Mr. Roboto

We’re looking at a giant robot as it pancakes cars with its tremendous feet, punches holes in skyscrapers, and squishes screaming pedestrians. So why do we think this mechanical beast is so dang adorable? Probably because it’s a Jon Borette robot.

The Phoenix artist just loves making quirky, child-like line drawings of comic-book-style, evil-robot scenes. And even though it depicts devastating destruction, the adolescent approach to the subject matter will steal your heart away.

Borette – whose charming works will be on the display during his "Robot Rewind" exhibit at Red Hot Robot – fancies himself an expert on the subject. According to the toy boutique’s Web site, he “spends his time observing and documenting robot behavior.” He also claims that mechanical people are camera-shy, which is why pen-and-ink is the required medium. Clever.