The Gimmick

"An evil robot sat in an apartment, studying himself and his surroundings. The walls were bleak, the light was grayish and dull outside. A refrigerator hummed gently in the kitchen, as the flicker of a television was the only distraction from his bare living quarters. The robot sat on the couch, paint peeling off the walls, and consented to immerse himself in the television's static glow.

Snorting in discontent, he changed through the few barely visible channels on the television. To be aware, he knew, was a sin in this world. He knew only to be critical. He knew only to be vain.

Then he might be on the television himself...

After a few minutes of watching a television advertisement, the robot left the flickering screen and went to examine himself in a mirror. The hard eyes. The swollen chest. The voice that was so gruff. They are training him to be these things. They are training him to obey.  The robot glared up and down the mirror, daring it to look back. And he is, and he did.

Going back to the television, the robot sat down and stared at what he should be again. The television flickered as his eyes grew heavy. ...going braindead... mind shutting down... mind slave routine activating... television watching commencing...

'Coming up next, Life! What are your favorite flavors? Right here on CUL..."