The Six Million Dollar Man (TV Series) Day of the Robot (1974) User Reviews

good episode - great effects for the robot (well...for 1974 anyway)

[markymark70 · 7/10 · 4 October 2007]

Playing tennis with an old friend Steve finds himself as a bodyguard. He has to accompany Fred (played by John Saxon) to a testing ground where a new missile-to-missile weapon is going to be tested. However, along the way Fred is replaced by another identical "Robot".

Saxon plays it well - overly robotic in my view but hey what can you do? But I have a couple of issues with this episode nonetheless. One, surely there is an easier way to get what you want than coming up with a purpose built robot with all the features, memories, intelligence of another human being? And two - isn't Steve Austin supposed to be the most sophisticated piece of bionic machinery in the world? Obviously not as Saxon is wholly mechanic and just as strong.

Anyway - enough nit-picking, I still enjoyed the episode even if the final showdown between Steve and the robot Fred is a little tame. Slow-mo only gets you so much. But the iconic "look" of the robot when his face has been removed is scarier than it should be.

A small cop-out at the end of this episode also as the real Fred is found near the tennis court by Steve after being thought dead. But still, it keeps the feel-good factor going.

One of the best

[whatch-17931 · 9/10 · 21 October 2020]

They sure make convincing robots in Steve's world!

It's not a spoiler to know Steve's going to ultimately fight this Robot. Good casting with Saxon and he does a great job.

The lengthy fight in slow motion is surprisingly effective. It just drones on and on, and it really feels like Steve is in mortal danger.

Perhaps the first classic episode of the show.

[Prichards12345 · 9/10 · 17 May 2019]

John Saxon is replaced by an evil robot duplicate to help the baddies steal a missile defence system (happens every day), but due to his somewhat erratic behaviour Col Austin is on hand to uncover the truth. It all ends up with a great fight between Steve and his robot enemy, and the whole thing is great, preposterous fun, which in many ways set a template for the series. Saxon is wonderful, and has real chemistry with Lee Majors. Superb episode.

TV's Finest Hour, Maybe Ever

[Steve_Nyland · 10/10 · 31 October 2006]

First off, I was exactly 8 years old when I first saw this episode and to say it changed or effected or influenced my entire life is absurd but true. This was the episode that probably first got into my imagination as far as the Bionic Man goes, and I still have a vague memory of our entire family (well, maybe not mom) being riveted to our chairs by every second of this in 1974. It was always a welcome repeat episode when the show entered syndication and utter "must-have" viewing for fans of the show once it entered cult status. It is the quintessential Six Million Dollar Man episode, directly asking the question, is Steve better than a robot? The robot was also a work of pure inspiration: Character actor and cult movie legend John Saxon was brilliantly cast as Steve's Army Major buddy, inventor of a secret missile defense system who is kidnapped and replaced by a look-alike robot who squawks backwards like those voices at the end of "I Am The Walrus" when his face plate is bitch-slapped off. Underneath the face he is just an eyeless mass of electrodes, computer chips, circuit boards and loose wires, and the effect of seeing it for the first time probably sent us diving under the seat cushions.

The reason why it works is Saxon, an infinitely better actor than anyone else in the entire episode who manages to keep an utterly straight poker face once in robot mode: He reflects no emotion, sees nothing, and is a great example of the "Uncanny Divide" that demands our robotic friends not look too human. Quite the contrary, Saxon looks robotic and plays the role with a certain amount of droll relish that is still fresh & genre-defining thirty three years later. He WAS the robot, and whenever I or anyone from my generation encounters him in another movie or show all we can do is remark, "Holy Jesus, it's the backwards squawking robot from the Bionic Man!"

Steve's showdown against the robot is also probably the series' finest battle, edging out the fight against Bigfoot from Season Three only because here we know it is a fight to the death -- The Bigfoot episode plays out more as a cartoon, where this has more the feel of a grim, violent, deadly graphic novel; Steve even has to dispatch one of the goons of Henry Jones' Robot Maker by killing the guy, something you simply did not see after the 2nd Season when the show became a mainstream hit. This 1st Season episode was very much still an experimental form of the show and really was one of the episodes that helped to cement the look, feel, tone and objectives of the series. It is a shame that the series reversed on itself by the 4th Season and descended into ditzville, but this very special episode remains a triumph of the form, and certainly humanity's finest hour as far as brain-dead television goes. Even with all of the hilarious continuity errors, looped in filler footage, and implausible plotting.

10/10; My favorite is the red 'KILL!' switch they have on the robot's control panel, and look for the great character actor Lloyd Bochner in a supporting role.

One of the best episodes

[friendsfor01 · 10/10 · 22 October 2007]

Great and outstanding fourth episode of season 1.One of the best episodes of SMDM.I was too young to understand the plot the first time I saw it.What I remember was that I got so scared when seeing the faceless robot.So odd to behold microchips,wires.When being an early teen I got the plot so well(late 80s).Until now after more than 30 years I enjoy it no matter how many times I see it.The plot itself and of course its music and the sound effects especially the robots(kill mode) ,going into the odd and mysterious melody the first times the human like robot appears.Something unique and all that sets the differences with other episodes.The final battle is unique until reaching for death and because a bionic man matches a powerful robot.One of the most powerful opponents of Steve Austin.So close and good we have the out of control powerful man from "The pioneers",Oscars robot from "Return of robot maker",the other bionic man(Barney) from "The seven million dollar man"and the bionic woman,Big foot,the "fembots" and the probe when the show became family oriented.Excellent and adult episode. I repeat the question that I read before.Is Steve better than a robot?.Use your imagination and criteria to answer that question.

Face/Off

[boscofl · 16 February 2017]

An interesting outing for Steve Austin as he must take on a bionic robot more powerful than himself. His old friend Major Sloan has designed a new missile-to-missile weapon that is to be tested at a top secret site. Steve is assigned the job of being his bodyguard and transporting him there safely. Meanwhile, the nefarious villains have created a duplicate, bionic robot of Sloan to take his place and steal the technology.

John Saxon is on hand to portray both Major Sloan and the LMD; he is pretty effective at both. He cannot understand how Steve can now destroy him at tennis (Steve is pretty underhanded in this regard as he uses his bionic gifts to win the match). Lloyd "Its a cookbook!" Bochner and Henry Jones portray the chief antagonists.

Of course the raison d'etre of the episode is the battle between enhanced man and robot. The confrontation is played out entirely in slow motion and is a total disappointment. The editing is terrible and the fight just goes on and on and on. There is one chilling moment, though, when Steve knocks off the robot's mask and sees a head full of circuitry.

"Day of the Robot" delivers less than promised but it is still fun up to a point. A rather bizarre ending works against the entire episode; if the final scene was snipped the show would have had a more dramatic impact for Steve and the audience.

Works despite some loose screws

[Fluke_Skywalker · 6/10 · 27 June 2015]

Casting John Saxon to play a robot certainly isn't much of a stretch, as I've long speculated that Mr. Saxon is indeed an automaton, but he does a good job with the material (in a 1970s TV show context, of course). The bulk of the episode takes place in the front seat of a moving car, but Majors and Saxon make the "Hey, are you a robot?" stuff work reasonably well. Then at the end we get a five minute long slow motion throw down between the two of them that's about as exciting as watching a goldfish bowl. And then there's the ending-ending, which is so odd it defies even 70s genre TV logic.

Fun fact: Saxon's robotic doppelganger was the chief inspiration for the Maskatron action figure used in the 'SMDM' toy line.

ATTENTION: DR. DOLENZ'S FIRST NAME = CHESTER, NOT JEFFEREY.

[llkromm · 10/10 · 29 September 2021]

Of course I love the SMDM and all episodes. But in the plot synopsis description of Day of the Robot, you have Dr. Dolenz's FIRST NAME WRONG. His name is NOT Jefferey. IT IS CHESTER. Dr. Chester Dolenz. Believe me I know. I have been in love with the SMDM, and Lee Majors, since I was 13 years old. I am now 60. I have seen each and every episode many times, I have had many books, posters, and other things about the show. I now also have all 5 seasons on DVD. Day of the Robot and The Robot Maker are my all time favorite episodes.

P. S. RIP to the talented John Saxon who is now no longer with us. He passed away July 25, 2020. He was 83.

Best episode of the series!

[quockquock · 10/10 · 6 January 2022]

I've seen every episode at least 15 times. Lots of great and iconic episodes, but this one was always my favorite. The triple TV cameras, the robot malfunctions, the epic fight at the end. The sounds. The story. All TEN STARS!

Day of the Robot

[coltras35 · 8/10 · 21 August 2023]

In an attempt to steal a top secret anti-missile device, Steve's associate and friend Major Sloan is kidnapped and replaced with a robot. Steve must discover the impostor, and keep the device from being stolen and sold to the highest bidder.

John Saxon guest stars as an associate and friend of Austin, and even gets beaten at tennis - later, during the start of their mission, Saxon's character is kidnapped and replaced with a robot with his face. But Austin isn't easily fooled. It's a solid episode with plenty of suspense and even creepy moments in regard to The robot version of Sloan. The fight scene at the end is in slow motion and quite tense.

The Android

[AaronCapenBanner · 5/10 · 20 May 2015]

Steve Austin's (Lee Majors) latest assignment takes a personal turn as it involves an old friend, a Major named Frederick Sloan(played by John Saxon) who has invented a new device that acts as an anti-missile missile weapon that another criminal organization desperately wants, and enlists the aid of a brilliant rogue scientist named Dolenz(played by a miscast Henry Jones) who creates a robot(android really!) lookalike of Sloan to take his place in order to steal the device later, but not if a suspicious Austin can stop him. Mostly silly episode is too cartoon-like to succeed, with vague villains and erratic direction, leading to a most strange ending.