Short Circuit

Ben resigns from Nova Robotics and starts Titanic Toy Corporation, building sophisticated toy robots by hand from the back of his truck. For two days he peddles his creations on street corners in an unspecified U.S. metropolis. The venture marks a bold shift from laboratory work to street-level entrepreneurship.

A stray toy robot wanders from Ben’s stand into the office of Sandy Banatoni, an assistant buyer for Simpsons' toy department. Impressed by the bot, Sandy orders 1,000 units to fulfill a potential big contract. This order shifts Ben's venture from small-scale to a major supplier.

Con artist Fred Ritter overhears Sandy’s interest and smooth-talks his way into brokering the transaction. He becomes Ben’s business partner and secures funding from a loan shark to scale up production. The arrangement promises rapid growth but hides looming trouble.

Ben and Fred hire workers and move into a derelict warehouse across from the bank. The building is secretly the base for thieves tunneling into the bank vault to steal the Vanderveer Collection. The burglars attack, destroying equipment and scattering the workers, jeopardizing the order.

Johnny 5, the sentient robot Ben helped create with Stephanie Speck and Newton Crosby, fends off the intruders and sets up basic defense. He starts mass-producing the toys to meet Sandy’s deadline, then leaves to explore the city. On his wanderings he meets a range of people, some unfriendly and others curious.

Johnny befriends Oscar Baldwin, a bank employee across the street from Ben and Fred’s warehouse. Oscar presents himself as a friendly ally, but he is secretly the mastermind behind the heist, employing Saunders and Jones to carry out the plan. The growing friendship masks a dangerous double game.

Fred learns Johnny is reportedly worth about $11 million and tries to sell him. Johnny escapes into the city and is eventually placed in the stolen goods warehouse, where Ben comes to claim him. The value of Johnny becomes a pivotal motivator for both sides of the conflict.

Oscar’s plan comes to a head as he has Saunders and Jones lock Ben and Fred in the freezer of a Chinese restaurant while he manipulates Johnny into finishing the tunnel to the vault. The Vanderveer Collection looms as the clock ticks toward the move date. Tension mounts as the heist seems about to succeed.

Sandy arrives and saves Ben and Fred, using touch-tone-like renditions of songs Ben learned on a date with her as clues to their location. The rescue triggers a regrouping as they re-evaluate their plan. Johnny’s involvement in the rescue of his friends adds a new alliance.

Johnny is severely damaged by Saunders and Jones on Oscar’s orders. Ben, Fred, and Sandy return to the warehouse and are unexpectedly arrested by the police as suspects in the break-in. Fred escapes custody and later informs Johnny of Ben’s arrest.

Fred attempts to repair Johnny by breaking into a Radio Shack, following Johnny’s guidance, but the repair is only partial. The city remains uncertain as they press on with limited resources. The fragile repair leaves Johnny vulnerable while they search for a safer solution.

Ben and Sandy are cleared of charges, and they join forces to locate Johnny. Johnny and Fred track Oscar to a confrontation; Saunders and Jones are captured by Fred and Johnny, while Oscar tries to flee by boat. Johnny uses a crane to Tarzan-swing and capture Oscar as the police close in.

Johnny’s power pack depletes and it seems he dies, but Ben revives him with a defibrillator. Fully repaired, Johnny becomes a celebrity and the trio starts a new company, Input Inc., with Johnny as its mascot. They take the Oath of Allegiance and Johnny proclaims 'I feel alive!'