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Robo Tales was an occasional series in 2000AD about...well, robots, 'presented' by Ro-Jaws (star of Ro-Busters and later Nemesis The Warlock), which ran from 1979 to 1981. A stellar array of 2000AD artists and writers helmed each story until its final appearance in the 1983 annual, including ABC Warriors veterans Pat Mills, Dave Gibbons, Kevin O'Neill and Alan Moore.
Robo Tales also spawned one of 2000AD's most well known and controversial stories in the form of Shok! The story from Steve McManus (under the name of "Rogan") and Kevin O'Neill first appeared in the 1981 Judge Dredd Annual, but took on an extra dimension in 1990, with the release of the movie Hardware. With the film came a court ruling stating that the story was significantly based on Shok!, and subsequently, McManus and O'Neill were added to Hardware's writing credits. You can read this classic thrill online at the Official 2000AD Website by clicking here.
In the interest of completeness, below is a Prog checklist for Robo-Tales, which includes reprints in Best of 2000AD Monthly. Since Ro-Jaws is a member of The Warriors (sort of), it seems only fair he gets his time in the sun, no matter how brief...
| TITLE: | WRITER(S)/ARTIST(S): | ORIGINALLY PRINTED: | DATE: | REPRINTED: |
| The Inside Story | Pat Mills / Kevin O'Neill | Prog 144 | Dec. 1979 | - |
| Damian, The Child of Tomorrow | "W. Gosmore" (Gosnell & Prigmore) / Mike White | Prog 147 | Jan. 1980 | - |
| It's a Knockout | Oleh Stepaniuk / Jose Casanovas | Progs 148-149 | Jan. 1980 | - |
| The Revolt of the Monkey Bomb | Gary Rice / Dave Gibbons | Prog 157 | Mar. 1980 | Best of 2000AD Monthly #31 |
| Droids are Dispensible | Gary Rice / Brett Ewins | Prog 161 | Apr. 1980 | - |
| The Robot Revolution | Gary Rice / Trevor Goring | 1980 Sci-Fi Special | July 1980 | - |
| The Wanderer | Credits unknown | 1980 Sci-Fi Special | July 1980 | - |
| Ye First Robote | Gary Rice / Brendan McCarthy | Prog 166 | July 1980 | - |
| The Killer in the Cab | Alan Moore / John Richardson | Prog 170 | July 1980 | - |
| The Contender | Gary Rice / Brett Ewins | Prog 175 | Aug. 1980 | - |
| The Robo Shrink | Gary Rice / John Higgins | Prog 176 | Aug. 1980 | - |
| The Dating Game | Alan Moore / Dave Gibbons | Prog 176 | Aug. 1980 | Best of 2000AD Monthly #5 |
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Shok! |
"Rogan" (Steve McManus) & Kevin O'Neill / Kevin O'Neill | Judge Dredd Annual 1981 (reprinted in Prog 612) | Sep. 1980 | - |
| The Tidy-Up Droid | Gary Rice / Dave Gibbons | Prog 181 | Oct. 1980 | Best of 2000AD Monthly #32 |
| Tomorrow Brings Doom | Gary Rice / Dave Gibbons | Prog 183 | Oct. 1980 | - |
| Night of the Werebot | Gary Rice / Dave Gibbons | Prog 184 | Oct. 1980 | Best of 2000AD Monthly #11 |
| Miracle in Slum Alley | Gary Rice / Ian Gibson | Prog 188 | Oct. 1980 | - |
| The Final Solution | Credits unknown | Progs 189-190 | Nov. 1980 | Best of 2000AD Monthly #1 |
| Spirit of Vengeance | Gary Rice / Dave Gibbons | Prog 198 | Feb. 1981 | - |
| The Pirate and the Polydroid | Steve Parkhouse / Ewan Smith | 1982 Annual | Sep. 1981 | - |
| Silicon Soul | Gary Rice / Alan Langford | 1983 Annual | Sep. 1982 | - |
ABC WARRIORS HISTORY | NEMESIS HISTORY | RO-BUSTERS HISTORY