RoboCop - Reassessing A Cyborg Police Officer Within A Modern Politically Charged Landscape
Is RoboCop Obsolete In Our New Citizen Minded Policing Society?
Dead or alive, you're coming with me!
RoboCop, where have you gone? The hero cyborg cop played by actor Peter Weller seems much further away than simply a pop culture icon born of the 80’s. Director Paul Verhoeven’s 1987 sci-fi satire wowed both audiences and critics alike. It was such a mega box office hit it spawned two feature film sequels, a live action TV show, novels, comic books, an animated television series and a remake starring Michael Keaton. Fans eagerly purchased action figures, video games and all sorts of other associated merchandise. RoboCop became one in demand law enforcement officer.
Call in a missing persons report. He’s been lying low lately.
Our times change, so our tastes change. Society transforms, and accordingly, reassesses itself. Is RoboCop as gleaming showroom fresh as when he rolled out to us back in the day? With an unprecedented scrutiny over law enforcement at every level, the days of a gleaming, chrome plated cop laying down the law by firing his super charged pistol seem like centuries instead of decades ago. Evidently, our metallic flatfoot, RoboCop, has been undergoing a strict operational review.
On Patrol In Old Detroit
Your move, creep!
After police officer Alex Murphy is brutally gunned down while attempting to arrest a gang of thugs, he’s left for dead. Soon, his broken body becomes experimental clay for a groundbreaking science project. Can this crack geek team create a fully operational Robotic Cop? He’ll ultimately be transformed into a herculean cyborg - armed to the teeth with beefy armor, crushing, computer assisted weaponry and other gadgets even James Bond would love to pack.
RoboCop’s skills and tech can’t reasonably be questioned, but there’s more to arresting criminals than cool hardware or skillful prowess. How would Murphy’s cyborg persona fare as a cop patrolling the streets of America today?
It’s the age old game of challenging authority and upholding the law. It’s the compelling competition of the patrolling cat and the marauding mouse - the cop and the criminal. Depending upon the move they make, a suspect can either be safely taken into custody, survive arrest compliance force or die during an arrest. It’s a complex equation in which the common person has no idea on how to balance nor relate to, except, appropriately enough, in our movies about cops and robbers.
Of course, making the right moves also applies to the police officer. The level of force he or she decides to use can determine the outcome of the confrontation - escalating a run of the mill traffic stop or minor incident into a nationwide, even global, historic event. Thankfully, tech today equips police with dash cams and body cams. While not nearly perfect, at least this video footage helps sort out much of the chaos of many a crime scene. And tech is taking us ever more into a roboticized future landscape.
New York Fires RoboDog
Come quietly or there will be trouble!
RoboCop may still be fictional, but his canine counterpart currently runs about causing quite a ruckus. RoboDog exists right now. It’s called Digidog. When you see it move on its four footed patrol, it’s quite a sight. As a practical example of our advancing technology, sci-fi has now become commonplace. It’s truly something to behold. Of course for the really bad guys, it’s more nightmare to avoid than daydream realized.
The New York Police Department were more than enthusiastic over their new robotic recruit. “This dog is going to save lives, protect people, and protect officers and that's our goal," NYPD Technical Assistance Response Unit Inspector Frank Digiacomo told reporters. The love affair didn’t last long after critics called RoboDog creepy, over aggressive and criticized the NYPD for using funds for the pilot program.
Unfortunately, New York City cancelled the contract to bring RoboDog into mainstream street use, though several other American states are still testing out the worth of utilizing Digidog - including Massachusetts and Hawaii.
Robo Future
RoboCop was rebooted in 2008, with a completely new cast - as if the original adventure never happened. A direct sequel entitled, RoboCop Returns, is currently in the planning stages. We can only vaguely imagine how a public who’s ever more critical or even unforgiving on the state of policing in America will take to this new installment.
It’s inevitable that the majestic RoboCop will patrol our crime ridden cinematic streets once more. It’s also a safe bet filmmakers will address this new, national attitude on evaluating law enforcement. Murphy’s cyborg officer will no doubt change again with the times. As he says to Nancy Allen’s Officer Lewis while she lays near him in pain, severely wounded, “They’ll fix you. They fix everything.”