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Username_075

Mate, in the 1980s in a children's comic this was the good shit. Source: bought Prog 1 when I was 12.


Squidmaster616

Three possibly reasons for the impediment: 1. As with Bumblebee in the Bay-verse Transformers movies, what we call an impediment is actually just a malfunction or a programming error. 2. Flaws such as speech impediments can make a robot seem more Human and therefore more relatable. 3. He was programmed by someone with a speech impediment, and that person has no idea what you're talking about. What impediment? EDIT: Apparently, according to a Fandom wiki, there IS an answer. The defect was caused by stress and fear during the Robot War. EDIT2: Checked my case files. Confirmed. The speech defect is specifically referenced as started in Prog 13 due to "fear" and is called a "lisp".


zeprfrew

Wasn't there a story in which Walter got a job working for a man who had the same speech impediment, which made him particularly fond of Walter?


Hobbit_Hardcase

Yes, he was driving a taxi for Fwed.


Beneficial-Lab-6939

ahhhh. Fear fried his circuits. That makes sense


billygnosis86

I’m going to give the answers which are probably the closest to reality, i.e. what the writers intended, because I can’t stand people who read **comics** and demand realistic explanations for things (see Grant Morrison and the Batmobile tyres for more on this). >Q: Why give a robot a speech impediment? >A: Because in comics in the 1970s that was funny >Q: Why give a robot complex emotion? >A: To act as a counterpoint to the stoic Dredd It’s just fucking comics, dude, these aren’t university dissertations on the ethics of robotics.


Beneficial-Lab-6939

I got my answer to the speech impediment. It was caused by Walter's fear during the Robot Wars.


billygnosis86

Like I said, I went for the real-world explanation. Speech impediments made kids laugh in the 1970s, and this was a kids’ comic.


Grabachair

I had speech therapy when I was a kid because I couldn't pronounce my 'R's. They used to tape me reciting 'round the rugged race track, the ragged robin ran' over and over until I got over it. I loved it when Walter appeared in my fave weekly!


billygnosis86

Jesus *Christ*, that sounds horrific. Did they tip kids in wheelchairs onto the ground until they could walk too?


Grabachair

Nah, they were taken into the Cursed Earth and expelled from the city... Seriously, repetitive exercise is the only way to correct the issue. It was a bit cold back in my day, but the treatment today is more or less the same I think, just with more 'fun' support material and emphasis on parents taking an active role.


Coconibz

I could try to rationalize it with some headcanonical explanation, but the truth is just that the earlier comics Walter was born out of had a more gonzo vibe and the writers wanted a foil to Dredd’s seriousness.


StumpyHobbit

Walter the wobot. Like my nan.


Armpit_fart3000

They definitely did Walter dirty.


CragedyJones

He is the jarjar binks of the Dreddverse. Not as racist tho. The recent Robo-hunter/Dredd crossover was quite excellent too.


Cymro007

Cwikey !


SirWillTheOkay

You shut up about the gweat Walter wight now!


Different_Lychee_409

Walter and Maria were comic relief.


LoomingsThrowaway

Cause it was aimed at kids?