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October 01, 2003
Kill Oscar
Yesterday's conversation turned to fembots among colleagues of a Flea, the self-styled Axis of Easy, as a grouchy administrative contact was unexpectedly friendly. I almost launched across the desk to pull at her face, one exclaimed. Where is ****** and what have you done with her?
Younger Flea-readers may only know fembots from the Austin Powers Bond-parodies.
The word "fembot" was coined by teleplay writer Arthur Rowe for an episode of "The Bionic Woman" entitled "Kill Oscar" which first aired on 27 Oct 1976. It involved a plot (masterminded by scientist 'Houseman, John' ) to replace all the secretaries at the Office of Scientific Intelligence with robot look-alikes. They reappear in another episode, "Fembots in Las Vegas," that aired 24 Sep 1977.
Not since "Surrender Dorothy" have two words inspired such unreasonable terror as "Kill Oscar". The episode was split into two parts as was its follow-up "Fembots in Las Vegas". The Flea as a Boy was scared witless by these things. My sister had a Jamie Sommers doll and I remember vaguely the hatches revealing the bionics underneath. I had no idea they made fembot dolls... Now off to eBay to see what they go for but not certain I would want to own one. Even the word "faceplate" gives me a chill.
This show ("Kill Oscar") contains one scene which I honestly and truly thought I was going to have a heart attack right in front of the screen while watching! Jamie goes to her best friend's apartment (Oscar's secretary) who has been replaced by the bad-guys with a FEMBOT!. The Fembots were just as powerful as Jamie! Here, Jamie is forced to fight with not one, but TWO Fembots! She came very close to dying in this scene! If you think the moving animation (below) is fun to watch, you haven't seen the real thing then!
The rather clever gif animation is here.
And then... The show appears to have had a lasting effect on at least one person's psyche.
Posted by Ghost of a flea at October 1, 2003 09:31 AM
Comments
Yeah, they were pretty scary.
Very close in feel (faceplate included) to the equally-terrifying-to-me-as-a-youth _Westworld_. Except for Yul Brynner rather than OSI secretaries.
I guess the old "peeling back the face and seeing something monstrous within" is a powerful meme.
Posted by: *** Dave at October 1, 2003 10:53 AM
Those things were VERY scary. I never missed an episode of The Bionic Woman, but those in particular had me ready to run and hide under the counch. I wonder why. They sure don't look very scary in the photos.
I remember being somewhat disappointed in the Austin Powers "fembots" because they weren't really scary at all, but kind of goofy.
D
Posted by: David Strain at October 1, 2003 07:14 PM
