebuilding each side of drive, Axe Backwards is ready to run again.
Team Skorpios are seen assessing their robot and decide their main weapon is irrepairable, and instead opt for an improvised solution in the form of an angle grinder bought from a local hardware store. Interesting this piece erroneously labels Skorpios team member Dan Chatterton as being part of Axe Backwards.[1]
Axe Backwards is now outside the test box, but the team encounter an issue with their drive as the wheels are not spinning at the same speed. Kurt Durjan discovers the cause was a broken speed controller, and buys a spare from Team HyperShock.
With just an hour before their battle, Skorpios are seen outside the pits having to duct tape their top armor in place as they did not have time to weld it properly. Orion Beach explains their makeshift weapon to Chris Rose and Kenny Florian, who appeared to check out the current state of the robots. Team member Max Maruszewski explains to safety officer William Osman the extent of Skorpios' repair work ahead of their clash against HyperShock.
Axe Backwards enters the test box with their new speed controller and discovers their drive issues are now fixed, even noticing for the first time that the robot is able to gyro-dance when it turns. Kurt Durjan is impressed with the robot in this state, believing Axe Backwards to be in a stronger and improved state compared to their first fight of the season.
Episode 5: Bombshell Gets Nuked[]
- "Team Bombshell loses control and bursts into flames in the Battlebox. As they race to repair before their next fight, Monsoon has a massive battery fire that leaves them rebuilding from the ground up."
- — The description for Episode 5
This episode focuses on Chaos Corps as they recover from a loss to Yeti, in which their speed controllers blew according to captain Mike Jeffries. The team open up Bombshell outside the pit area with the Last Chance Rumble looming over them in a matter of hours. Team member Randy Farmer discovers the left-side motor's shaft is totally bent, resulting in friction which cooked the electronics.
Elsewhere, Team Monsoon are seen assessing their robot following its previous loss to Son of Whyachi, fishing burnt parts from their frame. The team purchases several batteries from Team Whyachi ahead of their next fight and Tom Brewster discovers not only is Monsoon's bulkhead holding the weapon bent, but the weapon itself is also warped. Fellow British builder Rory Mangles of Predator assists with repairs as Monsoon prepares for its next battle.
With a couple of hours before Bombshell's rumble, the team enter the test box to power up their heavier weapon and ensure all is well. However, they encounter issues with their weapon and adjust settings on the speed controller. Back in the pits, they equip Bombshell with its lighter disc again.
Monsoon's Tom Brewster reveals the extent of the repairs ahead of their next battle: the weapon bulkhead and bar had been swapped out, the entire robot had been rewired by Tim Rackley and Sarah Asplin manufactured a new battery box following their fire. Monsoon's weapon spin-up speed is timed to just four seconds, much less than the seven second limit they looked for, and the team are content with their repair job.
Returning to The Chaos Corps, it is revealed in the episode that Bombshell won the Last Chance Rumble and now faced Tombstone in the tournament bracket. However, the team have under 30 minutes to make the necessary repairs and Bombshell was not fully functional throughout the rumble. The team open Bombshell up and troubleshoot the issue, which appears to be related to a damaged gearbox. In attempting to repair the bot, the team accidentally short one of Bombshell's speed controllers and find themselves in a race to obtain and fully program a replacement.
- "That's how it goes, it's robots. Things break and you fix them. And when you run out of spares, you adapt."
- — Randy Brown on Bombshell's unexpected repair job
Against the odds, Bombshell was weighed and ready for their rematch against Tombstone. However, the team did not have time to test Bombshell whatsoever in the lead-up to the fight. Though it is not mentioned in the episode, the team's efforts are rewarded as Bombshell overcomes Tombstone to advance in the competition.
Episode 6: Ultimo Destructo Gets Dissected[]
- "Team Ultimo Destructo leaves the BattleBox with their bot split in three and their rockets malfunctioning. As they race to repair before their next fight, Team Raven is still trying to put together their bot in time to get one fight in on the final day."
- — The description for Episode 6
The sixth and final episode of BattleBots Resurrection focuses on Ultimo Destructo and veteran builder Sean Irvin following their brutal loss to Witch Doctor. He explains the disappointment they felt with their rockets failing to fire and the welds on the tubes its modular weapons are attached to breaking.
Attention turns to returning builder Steve Buescher, who previously fought in Comedy Central BattleBots with Little Drummer Boy, and had returned with a new robot called Raven. According to the episode, he showed up to filming without a robot, and as such, was assigned a single fight by production on the last day of filming. This was supposed to be the USA vs. The World special. On site, Steve Buescher was tasked with building a heavyweight robot from scratch and received help from team members of Bombshell, Gamma 9 and Battle Royale With Cheese. Jen Herchenroeder, then of Team Poor Life Choices, offered to fabricate front wedges for Raven to feed into its vertical spinner. The robot is now in a position to be tested with five hours before their battle. At this stage, Raven weighs just 152lbs without its batteries, 98lbs short of the maximum weight limit.
Ultimo Destructo are revealed to have welded their robot back together and are in a position to test their sixteen 3D-printed rockets ahead of their next fight in an hour's time.
- "It should work... everything works in theory!"
- — Sean Irvin ahead of testing Ultimo Destructo's rockets
The team test Ultimo Destructo's vertical spinner configuration inside the test box, which they appear happy with. Following this, they trial their newly-installed rockets, which prove successful.
There are now just two hours until Raven's scheduled battle. Although work was well underway to have a working heavyweight robot, Raven had not yet been tested and needed to satisfy the safety team. As Steve Buescher turned Raven on, part of its electronics shorted and the robot was quickly removed from the test box for analysis. Now down a speed controller with twenty minutes to go, Raven is reintroduced to the test area for a weapon spin-up test. As the weapon speeds up, sparks fly and smoke emits from Raven as the disc grinds to a halt. Raven is now on fire and has to be extinguished by the safety team. With five minutes before their fight, Steve Buescher and Raven have no alternative but to withdraw from their fight.
Attention turns to Matt Spurk and Kraken, who are selected to replace Raven in the USA vs. The World side competition and fight Canadian representatives Red Devil. Kraken had already been packed up after what the team believed to be their final fight against Lock-Jaw. The Kraken team were able to get their robot back together for one last battle, which they ultimately won to earn a point for Team USA.
Reception[]
Despite a largely positive reception from fans of the show, BattleBots Resurrection did not return for World Championship IV, or for any future seasons.
See Also[]
Trivia[]
- Episode 6 saw the only mention of Raven throughout any media released for World Championship III. Its space in the season premiere's graphic showcasing the field was taken by La Machine.
References[]
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