"The Human Factor" is the eleventh episode of RoboCop: The Series.
Plot[]
Corporations around the globe are threatened by anti-corporate terrorist groups, with one German company responding by moving to Iceland. The OCP Chairman denies rumors that his company will be taking the same caution. Meanwhile, disgruntled ex-OCP employee Felix Webber escapes from the Henry Ford Center for the Morally Challenged, escalating fears that he will again bomb OCP properties as he had twelve years before.
Webber calls in one of his own bombs, set to explode at a 50th anniversary celebration for OCP. There, the Chairman presents his defense against terrorists: the Anti-Corporate Terrorism Squad (ACT Squad). RoboCop arrives with the Detroit Police Department to evacuate the building. RoboCop manages to extinguish the bomb's fuses.
Alex Murphy's parents Russell and Dorothy Murphy visit their son's grave. When they return to their car, Russell notices a bomb inside and quickly gets himself and his wife to safety before it explodes. The police arrive, with Sergeant Parks explaining to Detective Lisa Madigan that Russell was the police captain who arrested Webber twelve years prior. RoboCop arrives and sees his parents, making him recall childhood memories. Parks offers a safehouse to the Murphys, but they decline, as Russell believes Webber will now focus on attacking OCP. RoboCop describes the bomb he defused to Russell, who points out that it was not a threat, but rather a joke by Webber, who must be planning something more. Russell suggests SWAT teams to be placed at every OCP property, but Parks cannot, as Stewart Granger, leader of ACT Squad, is in charge of OCP's security. Russell doubts Granger's ability to keep anyone safe. Webber manages to bomb two OCP facilities and Granger assures Mediabreak viewers that Webber will soon be captured.
RoboCop and Madigan go to the Murphy home. RoboCop looks at family photos and offers his condolences for their loss of Alex, as his parents are unaware that he is their son. He takes over a game of chess for Madigan against his father. Russell doubts RoboCop's abilities, because he doubts the cyborg has the "human factor" that his son had. He impresses his father by using moves his father taught him when he was a boy. Madigan and RoboCop convince Russell to help take down Webber. Meanwhile, Webber meets with a black market arms dealer, in search of a nuclear bomb.
Granger declines Russell's help, believing it is not needed because they have the latest technology. Russell points out that Webber studies his prey and will likely use their own technology against them. Russell finds his attempts to convince Granger to be pointless, so he leaves with Madigan. Granger is called to meet with the OCP board to explain to the corporation's stockholders ACT Squad' failure to stop the bombings. The Chairman tells Granger to not fail again.
While observing locations of Webber's past targets, Russell points out that the crimes are always patterned after a certain type of spiderweb. The ACT Squad also views the map, spotting the pattern. Webber calls Russell, saying he did not intend to kill Russell, wishing to have him alive to witness his bombings on OCP. Based on Webber's previous pattern, ACT Squad determines the next target to be OCP Commemorative Park, but Russell feels this is not right. Because Webber said he was "spinning a different web," RoboCop researches different types of spiderwebs. Russell determines Webber is making a sheet web pattern, leading them to the OCP Refinery.
The ACT Squad goes to Commemorative Park, where they find a case filled with rubber spiders and a taunting message from Webber, who says the towers will fall at midnight. Granger sends one squad to the OCP towers and another to the refinery. Meanwhile, the police evacuate the refinery, where Russell and RoboCop find the real bomb and work together to try to disarm it. The explosive tank the bomb is planted on starts to fall, due to Webber having corrosive acid drip onto its supports. The ACT Squad arrives as RoboCop holds up the tank, directing Russell in using his badge pin to break the bomb's circuit.
The ACT Squad evacuates and secures the towers and Webber breaks in. The ACT Squad enter the board room, where Webber sits with a nuclear bomb. OCP publicly claims the building was evacuated to give workers the day off for OCP's 50th anniversary. After police set up a perimeter around the building, the Chairman arrives. Granger and Lempke, while hostages of Webber, are forced to send a message to the police, warning them that if Webber is killed, the bomb will detonate. Webber demands to speak to the Chairman, telling him he has no demands other than revenge, then sets a timer for the bomb to detonate in five minutes.
RoboCop takes a helicopter to the top of OCP towers and asks Russell to use the Velikovsky gambit to get Webber to move away from the window that RoboCop needs to rappel into. Russell does this by calling Webber and telling him that the Chairman has been arrested for stealing Webber's research, firing him without proper cause, environmental destruction, consumer gouging, and selling faulty products. Parks and Madigan place the Chairman in handcuffs and take him away to convince Webber. The gambit works and RoboCop rappels inside, managing to knock out Webber and defuse the bomb with his father's help, saving the day just in time. The Chairman offers Russell a consultant position, but he declines, preferring to spend time with his grandson. Russell commends RoboCop as a "damn good cop" and as the two shake hands, RoboCop returns the compliment.
Cast[]
- Richard Eden as RoboCop
- Yvette Nipar as Lisa Madigan
- Blu Mankuma as Stanley Parks
- Andrea Roth as Diana Powers (credit only)
- David Gardner as Chairman
- Sarah Campbell as Gadget (credit only)
- Martin Milner as Russell Murphy
- Dan Duran as Bo Harlan
- Erica Ehm as Rocky Crenshaw
- Robert Morelli as Felix
- Nigel Bennett as Granger
- Nonnie Griffin as Dorothy Murphy
- Gerry Quigley as Lempke
- Tom Melissis as Arms Dealer