Tyrobot

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Tyrobot

GENERAL

Mr. Robot

Character	Character
Mr. Robot	Tyrell Wellick

Canonical?

Semi-Canon^[1]

Status of Relationship

Political Allies; Feelings on Tyrell's side, Tyrell is presumably dead

IN FANDOM

Type (?)

Slash

Tropes

• The Only One I Trust
• I Owe You My Life
• Love Redeems - subverted; Mr. Robot's ideology is morally dubious
• Belligerent Sexual Tension
• Love Overrides the Law
• Fate Drives Us Together
• Not So Different
• Abhorrent Admirer
MOMENTS

• Love Confession — after the hug; interrupted by Mr. Robot
• Talking Down the Suicidal — Mr. Robot attempts to convince Tyrell to not give up and die in the forest; failed
• Love Martyr — Tyrell commits suicide to save Elliot/Mr. Robot from the Dark Army.

❝

Some things are better left unsaid. Subtext, y'know?

—Mr. Robot, to Tyrell

Tyrobot is the slash ship between Mr. Robot and Tyrell Wellick from the Mr. Robot fandom.

Canon[]

8th May

Mr. Robot and Tyrell Wellick's first scene together is in the back of his car. The viewers do not know it yet - as Elliot's Dissociative Identity Disorder is not revealed until "eps1.8_m1rr0r1ng.qt" (9th May). So Tyrell repeatedly mistakes Mr. Robot and Elliot to be the same person, until he is told by Angela in a flashback at the end of "eps3.2_legacy.so" (9th August).

Tyrell urges Mr. Robot to tell him what his plan [for fsociety] is. Tyrell, thinking that he is talking to Elliot, threats about Mr. Robot not letting him be apart of his anarchist, anti-capitalist endeavours. He brings up his framing of Terry Colby, using it as blackmail against him: "Aren't you forgetting that I know your dirty little secret?" Mr. Robot reiterates that "The only thing to do in your position when it comes to me, is nothing."

Prosandcons.tyrobot — After Tyrell blackmails Mr. Robot for framing Terry Colby.

Mr. Robot then leaves the car,^[2] and Tyrell responds with anger, punching the door of his car before rushing out to stop Elliot. Tyrell is stricken over the idea that Mr. Robot does not want to continue with a partnership, attempting to persuade him by highlighting that he believes that a higher power is bringing them together. Tyrell underlines that Fate Drives Us Together.

Mr. Robot, most likely in a dissociative state, tells Tyrell that "You're only seeing what's in front of you. You're not seeing what's above you." Tyrell assumes he is talking about God, and will continuously pedal this belief to both Mr. Robot and Elliot, the latter of the two being particularly antitheist, causing a stir in their bond. Suddenly, Tyrell gets teary eyed, reciting to Mr. Robot The Red Wheelbarrow by William Carlos Williams. He continues, by saying that it was the only English his father knew, and that the poem served as a reminder of who he never wants to become.

Believeinfate.tyrobot — "I believe in fate. / There's a reason we met."

The shared hatred of their fathers - Mr. Robot especially, being born out of abuse at his father's hand - most likely makes them realise that they are Not So Different after all.^[3]

9th May

Without knowing about Mr. Robot's rejected deal with Tyrell, Elliot invites Tyrell Wellick - after being intimidated by him - to their base of operations, the fsociety Arcade, where they both run the code for the 5/9 Hack.

Elliot loses control, and a paranoid Mr. Robot reaches into the popcorn machine for his gun, ready to shoot Tyrell. Tyrell panics, jumping up from his seat after he hears the gun click beside him, hands up in surrender as he pleads "Elliot, wait a minute-" before screaming "No!" as Mr. Robot pulls the trigger. The gun is jammed and Tyrell is left unscathed.

He tells Mr. Robot that he lived due to Divine Intervention, and that "[They] have been invited into [God's] circle to lead this revolution." and Mr. Robot calls his bluff, that he hadn't invited himself, but had somehow forced himself back into society's operations even after he had declined his partnership. Tyrell further explains that E Corp will not be wiped out from solely the digital records being deleted, and that he'll need an inside man to help him finish the job, before reiterating that he had felt "An uncanny connection, a bond [with Mr. Robot]" and that they were meant to work together.

Mr. Robot lambasts Tyrell, "Work together? You're a psychopath, how can I even trust you?"

Trigger.tyrobot — Tyrell urging Mr. Robot to shoot him to prove that God is protecting them.

"Pull the trigger again." Tyrell urges "I'll accept whatever fate decides." He even yells to urge Mr. Robot more, but Tyrell falls to the ground as the gun is violently ripped away from him. Mr. Robot then reluctantly admits that there is a second stage, and that he'll most likely need the additional support. He finally accepts Tyrell's offer of partnership. Tyrell pulls Mr. Robot into a Bear Hug, then expresses his gratitude. "Thank you Elliot." he says, before pulling a way, hands reaching up to hold Mr. Robot's face, admitting to him "I love y-"

Mr. Robot interrupts, not wanting to hear the Love Confession, but still wanting to reap the benefits of Tyrell's Undying Loyalty responding, that some things are better left unsaid, as subtext.

Mr. Robot then commands Tyrell to sit down, handing him the same gun he had just attempted to shoot him with, wanting Tyrell to shoot him if Elliot attempts to stop Stage Two. He equivocates the instructions, saying that "You might just be the perfect kind of crazy you can protect me, from me." Tyrell obliges without question, taking the gun and nonverbally agreeing to protect Mr. Robot, even if violence is necessary, as a repayment for sparing his life, and allowing him to be apart of fsociety.

They are discussing the code as it executes, and Irving and a few Dark Army soldiers enter and interrupt them, ruling that Tyrell must come with them. Mr. Robot gets aggravated, demanding the reason why while Tyrell reaches for the gun, wanting to fight of the intruders. Eventually, Mr. Robot declares to Tyrell that he should go with them. Mr. Robot is then instructed to drive Tyrell's car to a car park in New York as a cover for his escape, as he is about to become the most wanted man in the world.^[4]

8th August

Mr. Robot appears once Elliot and Tyrell enter the building that the Stage Two operations will be conducted out of, where Elliot makes his first attempt to prevent their operations. He is in a delirious state due to the fact that Mr. Robot had told him for the past couple of months that Tyrell was dead, and that he had shot him on the night of the hack, so he doubts that Tyrell is even real. Mr. Robot is desperate to talk him out of it.

Same.tyrobot — "What the fuck are you talking about?!" / "We are definitely not the same!"

Tensions heighten as Elliot tells Tyrell that Stage Two is off, going to the computer to shut it off, where Tyrell pulls out the gun Mr. Robot handed to him at the arcade, exclaiming in grief that "[They] were supposed to be gods together, and yet [Elliot] want[s] to destroy our destiny?". Tyrell is in tears by this point, not understanding that the Elliot that he is currently in conflict with and the Elliot he talked to in the arcade (Mr. Robot) were two separate people. They both now beg Elliot to step away from the computer, Tyrell threatening him, "I don't want to shoot you, but I will." where Elliot tells Tyrell he isn't real, and that him and Mr. Robot are the same person, confusing him for a delusion due to his own psychosis and medical history.

Postshoot1.tyrobot — Tyrell and Mr. Robot after the former shoots Elliot.

The encounter turns fatal when Elliot steps back towards the PC, and Tyrell keeps his word, shooting Elliot in the stomach. Mr. Robot flickers in and out.

Irving is called again, to find a crying Tyrell attempting to stop the flow of blood from the bullet hole. Doctors affiliated with the Dark Army arrive soon after. Later, Tyrell calls Angela - who is now working for the Dark Army - distraught that he has had to shoot him. Angela reminds him that "You did what needed to be done." Tyrell wretches out, "I love him." in response.^[3]

9th August

Elliot is still recovering, but he's showing signs of consciousness. Both Angela and Tyrell are accompanying him. Angela explains to Tyrell that Elliot must see her first, but Tyrell is too devastated as he comes to terms with Elliot's strange behaviour, he says he doesn't understand it, and that it was almost as if he was another person.

Hi.tyrobot — Mr. Robot looking back at an upset Tyrell.

Angela admits that sometimes, he can become a different person, leaving Mr. Robot on a Broken Pedestal. He watches as Angela comforts Elliot as he wakes up again, we catch a glimpse of Mr. Robot staring back at him.^[4]

15th August

Once Mr. Robot had recovered from the wound, he sneaks off in the night, behind Elliot's back, to the Red Wheelbarrow BBQ. Angela explains to their Dark Army contact, Irving that they are ready, but Irving is suspicious. Mr. Robot is inconspicuously smoking a cigarette in the back, letting Angela handle it. Tyrell is being kept in the basement. They slowly walk towards each other, Tyrell apologising for shooting him, explaining that he thought he planned to dismantle their project. Mr. Robot replies, "It's okay, you did what I asked of you."

Icebreaker.tyrobot — "I'm just tryna break the ice a little."

Tyrell is still visibly worried about him, still not fully understanding of his Dissociative Identity Disorder, as well as feeling guilt for having to shoot him. Mr. Robot attempts to cheer him up and "break the ice a little", and says they have work to do, he sits down at the computer, Tyrell over his shoulder watching him as Touch by Daft Punk begins playing.^[5]

This meetup will mark the beginning of their night-time collaborations to work together on Stage Two together for the next 6 weeks. (15th August-26th September). None of which is shown to the audience.

26th September

Tyrell and Mr. Robot meet up in the basement of the Red Wheelbarrow again during the night. Tyrell is stressing to Angela that Elliot's rerouting of the paper records could be detrimental. He pins this frustration onto Mr. Robot, vilifying him as the cause, and that he shouldn't be allowed to get off scot-free. He berates Angela's allowing Elliot to have a job at E Corp and that she can't promise that "this motherfucker [Elliot/Mr. Robot] won't stop us again when he wakes up in the morning?"

Switch.tyrobot — "It doesn't work that way, there's no on/off switch."

He then talks directly to Mr. Robot. He refers to him as Elliot, "if that's who [he's] even talking to right now." He then expresses that "[Elliot/Mr. Robot] as a person make no sense. [he's] a liability." Mr. Robot responds by reminding Tyrell that the operation is ran by him.

Tyrell expresses disappointment first, highlighting his belief in Mr. Robot being a god, and that he loved him, but now he was inferior, like a cockroach - the same language he uses towards a working class waiter. Tyrell orders that the operation is now down to him to complete, and Mr. Robot now responds with violence, shoving Tyrell across the room, choking him, calling him a "Swedish scumfuck", and calling himself the architect of the revolution.

Architect.tyrobot — Mr. Robot pushing, and then choking Tyrell.

He reminds Tyrell that, "Don't forget, I could've pulled that trigger twice," referring to the night of the 5/9 hack, and sparing his life, and that Tyrell should show loyalty as an I Owe You My Life gesture. Mr. Robot then flickers in and out of control as Elliot fights to take back control of the body, and he lets go of Tyrell's neck, who drops down to his knees and screams "He's fucking crazy, I want him out, out!" Angela attempts to bring him out of the dissociative, but realises that won't work, and so she tries to distract Elliot from seeing Tyrell and where he is.^[6]

19th October

Tyrell is released from the FBI during the night, and Mr. Robot is there waiting for him, Tyrell almost in tears looking at the empty cot and a picture of Joanna, his wife. He staunchly criticises Tyrell's involvement in the cyberbombings, as his plan was only to blow up one building with the concentrated paper records - a plan delayed by Elliot's manipulation of the shipping - where Tyrell explains his allegiance by stating that he did "what was necessary."

Puppet.tyrobot — "No puppet, No puppet - You're the puppet!"

He did not directly write the code for the 71 buildings, but during his time on the run working on Stage Two, he spots legacy code that he didn't write,^[4] which was most likely for the cyberbombings. Mr. Robot explains to Tyrell that the Dark Army would not protect him from persecution if they didn't have plans for him. Tyrell calls it a "childish conspiracy" and Mr. Robot retorts, "Childish? Who's the one who said we were gods? Time to grow up, there are no gods." before insinuating that Joanna's death was at the hands of the "men who fuck over the rest of us for profit, and then leave us in the street."

Tyrell puts on his gloves, threatening that Mr. Robot shouldn't talk about his wife, he asks him in response that "wouldn't she want you to realise the truth, and fight? Or would she want you to be their little bitch."

Fight.tyrobot — Tyrell getting ready to punch Mr. Robot again.

Tyrell punches him, and he falls to the floor. Mr. Robot encourages him to hit him, and that Tyrell's anger is what the movement needs, before saying that he should "stop [the Dark Army] too." but the doorbell rings, and Tyrell answers it to see Phillip Price who asks to come in. He pushes past Tyrell and sees Mr. Robot on the ground with bloodied teeth looking up, saying "didn't mean to interrupt."

Price sits them both down, saying that Tyrell now has the CTO position, but it's worthless, before turning to Mr. Robot, who says to him that "I was the architect." Price criticises that, saying that he needs to stop thinking like a lone wolf, but a leader. He replies "I am a leader!" but Price questions where his followers are, and says that you need to inspire an agenda, not force one, and that the attacks happened not because of his own volition, but "men like [Price] allow them [to]." He then leaves, leaving both Tyrell and Mr. Robot disillusioned.

Tyrell grabs a bottle of vodka, sobbing to Mr. Robot that the CTO position is worthless, but Mr. Robot saying that they could use it to fight back against the Dark Army, Tyrell then reveals that they have a man on the inside, Santiago, who helped him out of his arrest when he was on the run.^[4]^[7]

24th December

On Christmas Eve, Tyrell is offered the CEO of E Corp position by Whiterose, and goes to tell Elliot about the news. He explains someone from the Dark Army is listening, and they go to the van, where Tyrell hits the man in the face with a hammer. They then hijack the van, and travel to a service station. Mr. Robot takes control with Elliot, and agrees to pay for the gas and a lighter in order to burn the van with all the evidence. When they exit the store, the van is gone. They go back into the store, where the cashier gives them advice on how to get to the nearest town, recognises Tyrell, and begins to ask him questions and for a selfie, where Mr. Robot reacts in anger to her, demanding where the shortcut is for pedestrians. She explains and they begin to walk through the forest.

Tyrell asks Elliot and Mr. Robot about whether they'd want to walk away from their current life. All three begin to question if they are going the right way, and Mr. Robot asks if Tyrell has seen the creek, to which he says no. They both argue back and forth, Mr. Robot getting aggrieved at the situation as they have been "walking for fucking hours!" and are now lost in the woods. Elliot and Tyrell continue arguing, as the man Tyrell thought he killed was actually alive. Mr. Robot tells them both to calm down.

There's an eerie sound in the distance, Tyrell asking if they can hear it. He later calls this the "Sound of Death." He then expresses his paranoia of being identified to the Dark Army by the cashier, afraid of him, but especially Elliot/Mr. Robot being caught by them. Tyrell then says that unlike Elliot/Mr. Robot, he cares about what other people care about him, and that's why he's a "failure", and that he chased not being an outsider for so long, for no reason other than to feel accepted. He then says that they're going to die out here.

25th December

Elliot checks the time, realising it's Christmas. Tyrell and Mr. Robot have a conversation, the latter uplifting the former, optimistically saying that they're not far from town. Tyrell stops to take a rock out of his shoe. Tyrell asks Elliot if he cares about him, Mr. Robot watching as they both argue with each other, Elliot saying that he didn't. Tyrell gives up, saying that he's going to sit here.

Betterthanthis.tyrobot — "Maybe I was, but not anymore."

Mr. Robot decides, unlike Elliot, to stay and encourage him, showing some care for Tyrell and Talking Down the Suicidal, and explains that if he stays here alone, he'll die, and that he's "better than this." He replies that once he was better, but not anymore. Elliot yells at him to stay in the forest and die, Mr. Robot watches again as Elliot begins to walk away.

Guiltily, Elliot turns back, expressing that he doesn't like being an outsider, and ends up staying with Tyrell, who decides to keep walking with them. They hear the noise again.

Walking down the road, there is a dead deer laying in the middle of the road, behind that, the Dark Army van, they go up to it, the man shooting at both Elliot/Mr. Robot and Tyrell before shooting himself. Tyrell gets shot in the stomach.

Walking.mrrobot — Mr. Robot and Elliot seeing Tyrell's gunshot wound.

Mr. Robot stating that him and Elliot can't leave him to die in the forest, he doesn't say anything else to him, Elliot takes control of the situation and tries to tell him that they have to go to the hospital, to which he refuses because if the Dark Army finds him, they'll find them too.

Tyrell chooses death, telling them to "Take care of Whiterose." He walks off into the forest, where he sees a blue light, where he then (presumably) dies.^[8]

Quotes[]

“I believe in fate. There's a reason we met. There's something between us, I can see it.”

— Tyrell to Elliot/Mr. Robot; Season 2, Episode 12.

“It takes a lot to miss every vital organ, that's some pretty piss-poor marksmanship.”

— Mr. Robot to Tyrell; Season 3, Episode 1.

“I once thought you'd be a god; I loved you.”

— Tyrell, to Mr. Robot, Season 3, Episode 4

“You gonna stop them too? Before they put you in their choke collar? Unless you're into that sort of thing-”

— Mr. Robot to Tyrell; Season 3, Episode 9.

Fanon[]

This section is in need of major improvement. Please help improve this article by editing it.

A common interpretation among Tyrobot shippers is that Mr. Robot did truly want to reciprocate Tyrell's feelings, but was limited by his duties as a protector, as well as his aversion to intimacy. Many believe may have felt the need to protect Elliot from Tyrell's affection, afraid that it may remind him of his father's abuse.

Mr. Robot's only exposure to romance - that the viewers know of - is Tyrell, and the fact that even after Elliot has come to terms with Mr. Robot's secret partnership, the latter still cares enough about Tyrell to comfort him when he loses hope, a juxtaposition from Elliot's more apathetic approach.

It is the third most popular ship tag on AO3 for Mr. Robot, behind Tyrelliot and Domlene. Due to the overlap between the two ships, 3/4 of the Tyrobot fanfictions are also tagged Tyrelliot. The tag "Tyrobot Renaissance" re-popularized the ship within the fandom back in 2024.

Many shippers associate Tyrobot with the song Touch, as it plays at the end of the scene where they reunite. The lyrics of the song depict someone who is not human, a robot, wanting an emotional "touch" after being in isolation for a long period of time, marking Mr. Robot's relationship with Tyrell as something special, and that he might be the key to help Mr. Robot feel more human.