'BattleBots' Returning To ABC; Will 'MythBusters' Stars Return To Compete In Limited Series Revival?

Fans of robots, gratuitous violence and competition are rejoicing as ABC has announced it will revive the fan-favorite series “BattleBots” for a limited run next summer after it has been off the air for more than a decade. However, what will be new this time around?

For those who don’t have the good fortune of knowing, “BattleBots” was a show on Comedy Central that aired from 2000 to 2002. It was a competition among designers and engineers who would build mechanical robots that would compete in an arena-style setting with the aim of destroying or incapacitating their opponents’ robots.

According to Entertainment Weekly, the six-episode run of the show will still feature homemade robots going head-to-head in a competition for money, but it will also focus a lot more on the design and building process producing the combatants. Each designer will have his or her backstory highlighted a bit more this time around as well. The fights will be divided into three weight classes to ensure every robot at least has a fighting chance.

Variety reported the revival on ABC will bring back the original series creators Ed Roski and Greg Munson, along with Whalerock Industries. With returning talent behind-the-scenes, there’s no word yet on whether the show will bring back its most authoritative commentator, Bill Nye (The Science Guy).

Unfortunately for fans of the original series, “MythBusters” star Adam Savage has already confirmed he won’t be returning for the new show. The Discovery Channel star and his co-star Jamie Hyneman designed a robot named Blendo during the series’ first run, according to ScreenRant.

While Savage may be retired, former “MythBuster” and BattleBots champion Grant Imahara has made no such claim.

“I’m excited to see BattleBots returning to TV. It’s always been a sport that celebrates engineering and creativity, along with a liberal dose of good, old-fashioned destruction,” he told Nerdist.

The updated version of “BattleBots” will be shown on ABC sometime in the summer of 2015.