Common Sense Media Review
School is a battleground in violent cartoon for older teens.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 15+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
What's the Story?
Thrasher and Blastus are just trying to find their place in high school, but on the planet Insanus, school is a dangerous place where students might be blown to bits or pummeled just walking down the hall. Fortunately, on the animated ROBOTOMY, the characters are all anthropomorphic robots that can recover easily from even the most violent mayhem.
Is It Any Good?
Good thing, because violence is the key ingredient on the show. The storylines are pretty thin (and the episodes are typically a short 15 minutes), and the focus here is on the imagery that sells the metaphor of school as a battlefield. Director Christy Karacas also helmed the even-more-violent Superjail, which was definitely aimed at adult viewers (and, like this show, appears on Cartoon Network's late-night Adult Swim programming segment); this show is a bit more tame, but is best for older teens. Subtle it is not, but Robotomy does feature characters that will appeal to anyone who ever struggled to find acceptance in high school.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about high school conflicts. What do you think about the way this series portrays school as a dangerous place where people can get blown up on the way to class? Do you think the bigger message has some truth, that school can be a battlefield as students vie for status and popularity?
What do you think about the violent images in this show? Is it art, or does it go too far?
TV Details
- Premiere date : October 25, 2010
- Network : Cartoon Network
- Genre : Kids' Animation
- TV rating :
- Last updated : October 9, 2025
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