Norby

Norby
Norby as he appears in his first comic strip series, in Boys' Life, January 1990
First appearance	Norby The mixed-Up Robot
Last appearance	Norby and the Terrified Taxi
Created by	Janet Asimov and Isaac Asimov
Information
Nickname(s)	Seeker
Species	Robot
Gender	Male
Family	Mentor One (Original creator), Jeff Wells (Owner)
Nationality	Jamya (Planet)

Norby is a fictional robot created by Janet Asimov and Isaac Asimov who stars in his own series of children's science fiction books, The Norby Chronicles. His first appearance was in the 1983 book Norby, the Mixed-Up Robot, in total he appeared in 11 novels in the 'Norby' series. According to Isaac Asimov, although Janet Asimov did 90% of the work, his "name was wanted on the book for the betterment of sales [and he] went over the manuscript and polished it a bit."

The 'Norby' novels were combined into collections (each with a new cover image and title) by Ace Books:

Norby was originally a robot named the Searcher, created by the robot Mentor First on the planet Jamya. On his initial mission, Norby's ship crashed in Earth's asteroid belt and was discovered many years later by a salvager and inventor named McGillicuddy. McGillicuddy welded much of the remaining parts of the Seeker into a steel barrel that originally contained Norb's Nails, later becoming the basis for Norby's name. He eventually fell into the possession of a used-robot shop where he was sold to Jefferson Wells, a space cadet looking for a teaching robot.

Norby's body reflects his outer origins as a barrel, while his arms are retractable and have double-sided palms (and two thumbs). His head is round with four eyes, two on each side, and the top is a dome which he can retract into his barrel. His feet are also extendable/retractable. Norby has a tenor voice but can communicate through telepathy by touch.

Norby is equipped with a miniature anti-gravity device allowing him to float. He also possesses the ability to travel through hyperspace, although his navigating abilities are sometimes unreliable. He also has the capability to travel through time via hyperspace. Norby's many features make him a target for scientists, the army, and the rogue Inventor's Guild who wish to disassemble and study him.

In the first Norby book, Norby, the Mixed-Up Robot, Norby and his owner Jefferson Wells stop the villain Ing the Ingrate from taking over the Solar System.