In the original Battlestar series the Cylons were a cybernetic civilisation at war with the Twelve Colonies of humanity. They got their name from the advanced reptilian race who originally created the Stormtrooper-style mechanised infantry to serve them, maintain their empire and to fight in their military forces (due to the fact their race was rapidly facing extinction). However, in Battlestar’s latest re-imagining the Cylons were created by humans as robotic workers and soldiers but they turned on their creators and almost destroyed the whole of civilisation – they consider humans to be sinful and flawed creatures of god (hey, they might have a point) and therefore do not deserve to survive. Strong views for a robot to hold perhaps, but they have proved their power and dominance on several occasions and are not to be taken lightly.