In general, robots are impressive, even when they're strange. From the very intriguing Maschinenmensch in Fritz Lang's Metropolis to the super hip car KITT from Knight Rider to the Cylons from Battlestar Galactica, robots have great designs and wild personalities. And in comics that tradition continues to this day. Some comic book robots are evil, but others are heroic, and in the DC Universe, there's plenty of both.
But which of these synthetic beings are the most powerful? Which ones leap out as the ultimate creations made out of circuits and metal? Which ones can save or destroy a planet on their own? Which ones are so terrifyingly strong that heroes come together from across time and space to stop them? Who are the most powerful robots of the DC Universe?
10 Manhunters Seek To Kill All Organic Life
Before they created the Green Lantern Corps, the Guardians built the Manhunters, an army of robots that would keep the peace across the galaxy. But to prove to his fellow Oans that a proper police force needs to have emotions to actually work, Krona reprogrammed the Manhunters, making the machines come to the decision that the only way to keep order in the galaxy was to kill all organic life.
Over the millennia, the Manhunters have been an ongoing problem not only for the Green Lanterns but for the heroes of Earth as well.
9 Cyborg Superman Planned To Make Earth A New War World
The leader of the tragic LexCorp Excalibur space crew, Hank Henshaw came to blame Superman for the death of his wife. As Henshaw's own body began to decay, he replaced it with a cybernetic frame made out of Krypton technology, turning himself into a living robot.
After Superman was killed by Doomsday, Hank made his debut as the Cyborg Superman and tricked the world into thinking he was a hero for a time before revealing his true plan to turn the Earth into the new War World. The Cyborg Superman was stopped by the real Superman, Steel, and Superboy, but continues to battle the heroes to this day.
8 Metallo Is Powered By Kryptonite
Low-level con man John Corben would have died in a terrible car accident if he hadn't been found by cybernetics specialist Professor Emmet Vale. Vale transplanted Corben's brain into a robot body that is powered by Kryptonite and made sure that his creation would follow his orders above all else. Having renamed Corben Metallo, Vale sent him to kill Superman.
While Metallo is a threat to any hero, he is especially dangerous to Superman, thanks to the Kryptonite that powers him. Metallo can use the Kryptonite to shoot energy beams that cause the Man of Steel a great deal of pain.
7 Amazo Can Mimic Super Powers
The first android created by a human, Amazo was built by the evil Professor Ivo using "absorption cell" technology, giving his creation the ability to mimic the powers of any superhero or supervillain it came across.
With this power, Amazo is nearly unstoppable. It can take on the powers of Superman, Flash, Wonder Woman, or any Justice League member all at once, making Amazo a serious threat to the universe. Luckily for mankind - and the superheroes - the League has always been able to find a way to stop Amazo when they have faced off against the android.
6 Red Tornado Had The Power To Destroy The Justice League
Created by the mad scientist T.O. Morrow, Red Tornado was originally built to destroy the Justice League, but soon turned against his father and became a member of the superhero team. To power his creation, T.O. Morrow had captured Ulthoon, a wind elemental from the planet Xalthor, and placed it inside the shell he constructed, giving his robot great power.
Ulthoon lay dormant within Red Tornado for years, but was awakened during the Crisis on Infinite Earths where it was used by the Anti-Monitor against the heroes of the DC Universe. After the Crisis ended, Ulthoon once again merged with Red Tornado and together they became the personification of a force of nature.
5 The Metal Men Combine Their Individual Strengths And Work As A Team
Invented by the pipe-smoking genius Doctor William Magnus, the Metal Men were created when Dr. Magnus put his Responsometer - an advanced AI system - into different vats of molten metal. Each vat came to life and took on not only human forms, but human personalities as well.
As the Metal Men, Dr. Magnus's creations work as a team to help protect the Earth from a variety of threats. Each member, made out of a different metal, has different abilities, but they all work together as they take instructions from Dr. Magnus.
4 Cyborg Is Powered Using A White Dwarf Stabilizer
Victor Stone was well on his way to being a famous - and wealthy - athlete when Darkseid first attacked the Earth. Victor was at STAR Labs with his scientist father when the building was attacked by Darkseid's Parademons. A Fatherbox was detonated, and Victor was nearly killed in the explosion.
To save his son, Doctor Silas Stone used experimental tech that STAR Labs had obtained over the years, including Professor Ivo's A-maze operating system, Dr. Magnus's Responsometer, and a White Dwarf Stabilizer. While almost all of his body was destroyed, Vic Stone survived and became the hero Cyborg.
3 Solaris Improves Itself After Every Defeat
A sentient, artificial sun created in the 20th century, Solaris will one day form an unending rivalry with Superman and his ancestors, leading to a battle in the 853rd century that will require the heroes of that time - known as Justice Leagion A - and the heroes of today to come together in order to save the day.
Solaris, who also plays a part in Future State: Superman/Wonder Woman, continually improves itself after every defeat, making it harder and harder for Superman to stop the artificial sun from carrying out its goal to extinguish all life in the universe.
2 Android Hourman Had Access To A Device That Could Manipulate Time Itself
Also coming from the 853rd century, the Android Hourman was built by Tyler Chemorobotics using genetic software patterned after the Miraclo-enhanced DNA of the first Hourman, Rex Tyler. The Android Hourman was already the cutting edge of technology when he was selected by Metron of the New Gods to become the heir of the Worlogog, a device that can control and manipulate time itself.
Feeling that the power of the Worlogo was too much for anyone being to control, the Android Hourman broke it into pieces and, using his Timeship, spread it across time and space while keeping a part for himself.
1 Brainiac One Million Can Use Hypertime To Travel Across All Realities
After joining Lex Luthor's Legion of Doom and helping free Perpetua, Mother of the Multiverse, from the Source Wall, Brainiac was granted the ability to not only shrink and bottle cities and planets of his time, but to use Hypertime to travel across all realities and collect timelines.
The former Coluan combined his mind with the technology of the future and used his new abilities to take the Worlogog from the Android Hourman, giving Brainiac nearly unbeatable power and turning him into Brainiac One Million, a giant android that could take on the heroes of every Earth.