Tobot

Tobot
Opening title card for the English dub of Tobot
Directed by	Dahl Lee
Country of origin	South Korea
Original language(s)	Korean
No. of seasons	19
Production
Producer(s)	Young Toys Retrobot
Running time	4 minutes
Release
Original network	JEI TV
Original release	March 2010
Website

Tobot (Korean: 또봇) is a South Korean animated television series produced by Young Toys and Retrobot. The series features transforming cars and some of them are designed after Kia Motors vehicles.^[1]

The series is available in Korean and English on Young Toys' official YouTube channel. The toy line beat Lego as South Korea's most popular toy line in 2013.^[2]

Plot

While investigating a string of mysterious car accidents, Dr. Franklin Char is abducted by the perpetrators. This incident activates his creations called "Tobots", cars that transform into robots with a special key called a "Tokey". Dr. Char's first two Tobots, Tobot X and Tobot Y, are entrusted to his twin sons Ryan and Kory, respectively, to fight crime and protect their neighborhood.^[1]

Characters

Humans

• Cha Hana (Ryan Char): The first protagonist and the partner of Tobot X. ^[3]
• Cha Duri (Kory Char): The second protagonist, Ryan's twin brother and the partner of Tobot Y. ^[4]
• Kwon Semo (Dylan Kwon): Limo's adoptive son, the third protagonist and the partner of Tobot Z. ^[5]
• Dokgo O-gong (Nathan): Timmy's older brother and the partner of Tobot W.^[6]
• Ju Ding-yo (Dolly Park): Ryan and Kory's female classmate and the partner of Tobot D.^[7]
• Oh Hera: A clumsy female police officer and the partner of Tobot C.^[8]
• No Gyo-su (Professor Noh): Dr. Char's professor and the first partner of Tobot R before Neon. He created the Corona Lens.^[9]
• Kim Ne-bok (Neon): A friend of Ryan, Kory, and Dylan and the second partner of Tobot R after Professor Noh.^[10]
• Cha Do-un (Dr. Franklin Char): Ryan and Kory's father, and the inventor of the Tobots.
• Ding-yo eomma (Mrs. Park): Dolly's obese and overprotective mother.
• Kwon Limo (Limo Kwon): CEO of Booroong Motors. A former colleague of Dr. Char, he instigated a string of mysterious car accidents to get people to buy his cars. Later on in the series, he returns as a protagonist character and the partner of Tobot Zero.^[11]
• Ok Diluk: Limo's henchman.
• Acne: A mastermind villain who takes over as Diluk's boss after season 1.
• Choe Hui-juk: Diluk's financial manager.
• Angela: Diluk's female assistant.
• Guk Su-Ho: A friend of Ryan, Kory and Dylan who's a master of taekwondo and the partner of Tobot Adventure Taekwon K.
• Kim Nokwon: A friend of Ryan, Kory and Dylan. Partner of Tobot Adventure Teracle.^[12]
• U Pyodol: A Friend of all people in Neeleelee Town. A mailman. Partner of Tobot Adventure Cargo.

Tobots

• Tobot X: A yellow Kia Soul that is Ryan's guardian.^[13] He can upgrade into Tobot Great X, recolored in red and blue and sporting a helmet and an arm cannon.

• Tobot Evolution X: A first upgrade into a futuristic MPV.^[14] This version can further upgrade into Tobot X Shield-On, recolored in grey and red.^[15]
• Tobot Adventure X: A second upgrade an orange Kia Soul. Adventure X can utilize several tools such as a tow hook to assist other Tobots.^[16]

• Tobot Y: A blue Kia Forte Koup that is Kory's guardian. He is the faster of the Tobots and speaks very quickly.^[17]

• Tobot Evolution Y: A first upgrade into a sleeker sports car.^[18] This variant can further upgrade into Tobot Y Shield-On, recolored in white, gold, and red.^[19]
• Tobot Adventure Y: A second upgrade into a navy blue helicopter.^[20]

• Tobot Z: A red Kia Sportage R that is Dylan's guardian.^[21]

• Tobot Adventure Z: An upgrade into a red Kia Sorento R.^[22]

• Tobot W: A white and purple Kia Ray that is Nathan's guardian.^[23] He speaks with an echo. He is the first flying Tobot. In robot mode, Tobot W's chest opens to reveal a projector screen. He is upgraded into Tobot W Anti-Flame mode, recolored in blue and orange.^[24]

• Tobot Mach W: An upgrade into a blue and orange jet fighter.

• Tobot D: A light green Kia Morning/Picanto that is Dolly's guardian. He is unarmed, but has strong detection and search capabilities. Tobot D initially suffers from stammering due to a defect in its Mindcore chip, but is quickly healed with the help of Dolly and her friends.^[25]
• Rescue Tobot C: A Kia K3/Forte police car that is Hera Oh's partner. Often talks like he is using a communicator, ending his sentences with "Over. Tssh."^[26]
• Rescue Tobot R: A fire engine piloted first by Professor Noh and then Neon. Tobot R often acts as a reporter and does his reports towards the audience.^[27]
• Tobot Zero: A white Kia Bongo/K2700 tow truck that is Limo's guardian. The very first Tobot, he is originally a villain, but returns as a protagonist along with Limo.^[28]
• Tobot Adventure Taekwon K: An olive green military jeep that is Su-ho's guardian. Like Su-ho, Taekwon K is a master of taekwondo.^[29]
• Tobot Adventure Teracle: A green and orange farm tractor that is Nokwon's guardian. As a triple-changer, Terracle also transforms into a tank.^[30]
• Tobot Adventure Cargo: A white Kia Grand Carnival/Sedona delivery van with a camper top that is Pyodol's guardian. In vehicle mode, Tobot Adventure Cargo can switch to hover mode. In robot mode, the camper top transforms into a surfboard. He is also skilled in Tai Chi.

Integrated Robots

• Titan: A combination of Tobot X and Tobot Y.^[31]

• Titan Hurricane Spin: An upgrade that consists mainly of a turbine chest armor.^[32]

• Tritan: A combination of Tobot X (blue), Tobot Y (red), and Tobot Z (yellow).^[33]

• Tritan Shield-On: An upgrade of the Integrated Robot, featuring a Shield-On Helmet and a Super Spider Gun. This mode also has the Tobots change color: Tobot X in silver, Tobot Y in white, and Tobot Z in blue.^[34]

• Quatran: A combination of Tobot C, Tobot D (repainted in white), Tobot R, and Tobot W.^[35]
• Deltatron: A combination of Tobot Adventure X (green), Tobot Adventure Z (white), and Tobot D (red), plus a travel trailer.^[36]
• Giga 7: A combination of Tobot Adventure X, Tobot Adventure Y (red and white), Tobot Adventure Z (green), Tobot D (blue), Tobot Adventure Taekwon K (tan), Tobot Adventure Teracle (maroon and silver) and Tobot Adventure Cargo (yellow).

Other

• Chocobot: Professor Noh 's robotic dog.
• Bikerbots: Acne's (Diluk's in later episodes) cyborgs which usually appear with their motorcycle robots.

Production

Young Toys came up with the idea of developing an animated series and related toys during the early 2000s. While Transformers and Power Rangers are popular among older elementary school children, Young Toys decided to Tobot to younger primary school children and kindergarteners. Rather than obtain licenses from animation studios after production, Young Toys did the opposite by developing the animated series and characters from scratch before producing the toys.^[37]

Marketing

Between August and October 2014, Young Toys sold the licenses for the Tobot toys and characters to Southeast Asian nations. The series was made available in some Middle Eastern countries in January 2015.^[37]

In December 2014, Young Toys erected an eight-meter, three ton statue of Deltatron at the Sky Park outside Seoul's Lotte Mall Gimpo International Airport shopping complex to commemorate the fifth anniversary of Tobot. The statue will be on display until 2019.^[38]

See also

• Cubix - A 2001 TV series by the same animation studio

References

1. "Animation". Young Toys. Retrieved 2015-03-10.
2. Kim Tae-jong (2013-12-26). "Korean toy, Tobot, defeats Lego". The Korea Times. Retrieved 2015-03-10.
3. "Cha Hana". Namu Wiki. Retrieved 2015-11-04.
4. "Cha Duri". Namu Wiki. Retrieved 2015-11-04.
5. "Kwon Semo". Namu Wiki. Retrieved 2015-11-04.
6. "Dokgo O-Gong". Namu Wiki. Retrieved 2015-11-04.
7. "Ju Dingyo". Namu Wiki. Retrieved 2015-11-04.
8. "Oh Hera". Namu Wiki. Retrieved 2015-11-04.
9. "No Gyo-su". Namu Wiki. Retrieved 2015-11-04.
10. "Neyong". Namu Wiki. Retrieved 2015-11-04.
11. "Kwon Limo". Namu Wiki. Retrieved 2015-11-04.
12. "Kim Nokwon". Namu Wiki. Retrieved 2015-11-04.
13. "Tobot X". Young Toys. Retrieved 2015-03-10.
14. "Tobot Evolution X". Young Toys. Retrieved 2015-03-10.
15. "Tobot Evolution X Shield On". Young Toys. Retrieved 2015-04-05.
16. "Tobot Adventure X". Young Toys. Retrieved 2015-03-11.
17. "Tobot Y". Young Toys. Retrieved 2015-03-10.
18. "Tobot Evolution Y". Young Toys. Retrieved 2015-03-10.
19. "Tobot Evolution Y Shield On". Young Toys. Retrieved 2015-04-05.
20. "Tobot Adventure Y". Young Toys. Retrieved 2015-03-11.
21. "Tobot Z". Young Toys. Retrieved 2015-03-10.
22. "Tobot Adventure Z". Young Toys. Retrieved 2015-03-10.
23. "Tobot W Shield-On". Young Toys. Retrieved 2015-03-11.
24. "Tobot W". Young Toys. Retrieved 2015-09-27.
25. "Tobot D". Young Toys. Retrieved 2015-03-10.
26. "Rescue Tobot C". Young Toys. Retrieved 2015-03-10.
27. "Rescue Tobot R". Young Toys. Retrieved 2015-03-10.
28. "Tobot Zero". Young Toys. Retrieved 2015-03-10.
29. "Tobot Adventure Taekwon K". Young Toys. Retrieved 2015-09-27.
30. "Tobot Adventure Teracle". Young Toys. Retrieved 2015-09-27.
31. "Titan". Young Toys. Retrieved 2015-03-10.
32. "Titan Hurricane Spin". Young Toys. Retrieved 2015-09-27.
33. "Tritan". Young Toys. Retrieved 2015-03-10.
34. "Tritan Shield-On". Young Toys. Retrieved 2015-09-27.
35. "Quatran". Young Toys. Retrieved 2015-03-10.
36. "Deltatron". Young Toys. Retrieved 2015-03-11.
37. Limb Jae-un (2014-07-11). "Young Toys' transforming robot Tobot popular among kids". Korea.net. Retrieved 2015-03-10.
38. Dong, Bamboo (2014-12-24). "Seoul Erects an 8-Meter, 3-Ton Tobot Kia Robot Statue". Anime News Network. Retrieved 2015-03-10.

External links

• Official website
• Tobot's channel on YouTube