BattleBots - Kampf der Maschinen

The concept of "Battlebots" is two bots battling each other in an arena, controlled remotely by their handlers.

Those who survive the first round of battles are seeded into a bracket for single elimination contests.

Except in the case of a knockout (when the bot is unable to respond to a ten-second countdown), three judges decide the winner of each contest. Usually the outcome is obvious because of the damage delivered.

There are rules, but they are not discussed much unless they come into play. But the competitors are aware of them.

The different strategies employed in the building of these bots range from flame throwers to powerful flippers, and may include mini-bots that accompany the main bots for purposes of diversion or inflicting damage.

The show is a nice blend of practical engineering and gladiator-style contests.

What is there not to love. Discovery took an already great show and fleshed it out to what Battlebots always should have been. We now get 20 episodes, each one packed with spectacular robotic combat. We see returning faces and newcomers all fighting for their chance to take home the coveted giant nut. They're simply is nothing else like this on TV. As someone who grew up watching the comedy central show this is how I always dreamed it to be.

This season has been a lot of fun. Great battles and great commentary. Our family really enjoys this show.

It seems that the more recent decisions by the judges are wrong. Why? I think it is due to the producers deciding who should move on and not the actual winner. It's not just one decision but many this season. I hope they stop doing this.

I witnessed the Battlebots contests and filming twice here in San Francisco when Comedy Central was doing the show. I sincerely thought that they never captured the spirit or the true violence of the event.

What still doesn't come across is how large and vicious these things are, but the present show does largely capture the spirit of the event instead of trying to gloss over it with lame humor and WWE- style antics.

A shout out to the the talking heads, especially Chris and Ken who show real enthusiasm for the fights. That was completely missing from the old show.

One thing has happened for the better with the actual event. The pure wedge bots that did nothing but try to upend or shove their opponents around have basically been eliminated. Good riddance!!! They were deathly boring and probably the reason the old show stretched so much.

A great show, nothing to offend, and a way better than the old version. Give it a try.