Emmy the Robot (webcomic)

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Emmy the Robot is a webcomic created by Dominic Cellini starring a robotic nanny, known as a Nandroid, named Emmy. The series follows Emmy and her life serving her owners, the Delaire family, and the events following a malfunction she suffers.

On Webtoon, the series is described as: 'A high-end robotic nanny named Emmy learns how to adapt to the unpredictable and complicated world of humans and robots after an accident leaves her outmoded.'

Plot synopsis

Emmy was created by Sterling Robotics and prepared to become human care-certified at their USA headquarters alongside other Nandroids. Boasting vast knowledge on a range of subjects such as advanced mathematics and multiple languages, Emmy and her classmates went through a rigorous education process at Nandroid School, where they were taught socialization and proper etiquette for how to care for their future human owners. After completing her schooling, Emmy received her assignment to care for the Delaire family.

Emmy was then shipped to her new home, and, on a Christmas morning, Ted Delaire unveiled her to his wife Angela and his daughter Madeline, who warmy accepted the Nandroid.

Emmy spent the next four years living with the Delaires in Hawthorn Grove. During this time she formed a strong bond with Madeline, and enjoyed spending time with her friends Amy, Franny, Molly, and Polly - four of her former Nandroid School classmates who were assigned to families living in the same neighborhood.

One Saturday, Ted took Angela, Madeline and Emmy on a shopping trip to Beacon City. While in the city, Emmy prevented Madeline from receiving a piece of candy from a friendly-looking outmode, exhibiting her bias towards outmoded robots. When Madeline later confronted Emmy about it, Emmy assured her charge that they would always be together, because Nandroids have superior engineering and are unable to become outmoded.

At some point shortly prior to Madeline's 8th birthday, Emmy received a new software update via mail. Following this, she began experiencing malfunctions with her hand, which resulted in various delays and mishaps during Emmy's preparations for Madeline's birthday party and the subsequent party itself.

The issue ultimately culminated into Emmy losing consciousness and involuntarily destroying Madeline's birthday cake, with her arm spraying the cake with fire extinguishing foam seemingly on its own accord in response to perceiving the candles on the cake as a fire threat. Ted attempted to stop Emmy, but was sprayed as well. When Emmy regained her senses, her Nandroid friends led her away and attempted to console her. However, overwhelmed with shame, she locked herself in a bathroom.

Following the incident, Emmy's human care certification was revoked and she was sent back to Sterling's USA headquarters to undergo testing in order to find and fix the cause of her malfunction. However, after the cause of the issue remained undiscovered for 11 days, Emmy snuck out of her assigned room to eavesdrop on Dr. Bennet and Dr. Webb discussing her situation. After she overheard Dr. Bennet mention Emmy potentially getting sent away to be dismantled, and panicking due to her room door locking shut behind her, Emmy hid in a trashcan to avoid being detected. However, before she could react, an oblivious janitor robot emptied the trashcan into a trash chute, unknowingly sending Emmy down the chute as well. Trapped inside a discarded refrigerator, Emmy was then transported across the Beacon Bay to a landfill in Dupont, approximately 30 miles from her home.

Laying unconscious in the landfill, Emmy was eventually awoken when her right arm was stolen by small scavenging robots known as Nabs. She attempted to chase after them, but tripped and slid down into a pile of trash and was knocked into shutdown mode again.

Some time later Emmy was found by Darcy, who reactivated her and was able to find and attach a replacement arm to the Nandroid. With no easy route to return home, Darcy took Emmy to a payphone. Emmy was reluctant to call either Sterling Robotics or her family, however, as she still had no human care certification and feared that returning to Sterling would result in her being dismantled. Darcy then suggested she come with her to her Aunt Ginny's house, and attached a bracelet device to Emmy.

Upon arriving at Aunt Ginny's, Emmy was introduced to a group of outmodes living there, and attempted to explain her predicament to them. They found her story to be nonsensical and even humorous, believing her to be in denial about being purposefully discarded by her owners, much to Emmy's disappointment and anger. Emmy then met Aunt Ginny herself, and witnessed her talk to the painting of her father on the wall while repeatedly misnaming Emmy. After another bout of being laughed at by the outmodes for her insistence that her family is missing her, Emmy ran away into the night, much to Darcy's dismay.

After Emmy ran away from Aunt Ginny's she spent some time traveling around Dupont, looking for a way to return home. Her first stop was the Department of Automation, but after a lengthy stay in the waiting room she was unable to receive assistance, as her serial number still referenced her being kept at Sterling's USA Headquarters. She continued wandering through Dupont, stopping at both a convenience store as well as a bus stop, but both times ran into unsavory characters and wasn't able to receive help.

Her final confrontation was with a group of scrappers, known as the Iron Spikes, whom she mistook for a band. As the group was preparing to abduct Emmy, Darcy rode in on her moped and was able to save Emmy using a gas canister. After escaping, Darcy took Emmy to an alley where she explained to her the danger she was just in and revealed how she was able to find Emmy - the bracelet she had given her earlier was a tracking device. Unhappy at this new revelation, Emmy suffered another minor malfunction, with Darcy guessing it may be due to a software update. Darcy then explained to Emmy that she may be able to help repair her without the need for Sterling Robotics, an idea which Emmy initially dismissed as a joke. After an angry outburst from Darcy, Emmy apologized and accepted Darcy's help, with Darcy wondering what the Delaire's might be willing to pay to receive a fully functioning Emmy back. The duo then ride off on Darcy's moped, returning to Aunt Ginnys'.

Emmy and Darcy return to Aunt Ginny's, where the outmodes attempt to be nicer to her than before she left. As Emmy apologizes to Aunt Ginny for her outburst and sudden exit, her battery indicator alerts her to a low battery and Aunt Ginny suggests she room with Darcy in the attic. Emmy and Darcy retire to the attic where Emmy begins charging, surprised she was able to use a non-Sterling charger cable.

After Emmy attempts to tuck Darcy in for the night, she retires to an old chair but is awoken in the middle of the night by a nightmare. She unplugs and goes to the window, wondering how she will ever be able to return to Madeline. She looks into the night sky and promises Madeline she will return and make things right.

The next morning, Darcy awakes to find the attic clean and organized and goes to find a missing Emmy, ready to give her a piece of her mind for cleaning up without permission, only to find Emmy in the kitchen, having prepared a large breakfast. Darcy relents and instead of berating Emmy sits down to eat.

Doc and Socket arrive to breakfast, impressed with what Emmy was able to accomplish. They offer her a cup of guck, a sludge made from industrial runoff, to drink, but she declines. Emmy was formally introduced to the two outmodes and learned about the Iron Spikes from Doc before leaving with Darcy to hunt for scrap.

Meanwhile, at the Delaire's, Ted and Angela accidentally reveal to Madeline that Emmy is lost and she later reveals it to the other Nandroids after being picked up for school by Franny.

Once Ted arrived to work and was given no new information regarding Emmy, he and Dr. Webb went to look for her in the surrounding area, with no luck.

History

Cellini first unveiled Emmy in an Instagram post in April of 2019, and began releasing periodic concept art and one-shot comics for her and the other characters that would eventually make up the comic. After a year of posting via Instagram and Twitter, the comic became serialized through Webtoons in April 2020 and has been on a semi-regular weekly release schedule ever since.

In March of 2020, Cellini setup a Patreon for the comic. Roughly monthly, Cellini will also release a patron exclusive comic or related material.

Trivia

• Cellini used some of his favorite childhood cartoons to help inspire the style for the comic, including Disney's 101 Dalmatians, Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends, and Powerpuff Girls.
• Cellini always wanted to tell a story about purpose, obsolescence, and the freedom found in being lost/discarded, and Emmy's story quickly came to him after her initial creation.
• Cellini was contacted sometime in 2023 about a potential Emmy the Robot animation, but it did not come to fruition.

Gallery

• 

  Amy, Polly, Molly, Emmy, and Franny, on the day of their graduation

• 

  Aunt Ginny's outmodes: Pip, Dennis, Doc, Socket, and Ula

See also

Main nandroid characters
Aunt Ginny's Outmodes
Main human characters
List of minor characters
Emmy the Robot merchandise