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Bigger Brother was a heavyweight robot built by the Watts family, which fought exclusively in Season 2.0 of Comedy Central BattleBots.
Hailing from the United Kingdom, Bigger Brother was a two-wheel drive robot whose main weapon was a powerful CO2 flipper with spikes for trapping and holding opponents. It made use of titanium armor salvaged from an old MiG fighter plane. Bigger Brother was designed to self-right with a minimal expenditure of CO2 gas, and was equipped with a controlled release valve to allow gentler flips for that purpose. Its shape, while looking complex, was actually just a basic wedge with wheel guards. The armor was further strengthened by a piece of Lexan from the BattleBox itself, which was originally meant for the killsaws.
Bigger Brother in the pits.
The team was comprised of captain Ian Watts, partner Catherine Watts and their three children at the time: Joe, Ellie and Megan Watts. Joe normally operated the flipper, but was capable of driving the robot very adeptly. The team were popular among BattleBots competitors, with Joe Watts striking up a friendship with Morgan Tilford of Mauler, who was incidentally Bigger Brother's first opponent in Season 2.0. Although the British team were able to defeat Mauler, Bigger Brother came unstuck against Voltronic and were eliminated from the competition.
Inside Bigger Brother during Season 2.0.
The Watts family entered an upgraded version of Bigger Brother into future seasons of BattleBots, painted yellow with floral decoration. Dedicated to daughter Ellie Watts, it was renamed Little Sister. Under its new guise, which in fact was a different build entirely, Little Sister was very successful, winning the Season 4.0 heavyweight rumble.
Ian Watts returned with Bull Dog for 2015 season, but it was an unused reserve for the competition. He would get to compete again a season later with Creepy Crawlies, but the multibot was eviscerated at the hands of Son of Whyachi in its qualifying rumble. He then entered the following two seasons on Discovery with another multibot called The Four Horsemen with his youngest son Sam Watts, but did not return to BattleBots after the 2019 season.
Bigger Brother remains under the ownership of Ian Watts. It most recently made an appearance at the UK event RoboNerd in 2023, rusted but otherwise uncompromised.
Outside BattleBots[]
Bigger Brother in 2019.
Team Big Brother previously competed in the third series of Robot Wars with Big Brother, before debuting Bigger Brother a year later. Big Brother advanced through Grim Reaper in the opening round before defeating Sir Chromalot in the heat semi-finals. Though Big Brother lost by judges' decision to Ultor in the heat final, the Ultor team awarded the Watts family the win and a place in the series semi-finals. This granted Big Brother a fight against Mace 2, where it was soundly beaten.
A few months prior to BattleBots Season 2.0, Bigger Brother made its competitive debut in Series 4 of Robot Wars, where it qualified through its opening melee against Clawed Hopper and Hammer & Tong. It then lost in the second round to Bulldog Breed 2. Bigger Brother placed third in the Tag Team Terror special event, paired with Plunderbird 4.
The upgraded Bigger Brother which became Little Sister in BattleBots then fought in the first series of Robot Wars: Extreme. It again fought in the Tag Team Terror, originally alongside Plunderbird 5 and then Major Tom, but losing in Round 1 to Comengetorix and Spawn Again. As a direct result of this loss, Bigger Brother took on Comengetorix in a 1v1 Vengeance battle and won comfortably. The team's third and final appearance during the spin-off was in a Flipper Frenzy battle alongside a handful of the UK series' most powerful flippers. In what became a co-ordinated attack on the House Robots rather than one another, Bigger Brother became immobile late on and Thermidor 2 was deemed the winner.
Razer clamps down on Bigger Brother in the title fight.
Returning for Series 5 and looking to make an impact, an impressive display against newcomer Tip-Top was backed up by wins over returning semi-finalists in Splinter and 3 Stegs 2 Heaven. In the semi-finals, Bigger Brother got the better of S3 before defeating then-reigning champion Chaos 2 and ending its 18-fight winning streak in the UK championships. This was followed up by an equally impressive comeback win over two-time Grand Finalist Hypno-Disc before losing out in the title decider to Razer.
Bigger Brother also made an appearance in the US spin-off of Robot Wars filmed for Nickelodeon, where it took part in the international Tag Team competition alongside Kat 3. The pair faced Rick and Ming 3 in the opening round, but lost by judges' decision. In the battle for third place, Bigger Brother and Rick were set to fight Run Away and Zanzara, but issues arose with Rick and Run Away, leaving Bigger Brother to fight Zanzara alone. Bigger Brother comfortably won this play-off and picked up third for a second time in a team event.
Under the name Big Bro, a weaponless Bigger Brother took part in the UK series Techno Games. In 2002, Big Bro won fourth in the Football event alongside British Bulldog - a revised Bulldog Breed. It also placed third in the Assault Course, won gold in Sumo and also entered the Tug of War event. The following year, Big Bro again earned bronze in the Assault Course, lost in Round 1 of the Sumo event and won gold in Football.
Certifying its status as an favorite from its runner-up finish, Bigger Brother again won its heat in Series 6, qualifying through its Round 1 melee before defeating Behemoth and Disc-O-Inferno. Bigger Brother then faced Dominator 2 in the semi-finals, but lost mobility late on and lost by judges' decision. The Watts family's robot was reinstated after winning the three-way Loser's Melee over Hypno-Disc and Spawn Again, only to lose out in the Top 8 to Terrorhurtz.
Bigger Brother returned for the All-Stars competition held during the second series of Robot Wars: Extreme. There, it faced familiar opponents in Firestorm 4 and S3, advancing as the latter was eliminated. An impressive knockout win over Tornado saw it advance to the final of its heat, where Bigger Brother again met Firestorm 4. However, it lost at this stage.
In Series 7, Bigger Brother again advanced through its four-way Round 1 qualifier, notably toppling eventual series champion Typhoon 2 in the process. Its campaign was abruptly ended by Iron Awe 2.1 as Bigger Brother was flipped out of the arena. Bigger Brother returned for the third and final All-Stars event, falling in a chaotic Round 1 qualifier including Firestorm 5, Panic Attack and Kat 3.
Watts and his team returned to Robot Wars upon its revival in 2016, competing in Series 8 with Or Te, a direct successor to Bigger Brother. However, it was immobilized almost immediately in its opening battle. He returned in Series 10 with The Swarm, a four-part multibot with similar design to the Watts family's previous robots, with moderate success.
Robot History[]
| Botopsy Report: This BattleBots article is in need of rewriting to bring it up to a higher standard. You can help the BattleBots Wiki by rewriting/expanding it. Please note that all battle write-ups should be in the past tense. |
Season 2.0[] |
|---|
Bigger Brother vs. Mauler 51-50   Bigger Brother pushes Mauler to the pulverizer. |
Bigger Brother vs. Voltronic   Bigger Brother gets flipped by Voltronic. |
Heavyweight Consolation Rumble   Bigger Brother flips Mauler. |
Results[]
| BIGGER BROTHER | ||
| Season 2.0 | ||
| Fight Nights Round of 16 | ||
| Round of 32 | vs. Mauler 51-50 | Won (KO) |
| Round of 16 | vs. Voltronic | Lost (JD) |
| Exhibition Matches Heavyweight Rumble | ||
| Heavyweight Rumble | vs. Punjar, OverKill | Lost (JD) |
Competitive Wins/Losses[]
- Wins: 1
- Losses: 1
Exhibition Wins/Losses[]
- Wins: 0
- Losses: 1
Total Wins/Losses[]
- Wins: 1
- Losses: 2
| Competition | Wins | Losses |
|---|---|---|
| Season 2.0 | Mauler 51-50 | Voltronic Punjar, OverKill (Rumble) |
Mark Beiro Introductions[]
"He'll put in a deadly headlock and squeeze you until you beg for mercy because he's BIGGER BROTHER!"
"He will whack you like no other. He's one mean and wicked mother. It's BIGGER BROTHER!"
Trivia[]
- Bigger Brother is the only British robot to enter three different televised robot programs (Robot Wars, BattleBots and Techno Games as Big Bro).
- In 2010, Bigger Brother featured on Series 11 of the UK reality television show Big Brother as part of one of the show's challenges.[1]
- Bigger Brothers flipping arm was bought by Lars Weaving Baker at RoboNerd 2023.
- The original Big Brother robot made a cameo appearance during BattleBots as it was seen being flipped by Bigger Brother.
References[]
See Also[]
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