''RoboRoach'' is a Canadian

animated television series An animated series is a set of Animation, animated works with a common series title, usually related to one another. These episodes should typically share the same main characters, some different secondary characters and a basic theme. Series can ...

which ran on

Teletoon Teletoon (stylized as TELETOON) is a Canadian English-language specialty channel owned by Teletoon Canada, Inc., a subsidiary of Corus Entertainment. Its name is a portmanteau of "television" and " cartoon". The channel primarily broadcasts ...

in Canada,

Animania HD Voom HD Networks is a suite of 25 original high-definition television channels owned by AMC Networks. The channels were produced in Crystal Clear Hi-Definition with Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound and were the largest suite of HD channels in t ...

in the United States, and

Fox Kids Fox Kids (originally known as Fox Children's Network and later as the Fox Kids Network; stylized as FOX KIDS) was an American children's block programming, programming block and branding for a slate of international children's television channel ...

internationally. The title song was sung by Big Rude Jake. It follows the story of a

cockroach Cockroaches (or roaches) are a paraphyletic group of insects belonging to Blattodea, containing all members of the group except termites. About 30 cockroach species out of 4,600 are associated with human habitats. Some species are well-known as ...

named Ruben and his brother Reginald. While scavenging for food, as seen in the opening, Ruben is caught and experimented on. His brother saves him, but when they jump into an electrical outlet, Ruben is transformed forever into a robot and cockroach

cyborg A cyborg ()—a portmanteau of ''cybernetic'' and ''organism''—is a being with both organic and biomechatronic body parts. The term was coined in 1960 by Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline.

called a roboroach. After that, he swears to use his powers only for the good of everyone and never for personal use, which is unfortunate for Reginald.

Characters

Main

* Ruben "Rube" Roach ( Scott Thompson) is the second-born and younger of the Roach brothers' has been turned into a "super-bug" thanks to being captured and experimented on before he hopped into an electrical outlet and transformed into RoboRoach, and since that day he serves as the superhero of the fictional town of Vexberg. He always thinks of the others before himself and never accepts gifts of gratitude, and that's the reason why he and his brother live in poverty. Ruben is also quite childish, naïve and believes almost everything anyone tells him. He has three pet lice and a "larvy" doll that he can't sleep without. His robotic superpowers include transforming into almost anything, from washing machines to scooters and from planes to toilets. * Reginald "Reg" Roach (

Ted Dykstra Ted Dykstra is a Canadian playwright and actor. He was born in Chatham-Kent, Ontario in 1961 and grew up in St. Albert, Alberta. He is a founding member of Soulpepper Theatre Company. Writing credits include '' Two Pianos Four Hands'', '' ...

) is the firstborn and eldest of the Roach brothers' who always tries to get rich but always fails. He is overambitious and cares only about himself. Reginald tries to use his brother's powers to obtain money but Ruben always turns down reward offers because, as he says: "A good deed is its own reward!". That infuriates Reginald and he is also quite selfish and bad-tempered/ill-tempered. This often causes him a lot of trouble. However he is still Ruben's big brother regardless and there are times he can cast out his own greed and anger aside just for his big younger brother whenever he believes he might lose his brother and more, showing us he truly cares for his brother and loves him as much as Ruben does for him. His

catchphrase A catchphrase (alternatively spelled catch phrase) is a phrase or expression recognized by its repeated utterance. Such phrases often originate in popular culture and in the arts, and typically spread through word of mouth and a variety of mass ...

is "''Why me? Why me? Why all the time me?''" with slight variations according to the episode. He could be described as an ever-failing character. * Mayor Mierworm is the mayor of Vexburg. she does not like Ruben or Reginald and thinks of them as menaces. Once she even tried to blame them for a crime they never committed, just to get rid of them. As a politician she is not very good but seemingly Mayor Mierworm gets re-elected quite often. * Skeeter Jettings is the main reporter in the series and can be found announcing the news on Reginald Ruben's TV. His name is a spoof on

Peter Jennings Peter Charles Archibald Ewart Jennings (July 29, 1938August 7, 2005) was a Canadian-born American television journalist who served as the sole anchor of ''ABC World News Tonight'' from 1983 until his death from lung cancer in 2005. He dropped o ...

. * The Police Chief is Roboroach's friend and chief of the police station. Also known for his

giggle Laughter is a pleasant physical reaction and emotion consisting usually of rhythmical, often audible contractions of the diaphragm and other parts of the respiratory system. It is a response to certain external or internal stimuli. Laughter ...

. * Doc is the Roach brothers' personal physician. * Sterling Überbucks is CEO and owner of his company "Überbucks Dynamic Concerns". He and his helper Toadie are always trying to get richer at the cost of anything. Sterling has a nephew Stewie Jr., an evil twin brother named Carling and a great-great-great-grandfather named Sterling Überrucks The Very 1st.

Villains

* Mandible Lecter, a dangerous murderer, kidnaps innocent bugs and eats them. * Widow Black, a black widow, who marries bugs. * The Exterminator, a war-fanatic with a German accent is considered to be a mercenary. * F. Lee Brain, a

mad scientist The mad scientist (also mad doctor or mad professor) is a stock character of a scientist who is perceived as " mad, bad and dangerous to know" or "insane" owing to a combination of unusual or unsettling personality traits and the unabashedly amb ...

that is bent on conquering the world with the help of his henchman Slug. * The Disciplinarian/Ms.Conduct, a former teacher to Ruben and Reginald.

Episodes

The show ''Extermination!'' in the episode "Battling for Uberbucks / Death of a Salesbug" is a play of the

reality show Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...

'' Survivor''. The episode "Revenge of the Fleabrain" parodies

Superman Superman is a superhero who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, and debuted in the comic book ''Action Comics'' #1 (cover-dated June 1938 and publi ...

. The episode "Ghost Bunglers" is based on the ''Ghostbusters'' film series The episode "The Fly Who Loved Me" is based on the 1977 film '' The Spy Who Loved Me'' With Teletoon original airdates in parentheses:Alt URL
/ref>

Season 1 (2002)

# Reg Bugs Out / Little Big Mouth () # Pains, Drains, and Robomobiles / Jungle Bugs () # Fitness Bug / Runaway Roaches () # Popsicle Pest / Weakened Gladiators () # Sugar Mommy / X-Pet () # Bedridden Bug / Robo Roach: The Movie () # Two Bugs and a Baby / Überland () # Santa's Bitter Helper / Flushed-Aways () # Robo Watch / Sins of the Teacher () # Rube Awakenings / Battling For Uberbucks () # Bug Tusslers / Death of a Salesbug () # Revenge of the Fleabrain / Ghost Bunglers () # Mite Makes Wrong / Good Deed Day () # The Flying Roachinis / Cowbugs () # Political Partying / Bugfoot Tetish () # Bugs With Gas / Insectizoids () # Vexburg 500 / Guilty Please () # Family Feud / Robo Reg () # Under The Rainbow / Bed Bug Walking () # Sluggies / Delivery Bugs () # Jockey Shorts / The RoboRoach Show () # The Big Bug Sleep / Prehistoric Pest () # Ruby's Slippers / The President's Brain Is Missing () # Club Dead / Omega Mites () # The Great Reginini / Dustmites Come Home () # The High Cost Of Laughing / Loco Hero ()

Season 2 (2003–2004)

# Shuttle Bugs / Rememberizing Rube () # Ship Of Foods / Pipe Reams () # CopRoach Academy / Tooth For A Tooth () # Überpops / Ballwashers Championship () # Office Hours / Miss Vexburg () # The Dapper Dandies Of Dusty Gulch / Of Lice And A Men () # Spelunkheads / Giggling Island () # Reggie's Hero / Gourmet Rude () # Mystic Warbugs / X Hits The Spot () # The Miracle Of Girth / The Purse Of The Mummy () # A Pair Au Pairs / Shocking Tales () # Reality Bytes / Debonairhead () # Elves' Night Off / Loose Sleuths () # Death Takes A Half Day / Übertrain () # The Sacrificial Ham / Bug Brother Is Watching () # Space Cadets / Love Bugs () # WereRoach / Remote Control Roach () # No Pain No Weight Gain / El Regidente () # Sins Of The Teacher II / Robo Reunion () # Opposites Detract / Robo Nurse () # Night Of The Living Beds / Superhero Sampler () # Reggie's Eleven / Easter Charade () # It's A Mad Mad Mad Reg / Gold Fever () # Spitting Images / Youth Juice () # The Living Bro / The Fly Who Loved Me () # Road To Ubugme / Ticking Time Bug ()

Production

The series is based on true stories about Japanese scientists who implanted cameras and mini-computers in cockroaches and sent them into disaster zones to look for life signs. A third 26-episode season of the show was planned as of early 2003 but was never produced.

Disney Media Distribution Disney Platform Distribution, Inc. is a business unit within Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution (DMED) that manages all third-party media sales efforts for distribution, affiliate marketing and affiliate-related business operations for a ...

own the show's international rights.

References

External links

* {{Teletoon 2000s Canadian animated television series 2002 Canadian television series debuts 2004 Canadian television series endings Canadian children's animated comedy television series English-language television shows Teletoon original programming Animated television series about brothers Animated television series about insects