John Terrence Cable was an officer with the Detroit Police Department and later Commander of Delta City Security.
Following his death, his remains were used to create the cyborg known as RoboCable.
Biography[]
Cable was married to Sara, but the relationship eventually soured following the loss of their unborn child.[1] Sara eventually filed for divorce. While at Metro South, Cable was partnered with Alex Murphy. The two formed a close friendship, often playing chess together, with Cable ending one game with a move he called the "Cable Maneuver."[2]
During a trip to Harlan's Donuts, Cable, Murphy, and Officer Albert Bixler briefly discussed the serial killer dubbed the Motor City Mangler before they went on their respective patrols. Cable and Murphy talked about the impending takeover of the police department by Omni Consumer Products, with Cable being skeptical of them, partially due to Sara's intention to join the corporation. The pair then responded to a call about a rabid dog. Receiving no answer at the door of the residence, Cable and Murphy climbed the backyard fence, finding a dog eating a human body part. Fearing the resident had a prisoner, Cable entered the basement without a warrant, despite Murphy's protests.[2]
In the basement, they found various chemistry supplies, medicine bottles, and bloodied items such as a meat grinder. In a freezer, they found a frightened woman and Cable ordered Murphy to stay with her as he went upstairs. In the living room, he found a corpse and was ambushed by the Motor City Mangler, who held him at gunpoint. Murphy soon arrived and Cable ordered him to shoot, but he instead complied with the Mangler by setting his gun down. The Mangler prepared to shoot Murphy, but Cable managed to disarm him and knock him over. He then shot the Mangler dead, despite no longer being a threat.[2]
Cable was commended for his bravery at a ceremony, but Murphy was the only one in the audience who did not applaud. Cable confronted him in the locker room, learning that Murphy was transferring to Metro West, having requested the transfer due to feeling Cable's actions to have been unlawful.[2]
Over the next ten years, Cable was assigned as Delta City's Chief of Security. He was called to the scene of a hostage situation lead by the criminal group Da Bomzz. He was shocked to learn of the zero fatalities policy OCP had implemented. He displayed a certain amount of disgust for the idea and was ready to go in guns blazing when RoboCop arrived. Although he approved of RoboCop's handling of the situation he could not help feel that he was no longer needed.[2]
As Cable revisited a chess game he once played with Murphy, RoboCop came to him with a discovery that the vigilante Bone Machine's equipment was manufactured by OCP. They agreed that Bone Machine was a police officer, but decided to keep the discovery between themselves. After RoboCop completed the chess game and left, Cable curiously looked up Murphy's file, finding that one section needed OCP Gold clearance, which he did not have. This proved to also be the case for detailed information about Bone Machine's equipment. James Murphy, Alex Murphy's son, came to Cable's office. Now an OCP executive, James made it clear to Cable that he would not let personal concerns interfere with his business. RoboCop then entered and Cable offered him a printout of Bone Machine's equipment, but the cyborg instead followed James out.[2]
Bothered by the fact that he, as head of Delta Security, did not have higher security clearance, Cable went to Sara's office at the OCP headquarters. He asked her about Bone Machine's equipment, though she was unfamiliar with it. She offered to give him access to the OCP archives.[2]
On his way to an OCP bunker, Cable called RoboCop, asking to meet him there. Upon arrival, Cable searched the former prison for the cell containing Bone Machine's equipment, finding out that it had been checked out under his name, prompting him to immediately suspect Sara. RoboCop then entered and prepared to arrest Cable, who ran until being shot in the leg. Having realized that RoboCop was Murphy, Cable called him by name and tried to talk him out of killing him, as it was in opposition to his Prime Directives. The struggling RoboCop begged his old friend to run.[2]
Limping, Cable eventually made it to the abandoned Metro South, finding refuge in the garage. RoboCop soon tracked him there and again began to malfunction as Cable reflected on how both of them were seen as obsolete by OCP. Knowing there was no other way out for either of them, Cable let his guard down, telling Murphy to shoot him. Bone Machine then broke in through the wall and a firefight broke out until Bone Machine held Cable at gunpoint. Cable begged Murphy to shoot him and he eventually did, fatally shooting him in the chest. After RoboCop killed Bone Machine, the dying Cable asked him if they won, which Murphy confirmed.[2]
Cable's body was taken by Sara, who ordered him to be made into a cyborg just like Murphy.[2]
Trivia[]
- Cable is not the only one of Murphy's former partners who acted out of conduct, only to be used by OCP. In the episode "The Tin Man" of the live-action series, Murphy is shown to have had a partner, Timothy Malloy, as a rookie, who was sent to prison for excessive force. While he was in prison, Malloy became the subject of an OCP experiment to separate his emotions from his consciousness, and forced into action as a vigilante.
- Cable's actor, Maurice Dean Wint, portrayed Captain Ethan in the RoboCop: The Series episode "Officer Missing."