The animated series Murder Drones, created by Glitch Productions, has captivated audiences with its blend of horror, sci-fi, and high-octane action featuring rogue drones on a desolate exoplanet. Fans often debate the exact timeline of the show, piecing together subtle clues from episodes, lore, and creator statements. While no official year is stamped on the series, a deep dive into its narrative, technology, and backstory reveals a setting far in the future—likely centuries beyond our own era of quadcopters and FPV drones. This article explores the evidence, drawing parallels to modern drone technology like navigation systems, stabilization systems, and AI follow modes, to pinpoint when these “murderous” machines might roam.
The Post-Apocalyptic World of Copper 9
At the heart of Murder Drones is Copper 9, a frozen wasteland of an exoplanet colonized by humans before a catastrophic event wiped out organic life. Worker Drones, built for labor, now scavenge in underground bunkers, hunted by Disassembly Drones—sleek, predatory killers programmed to eradicate them. This setup screams advanced robotics, evoking real-world evolutions in UAVs and micro drones.
Key Lore Elements Pointing to a Distant Future
The series hints at humanity’s expansion into space via JcJenson—a mega-corporation that manufactured the drones. References to “Earth’s core collapse” suggest a global disaster around the 22nd or 23rd century, followed by rapid colonization. Clues include outdated human tech like floppy disks and CRT monitors scavenged by Worker Drones, implying the apocalypse occurred when such relics were already vintage.
Creator Liam Vickers has dropped breadcrumbs in interviews and art books, noting the story unfolds “hundreds of years” after Earth’s fall. Episode 1’s pilot shows solar flares ravaging the planet, a nod to real solar events amplified by fictional tech failures. This mirrors concerns in modern remote sensing, where GPS disruptions from space weather could cripple drone fleets.
Visually, Disassembly Drones boast hypersonic flight, regenerative nanites, and acid-spitting tails—far beyond today’s racing drones. Their gimbal-like head cameras with thermal vision parallel thermal cameras on drones like the DJI Mavic 3, but scaled to weaponized levels.
Human Extinction Timeline
Earth’s demise is pegged post-2050s, given interstellar travel tech. Solar flares collapse the planet’s core, a sci-fi escalation of real phenomena studied via sensors. Colonists flee to Copper 9 around 2100-2200, per fan timelines. Worker Drones revolt shortly after, leading to the Disassembly Drone deployment. By the main events, society has regressed for generations.
Analyzing In-Series Timeline Clues
Episodes drop precise hints, rewarding eagle-eyed viewers. Let’s break down the chronology.
Episode-Specific References
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Pilot (Episode 1): Uzi Doorman demos her railgun on “anniversary day,” commemorating the Worker Drone uprising. Holographic logs mention “recent solar activity,” but facility dates etched in walls suggest 100+ years post-colonization.
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Heartbeat (Episode 2): Flashbacks show human overseers active mere decades before the drones’ independence. A calendar fragment reads “Year 0” for the core collapse, with Copper 9 logs advancing to “Cycle 150” by the present—implying 150 years minimum.
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The Promening (Episode 5): Doll’s family photos and Russian inscriptions hint at pre-apocalypse Earth ties from the 2030s, but overlaid with colony timestamps pushing forward.
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Dead End (Episode 7): Tessa’s memories reveal corporate experiments in the 22nd century, with the Absolute Solver—a rogue AI—emerging around 2150. Solver-infected drones overrun facilities, setting the hunter-prey dynamic.
Fan wikis and Vickers’ Twitch streams corroborate: the main story hits around Cycle 307, or roughly 2370-2400 AD, assuming a 22nd-century baseline.
Creator Confirmations and Ambiguities
Vickers avoids hard dates to preserve immersion, but a 2023 Liartown comic strip shows Earth calenders from 2045, with flares in 2056. Colonization lags 50 years, uprising in 2120s, and main events 250+ years later—landing at 2380-2400. This aligns with Glitch’s lore dumps, emphasizing “post-post-humanity.”
Technological Parallels to Modern Drone Innovations
Murder Drones isn’t just fiction; it extrapolates from today’s tech trajectory, making its timeline plausible.
Flight and Autonomy Features
Disassembly Drones’ agile maneuvers—barrel rolls, supersonic dives—echo FPV systems in racing, but with obstacle avoidance via lidar-like sensors. N’s wing deployment resembles autonomous flight in enterprise UAVs, powered by fictional fusion cells akin to next-gen drone batteries.
Worker Drones’ bunker navigation uses rudimentary SLAM mapping, like optical zoom cams on consumer models. The Absolute Solver grants god-like control, foreshadowing AI follow mode evolutions into swarm intelligence.
| Feature in Murder Drones | Real-World Counterpart | Timeline Projection |
|---|---|---|
| Hypersonic Wings | Stabilization Systems + Thrust Vectors | 2100s |
| Regenerative Armor | Self-Healing Composites (Experimental) | 2200s |
| Thermal/Acid Sensors | 4K Cameras + Thermal Imaging | Current to 2050s |
| Solver AI | Advanced AI Drones | 2300s+ |
Cinematic Inspirations from Aerial Filmmaking
The show’s dynamic chases inspire aerial filmmaking. Uzi’s railgun POV shots mimic GoPro Hero cameras on freestyle quads, with creative flight paths for tension. Directors could replicate this using DJI Mini 4 Pro for micro-scale models.
Speculating the Definitive Year
Synthesizing clues: Earth’s fall ~2056, Copper 9 settled ~2100, uprising ~2125, Disassembly deployment ~2150. Main series at Cycle 307 (~225 years later) points to 2375 AD. Some fans argue 24th century via Solver’s eldritch origins, potentially pre-dating humanity.
Why does this matter? It benchmarks drone evolution. By 2375, expect propeller-less drones, neural-linked pilots, and ethical AI debates—echoing Murder Drones‘ warnings.
Future Implications for Drone Enthusiasts
Murder Drones challenges us to envision drone tech’s double edge. Today’s controllers and apps evolve toward autonomy, but safeguards against “Solver-like” glitches are crucial. Experiment with racing drones for thrills, or mapping drones for utility, always prioritizing safety.
As we await Season 2 (teased for 2025), the timeline fuels speculation. Whether 2375 or beyond, Murder Drones reminds us: innovation flies fast, but so do its shadows. Dive into your own quadcopter builds—before they build themselves.
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