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| “ | Not malfunction Stephanie, Number 5 is alive! | „ |
| ~ Johnny 5 (albeit simply called Number 5) reveals he is sentient. |
Johnny 5 (originally called "S-A-I-N-T Prototype Number 5") is the main protagonist of the 1986 film Short Circuit, its 1988 sequel Short Circuit 2 and a TV special called Hot Cars, Cold Facts. He is a former military robot whoose life is suddenly changed forever, when he was struck by a bolt of lightning, which scrambled his programming and caused him to become sentient and self-aware, leading to his escape from the NOVA Laboratory.
He is both puppeteered and voiced by Tim Blaney.
Personality[]
Johnny 5 is very curious, friendly and inquisitive with an almost insatiable thirst for “input” of just about any kind, but he is especially fond of books and television. While he started life as a military prototype he has a great respect for life and refuses to use his capabilities to harm others, even when they have no such compunctions towards harming him, though that does not mean you cannot incite his anger, as seen when Number 5 awoke in the NOVA Laboratory Van. He is very intelligent and inventive with an encyclopedic knowledge, but can be quite naive and child-like at times and can be too eager to trust people that he shouldn’t. His innocent nature has been taken advantage of on several occasions.
He has a fondness for old movies and comedy shows, from which he quotes extensively. Favorites include Jackie Gleason, The Three Stooges, old gangster movies, Tarzan movies and assorted television commercials. He does occasionally quote from sources with more gravitas too, including William Shakespeare, Francis Bacon and various philosophical texts. His favorite books are Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and Carlo Collodi’s Pinocchio, probably because Number 5 feels empathy for the protagonists of those books.
Number 5 finds humans to be bemusing and is sometimes frustrated by their behaviour and their failure to recognize him as a sentient life form, but seems to like them on the whole and has several close friendships with humans. His closest friendships are his creators Ben Jabituya, Newton Crosby, and human companion Stephanie Speck.
Powers and Abilities[]
- Laser - Johnny 5 has a laser deployed on his left shoulder which he uses to fight against his enemies as well destroy radios and cut down trees. In the second film, he replaced it with a red tool box that is used for other gadgets.
- Movement - Johnny 5 has tire tank tracks on his feet, allowing him to move about and having a wheel behind him that allows him to jump or stand on his high tracks.
- Gadgets - Johnny 5 has a ton of gadgets displayed inside of his body, which include a parachute, remote control, a plasma torch and grappling hook that activates at any time he wants.
- Multi-Purpose Arm - Johnny 5 has a multi-purpose arm on his right hip that allows him to contain gadgets in order to repair himself.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- He is referenced in chapter 34 of Ghost Boy, written by Martin Pistorius.