BattleBots

I don't think the Democratic Convention had anything to do with this episode simply recapping some of the fights. All the other episodes except for the season premiere were also just one hour starting at 8 PM Eastern, and the Convention coverage didn't even start until a full hour after Battlebots ended, while Greatest Hits aired in the 9 PM Eastern slot as regularly scheduled. (Here's ABC's Schedule page). And even before the president's town hall meeting on the 14th pushed the season back a week, there were still only three episodes planned for the round of 32.

Edit: 'd

Anyway...

The Good, The Bot, and The Ugly: The Round of 32 Concludes. Full Episode

Fights:

• Chomp vs. Captain Shredderator
• Stinger vs. Mega Tento
• Hypershock vs. Warrior Clan

I must say that was hilarious seeing Warrior Clan's drone getting swatted out of the air like that! I'm a bit worried that Chomp's excessively forceful hammer could end up being its downfall.

Anyway, the round of 16 is set. Those episodes will air on August 4th and 25th. Apparently, there won't be Battlebots episodes on the 11th and 18th. I wonder what ABC's airing those weeks instead?

edited 3rd Aug '16 4:27:56 PM by Lightblade

For us Pac Timers, the show was supposed to start at 8 PM...Hillary's speech went over to 8:30, didn't start until 8:45...so sue me for the assumption.

The next episode is tomorrow. It will feature the first half of the Sweet 16 fights.

• Bronco vs. Razorback
• Minotaur vs. Warhead
• Red Devil vs. Bombshell
• Poison Arrow vs. Hypershock

Not So Sweet 16: The Round of 16 Part 1 Full Episode.

This was a fun one!

• Minotaur vs. Warhead: The main moment of this fight was in the early stages where Minotaur knocked Warhead's spinning head clean off, sending it ricocheting around the arena. After a few more hits, Warhead was completely immobile. Minotaur wins by KO.

• Poison Arrow vs. Hypershock: This fight started with a massive collision between the two robots' spinners. But Hypershock's spinner was disabled from it. Despite this, Hypershock managed to push Poison Arrow around all over the battlebox. But eventually, its drive motors gave out, and Poison Arrow finished it off by taking off one of its wheels. Poison Arrow wins by KO.

• Red Devil vs. Bombshell: Bombshell went with a vertical spinner and wedge this match, but the spinner stopped working after one hit, after which the fight basically became a shoving match. This one went to the judges. The announcers did acknowledge that the judges disproportionately favor primary weapon hits, but with Red Devil not managing to connect with its saw until the closing seconds, Bombshell wins by Unanimous Decision

• Bronco vs. Razorback: just like it its last match, Bronco spent most of the fight driving backwards, absorbing Razorback's drum spinner blows with its armored wedge. Even then, Bronco got a few good flips in on it. While Razorback could drive upside down, one flip had it land on its side, leaving it completely helpless. Bronco wins by KO

Edit Aug. 10: With the Rio Olympic Games now in full swing, it looks like this week's episode and the next one are going to be No Hoper Repeats of the qualifying rounds.

edited 10th Aug '16 2:33:16 PM by Lightblade

Finally caught up, since my work had me miss last week.

Anyway, here's my analyses scale:

The first line with I is my Initial Analysis, the second line with O is the Outcome, Solid means one bot dominates, Lean means one bot has a good advantage, but could still lose if the cards fall in just the wrong way, Tilt means one bot has a slight advantage, but could lose fairly easily, and Toss-up of course means it's anyone's game.

1. Bronco vs Razorback

I: Bronco has a powerful flipper that time and time again manages to flip bots all over the place, however the back is exposed. However Razorback is good at self-righting and very good at wedging into vulnerable spots as demonstrated against Ghost Raptor. Both drivers are quite skilled and strategic, so Bronco will likely just keep flipping before anything else can happen. Rating: Lean Bronco

O: To compensate for Razorback's wily driving, Bronco's pilots installed a back wedge, covering up the one weak spot this battle. So while Razorback tried to get an edge, it couldn't, rendering it helpless to even slight flipper movements from the bottom. Ultimately Razorback ended up on it's side, the one place it couldn't right itself out of. Winner: Solid Bronco

2. Minotaur vs Warhead

I: Minotaur's entry has been a stunning example of what good driving can do in a tournament overloaded with medium sized vertical spinner robots. But that isn't to say driving alone has helped it out. Indeed its spinner is pretty nasty still. But Warhead's drivers are veterans and certainly not slouches. Warhead's spinner is also a good one, and it has flamethrowing powers too. Nonetheless Warhead does have a lot of open space to be taken advantage of. Rating: Lean Minotaur

O: Once again Minotaur's drivers show their Mad Skillz and decapitate Warhead first move. This is followed by sending the rest of Warhead flying. The flamethrower, though used, ends up having no effect whatsoever. This might be the biggest Curb-Stomp Battle of this round. Winner: Solid Minotaur

3. Bombshell vs Red Devil

I: Bombshell has been known for lots of versatility in place of power and their drivers rival Bronco and Minotaur for strategy if the battle against Cobalt is anything to go by. However, Red Devil's victory against Witch Doctor was quite decisive and a testament to would a good saw blade from the top can do. Rating: Toss-up

O: Bombshell managed to some decent damage in one move, but was rendered a mere push-bot from that point on. The best thing they did was simply stop Red Devil from being able to get the saw in until the end,which was still not enough time to do major damage. However there were plenty of spots where Red Devil had the opportunity to right itself and plan attack but didn't. Very disappointing round. Winner: Tilt Bombshell

4. Hypershock vs Poison Arrow

I: Both bots are similarly structured with vertical spinners, both if I recall correctly had good upsets against Whyachi bots. This one's anyone's game. Rating: Toss-up

O: Began with Hypershock showing no mercy on Poison Arrow while the drone tried to hone in, but to no avail. However mid-way through, Poison Arrow came back with a vengeance and just kept coming and coming and coming at Hypershock. It didn't help that Hypershock's drive went out. The little rake trick from last round was a fluke clearly, as though it was a bit part, the drone managed to weaken the drive. But that digresses from the main heat, Poison Arrow's vertical spinner won the round....Should it battle Minotaur, it would be interesting to see how that goes. Winner Solid Poison Arrow

Noted, actually had to re-watch...and even then it's kinda blink-and-miss.

edited 13th Aug '16 4:33:30 PM by terlwyth

And sometime before the next round, I'll put up my analysis before the fights.

And after those fights, I'll reprise what I did for this round.

Too little credit to Poison Arrow's drone. It was the flames and heat that cost Hypershock its motor drive.

Alright, one week left until the next part.

The matches are:

1. Tombstone vs Brutus

This one is about as plain open-and-shut as a battle can be. I had originally speculated at the beginning that maybe Brutus could hold out well against Tombstone after a respectable first victory. However, it smoked up against Lock Jaw, which literally only lost because of Da' New Rools. In short, it should've been able to slice Lock Jaw open with that vertical spinner. If it couldn't do that, it goes without saying how it'll fare against even Tombstone's weak spinner. RATING: Solid Tombstone

2. Beta vs Nightmare

Beta's been really impressive, whereas Nightmare has always been hit-or-miss. However, because both the spinner and the hammer both are vertical, it will be really hard for Beta to attack anywhere on Nightmare, whereas Nightmare can easily get behind the hammer and cut straight-in. However, if Nightmare were to somehow fall on its side, Beta could wait on it quite easily. But out of the box, Mr. Reid is going to have to get very crafty with the driving to get an advantage, but perhaps Nightmare's crew will screw up massively. RATING: Lean Nightmare

3. Bite Force vs Chomp

This is a tough one since both are powerful, but also highly highly flawed. Chomp is overpowered and technical, with little way of self-righting and accurately hitting the mark. It barely won the first time, and even during the last battle with Cpt. Shredderator, it mostly flailed, only making two hits at a huge weak spot. The Defending Champ will need more than that. Not that Bite Force has this in the bag. Indeed, their last battle saw their new vertical spinner go out in a battle against one of the far lower-tiered bots. Unlike horizontal spinners which can hit the side, a vertical spinner will have issue against an upright bot like Chomp, which could easily hit them from behind and do damage. However, the Bite Force crew are great drivers and will more than be able to get Chomp during points it's down. RATING: Toss-up

4. Yeti vs Mega Tento

While I dearly wish the native girl could pull off another one, and credit her for excellent driving skills last round against Stinger, I just can't see how Mega Tento won't be obliterated by Yeti, who has been rivaled by Bronco, Tombstone, Beta, and Minotaur when it comes to pure powerplaying. While both have vertical spinners, Yeti's far bigger and more powerful...justified since Mega Tento was supposed to smother and cut rather than just completely raze. I will grant that Mega Tento taking out Stinger was probably a much bigger upset objectively than what happened to Witch Doctor [sure Witch Doctor lost utterly while Stinger lost by a split decision, but anyone savvy enough could tell Red Devil was the winner as soon as Shaman replaced the big protective part], but that's just it, an upset. RATING: Solid Yeti

It'll be interesting to see how this plays out next week.

Yesterday was kinda fun actually, though I did sadly have to miss the final match to get to work.

1. Tombstone vs Brutus

I: This one is about as plain open-and-shut as a battle can be. I had originally speculated at the beginning that maybe Brutus could hold out well against Tombstone after a respectable first victory. However, it smoked up against Lock Jaw, which literally only lost because of Da' New Rools. In short, it should've been able to slice Lock Jaw open with that vertical spinner. If it couldn't do that, it goes without saying how it'll fare against even Tombstone's weak spinner. RATING: Solid Tombstone

O: Indeed, Tombstone did use one of their weaker (and bulkier) blades and lighter wheels, and they still destroyed Brutus in 30 seconds. WINNER Solid Tombstone

2. Beta vs Nightmare

I: Beta's been really impressive, whereas Nightmare has always been hit-or-miss. However, because both the spinner and the hammer both are vertical, it will be really hard for Beta to attack anywhere on Nightmare, whereas Nightmare can easily get behind the hammer and cut straight-in. However, if Nightmare were to somehow fall on its side, Beta could wait on it quite easily. But out of the box, Mr. Reid is going to have to get very crafty with the driving to get an advantage, but perhaps Nightmare's crew will screw up massively. RATING: Lean Nightmare

O: This turned out almost as predicted, save for the very last few seconds which underestimated Mr. Reid's driving skills. Interestingly and justifiably, beta's hammer was sparingly used against Nightmare, who would've shredded it quickly with their spinner. Just as predicted, Nightmare had the initial alignment advantage, and used that to deliver quite a few blows to beta with their spinner, while beta was mostly looking for an angle to come in with the hammer. However, Nightmare's architecture was flimsy and had no way of self-righting. This gave beta the opening to come in from the side and carefully tip it over. This was followed by dragging it to the hammer corner. WINNER: Tilt Beta

3. Bite Force vs Chomp

I: This is a tough one since both are powerful, but also highly highly flawed. Chomp is overpowered and technical, with little way of self-righting and accurately hitting the mark. It barely won the first time, and even during the last battle with Cpt. Shredderator, it mostly flailed, only making two hits at a huge weak spot. The Defending Champ will need more than that. Not that Bite Force has this in the bag. Indeed, their last battle saw their new vertical spinner go out in a battle against one of the far lower-tiered bots. Unlike horizontal spinners which can hit the side, a vertical spinner will have issue against an upright bot like Chomp, which could easily hit them from behind and do damage. However, the Bite Force crew are great drivers and will more than be able to get Chomp during points it's down. RATING: Toss-up

O: Apparently Bite Force mercilessly pushed Chomp all over the place and eventually got them into the rafters. However, before that, Chomp destroyed their main weapon and got in a few other hits with the hammer. It went to a Judge's Decision, and they used the new rules on primary weapons to deem Chomp the winner, even though Bite Force pushed Chomp everywhere most of the time, which would've cut it last year. WINNER: Tilt Chomp, MORAL VICTOR: Tilt Bite Force

4. Yeti vs Mega Tento

I: While I dearly wish the native girl could pull off another one, and credit her for excellent driving skills last round against Stinger, I just can't see how Mega Tento won't be obliterated by Yeti, who has been rivaled by Bronco, Tombstone, Beta, and Minotaur when it comes to pure powerplaying. While both have vertical spinners, Yeti's far bigger and more powerful...justified since Mega Tento was supposed to smother and cut rather than just completely raze. I will grant that Mega Tento taking out Stinger was probably a much bigger upset objectively than what happened to Witch Doctor [sure Witch Doctor lost utterly while Stinger lost by a split decision, but anyone savvy enough could tell Red Devil was the winner as soon as Shaman replaced the big protective part], but that's just it, an upset. RATING: Solid Yeti

O: Ironically, Mega Tento was out by losing a wheel of its own after getting mercilessly pushed up into the rafters with no way down. Yeti never let down at all. Shortest fight I've ever seen. WINNER: Solid Yeti

edited 26th Aug '16 11:18:03 AM by terlwyth

And with the remainder of the season next week, I will be putting up only predictions for the Quarter-finals, since everything else is contingent on those results. However, I will also list out the likelihood of who takes the prize with ''Likely" and "Unlikely". So, with that said, here's the final go.

PART I: The Quarter-Finals

1. Tombstone vs Beta

While common knowledge would suggest Tombstone should win this fight handily, one knock from the hammer to its back would take it out quite easily. Also beta has demonstrated that it can be pretty good wedge-bot when it has to. That isn't to say that beta will automatically win. Far from it, Tombstone turns really fast, making behind attacks hard to pull off, and the hammer would be fairly easy to decapitate. Unless Mr. Reid can pull off some really good driving skills again, Tombstone has the clear advantage; just not a 100% chance. RATING: Lean Tombstone

2. Chomp vs Yeti

Once again, Chomp is overpowered and just as likely to hurt itself as it is its opponent, whereas Yeti is solidly built. This means Yeti will have the go-ahead to wail on it in ways none to different from past matches, and though well armored Chomp is, Yeti's spinner will eventually get through. But if it falls to that hammer, game over. The odds of that are small. RATING: Lean Yeti

3. Bronco vs Minotaur

Any other spinner bot (besides Tombstone), and Bronco would have the clear advantage with all the little wedge protections it has made since last year. However, the drivers of Minotaur are probably the best this whole season, and thus likely to find a good angle to rip Bronco to shreds. On the other hand, if Bronco flips them,...game over, and Bronco's drivers are no slouches by any means. Naturally, this means this match could go either way. RATING: Toss-up

4. Poison Arrow vs Bombshell/Short Fuse

The final match with drones on both sides, should be interesting to watch regardless. Poison Arrow's drone seems to be better utilized than Short Fuse has been in the past, but it's highly likely the drones won't play a huge part in this battle. Bombshell is always switching itself up depending on the battle, so it's victory depends on what it uses to counter Poison Arrow's spinner, which is little different from Yeti's or Minotaur's in terms of power. Bombshell barely won its last match, while Poison Arrow quite handily defeated a similarly built Hypershock. Until Bombshell's weapon is figured out, Poison Arrow has the advantage. RATING: Lean Poison Arrow

PART TWO: Winning Odds

Tombstone: Likely

Beta: Unlikely

Chomp: Unlikely

Yeti: Likely

Bronco: Likely

Minotaur: Likely

Bombshell: Unlikely

Poison Arrow: Likely

edited 26th Aug '16 1:03:42 PM by terlwyth

Not So Sweet 16: The Round of 16 Part 2 Full Episode

I kinda want Beta to fight Chomp, I don't think it will happen but man would that be an itneresitng fight, two tall smasher bots with weapons that send their own bot flying.

edited 26th Aug '16 7:44:35 PM by Silasw

The Season 2 Finale is tomorrow night! It seems they're airing the two final episodes back-to-back to make up for the one that got pre-empted.

Well, it's official, this season is the antithesis of the last one.

Tombstone curbstomped it's way through until it killed itself on an unnecessary move on Bronco, which left it vulnerable to Bite Force.

This year, it barely won twice and then anti-climactically murdered Bombshell.

However, I believe Bombshell actually had a really good chance...before they threw it away on a dumb "precise" weapon. If they had kept their vertical spinner and just acted like they were facing Minotaur, they could've made it close. Quite amazing that they went from a dead-man redeemed by being a wild card to actually winning...with only The Witch Doctor Destroyer Red Devil in the way. But they really blew it!

I was completely right that Beta was gonna lose...but barely, which itself is quite the surprise. I was completely right about Yeti as well against Chomp....but I had no idea Minotaur would dominate so hard against Bronco. I also figured Poison Arrow would come out on top, though I couldn't know they'd use the vertical spinner either. If I knew that, perhaps my prediction would've been different

When the next rounds happened, I betted for Tombstone and Minotaur to win respectively and decisively....I didn't expect Yeti to outdo Witch Doctor's barely losing performance from last year, and I didn't expect Minotaur to go out so hard.

But good heavens above, Bombshell switching out the spinner is the dumbest move since Witch Doctor de-armored themselves against Red Devil

Oh, and Hypershock's rake is still the best!

edited 1st Sep '16 10:26:32 PM by terlwyth

This Rumble was something else. In summary:

Witch Doctor◊

Shaman◊

Wrecks during the first half◊

Wrecks during the second half◊

Bite Force◊

Gr8 Expectations: The Quarterfinals and One Shining Bot: The Championship Full Episode is up on the ABC website.

Season 2 Championship Fight!

The Giant Nut is Awarded

Wow! This had some exciting fights! It was fun seeing Minotaur take out Bronco's wheels one by one. And it's really odd to see fights featuring Tombstone go the judges. Kudos to them for being able to go the distance. But in the end, Tombstone learned his lesson from last season and came out on top! Also, with the Rumble, I still have no clue what Wrecks' designers were thinking with that design, but it still got some good hits in.

And, unsurprisingly, the final fight came down to two spinners, because spinners are too fucking OP.

ABC posted some unaired rumbles on their youtube page.

I think it's funny how of the 7 fights from the quarter finals up, the championship bout is by far the most one sided, especially since Tombstone's quarter and and semi final matches when the distance and both were quite close.

''Battlebots'' has apparently moved to the Science Channel. I can't tell if this is going to be a new season or reruns, but the premiere will be on Wednesday, July 12th at 10/9c.

edited 1st Jul '17 4:50:59 PM by Lightblade

And now Battle Bots has been moved and renewed by the Discovery Channel.

Wait back up, there was another season?

No. The Science Channel reran the two seasons but never renewed it.

But now there will be a new season?

Most likely, yes.