I remember one episode where the robot befriended a vacuum and it sucked away a female teacher's dress and all the boys were crushing on the teacher staring at her and there were those heart emojis lol
I love how the love interest is a dorky girl with a disability, when every other show at the time was making it the popular cheerleader type we knew the main character would never end up with.
And the show rarely put any focus on her disability, she's just like any other kid, with defects and problems, she wasn't perfect (hell she was far from that) but that was the point, she's just like any other kid, her disability doesn't make her special, and Jones, initially attracted to her 'cause her "special condition" ended loving her human and mundane self.
I actually really love the retreaux-style of the animation. WHtRJ is a very unique show outside of the fish out of water premise. I think as a kid, I actually mistook it for an old cartoon. It captures the School House Rock style very well.
@Alpha Lax I think edd used to but upgraded to standard animation around the back to school era of The show, this was the last show to be created in the early 2000ss
I actually voted for Robot Jones in the Voice Your Choice, and remember being disappointed that Billy & Mandy won. Billy & Mandy ended up being a really good show though, so it ultimately was for the best.
I feel like one of the few kids who actually really liked this show when it came out. My friends were very "meh" about it. I completely lost interest when they replaced the TTS voice. That was most of the humor.
Same deal with me, none of my friends liked it, but I loved it. I stopped watching when they changed the voices on all the episodes, I didn’t like the kids voice. Too bad there’s no way to stream it other than what’s on TH-cam.
“Magnetohydrodynamics” is definitely what the M stood for. Robot’s next assignment was to study college students and as a robot would be interested in the motion of electrically conductive fluid-like systems.
I wasn't a huge fan of the voice change when I was a kid. But after I revisited some episodes as an adult, I kind of liked both voices (and don't really hate the second voice anymore) and I can see where those exes were coming from as well, but I still vastly prefer his original voice. Why not have a robot character....sound like a robot? Especially considering how this show is supposed to take place in a 1980s universe where a robot's voice is not expected to sound "humanized" yet. My biggest problem with the voice change was really the inconsistency. It's kind of like how I also feel about the art style change between the two seasons of American Dragon: Jake Long... Both versions are fine in their own right, but the sudden change of voice or art style hurts a show's consistency with the fans. Why not stick to one or another thing in the first place? So that's really my thoughts on the controversial voice change.
I remember one episode where the robot befriended a vacuum and it sucked away a female teacher's dress and all the boys were crushing on the teacher staring at her and there were those heart emojis lol
I remember watching this show when it premiered. I liked this show as a kind and liked booth the voices of Robot Jones honestly. I sometimes wonder about the show and would like to go back and watch it. I just don’t know where to go to watch old cartoons that isn’t sketchy lol.
A childhood friend of mine and I really liked this show, and we used to mimic his voice at each other. It definitely wasn't aired for very long. I couldn't tell you what happened in a single episode off the top of my head, but I remember loving the show. We were bummed when they cancled it.
Being fair, each episode was a dual-split: 10 to 12 minutes for Story A and then 10 to 12 minutes for Story B. The three stories I remember most are, from least-remembered to most-remembered: 3. The Basketball one. Robot Jones gives himself modification/surgery to become tall enough to join the Basketball team. 2. The Garage Band one. Robot Jones and his friends start a rock band...but, as one expects, his friends care more about the popularity than actually practicing. 1. The one about Gender. As the first segment of the first episode of the second season, we begin with "class change". Robot Jones gets put into Home Economics (which even in the mid-2000's was a "GIRL'S ELECTIVE" since the projects involved cooking and sewing and other "household" tasks that "the wife should be doing for her working husband")...and is so good at the projects that the rest of the (almost-entirely-girl) class becomes Robot's friend. Because Robot is hanging out with "the girls", his guy friends disown Robot as "a girl"...causing him to befriend the girls for a bit more and engaging in "girly" activities like make-overs and such, until said guy friends get jealous. Then the two factions of "Boys" and "Girls" try to fight each other for Robot Jones...and when he's made to decide he drops the bomb that they aren't actually that different, and I think either that he doesn't want to decide between the two groups or else can't decide between the two groups. ----- ... ... It's funny how that episode has stuck with me. But also (since coming out as non-binary) it actually makes a lot of sense. Like, very few adult media tried to have even side-characters explore their gender identity. So that this children's cartoon had its titular character put into words exactly how my 12-year-old self had felt for at least over 8 years at that point (and have consistently felt for the 18 years since) Hell, if the Conservative "Christian Right" weren't legitimately using their "God Says X" rhetoric in an attempt to criminalize (if not legalize the murder of) trans-people for their just existing, one might almost describe this coincidence of me ever watching that episode as an "act of god".
I remember loving the show as a child, but ultimately missing it because of the weird times it would come on. When I talk about it today most people have no idea what I'm talking about. When I show them, they try and compare it to Jenny the teenage robot 😮💨
Ah, "Whatever Happened To Robot Jones" i loved that show when i was little, and watching this vid became a real nostalgia trip for me thank you so much for covering this show Jordan!!!
"Change the robots voice, it's weird." Execs completely missing the point of a show and having the irony go right past their head is a trope I'll never not find frustrating.
I was born in 1996 and didn't really watch a lot of episodes when it initially aired because of the time schedule, but could recall vaguely watching it. By the time I was 12 [2008] I was so interested in the shows art style that I watched episodes on TH-cam back when copystrikes weren't as strict as they are now. Maybe it was just the early hipster in me that liked saying "yeah I watch this old show" but I found it enjoyable. I may even find it even more enjoyable now as an adult to hear how innocently this robot describes what childhood/human kind is like.
I was also born in 1996, and rediscovered it in 2009 when I was 13. The backgrounds felt so weird but it made me wish I was inside of them. The backgrounds just looked so welcoming.
@@spookychords4925 do you ever love a cartoons artstyle that you wish you were inside the backgrounds? I feel the same way everytime I watch this. And the music too.
I really liked this show! I think this is what sparked my interest in this type of ‘genre’ because My Life as a Teenage Robot is one of my favorite shows of all time, lol.
The Art style and design of Robot is adorable and I could see it fitting in with Todays Cartoons if it just refined a bit and brought back. But then again CN is making horrible choices and not letting actual good shows thrive like they did back in the 2000s
Really like your style of unapologetic puns and the whole 'commercial break' thing you do as a breather in the video. Makes watching your channel feel like an 'experience' rather than the typical commentator on a YT video. Been a fan for a little bit now. QUESTION: Do you fully rewatch the series you cover in a video before releasing them? How do you approach building info for the video?
I’m turning 27 this year - I was 6-7 when this came out and I loved it. I was drawing and have drawn since age 5 - and I was fascinated by recreating that cube shaped robot - over and over again - on paper. The art style was very inspiring, and the writing unique.
I loved this show and it's art style when it came out. It definitely had a look and feel unlike anything else on the network. It's still one of my favorite Cartoon Network shows of all time.
To this day it is not hard to remind my family of this show, all you need is to speak the mystic words: "What ever happenned toooooo" and in a robotic voice all siblings will respond "Robot Jones!" Speaking of the voice I always preferred the M98 voice. You know that thing where you make something up to explain something and then end up forgetting you made it up in an almost Mandela effect way? I had sworn there was an episode to explain the voice change, one where Robot and his friends enter some sort of battle of the bands or music competition, but Robot's voice wasn't doing it so he and his friends messed around with his system to put in a more vocalist voice in there. Eventually only being able to Rock-sing when talking became a problem in his day to day life he tries to change it back but couldn't return it to the M98 voice and had to settle with the kid voice. By the time I'd realized they'd redubbed the whole first season I was like ":0 b-but now the band episode won't make sense!"
I loved this show so much when it came out. I've always hoped this could get a revival. Thank you for posting this and all your videos. You just pulled me out of a really bad mood.
I distinctly remember seeing the pilot for this show and the gym episode. I loved it as a kid, but wasn't sure why. Now, as someone who realized they spent their childhood masking their autism, I understand why Robot Jones is so relatable now. I also spent my school years, questioning interactions, wondering why things were the way they were. Maybe that's why I loved the show so much as a kid.
Can I just say I love your show, all of these wonderful reviews of cartoons and shows of the past. It lets me remember an easier time. And these reviews also thanks to your breakdowns allow me to show what I can to my kids to see if they'd be interested watching them. And thanks to you my 5-year-old loves The Secret Saturdays.
You talked about Robot Jones and Time Squad. Now the only two obscure CN shows that are left to cover from the late-90s/early 2000s era are Sheep in the Big City and Mike, Lu and Og!
As an undiagnosed autistic, literal top-of-my-class-without-trying nerd/geek, and someone that while assigned-male-at-birth was so detached from the gender binary and "gender roles" since my youth that I idolized both Prince and Cher from musical and aesthetic angles since before I had begun puberty... Robot Jones was one of the few "skit comedy" protagonists I felt a genuine emotional connection to. Hell, even Sheldon Cooper (from "The Big Bang Theory") can't boast about having such.
I remember watching this show back when I was a kid. I enjoyed it so much that my grandma made me a tape of most of the episodes. One episode I remember was the Family Vacation episode, where Randy Savage played an angry biker. Thank you for taking a look at this show, and keep up the good work!
OMG i loved this show!! I'm so glad you exist to bring light to just about every cartoon I've ever watched as a kid in the early to mid 2000s. Also yeah I remember watching both versions of the character's voice when they would show the same episode. The way it ended was super abrupt though which was kinda sad considering how unique this show was in its visual style and content. I personally really liked the hand-drawn, almost sketchy cell-to-cell animation even if it would have been more time consuming in the long run
I remember catching a few episodes of this as a kid with the original voice. Then months later I saw it was going to be on again but it was an episode with the new voice and I thought, this must not be the same show. The voices were so different!
I adored the hell out of robot jones when it was on TV, and I remember being sad when it never really aired again. It was a good cartoon that was both ahead, and too late for its time. Had it been released when there was a larger nostalgia base for the 70s and 80s it could have gained a better following, and the same could probably be said if it had been made earlier in the 90s instead of late into them.
Well, this was a nice surprise. I was searching for “whatever happened to robot Jones” and discovered this video. Certainly was not expecting to find such a recent video.
I never caught on to the School House Rock aesthetic of this show as a kid (ever though we still very much did watch those tapes in school…👵🏻) but I LOVE that. I also never noticed that Shannon had a prosthetic leg! That’s very cool.
its a shame this was cancelled due to unpopularity and CN's handling of the show. as a young boy who had autism (and also loved robots) i could really relate to robot jones as I too had a hard time understanding social cues compared to most people. but i actually learned a lot from this show, which im thankful for now as an adult.
I totally dig both voices for Robot Jones, and can even see both as canon! The new voice is like he upgraded his hardware with a more advanced vocoder chip, as well an improved personality chip to explain why he behaves a little more dynamic and childlike in the 2nd season! Maybe he chose these upgrades so he can better fit in with the humans and impress Shanon! He's subtly evolving and being patched behind the scenes as his research continues!
one thing i really enjoyed about this show, despite not watching it much, was the very retro 70's style animation, it reminded me of the old school house rock animations they would play in school for us, or the old dr seuss specials and that gave it a great charm
I remember, "camping" in the living room as a kid. I pulled my lil pokemon tent up to the TV and passed out watching the growth spert episode. When I woke up, I too was a taller boi! It tripped me out. And, kept me the tallest kid in class for like... a year. So, big Ws all around.
I always remember loving this show as a kid. I loved the kooky hand drawn style and loved the characters. Also just realizing how inclusive he was including an amputee character in a main role. This show deserves to live on on like TH-cam or Netflix or something. Let it flourish now that it can be appreciated correctly and not bound by the shackles of the cable TV overlords
whats funny about this show for me is that it popped up in my life when i began looking online for things to go with my fixation on robots- i found people made art of a funky little robot jones. i found that this series was perfect for me, and i was able to watch it online. i love this little robot guy, and honestly i was really into the whole idea of seeing the middle school life in the eyes of a robot. i would love to watch this show over and over, robot jones is just so neat. the artstyle is wonderful. i would be interested in a more complex dive into robot jones discovering more about human nature, honestly, because like. life has so much learning in it. i want to see him learn!
As a kid who was in the target audience at the time it was airing, the look of the show was unlike anything else. Loved it and always wondered why they pulled it.
I never did watch the show when it came out. Nobody I knew, including myself, had ever heard of it. I did eventually see it when it re-ran with the cartoon cartoon show in the mid 2000s. I remember being happy when watching it as I think it was rare for that show to air reruns of Robot Jones and I only saw it when I was sick and had to stay home. It was good for what it was as the art style was completely different from the cartoons I was watching at the time. Thanks for making this video, I had almost forgotten this show and for answering the question to "what ever happened to Robot Jones?"
Been waiting for you to do this one. If anyone was gonna do this it was gonna be you! I remember watching Robot Jones before the voice change and being confused and disappointed as a kid that it wasn’t the same.
The show may have been short, but it left a huge impact on me, to always being able to recall it. Especially given the name of the show, it may have been a play on words on the creator expecting it to get lost with the times.
I thought I was the only one who remembered this show lol. I actually liked it as a kid. Robot Jones dad in particular always cracked me up the way he repeated things like "Ridiculous, Ridiculous, Ridiculous, Ridiculous" or "GO TO SCHOOL, GO TO SCHOOL, GO TO SCHOOL, GO TO SCHOOL!" lol.
Thank you for all these videos...most of my friends don't remember most of the shows or even heard of them so all my jokes fall flat. I show them your videos and now they know I'm not totally crazy
Anyone else notice that changing the time slot on a struggling show NEVER actually helps. It's like when Cartoon Network would randomly show Zoids: Chaotic Century in the middle of the seadon for Zoids: New Century Zero, but wouldn't differentiate the two in the TV Guide menus, so it was a crapshoot of which show you were getting, and both series suffered for it.
Bro, there's this cartoon about two stumpy looking kids (probably in junior high) with warped eyes, and the premise of the series being that they spend all day at the arcade and get into some arcade games themed sh*t ... I need the name of this show man, I'm dying here 😫😫
Recently subbed cause you make me remember soooo many childhood memories of these shows from when I was like, four! Was watching some of your older videos and suddenly got reminded about a show I have never heard talked about called "Huntik: Secret & Seekers" (had to do a short google search cause the name completely slipped my mind) that I was shortly enamored with as a kid as well and saw you don't have a video on that yet, so here's to hoping one day :D love your videos keep up the good work
Robot Jones and Sheep in the Big City were two short lived shows that I loved. I’ve been waiting for this retrospective for 20 years. I tried to find a video on SitBC from you after watching this and couldn’t find one! Would love to hear your review one day
i just looked it up amd I'm like, "Wtf, i have autism/aspergers, I needed a relatable cartoon role model to teach me social lessons.... fuck it, ima show my kids robot Jones".
I grew up with this show but it’s been awhile since I saw it asp the TTS voice is so much better and fitting for robot Jones and the fact that this is a pencil mation show which is interesting in the early 2000s and despite the fact that this and the moxy show were forgettable was sad but at least thx to crossover nexus they put them back in the spotlight, keep up the great work for your vids btw.
I remember enjoying Whatever Happened to Robot Jones, but one of my favorite things about it is that the name can be used to start a conversation about the show.
My favorite aspect of the show were the ads where it was animated in a pixel artstyle. Especially the music during the ad, which was from the episode where the Yogman twins steal Robot’s brain to use in their machine.
One thing I remember about this show, is that as a young dumb kid, I thought it was a sequel to an older show just called "Robot Jones", and at one point asked my mother if she had ever watched that show. I think it was a combination of the art style and title.
Found out about this cartoon two weeks ago, so lucky to have new cool video about it! Maybe because of audience of this channel people will give a lil bit more attention to this unique show
Robot Jones was an adorable cartoon! My favorite episode was the Rubik’s cube competition; I think his first name should be Mike or Melvin. Also really loved your responses that got me :3
The title of the show is fitting nowadays but yeah I remembered it. It was cool that the first season had an actual computer voice the titular character although I respect that they probably couldn't make it last without an increase in budget
i remember being a huge fan of this show when i was little and trying to catch this show anytime it was on, but i honestly don't remember ANYTHING about it. not even his voice ;o;
I remember really liking the show when it first aired and being confused when they changed Robot's voice. I'd love it if the show ever did get a proper revival, but short of CN giving up the rights I sadly don't see it happening.
This was great video and throwback! I really love this cartoon and concept. I did think the cartoon was a bit mean spirited at times but I still really liked it. Thank you!
I'm so glad you've made a video on this show! I missed this show so much and remember watching it when it was still on TV. ;w; I think the M stood for Megabites, like in the previous concept art but that's just my guess. :o Speaking of which, I haven't drawn anything for this show in a few years and now I want to again so thank you lol.
This show gaslit me a little bit as a kid. When it came out, its name made me think it was a callback to some previous show that used to exist. I was scratching my head trying to remember some other show about a "Robot Jones" character, but never truly came up with anything; even though i felt at the time that one should exist.
me too kinda. I thought it was some kinda continuation of a previous show or smth but every time I saw it it was never just "robot jones" always "whatever happened to robot jones", so I was like "how the hell should I know?? I've never seen this character before!" lol
4:32 technically, Ed, Edd n' Eddy was the last show on Cartoon Network to be produced with hand-drawn, cel animation, with its last cel-animated season airing in 2004, compared to Robot Jones, which last aired in 2003. But I guess that doesn't count cause it wasn't produced by Cartoon Network Studios.
This was definitely one of my favorites when it aired growing up. I'm thinking the M on the shirt might be a school thing, Or a last initial in his full name.
I've always loved this show's art style. It feels like a clever blend of _Schoolhouse Rock!_ and _MAD Magazine._ Being an autistic person, I also heavily related to Robot as a teenager, being assigned to learn social rules but not having the same perspective as my typical peers, periodically shifting between distaste and fascination, and I guess I loved revisiting the show because of that. *No hate towards Bobby Block, but the voice change is still disappointing.*
I think the part of this show I remember most vividly is the between-episodes song they'd sometimes play called "The Nudist and Mr. Pendleton". It's such a bizzare thing to attach to a children's show about a robot.
This was definitely a show I'd file under "cartoons that I liked but didn't know why and also can't really remember much about" category of my childhood
Thanks so much for watching! Did you ever watch this interesting little robot show?
Meh
Yeh it's one of my favorite obscure cartoon shows
Eh not much but the animation reminds me of Schoolhouse Rock tho
I remember watching this as a kid, and man I’m so old, I’m going to be 27 soon
Oh I definitely did. I loved this show, partly because I love robots and partly because it was just so cozy.
I totally remember this show. It went off the air, and I would also make the same dumb joke with my friends, "Whatever DID happen to Robot Jones?"
I bet we all did that back then.
I’d make the same joke and literally nobody knew what I was talking about.
Same!
I remember one episode where the robot befriended a vacuum and it sucked away a female teacher's dress and all the boys were crushing on the teacher staring at her and there were those heart emojis lol
@@wfanking1187 manipulated fetish cartoon
I love how the love interest is a dorky girl with a disability, when every other show at the time was making it the popular cheerleader type we knew the main character would never end up with.
That’s Shannon you’re talking about. Always hated her because of how he treated my boy Robot Jones. But now that I’m older, I can kind of see why.
And the show rarely put any focus on her disability, she's just like any other kid, with defects and problems, she wasn't perfect (hell she was far from that) but that was the point, she's just like any other kid, her disability doesn't make her special, and Jones, initially attracted to her 'cause her "special condition" ended loving her human and mundane self.
😑
I actually really love the retreaux-style of the animation. WHtRJ is a very unique show outside of the fish out of water premise. I think as a kid, I actually mistook it for an old cartoon. It captures the School House Rock style very well.
I thought the same. I assumed they were playing an older show.
I adore how everything tends to go “off-model.” No two shots look similar
And it was the last cartoon in history to ever use cel animation.
@@okjeffy6581 i thought it was Ed edd n eddy
@Alpha Lax I think edd used to but upgraded to standard animation around the back to school era of The show, this was the last show to be created in the early 2000ss
I actually voted for Robot Jones in the Voice Your Choice, and remember being disappointed that Billy & Mandy won. Billy & Mandy ended up being a really good show though, so it ultimately was for the best.
HOW DID YOU VOTE?
both robot jones and billy and mandy shouldve been fully made 😭
@@xx_somescenecath0lic_xx888 I believe you had to go on the CN website & cast your vote there
Bruh i wish i could vote, but i was a baby at the time 😭
@@luigihorror6455I was just being born into the world at the time
😂😂😂
I feel like one of the few kids who actually really liked this show when it came out. My friends were very "meh" about it.
I completely lost interest when they replaced the TTS voice. That was most of the humor.
That was me as well, really didn't like that voice change.
*RIGHT??!* 😒
Exactly!!!!!!!
Same deal with me, none of my friends liked it, but I loved it. I stopped watching when they changed the voices on all the episodes, I didn’t like the kids voice. Too bad there’s no way to stream it other than what’s on TH-cam.
I liked the show. Always watched it when it came on.
“Magnetohydrodynamics” is definitely what the M stood for. Robot’s next assignment was to study college students and as a robot would be interested in the motion of electrically conductive fluid-like systems.
Youre posting twice a week? THANK YOU! Love your videos!!!
Thanks!! Yup twice a week for now
I wasn't a huge fan of the voice change when I was a kid. But after I revisited some episodes as an adult, I kind of liked both voices (and don't really hate the second voice anymore) and I can see where those exes were coming from as well, but I still vastly prefer his original voice. Why not have a robot character....sound like a robot? Especially considering how this show is supposed to take place in a 1980s universe where a robot's voice is not expected to sound "humanized" yet.
My biggest problem with the voice change was really the inconsistency. It's kind of like how I also feel about the art style change between the two seasons of American Dragon: Jake Long... Both versions are fine in their own right, but the sudden change of voice or art style hurts a show's consistency with the fans. Why not stick to one or another thing in the first place? So that's really my thoughts on the controversial voice change.
I remember one episode where the robot befriended a vacuum and it sucked away a female teacher's dress and all the boys were crushing on the teacher staring at her and there were those heart emojis lol
@@wfanking1187 🤨
I remember watching this show when it premiered. I liked this show as a kind and liked booth the voices of Robot Jones honestly. I sometimes wonder about the show and would like to go back and watch it. I just don’t know where to go to watch old cartoons that isn’t sketchy lol.
WCOforever . net
You're welcome. 1:49PM 6/18/22
I'm pretty sure y can find some episodes on the internet archive
as of right now, all of the episodes are on youtube!
What's the play list?
A childhood friend of mine and I really liked this show, and we used to mimic his voice at each other. It definitely wasn't aired for very long. I couldn't tell you what happened in a single episode off the top of my head, but I remember loving the show. We were bummed when they cancled it.
Being fair, each episode was a dual-split: 10 to 12 minutes for Story A and then 10 to 12 minutes for Story B.
The three stories I remember most are, from least-remembered to most-remembered:
3. The Basketball one. Robot Jones gives himself modification/surgery to become tall enough to join the Basketball team.
2. The Garage Band one. Robot Jones and his friends start a rock band...but, as one expects, his friends care more about the popularity than actually practicing.
1. The one about Gender. As the first segment of the first episode of the second season, we begin with "class change". Robot Jones gets put into Home Economics (which even in the mid-2000's was a "GIRL'S ELECTIVE" since the projects involved cooking and sewing and other "household" tasks that "the wife should be doing for her working husband")...and is so good at the projects that the rest of the (almost-entirely-girl) class becomes Robot's friend.
Because Robot is hanging out with "the girls", his guy friends disown Robot as "a girl"...causing him to befriend the girls for a bit more and engaging in "girly" activities like make-overs and such, until said guy friends get jealous. Then the two factions of "Boys" and "Girls" try to fight each other for Robot Jones...and when he's made to decide he drops the bomb that they aren't actually that different, and I think either that he doesn't want to decide between the two groups or else can't decide between the two groups.
-----
...
... It's funny how that episode has stuck with me. But also (since coming out as non-binary) it actually makes a lot of sense. Like, very few adult media tried to have even side-characters explore their gender identity. So that this children's cartoon had its titular character put into words exactly how my 12-year-old self had felt for at least over 8 years at that point (and have consistently felt for the 18 years since)
Hell, if the Conservative "Christian Right" weren't legitimately using their "God Says X" rhetoric in an attempt to criminalize (if not legalize the murder of) trans-people for their just existing, one might almost describe this coincidence of me ever watching that episode as an "act of god".
And don’t forget the one with some naked Bri’ish dude and his dog.
I love the style of this show. It’s very reminiscent of 70’s animated shows like School House Rock and Dr. Seuss cartoons
I remember loving the show as a child, but ultimately missing it because of the weird times it would come on. When I talk about it today most people have no idea what I'm talking about. When I show them, they try and compare it to Jenny the teenage robot 😮💨
Man I loved the way this show looked as a kid. It's like someone's sketchbook being animated.😄
Ah, "Whatever Happened To Robot Jones" i loved that show when i was little, and watching this vid became a real nostalgia trip for me thank you so much for covering this show Jordan!!!
"Change the robots voice, it's weird."
Execs completely missing the point of a show and having the irony go right past their head is a trope I'll never not find frustrating.
I was born in 1996 and didn't really watch a lot of episodes when it initially aired because of the time schedule, but could recall vaguely watching it. By the time I was 12 [2008] I was so interested in the shows art style that I watched episodes on TH-cam back when copystrikes weren't as strict as they are now. Maybe it was just the early hipster in me that liked saying "yeah I watch this old show" but I found it enjoyable. I may even find it even more enjoyable now as an adult to hear how innocently this robot describes what childhood/human kind is like.
I was also born in 1996, and rediscovered it in 2009 when I was 13. The backgrounds felt so weird but it made me wish I was inside of them. The backgrounds just looked so welcoming.
@@okjeffy6581 word
@@spookychords4925 do you ever love a cartoons artstyle that you wish you were inside the backgrounds? I feel the same way everytime I watch this. And the music too.
I really liked this show! I think this is what sparked my interest in this type of ‘genre’ because My Life as a Teenage Robot is one of my favorite shows of all time, lol.
So, you like shows about robots??
The Art style and design of Robot is adorable and I could see it fitting in with Todays Cartoons if it just refined a bit and brought back.
But then again CN is making horrible choices and not letting actual good shows thrive like they did back in the 2000s
Really like your style of unapologetic puns and the whole 'commercial break' thing you do as a breather in the video. Makes watching your channel feel like an 'experience' rather than the typical commentator on a YT video. Been a fan for a little bit now.
QUESTION: Do you fully rewatch the series you cover in a video before releasing them? How do you approach building info for the video?
I’m turning 27 this year - I was 6-7 when this came out and I loved it. I was drawing and have drawn since age 5 - and I was fascinated by recreating that cube shaped robot - over and over again - on paper. The art style was very inspiring, and the writing unique.
Hands down a underrated show
I loved this show and it's art style when it came out. It definitely had a look and feel unlike anything else on the network.
It's still one of my favorite Cartoon Network shows of all time.
Robot jones was my first crush and was the first character I ever drew selfship art for, haha. He and his show have a very special place in my heart.
Don't remember a lot from the show but the music video "Nudist and Mr Pendleton" has been stuck in my head for 20 years.
To this day it is not hard to remind my family of this show, all you need is to speak the mystic words: "What ever happenned toooooo" and in a robotic voice all siblings will respond "Robot Jones!"
Speaking of the voice I always preferred the M98 voice. You know that thing where you make something up to explain something and then end up forgetting you made it up in an almost Mandela effect way? I had sworn there was an episode to explain the voice change, one where Robot and his friends enter some sort of battle of the bands or music competition, but Robot's voice wasn't doing it so he and his friends messed around with his system to put in a more vocalist voice in there. Eventually only being able to Rock-sing when talking became a problem in his day to day life he tries to change it back but couldn't return it to the M98 voice and had to settle with the kid voice.
By the time I'd realized they'd redubbed the whole first season I was like ":0 b-but now the band episode won't make sense!"
I loved this show so much when it came out. I've always hoped this could get a revival. Thank you for posting this and all your videos. You just pulled me out of a really bad mood.
I distinctly remember seeing the pilot for this show and the gym episode. I loved it as a kid, but wasn't sure why.
Now, as someone who realized they spent their childhood masking their autism, I understand why Robot Jones is so relatable now. I also spent my school years, questioning interactions, wondering why things were the way they were. Maybe that's why I loved the show so much as a kid.
Can I just say I love your show, all of these wonderful reviews of cartoons and shows of the past. It lets me remember an easier time. And these reviews also thanks to your breakdowns allow me to show what I can to my kids to see if they'd be interested watching them. And thanks to you my 5-year-old loves The Secret Saturdays.
Thanks so much for the kind words! So awesome to hear that, glad they enjoy the secret Saturdays!
You’re a healer, Jordan. 😊
This show should’ve gotten more attention.
You talked about Robot Jones and Time Squad. Now the only two obscure CN shows that are left to cover from the late-90s/early 2000s era are Sheep in the Big City and Mike, Lu and Og!
As an undiagnosed autistic, literal top-of-my-class-without-trying nerd/geek, and someone that while assigned-male-at-birth was so detached from the gender binary and "gender roles" since my youth that I idolized both Prince and Cher from musical and aesthetic angles since before I had begun puberty...
Robot Jones was one of the few "skit comedy" protagonists I felt a genuine emotional connection to. Hell, even Sheldon Cooper (from "The Big Bang Theory") can't boast about having such.
I didn't like the cartoon for some odd reason. I have no clue why, but maybe in the future I'd give it a rewatch.
I love robot Jones
I remember watching this show back when I was a kid. I enjoyed it so much that my grandma made me a tape of most of the episodes. One episode I remember was the Family Vacation episode, where Randy Savage played an angry biker. Thank you for taking a look at this show, and keep up the good work!
OMG i loved this show!!
I'm so glad you exist to bring light to just about every cartoon I've ever watched as a kid in the early to mid 2000s.
Also yeah I remember watching both versions of the character's voice when they would show the same episode. The way it ended was super abrupt though which was kinda sad considering how unique this show was in its visual style and content. I personally really liked the hand-drawn, almost sketchy cell-to-cell animation even if it would have been more time consuming in the long run
Not just the early to mid 2000s, he is also doing late 2000s to early 2010s. But I agree with you.
wow! thanks for the great review!! i’m so super touched by all the fans who still love ‘RJ’. Thanks for tuning in to watch, laugh, and learn! xo
Thank YOU for checking out my video!
The frequency AND quality of your uploads is on another level! keep it up!!!
Thanks so much!
I remember catching a few episodes of this as a kid with the original voice. Then months later I saw it was going to be on again but it was an episode with the new voice and I thought, this must not be the same show. The voices were so different!
never liked when they changed the voice
I love this show. The Rubix cube episode stays embedded in my brain
The naked British guy and the dog stuck with me
I adored the hell out of robot jones when it was on TV, and I remember being sad when it never really aired again. It was a good cartoon that was both ahead, and too late for its time. Had it been released when there was a larger nostalgia base for the 70s and 80s it could have gained a better following, and the same could probably be said if it had been made earlier in the 90s instead of late into them.
This artstyle is so wonderfully loose and expressive! Kinda reminds me of Schoolhouse Rock with a bigger budget.
Well, this was a nice surprise.
I was searching for “whatever happened to robot Jones” and discovered this video.
Certainly was not expecting to find such a recent video.
You've just unlocked a core memory in me.
Of all the shows that could use a reboot, this is it.
I often get huge dexter’s laboratory vibes from this show. Definitely a fun and underrated show overall.
You scratched my memory with this and brought back a plethra of buried memories. Thank you and "curse" you.
I never caught on to the School House Rock aesthetic of this show as a kid (ever though we still very much did watch those tapes in school…👵🏻) but I LOVE that. I also never noticed that Shannon had a prosthetic leg! That’s very cool.
its a shame this was cancelled due to unpopularity and CN's handling of the show. as a young boy who had autism (and also loved robots) i could really relate to robot jones as I too had a hard time understanding social cues compared to most people. but i actually learned a lot from this show, which im thankful for now as an adult.
I totally dig both voices for Robot Jones, and can even see both as canon! The new voice is like he upgraded his hardware with a more advanced vocoder chip, as well an improved personality chip to explain why he behaves a little more dynamic and childlike in the 2nd season! Maybe he chose these upgrades so he can better fit in with the humans and impress Shanon! He's subtly evolving and being patched behind the scenes as his research continues!
I've been waiting for this episode! This is a show that I still think about randomly and I'm so happy you decided to cover it.
one thing i really enjoyed about this show, despite not watching it much, was the very retro 70's style animation, it reminded me of the old school house rock animations they would play in school for us, or the old dr seuss specials and that gave it a great charm
I remember, "camping" in the living room as a kid. I pulled my lil pokemon tent up to the TV and passed out watching the growth spert episode. When I woke up, I too was a taller boi! It tripped me out. And, kept me the tallest kid in class for like... a year. So, big Ws all around.
I always remember loving this show as a kid. I loved the kooky hand drawn style and loved the characters. Also just realizing how inclusive he was including an amputee character in a main role. This show deserves to live on on like TH-cam or Netflix or something. Let it flourish now that it can be appreciated correctly and not bound by the shackles of the cable TV overlords
whats funny about this show for me is that it popped up in my life when i began looking online for things to go with my fixation on robots- i found people made art of a funky little robot jones. i found that this series was perfect for me, and i was able to watch it online. i love this little robot guy, and honestly i was really into the whole idea of seeing the middle school life in the eyes of a robot. i would love to watch this show over and over, robot jones is just so neat. the artstyle is wonderful. i would be interested in a more complex dive into robot jones discovering more about human nature, honestly, because like. life has so much learning in it. i want to see him learn!
Everyone forgets all the episodes were lost till A devitart group refound it
Just recently finished watching the show actually, seriously loved the Lavender Fudge Experience music video.
Wow this tapped into my reserve databanks. Thanks for a blast from the totally forgotten or so I thought.
I had somehow erased this show from my memory, the channel really be bringing back my childhood
As a kid who was in the target audience at the time it was airing, the look of the show was unlike anything else. Loved it and always wondered why they pulled it.
I was just honking about this show. I loved watching it growing up. Thanks for the brief memories dude.
Thank you for doing this episode !! I honestly thought I was the only one who saw this show going up !!
I never did watch the show when it came out. Nobody I knew, including myself, had ever heard of it. I did eventually see it when it re-ran with the cartoon cartoon show in the mid 2000s. I remember being happy when watching it as I think it was rare for that show to air reruns of Robot Jones and I only saw it when I was sick and had to stay home. It was good for what it was as the art style was completely different from the cartoons I was watching at the time. Thanks for making this video, I had almost forgotten this show and for answering the question to "what ever happened to Robot Jones?"
Been waiting for you to do this one. If anyone was gonna do this it was gonna be you!
I remember watching Robot Jones before the voice change and being confused and disappointed as a kid that it wasn’t the same.
The show may have been short, but it left a huge impact on me, to always being able to recall it. Especially given the name of the show, it may have been a play on words on the creator expecting it to get lost with the times.
If this video didn’t show up on my feed I could have lived the rest of my life forgotten about this show lol this is crazy
I loved this show. It taught me that if you swap two stickers on a Rubik’s Cube you can never fully solve it.
I thought I was the only one who remembered this show lol. I actually liked it as a kid. Robot Jones dad in particular always cracked me up the way he repeated things like "Ridiculous, Ridiculous, Ridiculous, Ridiculous" or "GO TO SCHOOL, GO TO SCHOOL, GO TO SCHOOL, GO TO SCHOOL!" lol.
Thank you for all these videos...most of my friends don't remember most of the shows or even heard of them so all my jokes fall flat. I show them your videos and now they know I'm not totally crazy
Anyone else notice that changing the time slot on a struggling show NEVER actually helps. It's like when Cartoon Network would randomly show Zoids: Chaotic Century in the middle of the seadon for Zoids: New Century Zero, but wouldn't differentiate the two in the TV Guide menus, so it was a crapshoot of which show you were getting, and both series suffered for it.
I've actually secretly been hoping you'd do this one for a while!
Bro, there's this cartoon about two stumpy looking kids (probably in junior high) with warped eyes, and the premise of the series being that they spend all day at the arcade and get into some arcade games themed sh*t ... I need the name of this show man, I'm dying here 😫😫
Recently subbed cause you make me remember soooo many childhood memories of these shows from when I was like, four!
Was watching some of your older videos and suddenly got reminded about a show I have never heard talked about called "Huntik: Secret & Seekers" (had to do a short google search cause the name completely slipped my mind) that I was shortly enamored with as a kid as well and saw you don't have a video on that yet, so here's to hoping one day :D love your videos keep up the good work
I remember this show had actor Rip Taylor as the math teacher Mr. McMcMc, Rest In Peace Rip Taylor
New core memory unlocked after seeing this again after so many years
Robot Jones and Sheep in the Big City were two short lived shows that I loved. I’ve been waiting for this retrospective for 20 years.
I tried to find a video on SitBC from you after watching this and couldn’t find one! Would love to hear your review one day
i just looked it up amd I'm like,
"Wtf, i have autism/aspergers, I needed a relatable cartoon role model to teach me social lessons....
fuck it, ima show my kids robot Jones".
You know, a crossover between Robot Jones and Robotboy would be fun.
Robot jones would blow a fuse seeing how advance robot boy is.
Just hearing the plot I already want a reboot where he goes to college and deals with those problems
I grew up with this show but it’s been awhile since I saw it asp the TTS voice is so much better and fitting for robot Jones and the fact that this is a pencil mation show which is interesting in the early 2000s and despite the fact that this and the moxy show were forgettable was sad but at least thx to crossover nexus they put them back in the spotlight, keep up the great work for your vids btw.
I remember enjoying Whatever Happened to Robot Jones, but one of my favorite things about it is that the name can be used to start a conversation about the show.
My favorite aspect of the show were the ads where it was animated in a pixel artstyle. Especially the music during the ad, which was from the episode where the Yogman twins steal Robot’s brain to use in their machine.
One thing I remember about this show, is that as a young dumb kid, I thought it was a sequel to an older show just called "Robot Jones", and at one point asked my mother if she had ever watched that show. I think it was a combination of the art style and title.
Found out about this cartoon two weeks ago, so lucky to have new cool video about it!
Maybe because of audience of this channel people will give a lil bit more attention to this unique show
This was hard to catch on back then. I could never figure out when this show aired on cable. I really enjoyed it!
Robot Jones was an adorable cartoon! My favorite episode was the Rubik’s cube competition; I think his first name should be Mike or Melvin. Also really loved your responses that got me :3
The title of the show is fitting nowadays but yeah I remembered it. It was cool that the first season had an actual computer voice the titular character although I respect that they probably couldn't make it last without an increase in budget
I’m confused, how would using a computer-generated voice be more expensive than using an actor?
@@tiablue9106 I can't say for sure. Maybe they thought a voice actor could better emote than a computer generated one.
i remember being a huge fan of this show when i was little and trying to catch this show anytime it was on, but i honestly don't remember ANYTHING about it. not even his voice ;o;
This is the video I've been wanting for from you!
This was actually my favorite show for a long time, I was so upset when it was taken off the air.
I remember really liking the show when it first aired and being confused when they changed Robot's voice. I'd love it if the show ever did get a proper revival, but short of CN giving up the rights I sadly don't see it happening.
This was great video and throwback! I really love this cartoon and concept. I did think the cartoon was a bit mean spirited at times but I still really liked it.
Thank you!
I'm so glad you've made a video on this show! I missed this show so much and remember watching it when it was still on TV. ;w; I think the M stood for Megabites, like in the previous concept art but that's just my guess. :o Speaking of which, I haven't drawn anything for this show in a few years and now I want to again so thank you lol.
This show gaslit me a little bit as a kid. When it came out, its name made me think it was a callback to some previous show that used to exist. I was scratching my head trying to remember some other show about a "Robot Jones" character, but never truly came up with anything; even though i felt at the time that one should exist.
me too kinda. I thought it was some kinda continuation of a previous show or smth but every time I saw it it was never just "robot jones" always "whatever happened to robot jones", so I was like "how the hell should I know?? I've never seen this character before!" lol
Maybe a similar robot character appeared in Schoolhouse Rock…
4:32 technically, Ed, Edd n' Eddy was the last show on Cartoon Network to be produced with hand-drawn, cel animation, with its last cel-animated season airing in 2004, compared to Robot Jones, which last aired in 2003. But I guess that doesn't count cause it wasn't produced by Cartoon Network Studios.
This was definitely one of my favorites when it aired growing up. I'm thinking the M on the shirt might be a school thing, Or a last initial in his full name.
I've always loved this show's art style. It feels like a clever blend of _Schoolhouse Rock!_ and _MAD Magazine._ Being an autistic person, I also heavily related to Robot as a teenager, being assigned to learn social rules but not having the same perspective as my typical peers, periodically shifting between distaste and fascination, and I guess I loved revisiting the show because of that.
*No hate towards Bobby Block, but the voice change is still disappointing.*
I think the part of this show I remember most vividly is the between-episodes song they'd sometimes play called "The Nudist and Mr. Pendleton".
It's such a bizzare thing to attach to a children's show about a robot.
Finally! Been waiting for this one.
Loved it. I remember this. Remember the short. This year is 20 years when the show came out
This was definitely a show I'd file under "cartoons that I liked but didn't know why and also can't really remember much about" category of my childhood
I absolutely loved this show….. I miss it so much…