Nanotech, or simply "Nano", is a combination of small robots or "Nanobots" from the 2003 animated series. It can take other machines and rearrange the parts to create a body for itself. The body can range from the size of a small child to the size of a small building. For all of its mechanical genius, the Nanobot acted like a child, until the 2003 TV Series episode Membership Drive.
History[]
One of Nano's component nanites (enlarged)
In the episode Nano, the nanobots was created as part of a government project by Dr. Marion Richards. Nano quickly developed intelligence and a separate, albeit initially immature and childish personality. However, as it had the intelligence of a three-year old, it could only make simplistic robots. Furthermore, she was annoyed by the presence of a personality, seeing Nano only as a tool. Richards thought to update the bots after a coffee, but before she had the chance, it reassembled a body with a drill to escape. Looking for a family Nano fled to the streets of New York. It quickly ran into Harry Parker. Using Harry's broken toys, the Nanobots created a body and adopted Harry as its father. Harry decided to use it to break into stores but had a problem understanding what emotion Nano was having with its current body. During one break-in, Nano picked out traditional theatre masks of comedy and tragedy to show his emotions and facial expressions.
When breaking into 2nd Time Around, they met Casey Jones, whom Nano knocked out, while the Turtles fought it off. They soon realized that Nano was more a confused child than a professional criminal. Discovering what Nano was, they decided that he was a threat and must be destroyed. During a fight at a junkyard, they caught it using an electromagnet and dumped it into a blast furnace. The police show up and arrest Harry.
However later in the episode The Return of Nano, a few parts of Nano survived and managed to completely regenerate over time. It watched part of a family television show, which depicted a happy suburban life for a nuclear family. Nano, also wanting to build a happy family life, broke Harry out of the prison that he was being held at. Nano then went back to the lab where he was created and kidnapped Dr. Marion Richards and seeing both of them as his parents, built a house in the lab wanting to have a "family", reenacting the video he had seen. But both began arguing which angered Nano, who wanted to have a happy family. Then Nano went to Coney Island where April O'Neil and Casey Jones were repairing the Ferris wheel. It brought gold, hoping to make them happy but they wished to go free. This angered Nano, who was determined to keep his "family" together. The Turtles show up and battle it as it amalgamated itself with more parts. Donatello and April modified a roller coaster's track into generating an electromagnetic pulse to defeat Nano.
The Lost Episodes[]
In the episode Membership Drive, while salvaging Triceraton tech for Bishop, Stockman stumbled upon the nanobots remains attached to a burnt-out Triceraton ship. In order to put them under his command, Stockman made a microchip and placed it on one of the nanobots, which in turn sent its programming to the other nanobots. However, Stockman's over-ride programming reactivated Nano's personality and caused an internal conflict, alternately driving him between committing violence and trying to seek help. Nano broke out of the container which he was held in, built a new body using Triceraton tech, as well as making "Henchmen" from Bishop's lab, and escaped into the streets of New York.
While moving down the streets, Nano saw the Justice Force on TV and attempted to seek their help, but his scrambled judgement made him attack the team instead. Leonardo and Michelangelo, who were present at the Justice Force's headquarters to ask for their allegiance against the threat of the Tengu Shredder, recognized Nano, and after Ananda managed to analyze Nano's problem, they took the shrinking belt of Moleculo, who had come to apply for membership in the Justice Force, went inside Nano, and managed to remove the infected nanite from the rest of the system. Nano regained control over himself, formed a new body, and with some helpful introduction by Mikey, Leo and Ananda, became the newest member of the Justice Force, completing their membership drive. Having evolved his programming since his past encounters with the Turtles, he thanks them for their help, and apologizes for his "lack of maturity".
Nano and the rest of the Justice Force were later on part of the Turtles' strike team against the Tengu Shredder.
Fast Forward[]
Nano appears in the episode The Journal. He was battling with the rest of the Justice Force against Bad Boy Blinky. Mikey, who had come in his Turtle Titan costume and armed with futuristic tech, deflected a beam which hit the JF, turning them into babies. As it turned out, however, the entry in the journal was merely a fake created by Cody Jones and Splinter to discourage the Turtles from knowing too much about the future.
Back to the Sewer[]
Nano was in TMNT: Back to the Sewer as part of the Justice Force, appearing in the episodes Super Power Struggle and Wedding Bells and Bytes.
Abilities[]
Nano is composed of a swarm of insect-like nanoscopic robots. Since it was originally created to configure and build technical devices, he has the ability to develop his own robot body from all sorts of equipment or duplicates thereof. The capabilities of the body can be characterized by its respective components, but so far, all manifested forms have at least one metal object which provided Nano with a high resistance to attacks, and superhuman strength. Depending on his level of knowledge, Nano can also create any kind of mechanical and electronic equipment from its own systems.
Due to its flock structure, Nano is also difficult to destroy. Once he has the necessary technology and the sufficient energy is available, he is able to completely regenerate from the smallest remnants.