The Checklist: RoboCop (S1 Ep13) “RoboCop vs. Commander Cash”
If there is one thing in this world that I am good at, it is remembering random professional wrestling moments from the past four decades. This “skill” really serves no practical purpose, however it came in handy when I was thinking about what I was going to cover for this edition of The Checklist.
The year was 1994. Roddy Piper was splitting his time between his acting endeavors and making appearances for the then World Wrestling Federation. Piper was given a weekly segment on WWF All-American Wrestling, called “Roddy Piper’s Bottom Line”. I recalled that a few installments of “Bottom Line” featured Piper sending in videos from the set of the RoboCop television series. Yet, I never actually watched the episode that Piper was on, until now…
In this edition of The Checklist, I’m putting Episode 13 (from the first an only season of RoboCop) titled “RoboCop vs. Commander Cash” to The Checklist test!
#1. Does Commander Cash make an appearance?
Commander Cash, a mascot for Omni Consumer Products, was a character introduced in the series and not surprisingly, given the title of Episode 13, there’s plenty of Commander Cash content in this episode. As the episode begins, we see two child actors being paid to portray the OCP Chairman’s grandchildren, enjoying bowls of Super Flakes, a Commander Cash themed breakfast cereal, while wearing their special Ultra Specs and watching the Commander Cash cartoon on the television in the Chairman’s limousine. And there is still plenty of Commander Cash to come! 1/1
#2. Were there any notable guest stars?
I spoiled the answer to this one in my introduction. Roddy Piper played a former OCP scientist Tex Jones, who created a phase pulsing projector that could be used to relay messages and information to intelligence operatives. And just for fun… Tex also developed the character of Commander Cash. However both Tex’s projector and character were stolen by a power hungry co-worker Simon Atwater, who wants to combine Tex’s work with his own background in hallucinogenic chemistry. When Tex takes issue with Simon’s plans, Simon blows up the building that the two worked in (while Tex is still in it!). Simon assumed Tex perished in the explosion, then thanks to Tex’s creations, found himself on the fast track up the OCP corporate ladder.
But “Hot Rod” wasn’t the only notable guest star in “RoboCop vs. Commander Cash”. Lisa Howard, who co-starred with Michael Dudikoff in the two Bounty Hunters movies, played Simon Atwater’s ditzy and talkative secretary, Brittany. 2/2
#3. Was there a Media Break?
It wouldn’t be RoboCop without a Media Break and Episode 13 does not disappoint. Not surprisingly, Media Break’s top story involves Commander Cash. More specifically a group of kids that have been looting numerous toy stores and stealing Commander Cash toys and merchandise! 3/3
#4. Did the show feature some quality action?
Commander Cash is set to make an appearance at the grand opening of the Omni Mall, but the guy that was set to portray Cash is forcibly replaced by the very much alive, Tex Jones! And Tex, as Commander Cash is looking to rain on Simon Atwater’s parade. Commander Cash welcomes the crowd that is there to see them, then he incites a riot when he tells all the kids that everything is free today! The kids go straight for the toy store and before RoboCop could arrest Cash, Commander Cash uses his leg rockets to fly away, crashing through the mall’s skylight!
Commander Cash goes to another toy store and incites another riot, forcing the owner to blast him with a shotgun. And it appears RoboCop is going to shoot him too… and he does, but with a tracking device, not bullets. Which leads Robo to Commander Cash/Tex’s lair and after Cash briefly gets the better of Robo, Robo gets the full backstory on Simon Atwater and Tex Jones… which leads to a Robo/Cash team up late in the episode as they take down Atwater and his mind control plans for world domination. 4/4
#5. Did RoboCop keep his helmet on?
Richard Eden plays RoboCop in the series and as I have mentioned in the past… he is usually the weakest part of the shows from where I sit. It’s even worse when we see him without his helmet on and unfortunately there is a scene in “RoboCop vs. Commander Cash” where Robo is recharging and researching while chatting it up with Charlie the technician. 4/5
- Final Score = 4/5 (80%) This was easily my favorite episode of RoboCop that I have seen. Obviously a lot of that has to do with the appearance of Roddy Piper… a man essential to my pro wrestling fandom and someone who will always hold a special place in my heart. Barry Flatman’s Simon Atwater, also deserves some of the credit for being a quality villain.
