What’s life like…for a Teenage Robot?🤖

Welcome back to another of Ethan Stranger’s Nicktoons reviewing blog posts, where today I’ll be talking about a Nicktoon (that I’ll admit deserves a bit more attention since she’s the 1st female Nicktoons character to headline her own series), long before even Avatar Korra showed up (read more about her in my “Legend of Korra: Power Bender” post), but this post is about a teenage girl robot…named Jenny Wakeman (or goes by also her robotic name XJ-9 by her mother) and this is her life as a teenage robot…

Like all cartoon shows back in the early 2000s, they (including My Life as a Teenage Robot) mostly just told silly stories without the need to try and make the effort of connecting everything to tell a bigger story later on, at the time, My Life as a Teenage Robot was created in Nickelodeon’s answer to all of the superhero stuff that was going on on Cartoon Network at the time, but at the same time, did their 1st ever series (involving a teenage girl as the lead, even though she’s a robot), shame they never did a My Life as a Teenage Robot crossover with Danny Phantom (Picture: Top Right Corner), as both are teenage heroes struggling in balancing out their normal lives with their superheroes activities (something that every teen hero must deal with), plus who doesn’t Jenny Wakeman upgrade herself with Ghost Tech (and interact with Danny’s Sister, Jazz) or have Danny Phantom do battle against Jenny’s friend-turned enemy, Misty (or be hunted by Skyway Patrol). Read my Danny Phantom: into the Phantom-Verse post

The one thing I usually point out whenever I look back on this show were mostly some of the ridiculous villains (Picture: Bottom Right Corner) that Jenny Wakeman herself would battle (soemtimes it’ll also have to do with whatever situation Jenny is in at the beginning of the episode), I mean that’s how cartoons in the early 2000s were (as nowadays we wanna cartoons tell longer stories and see more character development), but My Life as a Teeange Robot is a prime example of a how things were portrayed back then (besides I believe My Life as a Teeange Robot deserves a comeback either in comic or a TV movie), especailyl in the last season where Jenny’s friend-turned enemy, Misty is still on the loose and Cluster Prime Queen, Vexus is still alive (after haven been defeated in the “Escape from Cluster Prime Special”), makes you wonder on why there was no contest held, a special contest to create either new villain or supporting ally for Jenny Wakeman (as heroes back then hardly needed a steady supporting cast, even Danny Phantom had more villains than allies, though his villains would become unlikely allies in case of battling a threat the nobody alone should face), though Jenny has never faced that problem before, she has everythign built into her (she’s a freaking teenage robot), who needs freins when you have weapons?     

(Click here to view Iron Man’s Rogues gallery and see which one could fit in Jenny Wakemans Rogues gallery)

Speaking of villains, imagine what would’ve happened if Jenny Wakeman battled a villain similar to DC’s Indigo/Brainiac 8 (Picture: Bottom left Corner), I’m sure in some way Indigo would merge with Jenny...

Also who doesn’t wanna see Jenny Wakeman team up with DC’s Robotic heroes (like The Metal Men or Red Torando, Pictures: Bottom Left and Right Corners), depending if Nick wants to partner again with DC Comics…

Plus, In the case of a reboot for My Life as a Teenage Robot, the creator of the series should read Marvel’s Machine Man (Picture: Top Center) for inspiration or check out my “Machine Man: By Steve Ditko post”. 

 

In my opinion, I believe that “My Life as a Teenage Robot” deserves another chance at stardom, as it was one of Nick’s attempts to compete in the superhero genre back then (as nowadays, they’re trying to keep the TMNT franchise very much evergreen than ever). I feel like that there’s so much more that hasn’t been explored yet within the world of “My Life as a Teenage Robot”, plus after reading an issue of Kurt Busiek and George Perez’s Avengers (Picture: Bottom Center), this made me think on why they never included this “Holographic Disguise” for XJ-9/Jenny Wakeman, for she so deeply wanted to be “normal” and this could’ve been a simple way to do it than that weird human skin she briefly wore that later turned evil (there’s no way Jenny Wakeman could’ve screwed up a holographic disguise)...

(Read more of my Avengers Assemble: By Kurt Busiek and George Perez)

I’ll never understand why Jenny Wakeman was never included in the early-late 2000s Nicktoons games (only in “Attack of the Toybots” did she play a role), but I felt like for the 1st  Nicktoons video game all the way back in 2005, she herself could’ve played a very big role (Especially since she would’ve been the only girl on the team back then, Picture: Bottom Center) and yet, I was still shocked on how learning that Nickelodeon themselves were close to canceling 2012s Legend of Korra all because of the lead being a girl and yet, years prior, Nickelodeon greenlighted an animated series based around a robotic teenage girl (I guess we’ll never understand the true meaning about why this all happened), how one series about a lead girl was greenlighted and how another was (nearly) canceled (but luckily didn’t).     

From all of the other Nicktoons in the so-called Nickverse, who wouldn’t wanna see Jenny Wakeman crossover with the likes of either “Jimmy Neutron, Danny Phantom, Sandy Cheeks, Miko Kubota, Avatar Korra, or even Sid Chang (Picture: Bottom Center), I mean how would Jenny Wakeman and her mother react to Sid Chang’s love for robots (she even made Breakfast Bot, Dennis), surely Jenny must be impressed?    

(Click here to watch Jenny Wakeman vs Avatar Korra), 

which is the Nicktoons version of “Iron Man vs Thor” from 2012s Avengers (Technology vs Mythology)

Whatever the future holds for “My Life as a Teenage Robot”, I do hope it gets another chance at stardom, as technology over the years has adapted (even Patrick Star can agree with me on that, Picture: Bottom Center) and that’ll be a good idea to reintroduce Jenny Wakeman on the small screen (how would she even react to either apple watch or iPhone) and villains that more challenging to her.

Plus I’m not sure (if they do consider either rebooting or doing a continuation) of My life as a Teenage Robot, they should also explore more about Jenny having a fear of becoming evil (like Marvel’s Ultron) in an alternate future, expand her allies with superpowered teens, add more LGBTQ (even have Jenny question about, for she’s a robot), have Jenny learn the truth that “Sheldon is the Silver Shell” and either Misty redeem herself or give her a story where Jenny is forced to take her down for good, either way, My Life as a Teenage Robot deserves a 2nd chance at stardom (don’t you'll think so)? 

Ethan Stranger Signs off