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Heroes

    Rodney Copperbottom 
Voiced by: Ewan McGregor (movie); Jess Harnell (video game); Dylan Denton (baby); Jansen Panettiere (child); Will Denton (adolescent); Crawford Wilson (teenager)note 
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/rodney_copperbottom_robots_1.png

A humble and idealistic young robot from Rivet Town, Rodney is an aspiring inventor who idolizes Bigweld, having grown up watching his show and taking to heart Bigweld's philosophies in hopes of helping to improve the world through his inventions. Coming to Robot City, however, tests Rodney's ideals when he finds that Bigweld is no longer in charge of his company, and working-class robots are being jeopardized through the actions of the arrogant Ratchet, forcing Rodney to recruit some unlikely friends to track down Bigweld and save Robot City.


  • And Show It to You: During the repair montage, he takes out a robot's heart, which is still beating and attached by a wire. Fender faints at the sight.
  • Are You Pondering What I'm Pondering?: When he and Bigweld try to come up with a plan to stop the super-sweepers, Rodney delivers the punchline of this trope after Bigweld asks him by coming up with an insane idea that is not in any way what Bigweld had in mind. It still works, though.
  • Ascended Fanboy: His ultimate goal is to become an inventor who works for Bigweld, which he ultimately achieves by the end of the movie.
  • Birds of a Feather: A reason he and Cappy develop appreciation for each other is that they, according to Word of God, both had similar pasts, having to do with spare parts and holding a strong belief in Bigweld's motto.
  • Blue Is Heroic: His main color scheme is light blue.
  • Black-Tie Infiltration: He and Fender infiltrate the Bigweld Ball by pretending to by Count Roderick von Broken Zipper (formerly Count Velcro) and his valet, respectively.
  • Broken Pedestal: Rodney becomes this after Bigweld crushes his dream by telling him to give up and find another foolish dream. Fortunately, it becomes a Rebuilt Pedestal when Bigweld came back to help Rodney confront Ratchet.
  • Character Development: Rodney goes from being a mere fanboy of Bigweld's to becoming his idol's right-hand man and eventual successor, and his naivety to the ways of Robot City decreases over the course of the film.
  • Chick Magnet: He attracts the attention of two females, and thus becomes the Archie in the Betty and Veronica love triangle.
  • Crossdresser: He briefly becomes this during his adolescence, when he has to wear spare parts from his cousin Veronica. He gets rid of it after his graduation.
  • Determinator: It comes with being an aspiring inventor. Rodney almost never gives up, no matter how many obstacles he has to face.
  • Disappointed in You: Before he leaves with Cappy, he express disappointment in Bigweld, almost like he was saying that he guess Bigweld was not the idol as he thought he was and he expected better in him.
  • The Everyman: Amongst the weirdness of Robot City that keeps happening around him, Rodney is a normal being trying to establish his place in the world.
  • Fanboy: Rodney greatly admired Bigweld ever since he was little.
  • Freeze-Frame Bonus: If you look closely when Mr. Gunk insults him, Rodney's temperature gauge changes while giving Mr. Gunk a Death Glare.
  • Gadgeteer Genius: Rodney is this in spades, to emulate his idol, Bigweld.
  • Good Counterpart: To Ratchet. Rodney shares with him a desire to claim a position in Bigweld Industries, but in contrast to Ratchet being a scheming Corrupt Corporate Executive who wants to take over as head of the company and shows disdain for outmodes, Rodney is a Wide-Eyed Idealist who is a strong believer in Bigweld's motto about being able to "shine no matter what you're made of" and merely just wants a normal position in the company.
  • Good Is Not Soft: He's a very selfless character who is perfectly willing to help out anyone in an awkward situation, but he's also quite pragmatic when it comes to confronting a villain, particularly in his later interactions with Ratchet. In the Bigweld Ball scene, he was more than ready to reveal Ratchet's plan to wipe out the outmodes to the absent Bigweld (and everyone attending the party, for that matter), and was very firm in telling him to let go of Bigweld when he and Cappy find him being held captive by the stewards.
  • The Hero: He is the main character of the film, and ultimately the one who saves the entirety of Robot City from having Ratchet and Madame Gasket dominate them.
  • Heroic BSoD: After seeing how much of a toll Ratchet's actions have taken on Bigweld, Rodney goes into a state of despair and discouragement and decides to give up on his dream. After a few more encouraging words from Herb and a gentle, comforting smile from Cappy, he slowly begins to move out of it, culminating in Bigweld coming out of hiding and teaming up with everyone to take down Ratchet, echoing something Rodney said earlier - "I want to grow up to be like you!"
  • Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Wonderbot and later Fender.
  • Hope Bringer: His unfailing dedication to his dreams of being an inventor and making Robots better by fixing them and respecting their worth end up inspiring confidence and reinvigorated spirit in many around. This includes his disillusioned role model Bigweld and the pessimistic Crank, who ends up being emboldened by Rodney's dedication and is inspired to try his best to make sure he can save the day after complaining for much of the film.
  • I Just Want to Be Special: His whole motive for wanting to go to Robot City in pursuit of his dream of becoming an inventor.
  • It's Personal: While it was his dream to become an inventor that pushed him to investigating the change in Bigweld industries, things become even more personal when his father is in needs of new parts.
  • Mr. Fixit: He is good at keeping outmodes functional even without new parts.
  • Nice Guy: Rodney is a genuinely noble, well-intentioned robot who wants to look out for other Outmodes.
  • Nothing Exciting Ever Happens Here: The reason he goes to Robot City is that he feels he'll never make a name of himself in his small hometown of Rivet Town.
  • Oblivious to Love: While he does befriend Piper along with all the other Rusties, he doesn't seem to be aware of the fact that she has a Precocious Crush on him due to having feelings for Cappy instead.
  • Official Couple: He gets together with Cappy.
  • Pursue the Dream Job: He shows an interest in inventing ever since he first learns about who Bigweld is and what he stands for.
  • Red Oni, Blue Oni: The level-headed and introverted Blue to Fender's outgoing and impulsive Red, both figuratively and literally.
  • Retroactive Wish: After he complains about the Rusties not doing anything to find Bigweld, he states that there should be an angry mob outside - and at that same moment, an angry mob indeed appears running past the house.
  • Savvy Guy, Energetic Girl: The Savvy Guy to Piper's Energetic Girl; he's a coolheaded and even-tempered introvert, while she is a high-spirited and perky Genki Girl whose feelings for him are not returned.
  • Slippery Skid: He has an encounter with Fender trying to nick his foot, and they play tug-of-war for it while trying to keep their balance on a river of ball bearings. Fender eventually loses his balance and falls over, literally losing his head in the process.
  • The Speechless: The alternative ego he uses to enter the Bigweld Ball with Fender's assistance is mute.
  • Straight Man: To Fender's Plucky Comic Relief.
  • Strong Girl, Smart Guy: The Smart Guy (comes up with inventions to help make the robot world a better place) to Cappy's Strong Girl (goes against Ratchet and the rest of her colleagues to stick up for the outmodes).
  • True Companions: Wonderbot is with him almost anywhere he goes.
  • Wide-Eyed Idealist: Inheriting beliefs from Bigweld, Rodney strongly feels that anyone can shine no matter whether they're made of new, old or spare parts.
  • Upbringing Makes the Hero: Everything Rodney became and accomplished was all thanks to his father's upbringing.
  • "Yes"/"No" Answer Interpretation: He has this when he and the damaged Bigweld are escaping Ratchet.
    Rodney: Mr. Bigweld, are you okay?
    Bigweld: (loopy) I’m the prettiest girl at the Harvest Moon Ball!
    Rodney: I'll take that as a "no"!

    Bigweld 
Voiced by: Mel Brooks (movie); Nick Jameson (video game)note 
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/bigweld_robots_9.png

Rodney's idol and the founder of the immensely powerful Bigweld Industries whose imagination has created the metropolis of whimsical mechanical marvels, Robot City. With his motto "you can shine no matter what you're made of", Bigweld has inspired generations of young robots to follow their dreams, just as he inspired Rodney. When Rodney arrives in Robot City, he finds Bigweld is not where he should be, forcing Rodney to do whatever he can to track down his idol to save Robot City.


  • Achilles' Heel: While the heroes evade Ratchet in the climax, Bigweld's spherical design causes him to roll straight into the Chop Shop and get stuck in one of the buckets leading straight into the factory's incinerator.
  • Arc Words: His two catchphrases, "You can shine no matter what you're made of!" and "See a need, fill a need!", especially the former, are what push the movie forward and the overall morals.
  • Are You Pondering What I'm Pondering?: Said almost word-for-word ("thinking" is substituted for "pondering") when he and Rodney are about to take out the super-sweepers. Rodney says he is, but it is soon revealed that the insane plan he comes up with is not what Bigweld was thinking at all.
  • Big Good: He is the one who Rodney and his friends follow in order to take back Bigweld Industries from Ratchet.
  • Broken Pedestal: Rodney's faith in him takes a huge hit towards the climax of the film after seeing what Bigweld has become in the intervening years between Rodney's childhood and their meeting (with Rodney expressing disappointment in him). Once He's Back!, becomes a Rebuilt Pedestal.
  • Character Catchphrase: "You can shine no matter what you're made of!"
  • Cool Old Guy: What's not cool about an old robot who invents things and likes to play around with dominoes?
  • Chubby Chaser: He's pretty attracted to Aunt Fanny (mostly thanks to her trunk).
  • Dirty Old Man: Strongly Implied, given his personal love pad in his limosine and his Chubby Chaser lust for Aunt Fanny. Though it's only shown to make him more of an example of Big Fun.
  • Foil: To Ratchet. Both of them are the heads of Bigweld Industries for a portion of the movie, but while the Honest Corporate Executive Bigweld is dedicated to helping those in need, particularly the older and poorer robots, the Corrupt Corporate Executive Ratchet is bigoted towards the outmodes and places making money over everything else.
  • Gadgeteer Genius: He is the very reason that Rodney decided to follow in his footsteps and become an inventor.
  • Gratuitous Yiddish: At the end of the film, he thanks Rodney for "getting [him] off [his] big titanium tuckus." Of course, if you have Mel Brooks playing a character, chances are he'll slip at least one Yiddish word in there.
  • Has a Type: He loves women with big keisters, meaning that Aunt Fanny immediately catches his eye.
  • He's Back!: Despite what Ratchet did to him earlier, Bigweld eventually decides to come out of hiding and help Rodney and his friends take on him. Naturally, his return to Bigweld Industries is met with plenty of enthusiasm.
  • Heroic BSoD: He has been stuck in a major one since Ratchet took over the industry and pushed him into retirement. It isn't until Rodney and Cappy find him and plead for his help that he's finally snapped out of it.
  • Honest Corporate Executive: His job involves putting helping others over how his company does financially. Ratchet, however, convinces him that way doesn't work so that he can take over.
  • Insult Backfire: When he is taken hostage by Madame Gasket, he calls her a "sick, twisted evil robot", only for the flattered Gasket to respond with "I try".
  • Large Ham: In addition to being big, round and chubby, Bigweld tends to be quite jolly and good-humoured in most of his appearances. Being voiced by Mel Brooks also helps.
  • Leeroy Jenkins: His confrontation with Ratchet gets him knocked out and sent to the Chop Shop, leading to the climax, because he made the decision to confront him one-on-one.
  • Mr. Alt Disney: A creative genius with a jovial and friendly television persona whose legacy is tarnished by successors? It could only be Uncle Walt.
  • No-Nonsense Nemesis: Bigweld is this to Ratchet when he comes out of hiding - he confronts him promptly in the office and fires him on the spot. Unfortunately, Ratchet manages to knock him out with a telephone.
  • Non Sequitur, *Thud*: After Rachet knocks him out, Bigweld is reduced to goofy childish behavior until Rodney fixes him.
  • One-Wheeled Wonder: His entire body is a large round wheel.
  • Really Gets Around: Heavily implied. The first thing he does when he tracks down Rodney is ask about his big-bottomed friend, Aunt Fanny. Not too long after we see that he has a champagne room set up in his limo, complete with a hot tub, disco ball and smooth R&B. Since Bigweld's evidently not married, it means he's often using it with female company.
  • Reasonable Authority Figure: He helps Rodney achieve his dreams and manages to successfully take back his company from Ratchet.
  • Screw the Money, I Have Rules!: Once he learned of what Ratchet was up to, he completely dismisses any concerns by the latter of losing profit when firing him.
  • Ship Tease: With Aunt Fanny. It's assumed that they are a couple by the end of the film, seeing that they dance together.
  • Shipper on Deck: He is apparently all for Rodney x Cappy.
    Bigweld: (to Cappy) Hey, you know your boyfriend here is a genius.
    Rodney: What?
    Cappy: Oh, he's not my boy- he is?
    Rodney: (to Cappy) I am?
  • Silly Rabbit, Idealism Is for Kids!: Ratchet took over his company and treats his idea of helping others like a complete lost cause, which is what forces him into hiding, effectively making Ratchet the new head of Bigweld Industries.
  • Took a Level in Cynic: After Ratchet forces him into hiding, Bigweld claims that the latter's actions made him and his beliefs old-fashioned, and when Rodney finds him, he tells the latter to give up on his dream, feeling that what he once was no longer exists. It lasts until Rodney calls him out for it.
  • Took a Level in Idealism: Having lost his spark, meeting Rodney is what makes him get back on his feet and finally confront Ratchet.
  • Wide-Eyed Idealist: Bigweld's deep passion is for making the robot world an easy place to live in through his inventions. He is very sincere about his desire to make people's lives better and truly believes that anyone can shine whether they be rusty or shiny.
  • Word, Schmord!: While he is firing Ratchet, Ratchet tries to defend himself by saying that the company has been more profitable through making the upgrades, to which Bigweld responds with "Profit schmofit!"

    Fender Pinwheeler 
Voiced by: Robin Williams (movie); Michael Gough (video game)note 
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/fender_robots_6.png

A clumsy, opportunistic red bot and member of a group of outmodes called the Rusties who suffers from the misfortune of his parts constantly falling off his body. He's one of the first robots Rodney meets upon arriving in Robot City, and despite having a rocky first encounter, becomes Rodney's best friend.


  • And Show It to You: He is on the receiving end of this trope - he faints after Rodney takes out a robot's heart and shows it is still beating.
  • Attack! Attack... Retreat! Retreat!: When he gets kidnapped by a sweeper, he repeatedly pounds on the door in a vain attempt to open it, but once it does open and reveals the chop shop outside, he chickens out.
    "Help! Open the door! OPEN THE DOOR! (the door opens; the chop shop is outside) WHOA! Close the door! CLOSE THE DOOR!"
  • Big Anime Eyes: He invokes this on Rodney, when he is taking photos of Rodney to try to scam him.
    "Gimme those eyes, big eyes, big eyes, big eyes! Gimme big anime eyes!"
  • Big Brother Instinct: For all his foolishness, he's very protective over his sister.
  • Black-Tie Infiltration: He and Rodney infiltrate the Bigweld Ball by disguising themselves. Fender disguises himself as the valet of Count Roderick von Broken Zipper, whom Rodney disguises himself as. It only works because he's so badly dressed people assume he's an Eccentric Millionaire.
  • Butt-Monkey: Not only do many of his parts frequently keep detaching from his body, but there are several other unfortunate incidents that happen to him throughout the film, namely being hit by the giant hammer, getting whacked in the face by a sentient mailbox and being sent to the Chop Shop, where he loses his legs and barely escapes getting himself killed.
  • Casual Danger Dialogue: At one point near the end of the crosstown express scene, he talks to Rodney about one of its features that is seemingly not there anymore — a giant hammer. When they both notice it approaching their pod, Fender is completely unfazed, but Rodney appropriately has the opposite reaction.
    Fender: It used to be a lot worse. They had this giant hammer...
    Rodney: (Yelps in panic)
    Fender: (Looks over shoulder, notices giant hammer barreling down on them, still nonchalant) Oh! They brought it back.
  • Con Man: He's introduced photographing Rodney and charging exorbitant prices for each photograph (that he doesn't have because the camera doesn't have film). This doesn't come up for the rest of the movie, however.
  • Cranium Chase: After accidentally getting his head knocked off by Rodney, Fender ends up doing this.
  • Crossdresser: He becomes this after his incident in the chop shop.
  • Deadpan Snarker: He has quite a few good snarks when his head detaches from his body.
  • Demoted to Extra: In the Playstation video game, he is pretty much a minor character and doesn't have a single line along with that.
  • Easy Sex Change: Downplayed, as the only part of his body that becomes completely feminine is his pair of legs.
  • Foolish Sibling, Responsible Sibling: He and Piper alternate between both roles. Fender, while being prone to making selfish and reckless decisions, does try to keep his sister safe. Piper, while being a rambunctious and overly ambitious tomboy, does make more sensible decisions than her brother.
  • Gender Bender: Fender ends up putting on a pair of female robot legs to replace his own after losing them in the Chop Shop.
  • Heterosexual Life-Partners: He eventually becomes this with Rodney.
  • Innocently Insensitive: He claims he didn't know Rodney was at the end of the foot he found.
  • Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Fender may make impulsive decisions sometimes, and his first interaction with Rodney is basically an attempt to scam him, but aside from that, he is pretty friendly and good-hearted, and he accepts Rodney into the Rusties with open arms.
  • Kleptomaniac Hero: Has a habit of getting his hands on leftover spare parts.
    "I am not a mugger. I happen to be a scrounger."
  • The Lancer: He becomes Rodney's closest ally.
  • Large Ham: He's voiced by Robin Williams, so this is a given.
  • Lovable Coward: He humorously chickens out over numerous things, like when the pod he and Rodney ride in is about to fall, and of course, his encounter with the chop shop.
  • Manchild: "I'm practically a kid!"
  • Masculine Girl, Feminine Boy: The Feminine Boy to Piper's Masculine Girl; he's clearly not very action-oriented and is quite awkward compared to his sister. It gets even funnier when he becomes gender-bent after escaping the Chop Shop.
  • Mid-Battle Tea Break: In the Chop Shop battle, Madame Gasket's workers deprive him of his weapons, but almost immediately after that, they start dancing to Britney Spears. The workers, having been caught off-guard, are taken out by Fender when they aren't looking.
  • Motor Mouth: He talks quite a lot faster than many of the other characters, adding to the comedic nature of his character.
  • Non-Action Guy: Especially in contrast to Piper, he's not so much for going out and doing adventurous stuff. At least until the end of the film.
  • Official Couple: It's hinted that he and Loretta get together by the end of the film.
  • Oh, Crap!: When the Sweeper sends him to the chop shop.
  • Plucky Comic Relief: He's the movie's main source of comedy, having a clumsy personality, a Motor Mouth and being voiced by Robin Williams.
  • Pulling Themselves Together: Fender has a habit of losing parts of himself at the most inopportune times.
  • Red Is Heroic: His main color scheme is red and is the deuteragonist of the film.
  • Red Oni, Blue Oni: The outgoing and impulsive Red to Rodney's level-headed and introverted Blue, both figuratively and literally.
    • But he is the bumbling, cowardly Blue himself to Piper's outspoken, aggressive Red.
  • Shout-Out: While he and Rodney are trying to come up with a way to signal each other at the Bigweld Ball, he gets this idea:
  • Slippery Skid: He tries to nick Rodney's foot, and he gets into a tug-of-war game with him for it, while trying to keep their balance on a river of ball bearings. Fender eventually loses his balance and falls over, literally losing his head in the process.
  • This Is My Name on Foreign: He claims he was called 'Bumper' before he immigrated.
  • Took a Level in Badass: In the climax of the film, he becomes very determined to save Rodney and Bigweld from Ratchet and his henchmen, even going as far as attempting to do it. He also proves to be quite competent in the midst of action after all, taking out some of Madame Gasket's minions by dancing to Britney Spears' "Baby, One More Time".
  • Ugly Guy, Hot Wife: Well, Ugly Guy, Hot Girlfriend in his case, since he only establishes a relationship with Loretta and doesn't go very far from that.
  • Unplanned Crossdressing: While he was trying to escape the chop shop, his legs fell off. He tried carrying on without them until he found some legs that fit him. Said legs are female.
  • The Voiceless: He appears in the short Aunt Fanny's Tour of Booty, but does not speak at all there. He is also this in the Playstation video game.

    Piper Pinwheeler 
Voiced by: Amanda Bynes (movie); Grey DeLisle (video game)note 
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/piper_robots_5.png

A young, feisty, and tomboyish yellow female robot and a member of the Rusties, as well as Fender's younger sister. Developing a crush on Rodney when she first meets him, she quickly becomes one of the blue bot's closest friends and strongest supporters, even if her brother tends to drive her up the wall at times.


  • Action Girl: Showed great examples of this during the climactic Chop Shop battle. In general, she's certainly the more aggressive one compared to her own brother.
  • Adaptational Jerkass: The PlayStation video game gives Piper a much more confrontational and threatening personality, with her being a rather competitive pod racer who scares Rodney into not letting anyone know about his victory over her (assuming that a number of people she knows see her as the best pod racer in the area).
  • Alliterative Name: Piper Pinwheeler
  • Back-to-Back Badasses: During the Chop Shop battle, she and Cappy both get surrounded by some of Gasket's minions, but they are able to take them out easily - they lock their arms together and Piper kicks them away while Cappy spins her.
  • Betty and Veronica: The Betty (an outmode from the Rusties who befriends Rodney along with everyone else in the group) to Cappy's Veronica (an upgrade-wearing executive from Bigweld Industries whom Rodney is more romantically interested in) for Rodney's Archie.
  • Beware the Nice Ones: Piper is a very supportive girl with a big heart, but she is still a fierce tomboy who doesn't let anyone take advantage of her, so she's not to be messed with.
  • Big Damn Heroes: Piper rallies all of the outmodes to help Rodney and his friends fight Gasket and her forces. Before revealing this to her friends, there's this:
    Piper: Did I miss the bot-whoopin'?
    Rodney, Fender, Crank, Lug and Cappy: Uh ... no.
    Crank: In fact, you're a little bit early.
    ''(The outmodes appear behind Piper and Aunt Fanny, cheering, "Rodney! Rodney! Rodney!")
    Piper: Then let's get started!
  • Clingy Jealous Girl: She shows shades of this when she sees Rodney with Cappy for the first time, additionally saying, "Who the heck is she?" Fortunately, she doesn't express any negative feelings about it later, and seems to have no problem with them dancing with each other at the end of the film.
  • Deadpan Snarker: Mostly towards Fender.
    Fender: We've told you a hundred times, "Don't talk to strange men". Thank you, Manuel.
    Piper: I talk to you. Who's stranger than that?
  • Dogged Nice Girl: She's sweet towards Rodney, and while he does grow to like her, it's not in a romantic fashion. It's Cappy that he has those feelings for.
  • Foil: To Cappy. Both are individual females who express a romantic interest in Rodney. However, Piper is more vocal about her infatuation with him and only finds out about his love for inventing a while after meeting him, in contrast to Cappy conveying her admiration more through facial expressions and being aware of his occupation from the first moment she met him.
  • Foolish Sibling, Responsible Sibling: She and Fender alternate between both roles. Piper, while being a rambunctious and overly ambitious tomboy, does make more sensible decisions than her brother. Fender, while being prone to making selfish and reckless decisions, does try to keep his sister safe.
  • Genki Girl: A while after Rodney has begun to excel in repairing outmodes, she claims that she gets all "static-y" just thinking about the possibilites of what could happen.
  • Hot-Blooded: Perhaps the most so out of any character in the main cast - she is by no means afraid to stand up for herself if you underestimate her, and she has a lot of buttons that get pushed very easily.
  • Hypocritical Humor: She says that the guys are gross for making armpit farts, before doing so herself.
  • I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: It's implied that during the film's final scene, she's gotten over her crush on Rodney and let him be with Cappy, and she doesn't seem to have a problem with dancing with the robot that danced to "Right Thurr" at the beginning.
  • Little Sister Instinct: She's as protective over Fender as he is over her.
  • Loony Fan: Eventually is this to Rodney once his popularity among the outmodes rises.
  • Masculine Girl, Feminine Boy: The Masculine Girl to Fender's Feminine Boy; she's clearly more likely to jump into the action and has a more passionate spirit to her, in high contrast to her brother's initial awkward cowardice.
  • Nice Girl: Besides being a feisty tomboy with a lot of spunk and attitude, Piper is extremely sweet, warmhearted and positive.
  • The Not-Love Interest: To Rodney. It's easy to think from the get-go that she is his love interest, but it turns out to be Cappy later.
  • Plucky Girl: Before Rodney comes along, Piper is the most upbeat of the Rusties, and the most vocal that outmodes have value.
  • Precocious Crush: Piper the teenager has a crush on Rodney who is a young adult.
  • Red Oni, Blue Oni: The outspoken, aggressive Red to Fender's bumbling, cowardly Blue.
  • Savvy Guy, Energetic Girl: The Energetic Girl to Rodney's Savvy Guy; he's a coolheaded and even-tempered introvert, while she is a high-spirited and perky Genki Girl whose feelings for him are not returned.
  • Tagalong Kid: She plays this role once everyone bands together to stop the bad guys. Her friends tend to see her as the The Baby of the Bunch (assuming she is the youngest out of all of them) and try to leave her out of the action during the climax. She proves all of them dead wrong when she rallies up the outmodes Rodney repaired to join them for the final battle.
  • Tomboy and Girly Girl: The Tomboy to Cappy's Girly Girl; she's the more brawny and extroverted one of the two and has a more casual and middle-classy appearance.
  • Violently Protective Girlfriend: Subverted in that she and Rodney are not boyfriend and girlfriend, but she still has a crush on him and won't let any one harm him.

    Crank Casey 
Voiced by: Drew Carey (movie); John Mariano (video game)note 
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/crank_robots_5.png
A jaded and pessimistic orange robot on wheels and a member of the Rusties who expects the worst to come out from any situation he and his friends find themselves in. Despite his negative outlook on life, that does not stop him from helping Rodney and his fellow Rusties from rebelling against Ratchet.
  • Alliterative Name: Crank Casey
  • Brilliant, but Lazy: Crank appeared to be this, but thankfully, as the film goes on, he decides to actually try new things without complaining.
  • The Cynic: His sense of humor can be summarized as sarcastic and bitter and is usually full of complaints.
  • Deadpan Snarker: The most sarcastic and pessimistic member of the main cast. Helps that he's voiced by Drew Carey!
  • The Eeyore: Appeared to be this, before his mild Character Development.
  • Jerkass Has a Point: After Fender reveals to everyone that Ratchet and Madame Gasket are about to unleash their fleet of super sweepers on the city, Crank quickly proposes for everyone to get on the train Rodney is going to take back to Rivet Town, as Ratchet will no doubt be coming after him (and by extension, all of them) for fixing the outmodes he wants sent to the Chop Shop. Rodney calls them out for wanting to run away, but then Crank rightfully points out that Rodney put them all in Ratchet's crosshairs by involving them in his mission to save the outmode citizens of Robot City. This doesn't stop Rodney from inspiring them to fight back against Ratchet and his mom, though.
  • Jerk with a Heart of Gold: As negative and grumpy as he may be, Crank is still loyal to his friends and will come through for them in the end.
  • Meaningful Name: Guess where he got the name "Crank" from?
  • Oh, Crap!: Gets this after seeing how many minions Gasket has:
    Fender: (Scottish accent) We've come to rescue our friends, you evil bag of bolts! And you will be defeated by the very outmodes that you scorn and deface!
    Crank: Yeah! 'Cause there's seven of us, and only one of you. (hundreds of minions appear behind Gasket) Whoa, whoa …
  • Potty Failure: During the scene where Rodney and Fender are looking for a room to bunk in, they accidentally run into him having an "oil change", which is essentially this universe's equivalent of having a round on the toilet. Crank indicates that this is something that has happened repeatedly in the same day:
    "Oh, man. This is my third oil change today. Something's wrong with me!"
  • Punny Name: Named for the crankcase of an engine, fitting for a robot on wheels.
  • The Smart Guy: Rodney is already a smart guy, but once he and his friends form a group, he is The Leader along with officially being The Hero, so Crank has the Smart Guy mantle. He is, of course, more the pessimistic type. For example:
    Crank: Hey, you want my advice?
    Rodney: Sure.
    Crank: Forget it. Never try, never fail. Those are the words I live by.
  • Sour Supporter: At first, he appears to be on Rodney's side only because his friends are, and he himself doesn't have a lot of optimism for him.
  • Took a Level in Badass: When Rodney tells everyone that they need to "shine and show them what (they're) really made of", he admits that all he has ever done for so much time is just complain and do nothing. He's tired of it and says he wants to try. Rodney then gives him the first "upgrade", a set of monster truck wheels, and he uses them to take out Gasket's minions.
  • Took a Level in Cheerfulness: And to add to that, it's implied that Crank adopts a brighter outlook on life by the end. He does make one grumpy remark at Herb's initially poor playing at the Rivet Town party, but once everything gets going, he's having just as much fun as everyone else present.

    Lug 
Voiced by: Harland Williamsnote 
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/robots_disneyscreencapscom_3709_9.jpg
A large, hulking, yet soft-spoken green robot and a member of the Rusties, Lug's massive frame belies a gentle soul who is slightly insecure about his size. Nonetheless, he is always eager to help his friends out, especially if it involves his great strength.
  • The Big Guy: He's the largest of the main robots and one of the strongest.
  • Big Guy, Little Guy: The Big Guy to Diesel's Little Guy.
  • Comically Missing the Point:
    Lug: Hey, Fender! Have you lost weight?
    Crank: "Lost weight"?! Look at where you're looking. He's a head, in a basket!
  • Dumb Muscle: Downplayed. Lug is more simple-minded than actually stupid .
  • Gentle Giant: May be the biggest member of the Rusties, but is actually one of the friendliest among them.
  • Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Diesel, whom he is never far from.
  • It's All There in the Manual: His name is never mentioned anywhere in the film's dialogue, only brought up in the credits and tie-in merchandising. However, his name is mentioned in one of the deleted scenes, as well as the video game.
  • Nice Guy: One of the friendlier members of the Rusties. When Fender calls Rodney out for knocking his head off, he is the only one to not show any aggressive feelings towards him.
  • Punny Name: Twofold, both for the lug nut on a wheel, and the fact that he himself is a "big lug."
  • Stout Strength: Greatly demonstrates this during the climactic Chop Shop battle, when fighting two of Madame Gasket's Mooks.
  • You Wouldn't Like Me When I'm Angry!: Implied during a deleted scene. Fender tells Rodney that you shouldn't ever make Lug mad, but when Rodney asks him what happens when he gets mad, Fender says that they don't know because he's never actually been mad before. In the film proper, we see in the climax he is indeed a force to be reckoned with when he is on the offensive.

    Diesel Springer 

Voiced by: N/A
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/robots_disneyscreencapscom_4085_3.jpg
A short, blue, springy robot and a member of the Rusties, Diesel's one goal in life is to find just the right voice box to give him the ability to speak. He joins forces with Rodney in hopes that he will finally find the voice box to cure him of his muteness.

    Aunt Fanny 
Voiced by: Jennifer Coolidgenote 
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/aunt_fan_robots_9.png
A kind-natured and nurturing elderly female robot and the owner of a boarding house the Rusties live in, making her a maternal figure to them and Rodney. She gets her name from her large, snail shell-like posterior (which tends to knock down objects and other robots) and harbors an attraction to Bigweld that is implied to be mutual.
  • Actual Pacifist: She is not someone who takes kindly to fighting, whether it be verbal or physical.
    Rodney: Come on, let's fight back!
    Aunt Fanny: Fighting never solves anything!
  • A Day in the Limelight: Aunt Fannys Tour Of Booty has her as the protagonist.
  • Ass Kicks You: Seems to do this a lot and usually by complete accident.
  • Badass Boast: During the final battle.
    (referring to her butt) "Say hello to my dimpled friend!"
  • Black Comedy: Her farts are so bad are so bad that a robot outside asphyxiates to death, with a chalk outline of the body on the street next morning.
  • Cool Old Lady: Aunt Fanny is likely to be in her 50's or 60's, and she's very cheery and good-humoured. She does prove to be a pretty awesome gal during the Chop Shop battle, too, using her rear to take out some of Madame Gasket's minions.
  • Dub Name Change: Her name is changed to "Aunt Fan" in the UK release (see Separated by a Common Language below).
  • Fartillery: Inadvertently does this at one point, killing a nearby street-lamp bot.
  • Fat Admirer: Aunt Fanny is a big fan of Bigweld, who is even bigger than she is.
  • Honorary Aunt: The Rusties call her "Aunt Fanny" despite not being related to her.
  • I Was Quite a Looker: When she sees Cappy for the first time, she wistfully muses that she once had a figure like hers. All the other robots double-take at the revelation.
  • Meaningful Name: You have three guesses as to where Aunt Fanny gets her name from.
    Rodney: "Well then, why is she called Aunt Fanny?"
    Fender: "We couldn't call her Aunt Booty..."
  • Nice Girl: Aunt Fanny is a kind-hearted robot who offers a roof to any robot down on their luck.
  • Never Mess with Granny: A kind, sweet, elderly robot...who's not afraid to get her hands (or, more accurately, her behind) dirty when it comes to fighting. She takes out several of Gasket's minions without flinching and delivers the Badass Boast above while doing it.
  • Separated by a Common Language: In the UK, her name is "Aunt Fan", because there, "fanny" is another word for lady parts.
  • Ship Tease: With Bigweld. It's assumed that they are a couple by the end of the film, seeing that they dance together.
  • Sit on the Camera: When Aunt Fanny first meets Rodney, she unintentionally crushes him with her you-know-what.
  • Team Mom: Aunt Fanny acts sort of like a grandmother figure to Rodney and the other Rusties.

    Wonderbot 
Voiced by: Chris Wedge
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/robots_disneyscreencapscom_1101_7.jpg
A small robot that Rodney built to do chores, initially to help Herb do his job. Despite being created by Rodney, Wonderbot is not seen as his son and is sort of more like a pet due to his goofy antics and inability to speak (he makes high-pitched noises instead). Wonderbot is also a bit of a scaredy-cat and, when nervous, he will either fly around erratically or physically fall to pieces.
  • Badass Adorable: Just look at his version of Screaming Warrior as he prepares to attack Madame Gasket.
  • Big Damn Heroes: In the final battle, Wonderbot is the machine to finally rid the film's main antagonist.
  • Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: He may be small and meek, but that doesn't stop him from fighting Madame Gasket.
  • Do-Anything Robot: Rodney invented him to help his dad with his job.
  • Heterosexual Life-Partners: With Rodney.
  • Let's Get Dangerous!: When confronting Madame Gasket, he faints before getting up again with a pipe in his hands and proceeds to dominate her in a pipe duel.
  • Made of Iron: Pun not intended. Despite his fragile looks, he's able to withstand a blow from a metal pipe. In fact, his reaction is just to push it off him and crack his neck.
  • Mr. Vice Guy: Wonderbot has a tendency to be easily startled, but otherwise he is quite efficient at doing whatever he's assigned to do.
  • Nervous Tics: Wonderbot either flies around erratically or literally falls to pieces when he's nervous.
  • Pintsized Powerhouse:
    • Is able to take on Madame Gasket near the end of the film.
    • Wonderbot was able to hold onto both Bigweld and Rodney for a few seconds after the latter two crashed through the window.
  • Shrinking Violet: He frequently gets nervous and has a big sense of self-consciousness. When Mr. Gunk comes in and starts shouting at Herb and Rodney, Wonderbot goes into a state of panic and starts wrecking the kitchen, with the reason being purely that Mr. Gunk actually terrified him.
  • The Speechless: He doesn't have a speaking part, communicating through a series of squeaks and hand gestures.
  • Took a Level in Badass: Wonderbot spent most of the movie being a Shrinking Violet and tends to have Nervous Tics, but when confronting Madame Gasket, he was ready to fight.
  • True Companions: He is with Rodney almost anywhere he goes.

    Cappy 
Voiced by: Halle Berry (movie); Grey DeLisle (video game)note 
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/cappy_robots_8.png

A promising young executive at Bigweld Industries and Rodney's love interest, as well as the object of Ratchet's desires. Unlike the majority of the company's board of directors who are all in favor of Ratchet's new policies, Cappy is sympathetic towards the plight of Robot City's lower-class citizens, and for good reason: her father was a vacuum cleaner and her mother was the attachments. Growing attracted to Rodney and his noble cause, she is all-too-eager to help him bring Ratchet down.


  • Action Girl: She doesn't fully show this until the start of the film's climax, when she reveals that she has roller blades hidden in her feet, and is able to take out several security guards in order to try to get to the escaping Rodney and Bigweld. This is even more prominent in the Chop Shop battle, when she hons her skills even more to try to defeat Madame Gasket's minions.
  • Back-to-Back Badasses: During the Chop Shop battle, she and Piper both get surrounded by some of Gasket's minions, but they are able to take them out easily - they lock their arms together and Piper kicks them away while Cappy spins her.
  • Betty and Veronica: The Veronica (an upgrade-wearing executive from Bigweld Industries whom Rodney is more romantically interested in) to Piper's Betty (an outmode from the Rusties who befriends Rodney along with everyone else in the group) for Rodney's Archie.
  • Beauty Equals Goodness: Like Ratchet, she's quite physically attractive, having a very delicately built face and a slender body which makes her look rather graceful in those upgrades she wears. Unlike Ratchet, she's a purely good character who is sympathetic towards the outmodes and eventually ditches her comrades to side with the other heroes.
  • Birds of a Feather: See Dark and Troubled Past below. According to all that, another reason she develops appreciation for Rodney is that she sees a lot of herself in him, the two coming from similar backgrounds and being firm believers in what Bigweld stood for.
  • Brainy Brunette: She has dark hair and is one of the shrewdest and most practical characters in the film.
  • Dark and Troubled Past: According to other merchandising and an interview with Halle Berry, Cappy had a very similar past to Rodney, being another robot made of spare parts and having underpriveleged parents - her father being a vaccuum cleaner and her mother a set of attachments. And during her early days at Bigweld Industries, someone (most likely Ratchet) forced her to trade all of her old parts for upgrades to get a better position at her job.
  • Dark Is Not Evil: Cappy wears upgrades that are of a really dull grey colour and is dark-haired as well, but she's nevertheless a sensible, level-headed and loyal individual.
  • The Dog Bites Back: She kicks Ratchet's ass in a deleted scene exclusive to the first trailer.
  • Foil: To Piper. Both are individual females who express a romantic interest in Rodney. However, while Cappy's appreciation for Rodney is very strong, she displays it in a much quieter and more modest manner than with Piper, who is much more passionate and ardent about her feelings for him. Rodney's love for inventing is also the very first thing that Cappy learns about him, while Piper doesn't find out about it until a while after she meets him.
  • Girly Girl with a Tomboy Streak: She's calm, demure and quiet, and can seem rather feminine on the outset, especially when paired with the rougher and more boisterous Piper, but she's also a very capable Action Girl who can take out anyone who stands in her way. To add to that, she's a good pilot and drives one of the security vehicles during the chase scene.
  • Half-Hearted Henchman: In her first appearance, she is on Ratchet's side, but does not agree with his new policies in the slightest.
  • Heel–Face Turn: Was originally part of Ratchet's team, but ultimately decides to defect to Rodney's team, due to the former's lack of regard for outmodes.
  • He Is Not My Boyfriend: A very brief, offhand example with Rodney. Just before Bigweld is about to make his big comeback to his factory, he tells Cappy that Rodney, whom he refers to as her boyfriend, is a genius. Cappy begins to insist that he isn't her boyfriend, but stops near the end of her sentence and considers that he might actually be her boyfriend.
    Cappy: Oh, he's not my — he is?
    Rodney: I am?
  • Humanoid Female Animal: Well, robot, but she's the most human looking female character in the movie.
  • Letting Her Hair Down: When we first see her, she is wearing her hair in a Prim and Proper Bun, and is still wearing it like that during the Bigweld Ball. After Bigweld sides with everyone to take Ratchet down, she starts wearing her hair plain.
  • Nice Girl: Although she does start out on Ratchet's side, Cappy is actually one of the kindest characters in the film, showing sympathy and concern for the outmodes and trying to keep Rodney as far from danger as she can. She is also very supportive of Rodney, showing him a warm, understanding smile after his downhearted phone conversation with his parents, and an encouraging one after Bigweld comes out of hiding and tells Rodney that he wants to grow up to be like him.
  • Non-Mammal Mammaries: Is a robot with the largest chest in the movie.
  • Official Couple: Becomes this with Rodney.
  • Only One Name: Her given name is the only one she gets throughout the film's run time. Notably, during a blink-and-you'll-miss it moment at the beginning of the Bigweld Ball scene, she is on Tim's list of invitees, and while some of the other ones on the list have full names, she is still only referred to as the name she has.
  • Only Sane Employee: When Ratchet reveals the plan to start selling upgrades and changing the company slogan, she seems to be the only one who's aware of the number of robots who wouldn't be able to afford upgrades, since parts are a lot cheaper.
  • Only Sane Woman: Out of all the characters Rodney runs into, she's arguably the one who has the most common sense. She definitely also qualifies whenever you put her against Ratchet and the other executives — Ratchet is bigoted towards outmodes and the others are oblivious to the fact that his plan is to go against everything that Bigweld envisioned for the company, so Cappy is definitely the only one who has a firmly good moral compass. It's implied that she initially thought that Robot City might have even been too dangerous of a place to even survive in, though that wouldn't have been without reason, given how often sweepers are out on the prowl and that Rodney is made of hand-me-downs.
  • Prim and Proper Bun: She wears her hair like this during her first few appearances before letting it down sometime before the film's climax.
  • Screw This, I'm Outta Here: She leaves Ratchet to side with the good guys a bit over halfway through the film.
  • Sexy Backless Outfit: She wears one during the Bigweld Ball scene. What's more is that the top of it is visibly bolted to the front of her body.
  • Single Woman Seeks Good Man: She dislikes Ratchet because of his arrogance and uncaring attitude toward other robots. When she first meets Rodney, she takes an instant liking to him because of his enthusiasm for being an inventor and his wish to meet Bigweld. When their paths cross again at the Bigweld Ball, she is once again shown to admire him when he speaks up and loudly questions Ratchet on where Bigweld is.
  • Strong Girl, Smart Guy: The Strong Girl (goes against Ratchet and the rest of her colleagues to stick up for the outmodes) to Rodney's Smart Guy (comes up with inventions to help make the robot world a better place).
  • Token Good Teammate: Of Bigweld industries while it was under Ratchet's control. She was the only one not satisfied with Ratchet's plans and is a strong believer in the old motto, "You can shine no matter what you're made of."
  • Tomboy and Girly Girl: The Girly Girl to Piper's Tomboy; she is very gentle and stolid when compared to the latter and has a more beautiful and typically feminine appearance.
  • Violently Protective Girlfriend: She shows this when she is about to save Rodney from the clutches of Ratchet's henchmen - this is the point where she has her Heel–Face Turn.

    Herb Copperbottom 
Voiced by: Stanley Tuccinote 
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/robots_disneyscreencapscom_7328_8.jpg
Rodney's loving and supportive father and Lydia's husband who works as a dishwasher at a diner in Rivet Town. A humble working-class bot and dedicated family man, Herb has nothing but faith in his son's aspirations to become an inventor and never thinks twice to tell Rodney that he can achieve his dream if he works hard enough toward it.
  • Ascended Extra: Has a slightly bigger role in the video game, serving as the Narrator for the pre-level cutscenes as well as Rodney's guide during the first level.
  • Bumbling Dad: Appeared to be this at first, when he and his wife are assembling their baby.
  • Crippling Overspecialization: Before he gives Rodney a pep talk at the Rivet Town train station, he says that he wanted to be a musician, and he played quite decently, but his father was afraid that he wouldn't be able to make a living, so he got refitted to be a dishwasher and had no other options if ever something had to change for him.
  • The Dog Bites Back: Towards the end of the film, Herb shoves his dishwashing suit onto Mr. Gunk when the latter tries to stop him from reuniting with Rodney.
  • Dreadful Musician: Subverted Trope. When he begins playing music at his son's insistence, he is self-admittedly rusty and blows out a few sour notes. But as he keeps playing, he gets his rhythm back and puts on a good performance.
  • Glasses of Aging: He has fully-functional eyes in the prologue, but by the time Rodney becomes an adult, he's shown to need glasses.
  • Good Parents: Everything Rodney aspired to be and achieve was all thanks to Herb's influence. Even when he's weak and needs new parts, Herb never stops believing in his son and keeps pushing him to fulfill his dreams.
  • Groin Attack: Ends up doing this to his own son. The two of them wanted a boy that was to become Rodney, so they had to build him from scratch. When they finally built him... they forgot the one specific piece to make him a boy and his father ended up hammering it into place.
  • Laser-Guided Karma: A rare positive example. He has consistently made it a point to Rodney that he should follow his dreams and, despite setbacks, it pays off big time for Rodney. By the end of the film, Rodney gives him the encouragement to re-pursue his dream as a musician and he eventually gets his mojo back.
  • Like Father, Like Son: It's extremely clear that Herb and Rodney have a lot in common, both having been idealistic dreamers and showing great talent for what they aspired to do.
  • Nice Guy: Herb is a very loving and supportive father who will stay by his son's side if it takes him to the end of the world.
  • Proud Papa Passes Out the Cigars: While celebrating the delivery of his son, Herb shoves metal cigars into the mouths of two men on a bench as he rushes home.
  • Pursue the Dream Job: Like Rodney, he had a great ambition at a young age - to become a musician. Of course, something else happened to him later, but he finally gets his wish at the end of the film when Rodney gives him a three-bell horn and encourages him to play it.
  • Screw This, I'm Outta Here: See The Dog Bites Back above. He finally loses it with Mr. Gunk and quits his job as a dishwasher in order to get outside to see Rodney.
  • So Proud of You: Seriously, how many times does this guy need to express how proud of his son he is?

    Lydia Copperbottom 
Voiced by: Dianne Wiest (movie); Kelly Keaton (video game)note 
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/robots_disneyscreencapscom_435_1.jpg
Rodney's caring and somewhat overprotective mother and Herb's wife. Though she loves her son to death, she is reluctant to let him go off on his own to pursue his dreams out of concern that he won't succeed.
  • Amazingly Embarrassing Parents: There are two instances where she pulls this off: when she and Herb are showing Rodney his twelve-year-old parts from his cousin Veronica, she embarrasses Rodney by saying "You know how popular she is!" in a sing-song voice, and when Rodney is leaving for Robot City - she exclaims, "Robot City?! You're just a kid!", to which Herb rolls his eyes, and while we don't see him in that shot, it is assumed that Rodney got slightly annoyed by this as well.
  • Drama Queen: She is quite fussy and melodramatic during the train station scene, showing reluctance to let Rodney leave.
  • Doting Parent: Her approach to parenting is considerably more protective than Herb's more relaxed tactic.
  • Good Parents: Not to the same extent as Herb, but Lydia was still a kind and nurturing mother to Rodney.
  • Innocent Innuendo: Her moment at the beginning of the film with the "build a baby" joke.
  • My Beloved Smother: She is this to Rodney during the train station scene before she gives up and decides to let him go to Robot City, though she is noticeably teary-eyed about it.
  • Nice Girl: A kindhearted and pleasant mother, if a bit protective and worrisome.
  • Overprotective Mom: She is less comfortable about the idea of Rodney going to Robot City than Herb, going as far as ranting about how Rodney is "just a kid".

Villains

    Phineas T. Ratchet 
Voiced by: Greg Kinnear (movie); Jim Meskimen (video game)note 
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ratchet_robots_3.png
The sleek, suave, and scheming new head of Bigweld Industries, Ratchet's love for spreading his vision of a Robot City populated solely by upgraded robots is only matched by his abhorrence towards the city's outmode citizens. When his mission to crack down on the lower class puts him at odds with Rodney and his friends, Ratchet is willing to pull every dirty trick at his disposal to reduce them to scrap metal. But for all his power over the city, there is one robot that he regards with fear and respect: his mother.
  • Ambition Is Evil: Ratchet had much greater ambitions towards profit, so he convinced Bigweld to leave him in charge because of his business sense. But, taking over Bigweld’s company wasn’t enough. When he asks why he would want to get rid of Bigweld, his mother Madame Gasket tells him essentially, he’s still in Bigweld’s shadow, and if Bigweld somehow comes back, that’s not good for him. Madame Gasket then asks him, why not rebrand the company or take over Robot City, which deep down is what he’s always wanted.
  • Bad Boss: He doesn't care much about his employees or outmodes.
  • Bastard Understudy: His rise to power involved telling Bigweld that making lives better is an outdated idea and forcing him into hiding.
  • Beauty Is Bad: Ratchet is a sharp, clean and handsome-looking robot who just so happens to be one of the villains of the film.
  • Big Bad: Subverted. He's introduced as the main baddie, but after the introduction of the Chop Shop and his even worse mother, Madame Gasket, it turns out that his mother is the real originator of the plan and the true main antagonist. He is, however, the main antagonist of the PlayStation video game, and to add to that, Madame Gasket makes no appearance there.
  • Bigotry Exception: Hates all "outmodes" and willingly secures his mother's genocidal plot without remorse, yet makes an exception for said mother, who is obviously "outmoded" herself.
  • Blood Knight: He is incredibly overjoyed about the idea of mauling the "outmodes" trying to fight his Super Sweepers in the final battle.
    "This is gonna get greasyyy!"
  • Corrupt Corporate Executive: He's a ruthless executive willing to put outmodes out of work.
    "There's no money in it!! Hellooo? Memo to Bigweld! We're not a charity!"
  • Did You Just Punch Out Cthulhu?: Right after Ratchet asks to make a heartfelt plea, Bigweld decided to let him do so, only for the former to knock him out with the intercom.
  • Dirty Coward: When Bigwelds returns and confronts him, his immediate reaction is to crouch and then beg for another chance, then make one more plea. Bigweld lets his guard down, and Ratchet whacks him with his intercom.
  • The Dragon: To Madame Gasket. She is the one who ultimately wants to take over Robot City, while he carries out various aspects of the plan.
  • Dragon-in-Chief: Madame Gasket is the one who influences her son to carry out her evil plans. However, as he is the one in control of Bigweld Industries, he is the one able to create the resources necessary for those plans, especially the Super Sweepers (which are much more efficient at getting rid of the lower-class of Robot City than his mother's are).
  • Establishing Character Moment: His first scene in the movie starts with him praising Bigweld's generosity, only to then immediately switch gears, admonishing Bigweld for there being no money in his philosophy and unveiling his upgrade-centric, insecurity-exploiting plan for "sucking every loose penny out of Mr. and Mrs. Average Knucklehead".
  • Even Bad Men Love Their Mamas: Madame Gasket is the only non-upgrade robot that he doesn't dislike. He's legitimately devastated when she winds up getting incinerated.
  • Even Evil Has Standards: Subverted. When Madame Gasket tells him that nobody will be able to fix the city's outmoded citizens after he kills Bigweld, Ratchet reacts with visible discomfort and argues that Bigweld is no threat to them or their plan, which suggests he isn't comfortable with the idea of murdering another robot. As the film progresses, however, it becomes clearer that he doesn't have a problem with killing others as long as he's not the one to carry out the deed until the film's climax, where he pilots one of the super sweepers and expresses gleeful anticipation to kill off the attacking robots on himself.
  • Fantastic Racism: Has a strong dislike of rusty old robots, preferring the newer model of robots.
  • Fate Worse than Death: Instead of being thrown into the incinerator like his mother, Ratchet is left hanging from the ceiling of the Chop Shop with all of his upgrades stripped away. The worst part is that he's hanging right next to his loser dad.
  • Faux Affably Evil: He does occasionally act quite charming and civil towards his employees and even briefly towards Rodney when he appears inside the boardroom, but this doesn't do anything to subvert how dastardly and power-hungry he is.
  • Hanging Around: A non-suicidal version. At the end of the final battle, his fate is to be left hanging from the ceiling of the Chop Shop beside his loser dad, with his upgrades gone.
  • The Heavy: Does most of the evil work in the film, and has more screentime than his mother.
  • If I Can't Have You…: Once Cappy ends her relationship with him to save Rodney, Ratchet decides that he's going to melt her down into upgrades alongside Rodney, Bigweld, and the Wonderbot.
  • Jerkass: Beyond his fake politeness, Ratchet is just a big bully who hates the lower-class in Robot City and thinks he's better than all of them. While he loves his mother like she loves him, he also rarely shows it in any other form than displaying his love for her genocidal goals (compared to when she does it to him on a more personal level), considering the most obviously courteous thing he does for her is provide her with the Super Sweepers.
  • Kick the Dog: When Rodney demonstrates Wonderbot to Ratchet, he promptly (and literally) kicks the little bot out and has his guards take Rodney back to the main entrance.
  • Last-Name Basis: Ratchet is his surname, and that is how most characters in the film refer to him as. His full name is stated only once, when his appearance on stage at the Bigweld Ball is announced.
  • Laughably Evil: There's no doubt that Ratchet is a materialistic and devious scumbag, but he does get plenty of funny moments to balance it out — any time he Screams Like a Little Girl is hilarious, and he really milks the scene where Bigweld is firing him for all it's worth.
  • Mama's Boy: Madame Gasket has him marching to the beat of her drum for the entire movie.
  • My God, What Have I Done?: A brief subversion. Once he knocks Bigweld out in a desperate fit of opportunity, he has time to squeak out in horror that he's as crazy as his motheronly to deliver another blow to Bigweld's head when he starts moving again.
  • Naked People Are Funny: Or robots in this case. At the end, when he ends up on the ceiling, all of his upgrades except his shoes fall off his body and break apart, leaving Phineas just in his endoskeleton, a sight that the heroes seem particularly amused by.
  • Not Helping Your Case: During Bigweld's comeback he tries desperately to convince the latter not to fire him, realizing all too late that what he's saying won't do anything.
    "No, wait, please! Listen to me! You can't do this to me. This job is my life! It means everything to me. You don't know what I've done to get here. The lies I've told! The lives I've ruined! (Beat) This isn't helping me."
  • Oh, Crap!:
    • He immediately freaks out the moment Bigweld enters the meeting room after learning he was coming.
    • He and Madame Gasket had the biggest one when they were getting closer to the furnace. He was able to escape but was upset that his mom ended up in the furnace.
  • Psychopathic Manchild: His official profile even describes him as "Shiny but whiny."
  • Screams Like a Little Girl: Does this several times in the film.
  • Sharp-Dressed Man: He wears a shiny "suit" with a red tie. He loses it at the end battle.
  • Suddenly Shouting: His first scene has him initially calmly explaining why no one runs into values such as Bigweld's anymore … and when he makes his point, he hollers in an employee's face.
    "You don't come across old-fashioned values like that anymore, friends. And for good reason. THERE'S NO MONEY IN IT!!!"
  • Tall, Dark, and Handsome: He's a tall and imposing figure, has a gun-metal coloured body and certainly looks very handsome with that suit of shiny upgrades. He's also one of the two villains of the film, thus fitting the Beauty Is Bad trope.
  • Vile Villain, Laughable Lackey: Despite being on a similar level of evil as his mother, he does fall into the Laughably Evil category a lot more frequently while Madame Gasket is much more intimidating.
  • Villainous Crush: He makes very unsubtle passes at Cappy, much to her disgust.
  • Wicked Pretentious: His "professional" demeanor and polished design is just a mask to hide the fact that he works for the gruesome and much dirtier Madame Gasket.

    Madame Gasket 
Voiced by: Jim Broadbent (movie); Fred Tatasciore (video game)note 
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/madame_gasket_robots_4.png

Ratchet's monstrous and sadistic mother and the owner of the Chop Shop, a factory where scrap metal and sometimes still-alive robots are melted down into new metal for upgrades, as well as the true mastermind behind her son's plan to eradicate the outmode citizens of Robot City.


  • Ax-Crazy: So much so that Ratchet, her own son, points this out after luring Bigweld into getting captured.
  • Bait the Dog: She gives her labor-exhausted minions break time... only to then declare that break time is over before they can process what she said. Evidently, she does this For the Evulz.
  • Big Bad: The mastermind of the Chop Shop and the Evil Plan to replace all of the outmodes in the city, as well as the mother to the film's initial baddie, Ratchet.
  • Boomerang Bigot: She's not fond of "outmodes", but she herself doesn't exactly look brand spanking new.
  • Card-Carrying Villain: Is completely aware of her evil desires, and doesn't refrain from taking pride in them at all. Best demonstrated in this exchange:
    Bigweld: Gasket, you're a sick, twisted, evil robot!
    Gasket: I try. (maniacal laughter)
  • The Dreaded: The Rusties are clearly absolutely terrified of Gasket's machinations at the Chop Shop, hiding from one of her Sweepers as they pass by them during Rodney's visit to Robot City.
  • Even Evil Has Loved Ones: Even though she tends to keep him under her thumb and can be a bit harsh, she clearly loves Ratchet and tends to fuss over him.
  • Evil Cannot Comprehend Good: In the climax, she is utterly confused as to why Rodney would try and save Bigweld from being tossed into her incinerator, and immediately after, is confused by Wonderbot's Heroic Willpower to confront her.
  • Evil Counterpart: Madame Gasket is one to Herb Copperbottom due to both of them being parents of a major character of the film (Herb to Rodney and Madame Gasket to Ratchet) who encourage their dreams and ambitions their children have. But while Herb is genuinely altruistic and encourages Rodney to pursue his dreams of becoming an inventor without any thought of what it would do for himself, Madame Gasket is an opportunistic hag who encourages Ratchet's ambitions of cracking down on "outmodes" to make everything shinier so she can continue her sadistic pleasure in melting down scrap in her chop shop to make new upgrades.
  • Evil Matriarch: The sinister mother of the already evil Ratchet, and the one pulling his strings. Unusually for their dynamic, Gasket isn't an abusive parent; though smothering and controlling, Gasket's only redeeming quality is that she dotes on her "sweetie" and plots to make him ruler of the city as much for his benefit as for her own.
  • Faux Affably Evil: She tries to crack a joke on occasion and speaks in an upbeat tone, but at the same time, she's constantly insulting and threatening everyone around her while also planning to commit Genocide from the Inside. By the time she reveals the Super Sweepers in the climax, she obviously drops the facade completely and reveals how much of a Jerkass she is.
  • For the Evulz: At first, greed is implied to be the reason for eradicating all outmodes from Robot City, as upgrades will end up raking in profits and allow Ratchet to usurp control. Gasket's general attitude would contradict this, however, seemingly implying her to be doing evil for the thrill of it.
  • Hoist by Her Own Petard: She uses the Chop Shop incinerator to transform old parts into new ones. It ends up being her own undoing.
  • Jerkass: She's a rude, condescending, self-serving robot who planned to wipe out the robot equivalent of the lower-class so she could rake in the profits from upgrades For the Evulz. Her only redeeming quality is seemingly that her love for Ratchet is sincere and she wants him to rule alongside her, but how sincere is quite unclear.
  • Karmic Death: At the end of the film, she gets tossed into her own incinerator.
  • Kill It with Fire: during the final battle, she fell down towards the incinerator, now to used as new mechanicals parts from her molten metal.
  • Knight of Cerebus: Whenever she appears in the film, expect a dark, villainous energy to carry her.
  • Lady Looks Like a Dude: She looks like an elderly man.
  • Larynx Dissonance: Her voice sounds like an older man, given that she is voiced by Jim Broadbent. It's even lampshaded by Fender.
  • Manipulative Bastard: Gasket wickedly has everyone in the cast under her control while they're none the wiser, including her son Ratchet, being the one behind the plot to wipe out all of the outmodes in Robot City and the one behind all of Ratchet's schemes while he's in control of Bigweld Industries. They don't even realize that she's the mastermind until Fender ends up in her workshop because Ratchet carries out all of her plans on her behalf, while she works from her underground factory. This eventually leads Bigweld right to her due to a fatal mistake on his part.
  • My Beloved Smother: A dark variation. She keeps her son pressed deep under her thumb; her husband, and his father, is literally tied up ineffectually in the Chop Shop so he can't do anything. All of Ratchet's evil plans and ambition come from Madame Gasket's overbearing influence on her son, conditioning him so he'll take over the entire city.
  • Near-Villain Victory: She actually gets frighteningly close to killing off Bigweld in the climax, if not for Rodney's intervention and Wonderbot daring to confront her, eventually leading to her death. The same thing for releasing the Super Sweepers into Robot City, since they were otherwise invincible if not for Rodney also knocking them over using her own factory.
  • Obviously Evil: Madame Gasket acts motherly to Ratchet to show the viewer that she can be innocent when she requires such a demeanour. However, her design, voice, and generally pure sadism are enough to show that she's a totally soulless being that appears as a robotic Hellspawn.
  • Oh, Crap!: She is utterly horrified when Wonderbot sends her into the incinerator.
  • Psychopathic Womanchild: She is too immature to understand anyone else's ideals but her own, has a strong desire for control over the populace, and is willing to mock and insult her enemies for the pettiest of reasons. Then alongside all of that is her ruthless and genocidal plot that the heroes have to stop.
  • Red Right Hand: Her left hand is a pincer instead of a normal hand, unlike her right hand.
  • Robotic Psychopath: She's a robot who's also a genocidal maniac.
  • Sadist: Has a great joy in threatening outmoded robots, especially Bigweld. She's also the main reason behind Ratchet being so compliant, as he pressures him to act in extremes when confronting him about Rodney fixing outmodes.
  • Underestimating Badassery: She believes she can win against the Rusties alongside Ratchet if she sends in all of her minions all at once without regard for their life, but is proven wrong when Rodney saves Bigweld and Wonderbot tosses her into her own incinerator.
  • Undignified Death: And a Karmic Death as well. Getting tossed into her own incinerator to be melted down into the upgrades she used to take control of Robot City by her Arch-Enemy's dishwasher assist bot followed by her own son, whom she manipulated the whole time for her own reasons. Fittingly undignified considering her genocidal goals, however.
  • The Unfettered: She has no qualms to murder Bigweld to solidify her son's rule over Robot City, and she even threatens to hang Ratchet next to his father for hesitating on the plan.
  • Unsettling Gender-Reveal: Rodney and the outmodes thought Gasket was a guy, until the latter reveals that "he" is a woman.
  • The Woman Behind the Man: Or rather "The Mother Behind the Son", being the one behind Ratchet's schemes while working as the new head of Bigweld Industries.

Other Characters

    Mr. Gunk 
Voiced by: Dan Hedayanote 
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/robots_disneyscreencapscom_1199_1.jpg
Herb Copperbottom's abrasive and foul-tempered boss who scoffs at Rodney's dreams at becoming an inventor
  • Brooklyn Rage: He is very grumpy in nature and has a thick Brooklynese accent, courtesy of Dan Hedaya, who hails from Brooklyn himself.
  • Green and Mean: A rather dark shade of green that has a bit of black in it, and not a nice person in the slightest.
  • Hate Sink: We can’t fully hate Ratchet due to his longing to be out of his mother’s shadow, and while Madame Gasket is truly evil she has humorous quirks that make her entertaining. Mr. Gunk on the other hand is a heartless Bad Boss whose sole purpose in the film is to act like an all-around asshole to the Copperbottoms, making him easier to hate than the movies actual villains. The creators even lampshade this on the commentary, remarking that Mr. Gunk is about as despicable as Madame Gasket.
  • Incoming Ham: The first we see of him is him screaming "COPPERBOTTOM!" after he barges through the kitchen doors, which scares Wonderbot.
  • Jerkass Has a Point: Despite Mr. Gunk's aforementioned harsh actions towards Rodney and Herb, he admittedly did have a good reason to be angry with them on both occasions:
    • He frightened Wonderbot with his shouting and dismissed Rodney from the restaurant without letting him explain what was going on earlier, but he points out that Wonderbot had understandably left the kitchen in a mess.
    • The point at the end of the film where he stops Herb from going outside to see Rodney was understandable, too, as Herb was about to walk away from his job without being excused to leave. However, Herb had pretty much had enough of him by that point, so he could have at least been a little nicer about it.
  • Laser-Guided Karma: At the end of the film, Mr. Gunk's Jerkass behavior ends up causing Herb to quit his job, and by shoving his head into his dishwasher no less!
  • Last-Name Basis: He calls Herb by his last name, Copperbottom.
  • Mean Boss: A great exemplification of the trope, as it is implied that he is a total dickwad to Herb.
  • No Sympathy: He doesn't care about Wonderbot when he inadvertently makes a mess in this kitchen due to nervousness, when Wonderbot was able to help Herb and Rodney clean the dishes earlier.
  • Perpetual Frowner: From what little we see of him, the vehement scowl we often see him making appears to be his most common facial expression; he wears it throughout both of his scenes with Herb and Rodney and is visibly seen with it in an older newspaper photo, which isn't saying much.
  • Small Role, Big Impact: He only appears in two scenes, but the first of which is the one which kicks off the main part of the plot - Rodney going to Robot City to try and meet Bigweld.
  • Ungrateful Bastard: Rather than showing gratitude that Rodney made Herb's job easier, Mr. Gunk orders Rodney to Get Out! and insults him.

    Tim the Gate Guard 
Voiced by: Paul Giamatti (movie); Dee Bradley Baker (video game) Creatornote 
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/robots_disneyscreencapscom_2410_0.jpg
The seemingly friendly but truly obnoxious puppet-like gatekeeper of Bigweld Industries who ridicules Rodney's attempt at getting in to see Bigweld.
  • Adaptational Nice Guy: Well, barely. In the video game, he is still a Jerk, however his treatment of Rodney is somewhat less cruel than it is in the movie.
  • Ain't Too Proud to Beg: Before being kicked out of the Rivet Town party, he begs Wonderbot to let him be in because he was on the list. It doesn't work at all.
  • Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: He seems nice at first when on Bigweld's TV show. However... see below.
  • The Bully: The way he treats Rodney certainly makes him one. From laughing in his face to belittling him and calling him a freak.
  • Deadpan Snarker: He is just as sarcastic as he is cruel.
  • Depraved Dwarf: "Depraved" is overstating it. However, he still counts for being a total jerkass who also happens to be short.
  • Dirty Coward: Tim will be rude to anyone, except for upper-class officials, and only because he is very intimidated by them. A good example is when Rodney and Fender return to the building disguised as aristocrats.
  • Faux Affably Evil: Always puts on a sarcastic, but friendly tone of voice while mocking people and laughing in their faces.
  • For the Evulz: He really has no reason to be nasty to Rodney, other than because he enjoys it.
  • Gate Guardian: Served as this to Bigweld Industries.
  • Hate Sink: At least Ratchet and Madame Gasket are entertaining to watch, despite their villainous personalities. Tim, on the other hand, is just a repulsive little bully with no redeeming qualities.
  • Ironic Echo: Gets a thoroughlly fitting one in his final scene.
    Tim: (to Wonderbot, who is about to kick him out): "Wait a minute! Wait a minute! I-I-I was on the list! (nervous laughter) Don't you know who I am? Wait-"
    Wonderbot punts him off-screen
  • Jerkass: Tim has something of a comical and well-meaning personality on Bigweld's TV show, but the defining aspect of his real-life personality is that he's a very petty, mean-spirited asshole with a cruel sense of humour. He also had no qualms of being mean to Rodney and cruelly taunting him and laughing in his face, just for the sake of it, and informing him that Bigweld Industries is under new management. Thankfully, he gets his just desserts at the end of the film when Wonderbot kicks him away.
  • Jerkass Has a Point: Zigzagged. On one hand, Tim isn't exactly wrong for refusing to let Rodney in, since it is against the company's rules to let in random people. On the hand, however, his cruel and taunting attitude towards Rodney is completely unacceptable, and it only highlights what a horrible little scumbag Tim is.
  • Karma Houdini Warranty: He initially manages to get away with his mean-spirited behavior towards Rodney, but he is later threatened, slapped, and humiliated by Fender when he and Rodney disguise themselves in order to infiltrate the Bigweld Ball. Then, the final scene in the film has Wonderbot kicking him out of the Rivet Town party as a punishment for all of it.
  • Lack of Empathy: Tim isn't a particularly sensitive guy.
  • Nice Character, Mean Actor: While he seemed to be really nice on Bigweld's show, in reality, he is actually a huge jerk who refuses to let Rodney in to see Bigweld.
  • Professional Butt-Kisser: When interacting with those that are higher ranking (or at least pretending to be), Tim immediately sucks up to them.
  • Sadist: He doesn't even try to hide the fact he gets a kick out of being nasty to people.
  • Silly Rabbit, Idealism Is for Kids!: He openly mocks Rodney for his passion for inventing and working with Bigweld.
    Rodney: Listen, I'll be back, and I'm gonna get to the bottom of this!
    Tim: When you pick a lost cause, you really commit! Where do they make dreamers like you? GET LOST, FREAK!
  • Took a Level in Jerkass: A possible interpretation. Tim might have started out as a decent guy, but thanks to Ratchet taking the helm of the company, he became an asshole.
  • Villainy-Free Villain: While he's not evil by any means, he is, however, an unpleasant, callous little prick who is verbally abusive to everyone.

    Jack Hammer 
Voiced by: Alan Rosenbergnote 
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/robots_disneyscreencapscom_3960_2.jpg

  • Adaptational Nice Guy: He's a lot nicer in the video game than he is in the movie.
  • Ascended Extra: He is a minor character in the film, but actually has quite a prominent role in the video game, even going as far as to help Rodney in part of his quest.
  • Brutal Honesty: When Fender complains about how he cannot afford that "fancy stuff" and is in need of a neck joint, Jack Hammer apathetically tells him that he has no other option.
    "Sorry, pal. It's either upgrade or the Chop Shop for you."
  • Four Eyes, Zero Soul: Downplayed. He does wear glasses and is not very sympathetic or understanding, but he does have some heart to him and is honest about what goes on in his shop.
  • Good is Not Nice: He may be a good guy, but he is very blunt and sarcastic and shows little concern for outmodes who can't afford upgrades.
  • Jerk with a Heart of Gold: For all that's been said above, he is being 100% honest, and later on in the film when an angry mob of outmodes confronts him, he points to Rodney and says that he is the one they can find help from. He also apologizes after Piper gives him a comeuppance for the way he treated Fender and openly admits that he doesn't have the right parts for him, and gives Rodney the right things to fix Fender's head with.
  • Lack of Empathy: More towards Fender than anyone else, but it's clear that he is not empathetic for the most part.
  • Punny Name: His name is a play on "jackhammer," a construction tool used to break through hard surfaces.
  • Smug Snake: Disdainful towards outmodes and certainly has quite a mean spirit to him.
  • What the Hell, Hero?: This happens to him twice - first when Piper calls him out on his callous behavior towards Fender, and second when the outmodes gather round his shop and confront him over only selling upgrades from that point onwards.

    Loretta Geargrinder 
Voiced by: Natasha Lyonne (US), Cat Deeley (UK) and Jackie O (AUS)note 
https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/robots_disneyscreencapscom_6241_5.jpg

  • Fanservice Extra: She's certainly an attractive girl, even if she's an unimportant character that doesn't do anything that's relevant to the plot.
  • Laugh of Love: Loretta gives off quite a few of these whenever she and Fender are having their moments.
  • Noodle People: She's very tall and skinny.
  • Nothing Exciting Ever Happens Here: When she first appears, she is talking to someone at the Bigweld Ball about how none of the parties she goes to have any interesting men show up. Cue Fender jumping out at her in his flamboyant disguise and playfully introducing himself as "Fender von Fender".
  • Official Couple: It's hinted that she and Fender get together by the end of the film.
  • Pink Means Feminine: She is a very ladylike robot who wears a pink dress.
  • Satellite Love Interest: Loretta's role in the film is quite small and it revolves almost entirely around being Fender's eye candy.
  • Single Woman Seeks Good Man: She seems to find Fender attractive because of his appearance, giving her the idea that he could be an "eccentric billionaire."
  • Ugly Guy, Hot Wife: Well, Ugly Guy, Hot Girlfriend in this case, since she just becomes Fender's girlfriend and the established relationship is not taken very far from there.
  • Upper-Class Twit: Seeing her appearance and somewhat mischievous nature, she certainly gives off shades of this.

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