Griffin Rock
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The small island town of Griffin Rock, Maine, is a testing bed for all kinds of new experimental technologies and gadgets. It has a long history of fostering scientific research and producing many of the world's leading scientists. Most of the advanced technology on the island has a propensity for running amok or malfunctioning spectacularly, endangering the town's population. It's a good thing the island has its own team of alien robots to protect the populace.
When ruled by Doctor Morocco, Griffin Rock becomes Moropolis.
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Fiction
Rescue Bots cartoon
The town was established in 1649 Family of Heroes by Horace Burns. The Reign of Morocco In 1652, the guild hall charity fund was stolen by Bertha the pirate. The same year, Horace married a woman named Bertha. The two events may have been related. Pirates Ahoy A heavy winter hit Griffin Rock in 1713, resulting in supplies running out, however a mysterious figure dubbed the Rider of Midwinter distributed loaves of bread to the townsfolk, starting a tradition that lasted throughout the centuries. The Riders of Midwinter In 1812, the settlement was attacked by the pirate ship Oaken Crow, and the Settlers' Bell stolen. The Lost Bell Around the same time, Charlotte Wayne's family set off for the mainland and disappeared. The Haunting of Griffin Rock In 1939 the Griffin Rock Technology Expo was held It's a Bot Time and Mount Magma was moved to the island after the World's Fair. Under Pressure
For the town's tricentennial in 1949, a number of famous citizens including its first woman scientist, Elma Hendrickson, were reproduced as holograms. The Haunting of Griffin Rock In the late 50s, scientists devised the Sanctuary Plan to keep the townspeople safe in the event of a cataclysm. Countdown During the 1960s, scientists set up a safe zone on Griffin Crest for people to go should the technology ever turn rogue, Rules and Regulations and a rail tunnel was almost constructed between the mainland and Griffin Rock, but stopped several hundred feet short when the city council voted to halt funding. The Griffin Rock Express Professor Baranova used the town as a base when she investigated the Griffin Rock Triangle during the 1980s. The Griffin Rock Triangle Doctor Morocco was originally the island's chief scientist, but was expelled by Chief Charlie Burns, Mayor Luskey and Doc Greene after his inventions proved inferior. The Reign of Morocco
The Rescue Bots were assigned to protect the island after arriving on Earth, and were presented to the population by Chief Burns as hi-tech robots which would assist him and his family. After they successfully dealt with a fire at the natural history museum, Cody Burns discovered that the four robots were aliens. He showed them the tunnels which ran all over the island from the Cold War bunker beneath the fire station, and they managed to stop a rampaging robotic Tyrannosaurus rex that had escaped from the museum and was threatening the drive-in theater. Family of Heroes
Further trouble came when Chase and Chief Burns had to stop a robo-landscaper that had gone rogue and begun carving up downtown. That same day, the rescue team had to deal with lava flooding out of the sewers, thanks to Mount Magma building up too much pressure. Under Pressure The town was also briefly threatened when Doc Greene's experimental solar car careened through the streets out of control. Hotshots During the Lobster and Technology Festival, an accident with floatium and some lobsters created flobsters. The flying crustaceans quickly spread out over the town, causing damage everywhere, and had to be rounded up by the Rescue Bots. Flobsters on Parade
The town's population panicked when Huxley Prescott reported an alien invasion. When the power went out as well, many of them tried to evacuate on the ferry, only to overload it. The Alien Invasion of Griffin Rock The escape of the lion and lemurs from Griffin Rock Zoo resulted in the destruction of the new Mayor Luskey Library before they were rounded up. Walk on the Wild Side
Nanites from Doc Greene's lab caused the Scrapmaster to go berserk, and also made Boulder knock down trees in the park until the nanites were lured to the power plant. Cody on Patrol A blocked sewer pipe caused a sinkhole that almost swallowed the bank. During the rescue operation, the town's central water supply had to be shut off, forcing Cody to switch the island's power from the hydro-electric plant to the wind farm. Four Bots and a Baby
Griffin Rock was struck by a heatwave so hot that eggs didn't just cook on the pavement, they burst into flame. Doc Greene set up a weather machine that created a localized snowfall in the central park, but it went out of control, creating snow all over Griffin Rock and threatening City Hall with a roof collapse until Greene could get it fixed. Christmas in July
A robotic shark destroyed the automated lighthouse's sensors and disrupted the annual Miss Griffin Rock pageant. Deep Trouble After the town's technology went wild thanks to a virus, the mayor fired Doc Greene as lead scientist. Return of the Dino Bot The return of Doctor Morocco with a new MorBot resulted in the mayor shutting down the Rescue Bots, despite the fact that the MorBot caused as much damage as it prevented. The Other Doctor After Cody and Frankie uncovered evidence condemning Morocco, he fled the island and the Rescue Bots were reinstated. The Reign of Morocco
Griffin Rock dam nearly burst after Kade carelessly left a minivan blocking one of the overflow pipes. Small Blessings The Settlers' Bell was recovered by Cody Burns and the Rescue Bots, and used to mark Founders' Day. The Lost Bell Tracers, a leftover part of the Sanctuary Plan, teleported most of the townsfolk to a cavern under the mountain of Griffin Rock. Countdown The town experienced a plague of so-called ghosts when Myles and Evan escaped and used the holograms from the tricentennial to distract the population while they went on a crime spree. The Haunting of Griffin Rock A series of earthquakes struck the town and were eventually traced to a subwoofer in a secondary storage facility under the island. Shake Up
A temporal jaunt back to 1939 by Cody, Frankie and the Rescue Bots caused Dither to fall into Doctor Morocco's hands. This spawned an alternate timeline, in which Morocco built an empire from technology gleaned from the robot, taking over Griffin Rock and redubbing it "Moropolis". While MorBots patrolled the town, keeping its citizens oppressed, Morocco had the tunnels under the island sealed up for fear of the townspeople rebelling. In fact the Burns family was working on a rebellion but it wasn't until the arrival of the time travelers that they were spurred into action. Once time was corrected, Griffin Rock was restored to its normal state. Bot to the Future
The town was threatened by out-of-control vegetation from Frankie's Sky Forest. Sky Forest During a snowstorm, the town was completely covered in a white blanket of the stuff, and experienced lightning. It was also used as the location for the virtual reality game Griffin Rock Element Quest. A Virtual Disaster A large number of the town's residents were hypnotized by cellphones, and the rescue force was compelled to dig up nearby leisure spot Blossom Vale. Spellbound
Huxley Prescott caused a major forest fire while trying to spice up his reality show, endangering the town. Prescott's Bots The town was also subject to an invasion by gremlins. Blame the Gremlins Woodrow Burns's research led to the discovery of a major energon deposit and a prehistoric ecosystem under the island. What Rises Above The airport was used to launch the Asgard. Space Bots When the town's main computer began to malfunction, a new supercomputer named Vigil was installed instead, however it instigated a reign of terror, keeping the citizens indoors until the computer could be shut down. The Vigilant Town The town was also temporarily overrun with snakes. Buddy System
The island was threatened by a number of storms, thanks to Doctor Morocco's weather machine, Changes and was nearly destroyed by a Cybertronian artifact. Odd Bot Out The rail tunnel to the mainland was finally completed, though the first run of the Griffin Rock Express ended in disaster. The Griffin Rock Express A methane explosion caused a chain reaction under the island, resulting in the tunnel system starting to collapse and the entire island to slowly start to sink. Though the town was temporarily submerged in water, the rescue team was able to use quick-hardening foam to prop up the tunnel system and restore the island. Rise of the Heroes
The townfolk were terrorized at one point by a robot dinosaur. Big Game The town suffered further water damage when the river flooded, waterlogging many of the nearby homes. Unfinished Business When the island was threatened by Hurricane Opie, Doc Greene erected a massive force field dome over it. Unfortunately this was soon commandeered by Vigil, who temporarily put the town's population to sleep using the dome's atmosphere generator. No Place Like Dome The town was endangered by metal-eating ants, thanks to Doctor Morocco's diversion while he escaped the island. Bugs in the System
Wealthy investor Mrs. Dumont paid a visit to the town before investing money in the museum. Did You See What I Thaw? The movie monster Humungado mysteriously rampaged through the town after a fire at the drive-in. The Attack of Humungado During Bot Appreciation Week, the town was hit with a plague of thieving miniature Rescue Bots thanks to Evan and Myles. All Bots Great and Small
Cody experienced the dedication of the new Mayor Luskey Clock Tower three times thanks to some time slippage. Fortunately on the third occasion nothing went wrong. Time After Time The island was rocked by a series of earthquakes, The New Recruits and suffered a blackout thanks to a solar flare. It narrowly avoided being hit by a rogue satellite thanks to the efforts of one reluctantly-brave Rescue Bot named Blurr. A New Hero
During the Griffin Rock Idol auditions, a malfunctioning invention caused the whole town to sing. I Have Heard the Robots Singing
It was discovered that the island was laced with veins of reactaline. During a storm, an accident with a quantum crystal resulted in the entire island being teleported to the Arctic. The townsfolk raised the dome to protect the island from the blizzard. Now and Then By filling the dome with floatium and attaching a rocket booster to the side, they were able to fly the island back to the coast of Maine, albeit with one or two sinkholes. Today and Forever
Griffin Rock was invaded by aliens, for real this time, who kidnapped many of the town's residents and took over the power plant. The rescue team stopped them, though as a result, the population of Griffin Rock learned that the Rescue Bots were originally from Cybertron and thus aliens themselves. New Normal The community ended up having a vote and decided to keep the Rescue Bots' secret. Bridge Building Part of Griffin Rock was almost redeveloped into a luxury resort until the rescue team scared off the investors. Vanishing Returns The annual Griffin Rock holiday of Earliween turned into a film-making exercise to prevent Evan and Miles exposing the Rescue Bots' secret. Ghost in the Machine
Chase was briefly elected mayor of Griffin Rock, however his reign was unpopular and Mayor Luskey reinstated. Mayor May Not The townsfolk celebrated All Spark Day with the Rescue Bots. Also the town was threatened by a giant-sized CeCe Greene as the result of a lab accident with the Minimizer. All Spark Day Mayor Luskey's purchase of an inflatable Insta-adium to hold Brash Ball games in did not go well. Part-Time Heroes He also decided that holding a street race around Griffin Rock would be a good idea, though it similarly ended in near disaster. Hot Rod Bot
The discovery of historical documents temporarily resulted in Griffin Rock becoming a monarchy with various members of the Burns family as regent, until contradicting paperwork was located. King Burns The Pizza Pi Party got out of hand when some super yeast almost resulted in the entire town being smothered in pizza dough. Pizza Pi Party Griffin Rock was invaded by the Mini-Con Bounce, who left Cybertronian graffiti around town. The Need for Speed An explosion at a construction site caused extensive damage to an apartment building in the town. Family Business
Rescue Bots Academy cartoon
Griffin Rock continued to have traffic mishaps, with Mrs. Rubio's car and a milk tanker coming off the road. If at First... The Mayor decided to honor the Rescue Bots by having their faces carved into the mountainside near the dam, though when Hot Shot attempted to add his own face, he inadvertently damaged the dam. Mount Botmore A truck carrying explosive canisters overturned in Griffin Rock, resulting in damage to a bridge which necessitated a rescue. Glitch Hot Shot attempted to attend a rescue on his own when Jerry hit a tree. Blame Game
The other recruits set up a surprise rescue for Medix by having Tough Luck Chuck pose as a rescue victim in a geyser field near Griffin Rock. Medix Surprise At some point the town added the Griffin Rock Water Park as an attraction. Dog Stray Afternoon Dr. Hart was a researcher from Griffin Rock labs. Lucky Ducky The Rescue Bots had to deal with a forest fire near Griffin Rock. The Secret of Flight On another occasion, Griffin Rock was threatened by flooding, forcing an evacuation while the Rescue Bots dealt with the threat. The recruits had to round up some stragglers on Lincoln Street. Go Team, Go!
On a day when the students had been roped into being teachers, there was a rock fall on the mountain near Griffin Rock which the recruits had to deal with. Who's Teaching Who? During a winter snowfall, the recruits had to direct traffic and deal with downed power lines. Life of the Party Chase set up an exercise for the students, creating a scenario in which Chuck posed as a criminal who had stolen the Settlers' Bell and hidden it somewhere in Griffin Rock. The bell was eventually recovered by Grimlock, though during the hunt, a barn near the town was demolished. Buddy Cop Blades hid Tough Luck Chuck somewhere on Griffin Rock for the recruits to find. Unfortunately Hoist found a map and used it to cheat and find Chuck at the base of Mount Griffin. All that Glitters
Heatwave and Cody attended to a crashed ice cream truck in Griffin Rock. Metal Munchers Bumblebee and Blades caught up during a stroll around the town, during which Wedge caused havoc in the process of trying to impress his hero. Bee Prepared A bull from a nearby farm wandered into town and had to be rounded up by the recruits. Robo-Cody
The Museum of Future Tech Art was added to the town as an attraction, featuring art fused with technology including Doc Greene's piece Mano e Nano. A nearby lightning strike interrupted the power to the museum, causing a number of problems. Museum Mystery While the class at the Griffin Rock Ballet School were preparing for a fundraiser so they could move to a better building, the school caught fire and the recruits had to rescue the class. Shall We Dance? An ice sculpture contest hosted by the mayor was disrupted when the train carrying the ice went out of control. The Icebot Cometh
Perceptor took the students to several locations around Griffin Rock as part of a science class, including the cable car. Medix Gets Schooled During another exercise, the recruits had to rescue Jerry from a staged crash on a mountain road near Griffin Rock. Powerless A charity concert in Griffin Rock by internationally renown electronic artist DJ Mechmaster ran into trouble when the barge transporting the stage crashed, and the rescue led to the revelation that Mechmaster was none other than Mayor Luskey. The concert subsequently took place with the Rescue Bots recruits standing in for the stage props. Griffin Rock Rocks! The island got a pair of new high-powered satellite dishes. Space Party When Citadel Secundus ended up hurtling towards Milford, the recruits on Earth successfully commandeered the dishes and used them to remotely take control of the Titan, guiding him to a safe landing. Crash Of The Titan
Notes
- The town's (and island's) name is principally derived from the largest mountain on it, Mount Griffin, the peak of which resembles a griffin.
- A town that's a testing ground for new technology is also the premise of the SyFy television series, Eureka. Griffin Rock's resident scientist, Doc Greene, also bears more than a passing resemblance to their chief scientist, Henry Deacon.
- Griffin Rock is named after Eagle Rock, Maine.[1] The griffin is Nicole Dubuc's favorite fictional beast.
References
- ↑ Rescue Bots Crew Q&A at BotCon 2013.
