Gadget (born Gertrude) was the insightful adoptive daughter of Sergeant Parks. Before her adoption, she habitually would ran away from OCP Family Services.
Biography[]
Gertrude was born to Sally Modesto, a criminal associate of Vladimir Molotov. When she was three weeks old, Gertrude was given to Family Services by her mother. Potentially due to a glitch, Gertrude was renamed Gadget.[1]
By age nine,[1] Gadget would habitually come to the Metro South precinct during her escapes, requesting guardianship by the police instead of Family Services. This put her at odds with Sergeant Parks, who would become frustrated and chase her from the station. During one such pursuit, Gadget found herself in RoboCop's maintenance room. Surprised at this meeting, she told RoboCop he was her hero. Parks soon came in and dragged her from the room to send her back to Family Services.[2]
Gadget witnessed Chip Chayken and accomplices abduct Henry Aaron Winkler and reported to the precinct to tell Parks about the incident. Parks did not believe her, instead telling RoboCop to send her back to Family Services. En route, RoboCop asked her to elaborate on what she had seen. She described Chayken's appearance and that he claimed to need the brain for OCP.[2]
She showed RoboCop inside of Family Services, pointing out Fanny LaMour's hypocrisy in that she did not truly care for children, in opposition to her public persona. RoboCop soon excused himself, saying that somewhere, a crime was happening. Gadget prepared to follow him, but remained in the control room's doorway when she saw LaMour enter to answer a video call from Chip Chayken.[2]
Gadget later called Parks, telling him about LaMour sending children to the Dogtown Boys. An employee of Family Services pulled her away from the phone and forced her to watch TV with the other children. She soon escaped again, making her way to the studio where Umberto Ortega was broadcasting What's on Your Mind? and asked him to help expose Family Services.[2]
Parks soon came to retrieve Gadget from the studio, causing her to suspect that Parks actually liked her, to which he admitted as such. Parks then took her to Public Works so he could provide backup to RoboCop. After seeing Chayken emerge from the building, Gadget quickly identified him as the Dogtown Ripper.[2]
With Chayken and Mallardo arrested, partially because of Gadget, Parks decided that he would adopt her.[2]
Under Parks' guardianship, Gadget began to spend much of her time at the Metro South precinct. One one occasion, protestors against RoboCop, led by Reverend Robert Taker, stormed the precinct and Madigan ushered Gadget away from the group. After RoboCop confronted the group, he walked away and Gadget assured him that she liked him.[3]
When RoboCop was being pursued for Taker's murder, he contacted Charlie Lippencott's lab. Charlie being absent, Gadget saw the holograph of RoboCop and showed him Lippencott's prototype of RoboCop's circuitry, allowing him to repair himself. Charlie then entered, catching Gadget with the prototype and not believing her when she spoke of her interaction with RoboCop. After Charlie left, she had a video call with RoboCop, telling him that Charlie had went to Dr. Roger Yung's lab. He asked her to contact dispatch, as Charlie was potentially in danger.[3]
Gadget was found in a computer lab by OCP employee Kevin Frosh, who told her to leave. Gadget went to watch the room's surveillance footage, learning Frosh's computer passcode.[4]
Soon, she was dismayed to learn that Madigan had been suspended for crimes relating to stealing and speeding with an impound vehicle. Madigan explained to Gadget that sometimes people did stupid things, even if they had good intentions in life. Determined to clear Madigan's name, Gadget used Frosh's passcode to access OCP's files, learning that the city's uptick in crime was committed by No Gain users – Madigan included – as they had become addicted to it. On her way out of the precinct, Gadget ran into Parks and dropped some of the files. She made her way to Madigan's home, presenting her with the evidence.[4]
When the precinct's dispatcher Bea returned home amid growing crime in Old Detroit, Gadget and Charlie were left to take her place. Gadget knew more about how the system functioned, correcting Charlie as he set it up.[5]
After RoboCop was disabled by members of Hard Company, Gadget helped Charlie make repairs. After Hard Company was dealt with, Gadget joined RoboCop, Madigan, and Parks in mourning Frank Uno, a Hard Company member who was childhood friends with Alex Murphy. Gadget hoped that the Amazon War would soon come to an end.[6]
As Gadget bothered Bea, she met and befriended Jimmy Murphy, showing him to RoboCop as Lippencott performed maintenance. Jimmy later contacted Gadget, asking her to send RoboCop to the scene of Nancy Murphy's arrest.[7]
When Charlie was contacted by Diana Powers about RoboCop being shut down by Pudface Morgan, Gadget informed Parks, who was unable to contact the Chairman to give Charlie access to OCP's SatNet. Gadget and Parks then convinced Charlie to hack into it and reverse RoboCop's termination sequence.[8]
Gadget was a fan of the Commander Cash character and received a Major Market doll and a Bag O' Blood, which she showed off to RoboCop, Madigan, and Charlie. While Parks was out of town, Gadget was left in Madigan's care and was taken to the opening of the Omni Mall to see Commander Cash. When Tex Jones, dressed as Commander Cash, told the children that everything in the mall was free, Gadget joined the other children in taking everything from the toy store. At the precinct, Madigan scolded her for this, but Gadget only paid attention to her bowl of Super Flakes and a Commander Cash advertisement for Nitey-Nite Pals. After suspecting Super Flakes of containing a psychopharmaceutical, Madigan took them away from Gadget, giving her a Chocarama Bar instead.[9]
When a Commander Cash lotto scratcher machine was installed in the precinct, Gadget obsessively began buying tickets so she could win enough money to buy a moat for Parks and a motorcycle for Madigan. She resorted to stealing coins from others in the precinct. This continued until she was caught by Parks and she tearfully confessed to him. He taught her that there was no such thing as easy money and sent her to apologize and promise to pay back everyone she stole from.[10]
Gadget witnessed RoboCop stealing the Heartbreaker's power enhancer from the evidence room and informed Charlie of the concerning event. She later watched Charlie as he happily used a helmet to enter a simulation with Diana. She showed RoboCop, who explained that Charlie was happy and he would elaborate at a later time.[11]
While at the Omni Mall with Jimmy, Gadget saw a Mother's Day display. She had grown distasteful of the holiday, as it reminded her of her biological mother, who she wished to know. Jimmy offered to help Gadget find her mother. He then went to buy his own mother a present, leaving her alone. She was approached by men working for Vlad Molotov and she ran from them, nearly being abducted before RoboCop intervened. Following this incident, Parks forced her to remain at Metro South unless accompanied by him or another police officer.[1]
Gadget and Jimmy searched the Family Services database, using a security buster program Jimmy bought from school to decrypt Gadget's file. After discovering her mother to be Sally Modesto, Gadget snuck out of the precinct with Jimmy and headed to Family Services to find more information on Sally. They were told by an employee that in order to get such information, she would have to file a request to be placed in her mother's custody.[1]
Having places a tagger in Gadget's pocket, Parks led other police officers to Gadget's location, leading to a fight once they returned to the precinct. Gadget then filed the request explained to her by the Family Services employee. This summoned Family Services worker Phyllis Leachman to the precinct the next day. Parks was confused upon learning that Gadget filed the request, but ultimately left the decision of who to live with up to her. She consulted RoboCop and Charlie for their opinions, with the former advising that she follow her heart and the latter declining to get involved in someone else's family problems.[1]
Sally Modesto arrived at the precinct and embraced Gadget, saying she always regretted placing her daughter up for adoption. Gadget showed her around the precinct before being taken to Sally's home. She soon decided to live with Sally and gave a tearful goodbye to Parks before leaving him.[1]
As Gadget unpacked at Sally's home, Molotov's henchmen arrived and took them to a warehouse, where they were held captive. Gadget figured that Sally had lied to her about everything, but Sally promised to help get her out. RoboCop soon arrived and saved the day. Gadget was reunited with Parks, promising she would never leave him again. RoboCop asked them to take care of each other, for they were a family.[1]
Gadget went with Parks to visit Madigan in the hospital after she was paralyzed and put into a life support machine. When the hospital's power failed, Gadget rushed to find a nurse to help keep Madigan alive. Thanks to RoboCop, the power was soon restored, saving Madigan's life. An experimental surgery with nano machines was performed on Madigan, curing her paralysis.[12]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 RoboCop: The Series – "Mother's Day"
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 RoboCop: The Series – "The Future of Law Enforcement"
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 RoboCop: The Series – "Prime Suspect"
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 RoboCop: The Series – "Trouble in Delta City"
- ↑ RoboCop: The Series – "Officer Missing"
- ↑ RoboCop: The Series – "Ghosts of War"
- ↑ RoboCop: The Series – "Provision 22"
- ↑ RoboCop: The Series – "Faces of Eve"
- ↑ RoboCop: The Series – "RoboCop vs. Commander Cash"
- ↑ RoboCop: The Series – "The Tin Man"
- ↑ RoboCop: The Series – "Heartbreakers"
- ↑ RoboCop: The Series – "Nano"