Review of Whatever Happened to... Robot Jones?

Whatever Happened to Robot Jones? originally appeared as one of the contestants for Cartoon Network's summer 2000 contest on deciding who what the next Cartoon Cartoon would be. It lost to Billy and Mandy, and ended up tagging along in second place. Apparently, that didn't stop the producers from giving Robot Jones a series anyway! The show follows the misadventures of our hero Robot Jones, who, like the rest of his robotic family, must study the human race. Jones has the objective of investigating the younger generation, namely the 6th grade. At the same time, however, his environment gives him another problem to conquer: the pressures of a typical teenager. The concept of the show truly shines. Being a robot makes Jones a total outsider in a human-infested school, making his educational process a little harder than it should be. While his mechanical brain and limbs give him an advantage on school work, socialization is a different issue. For example, when one kid invites Jones over to a pool party as a friendly gesture, he must decline in fear that his circuits would electrocute everybody in the water. Jones is the kind of robot who feels more comfortable talking to electrical appliances, until he figures out that they have no way of responding. The art style of the show is weird, to say in the least. The characters are fairly simplistic looking, almost as if they've been taken out of a School House Rock cartoon. Even more notable is the stitched in backgrounds, which tends to muddle the colors a bit. It can be viewed as either a unique new approach, or a horrible attempt that some critics probably won't be able to tolerate. However, it does suit the setting of the unexplainably well. What stands out even more is the audio. Jones sounds a lot like Stephen Hawking's voicebox, which makes him a little hard to understand. If you live in a house that's never quiet like I do, then it's especially difficult. The other characters have typicial cartoon voices, in which the character's tone of voice depends on his or her personality traits. The music is an odd mix. Most scenes have a touch of rock n' roll guitar playing in the background, which is the typical standard of today's cartoons. On top of that, however, are the bleepy Game Boy-like tunes used to cope with the fact of having a robot as the main character. I'd say it gives the show a lot of personality, and helps it stand out of the crowd. In short, Robot Jones introduces a lot of new ideas, making it a fresh and very original cartoon. While it might be too much for some critics to handle, those who are looking for something different have no excuse not to watch.