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"Last time, we started our search to fill the series second semi-final. The balloon went up on Destruct-A-Bubble and Centurion's Roman role went straight to the pits. Killerhurtz had a swinging time. Little Eric though was making good progress and Small Torque got torched, bashed, bullied and beaten. But in the Heat Final, Splinter was too strong. Who'll join him from this next heat?"
— Jonathan Pearce's introduction

Heat J of Robot Wars: The Fourth Wars (also referred to in recaps as Heat 10) was the tenth of sixteen heats which determined the semi-finalists of Robot Wars: The Fourth Wars. The episode featuring Heat J was originally broadcast on 8 December 2000 on BBC Two. The broadcast managed to attract 3.42 million viewers, a decrease of 60,000 viewers when compared with the previous episode. According to BARB, this meant it ranked joint-eleventh in the top thirty highest rated BBC 2 broadcasts during 4-10 December 2000, along with Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

"Y'know, I’ve never really trusted scientists. I mean, take these guys who’ve perfected cloning: any normal bloke would’ve cloned someone like Pamela Anderson. But, no, they clone a sheep. And is it me, or don’t all sheep look the same anyway?! Luckily, there’s nothing weird about the science you find on Robot Wars. OK, so the roboteers are all psychos, and there are one or two beards floating around, but at least the local wildlife doesn’t have to panic."
— Craig Charles' introduction

Competing Robots[]

Newcomers[]

Clawedhopper
Clawed Hopper
Weight 138.8kg
Dimensions 0.50 x 1.30 x 0.60m
Clearance 0.03m
Power 3 x Electrical starter motors
Weapons 2 x Mechanical claws
Notes Partly made from scrap
From: Bideford, Devon
Team Members: Andrew Hughes, Nicholas Clement & Joshua Hughes
Hammer and Tong
Hammer & Tong
Weight 79.8kg
Dimensions 0.70 x 1.00 x 1.00m
Clearance 0.02m
Power 2 x Wheelchair motors
Weapons Pneumatic arm with spike
Notes Scavenged flipper
From: Market Rasen, Lincolnshire
Team Members: Stewart Smith, Oliver Smith & Paul Schmidt
Spikasaurus
Spikasaurus
Weight 80.0kg
Dimensions 0.30 x 1.45 x 0.65m
Clearance 0.04m
Power 4 x 750W electric motors
Weapons 2 x spikes and ramming bar
Notes Can travel up to 17mph
From: Manchester
Team Members: Stuart Pearson, Andrea Whittle & Lee Ainscough

Veterans[]

Biggerbrother
Bigger Brother (seeded 14th)
Weight 77.3kg
Dimensions 0.30 x 0.90 x 0.90m
Clearance 0.01m
Power 2 x Electric motors
Weapons Steel spike
Notes Monster truck wiper motors
From: Brighton
Team Members: Joseph Watts & Ian Watts
Stinger-
Stinger (seeded 30th)
Weight 77.1kg
Dimensions 0.37 x 0.70 x 0.60m
Clearance 0.05m
Power 2 x Electric motors
Weapons Swinging axe
Notes Steel shell
From: Lincoln
Team Members: Kevin Scott, Karl Skinner & Tim Mann
BulldogbreedII
Bulldog Breed 2
Weight 79.0kg
Dimensions 0.30 x 0.75 x 0.70m
Clearance 0.01m
Power 2 x Wheelchair motors
Weapons Flipper and rear spike
Notes Can push a forklift truck
From: Walsall
Team Members: Tony Somerfield, Robert Somerfield & Toni Bond

Eliminators[]

Bigger Brother (14) vs Clawed Hopper vs Hammer & Tong[]

BiggerBrotherClawedHopper

Clawed Hopper falls victim to Bigger Brother's flipper

Bigger Brother moved on the offensive, flipping Clawed Hopper onto its side, but not quite enough to flip it over. Clawed Hopper's walking movements were enough to cause the walker to land the right way up. Bigger Brother withdrew and Hammer & Tong pushed into Clawed Hopper, whose walking movement and weight allowed it to easily overpower Hammer & Tong, pushing it very slowly back, whilst Hammer & Tong's weapon cut through thin air.

"Don't make any plans for next summer's holidays cos...Clawed Hopper will still be here. Err very probably."
— Jonathan Pearce on Clawed Hopper's low speed
Clawed hopper vs hammer a tong

Clawed Hopper manages to get underneath Hammer & Tong and pushes it

Bigger brother clawed hopper hammer & tong

Bigger Brother topples Clawed Hopper

Clawed Hopper slowly advanced on Hammer & Tong, who managed to press down on it with its weapon but not inflict any damage. Bigger Brother rejoined the fight, flipping Hammer & Tong up several times, as Clawed Hopper walked off the floor flipper. Bigger Brother's flipper had insufficient strength and degree of opening to get the wide bodied Hammer & Tong over on its back, so it moved back and attempted to flip Clawed Hopper again, with Clawed Hopper's weight and movement thwarting the attempt once more. Clawed Hopper continued its ponderous advance on Hammer & Tong, but Bigger Brother moved in, getting significantly more flipper beneath the walker, and managed to flip it on its back.

Bigger brother hammer & tong

Bigger Brother targets Hammer & Tong

Dead metal clawed hopper

Dead Metal roasts Clawed Hopper on the flame pit

"Oh. It's just like a beetle! You want to put it out of its misery though when the beetle turns over on its back. Who's gonna turn Clawed Hopper over? Oh dear."
— Jonathan Pearce

Bigger Brother then turned on Hammer & Tong, flipped it up, and wedged its spikes in the wheels. Bigger Brother could not release Hammer & Tong, despite trying, so it pushed it around the arena.

"Once you've beaten these two, you can take on the House Robots! Today the arena, Joe, tomorrow the world!"
— Jonathan Pearce
Bigger brother vs hammer a tong

Bigger Brother roasts Hammer & Tong

Clawed hopper floor flipper

Clawed Hopper is thrown by the floor flipper

Whilst Bigger Brother flailed against Hammer & Tong, Dead Metal and Sgt Bash closed in on Clawed Hopper. Despite attempts to use its legs to bash Dead Metal's saw away, Clawed Hopper was attacked and put on the flame pit. Dead Metal then pushed it onto the floor flipper, but it only flew a small distance due to its enormous weight. Cease was called as Dead Metal attacked again.

"Clawed Hopper goes belly-up and out of the competition."
— Craig Charles

Qualified: Hammer & Tong and Bigger Brother

Stinger (30) vs Bulldog Breed 2 vs Spikasaurus[]

"So. Clawed Hopper go out. Bigger Brother and Hammer and Tong through. Next up, Spikasaurus, Stinger from Lincoln and the Bulldog Breed 2."
— Jonathan Pearce
Spikasaurus spears Stinger

Spikasaurus uses its spikes to attack Stinger

SpikasaurusFUBAR

Spikasaurus is flipped by Bulldog Breed 2

All three robots moved off, and Bulldog Breed 2 was the quickest robot, flipping Spikasaurus in the opening moments. The rollcage of Spikasaurus allowed it to simply roll back onto its wheels, before speeding off, crashing into Shunt briefly. It shot back and crashed into Stinger, pushing the axlebot into Bulldog Breed, who flipped but failed to do anything to Stinger. Stinger slammed Spikasaurus with its mace, before crashing its axe around the arena floor.

"Stinger, with the great axe on the back, slamming down like a mighty pendulum. They say it's better than the pizza cutter, but boys, we didn't see the pizza cutter last time around! You were in the pit too quickly!"
— Jonathan Pearce
Bulldog breed stinger spikasaurus

Bulldog Breed 2 flips Stinger

Spikasaurus Stinger Bulldog Breed

A chaoctic battle between the three robots

Bulldog Breed flipped Stinger just as Spikasaurus rammed into it from the side, pushing it away. Stinger was unaffected by the flip, and rejoined the battle, with Spikasaurus pushing it against Bulldog Breed, who threw it up into the air. Stinger fled, and Bulldog Breed turned its attention to Spikasaurus, flicking it up on its side. The momentum was too little to get it on its back, so Spikasaurus fell back on its wheels. Stinger skidded in amongst the action, flailing its mace in and driving its opponents away. Bulldog Breed 2 then flipped precisely as Spikasaurus charged into it, lances first, negating the attack, before flicking it over. Once more, Spikasaurus rolled back onto its wheels. Spikasaurus pushed Stinger into the side wall, sending sparks flying, and when Bulldog Breed intervened, Stinger swung its mace in random directions, walloping both robots and fleeing.

"You're supposed to attack the other robots and the House Robots, not the arena floor, with the weapon!"
— A gleeful Jonathan Pearce
Spikasaurus stuck

Spikasaurus skewers itself

Bulldog breed spikasaurus stinger

Bulldog Breed negates the charge

As Stinger spun, Spikasaurus was dealt a heavy blow and its charge was redirected into the side wall, where its spear buckled and pinned it to the wall. It was freed by Dead Metal, and rejoined the battle between Bulldog Breed and Stinger. Bulldog Breed flipped both opponents, but neither was affected, and the battle continued in the same way until Spikasaurus ran into the side spike near Shunt's CPZ. Bulldog Breed tried to push it into the waiting House Robot, but ended up flipping Shunt slightly and catching itself in the CPZ.

"And Shunt came out, very very hungrily and said "Bulldog, you're mine!""
— Jonathan Pearce
Bulldog breed shunt

Shunt slams through Bulldog Breed

BulldogBreedvsSpikasaurus

Bulldog Breed flips Spikasaurus

Shunt axed through the flipper of Bulldog Breed, but dragged it out and allowed it to escape. Bulldog Breed, Spikasaurus and Stinger continued to fight, with Spikasaurus being flipped over and its now-damaged rollcage not allowing it to self-right. However, due to blows from Stinger and Bulldog Breed in the duo's own battle, Spikasaurus was knocked back onto its wheels. The match went to the judges, who unanimously eliminated Spikasaurus.

Julia Reed: "RIP Spikasaurus. Three kilowatt of drive just didn't impress the judges really, did it?"
Lee Ainscough: "It certainly didn't."
Julia Reed: "Why, what happened?"
Lee Ainscough: "Well, what can I say really? We had a good match, we got to the end, but we took a lot of battering from the other two robots."
Julia Reed: "Show us the damage then, the autopsy."
Lee Ainscough: "We've got a lot of bent rollbars - they saved us, but they go bent in the end - and at the front, we've got a lot of damage."
Julia Reed: "You really are in pieces, aren't you?"
Lee Ainscough: "Good fight though."
— Spikasaurus' post-mortem

Qualified: Bulldog Breed 2 and Stinger

Semi-Finals[]

Bigger Brother (14) vs Bulldog Breed 2[]

Julia Reed: "You've got the tactics of a seven and a half year old against you, have you met little Joe?"
Toni Bond: "We have yes, unfortunately."
Julia Reed: "Its going to be harder to beat him up, now, isn't it?"
Toni Bond: "It is, yeah."
Tony Somerfield: "We just helped him mend his robot!"
Julia Reed: "Oh, he's such a cutie isn't he?"
Tony Somerfield: "Yeah...I wish we hadn't now. Hahaha"

— The pre-match interview with Bulldog Breed
Bulldog breed 2 bigger brother

Bigger Brother vents gas

Bulldog breed bigger brother

Bulldog Breed 2 flips Bigger Brother

The two robots moved off the start zones slowly, and Bigger Brother attacked Bulldog Breed side-on. It used its flipper, but the flipper did not get beneath enough of its opponent to work. To make matters worse, Bigger Brother vented a large amount of gas immediately afterwards.

"Ooh! Gas is being vented there. Now they normally are aimed, due to the pressurised system onto the flipper, I wonder if there's a problem with one of the pressure valves. I think there might be, and that will lead to a lack of power in what was otherwise a fierce flipper! And it may give Bulldog Breed 2 a chance to growl and prowl, menacingly."
— Jonathan Pearce

Bigger Brother tried to flip once again, venting even more gas, and Bulldog Breed responded with its own. Three small flips missed, but Bulldog Breed managed to hook its flipper underneath and flick Bigger Brother over and onto its back.

"They're over! That's the end I think, for little Joe and dad Ian."
— Jonathan Pearce
Biggerbrtother vs sirkillalt and sgtbash

Sir Killalot and Sgt. Bash torch Bigger Brother

BiggerBrotherPitted

The House Robots pit Bigger Brother

Gas continued to vent from Bigger Brother, leaving not enough pressure for Bigger Brother to right itself. Eventually, Bash and Killalot closed in and plucked Bigger Brother from the floor. It hurled Bigger Brother across the arena, and Sergeant Bash pulled it over to the pit. However, there seemed to be some discrepancy between Bash and Killalot on pushing Bigger Brother down the pit, and Killalot pulled Bigger Brother out of Bash's jaws, leaving the Sergeant stranded on the pit. Killalot dropped Bigger Brother beside the pit, and Shunt finally solved the problem by pitting it.

Craig Charles: "You have to feel really big and clever breaking a little boy's heart."
Toni Bond: "I have to apologise, but considering we were called a puppy in the last war, we had to come back hard."
— The post-match interview

Winner: Bulldog Breed 2

Stinger (30) vs Hammer & Tong[]

Julia Reed: "Can you hear the audience cheering for you? Can you hear it?"
Kevin Scott: "We've got fifty people out there."
Julia Reed: "You've got fifty of your own people out there?"
Jonathan Pearce: "One thing that amazes me about Tim Mann and the crew - they've got fifty friends at all! Just joking boys - the whole of the village is here"
— The whole of Lincoln - home town of both Stinger and Hammer & Tong - was supposedly in the audience.
Stinger hammer & tong

Hammer & Tong nudges Stinger onto one wheel

Hammer and tong stinger

Stinger runs towards Hammer & Tong

Hammer & Tong advanced, with its weapon lowered in the flipper position. Stinger started much more slowly than usual, rolling off its starting position and positioning itself. When Hammer & Tong drove alongside it and spun, striking its opponent several times with its mace. Stinger then reversed back and charged Hammer & Tong, slamming its mace into the bodyshell of its opponent. Hammer & Tong moved forward and brought its weapon down, which nudged Stinger up onto one wheel. Stinger flailed on one wheel, trying to land on the ground. It finally landed on both wheels, and swung its mace at Hammer & Tong, striking once more.

"The spike has been bent, has it? Have to see that again - no its okay. Folded back on itself as a protection as it slammed on the arena floor, its okay."
— Jonathan Pearce sees Hammer & Tong's design in action
Hammer & tong stinger

Stinger slams Hammer & Tong

KillalotHammer&Tong

Sir Killalot attacks Hammer & Tong

Stinger then attacked three times, with the first landing on the armour, the second missing, and the third being blocked as Hammer & Tong brought its weapon down. Stinger attacked again, and then drove forward. Hammer & Tong had its weapon lowered, attempting to flip Stinger, but Stinger struck with its mace and retreated before the weapon could be fired. Hammer & Tong's attempt to use its axe also missed. Stinger slammed Hammer & Tong, nudging it across the flame pit. Hammer & Tong weakly moved off, but broke down. Stinger pushed its mace underneath, and Hammer & Tong was showing no responsiveness. Stinger spun into position and began spinning, but Hammer & Tong was just out of range, so Stinger drove forward to attack. Its bumper caught on something and caused Stinger to jump away. Stinger continued to harass its opponent, and Matilda confirmed the immobilisation by charging in.

"Has Hammer & Tong been immobilised here? Immobilised for longer than thirty seconds, you're out...I think Hammer & Tong - something's gone wrong inside. I think they're immobilised, Killalot does to - look at that! Crumpling, crushing, formidable force from Killalot."
— Jonathan Pearce
Hammer a tong vs houserobots

The House Robots decimate Hammer & Tong

Hammer&tong floor flipper

Hammer & Tong is thrown by the floor flipper

Matilda pushed Hammer & Tong across the flame pit and Sir Killalot seized it. Killalot's pincer effortlessly sliced through Hammer & Tong's armour. Killalot spun and threw Hammer & Tong. Sergeant Bash and Shunt attacked, both easily smashing the armour of Hammer & Tong, and Sir Killalot rejoined to crumple the armour.

"Oh dear. Oh, makes you weak, doesn't it? Does it? No, not really."
— Jonathan Pearce

Killalot finally placed Hammer & Tong on the floor flipper, which threw it, and cease was called.

Craig Charles: "Your robot is called Hammer & Tong, but you got bludgeoned to death, didn't you!"
Paul Schmidt: "They're supposed to be our friends from Lincoln! They said they were going to be gentle with us!"
— After the match

Winner: Stinger

Final[]

Bulldog Breed 2 vs Stinger (30)[]

Kevin Scott: "We were in the same driving arena with them this morning, we were standing next to each other! And now we've got to knock 'em about!"
Karl Skinner: "We've got something to prove really, because in the last wars, Craig said we were drunken drivers, so this year we've got to prove him wrong!"
— Stinger talks to Julia Reed
Stinger vs bulldog breed

Stinger spins on the spot thwacking Bulldog Breed 2 as it charges in

Bulldog breed stinger

Bulldog Breed balances Stinger

Stinger spun on the spot, and Bulldog Breed 2 moved forward, knocking it onto one wheel. Bulldog Breed attempted to do the same thing, battering against Stinger, but managing to tip it onto its side. Stinger veered away and attacked, with Bulldog Breed moving at the same slow pace and taking hits when it wedged beneath its opponent.

"Its a bit tentative here, they're feeling each other out, I don't know why. They know all about each other, they fought together against Spikasaurus."
— Jonathan Pearce
Bulldog breed vs stinger

Bulldog Breed flips Stinger

Bulldog breed 2 stinger

Stinger strikes Bulldog Breed

Bulldog Breed nudged Stinger onto one wheel again, after it drove across the flames. Stinger then drove onto Bulldog Breed, who fired its flipper, raising it off the ground but not lifting it. Stinger struck Bulldog Breed twice, but Bulldog Breed flipped it aside on the second attempt. Bulldog Breed's flipper stayed open, and Stinger spun on the spot, slamming into Bulldog Breed's side and back. The flipper would still not close, and Stinger's attacks caused CO2 to start venting.

"Stinger - a side attack on the Bulldog, the jaws of the Bulldog are open - ah! CO2 being vented there! Bulldog Breed is in trouble here."
— Jonathan Pearce
Stinger bulldog breed

Stinger attacks the smoking Bulldog Breed

DMBulldogBreed

Dead Metal drags Bulldog Breed 2 around

Stinger struck the top of Bulldog Breed, then swung its axe to hit the inside of the flipper. Bulldog Breed spun in a circle, trying to minimise the amount of damage inflicted in one area. Bulldog Breed pushed its open flipper onto the mace, holding it still, but Stinger escaped and struck again, knocking Bulldog Breed aside several feet and knocking it out. As Stinger propped itself against Bulldog Breed, smoke began to pour from the immobilised machine. Dead Metal, Shunt and Killalot attacked Bulldog Breed, slicing, axing and otherwise attacking the machine. Bulldog Breed was dropped on its back by Killalot and placed on the floor flipper by Dead Metal. Bulldog Breed crashed back down and cease was called.

Craig Charles: "You're more like a puppy now. What happened there?"
Toni Bond: "Sorry guys, they hit us a bit hard, they knocked something out, so..."
Craig Charles: "They bludgeoned you to death! Your flipper went, they gave you a serious pounding, didn't they?"
Tony Somerfield: "Call RSPCA"
— The post-battle interview

Heat Winner: Stinger

"Well, we don't use camera tricks or hidden trap doors, the danger's for real, on Robot Wars!"
— Craig Charles' sign-off

Trials[]

RazerPinballS4

Razer attacks Sir Killalot

During the Fourth Wars, alongside the main competition, a Pinball Warrior Tournament and Sumo Basho Competition were also held. Unlike the similar competitions of the Third Wars, these trials featured successful qualifiers for Series 4. In between the first and second rounds of each heat, a Pinball run took place, and two sumo attempts took place in between Round 2 and the Heat Final in each of the first eight heats. For Heat J, the Pinball featured reigning Pinball champion Razer.

Pinball Warrior Tournament - Razer[]

Score: 95 points

Trivia[]

  • Heat J was the second of only four times that a lower seed won the heat, the other occasions being Heat B of Series 4, Heat N of Series 4, and Heat G of Series 5.
    • As the 30th seed, Stinger became the lowest seeded robot in history to win a heat.
    • Coincidentally, both seeds in this heat were eliminated from the Third Wars by Mace 2
  • This was also the only heat in Series 4 where the two robots that came through the second eliminator competed in the heat final.
  • Clawed Hopper's debut in this heat signified the first time a walkerbot entered in the main competition.
  • This was Bigger Brother's joint worst performance in the main competition, it would later go out at the same stage in Series 7.
  • Before the preview of the next episode, there was a short clip of Joe Watts saying "Bye Robot Wars!".
  • This was the only heat in Series 4 where the two heat finalists were first round drop-outs from the previous series.

Navigation[]

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