Robot

The Robots are ancient automatons made by the people of Laputa and appear in the film Laputa: Castle in the Sky.

Appearance
The Laputian robots are much taller than human beings though appear humanoid, with broad, triangular torsos and long, thin arms that reach almost to the ground. The arms can also extend flaps to allow the robots to fly. The robots have dome-shaped heads with uneven eyes; the left eye is about twice the size of the right eye. They can shoot destructive lasers of varying force from their eyes. They appear to be made out of an extremely strong, dark metal, and they have the crest of the royal family of Laputa on their chests.

Role in the Film
The first robot seen in the film fell from Laputa and was recovered by the military. The military brought it to their base at Tedus and attempted to discover how it worked, without any success. Although Muska tells Sheeta that the robot is "dead", when she activates the Aetherium crystal on her necklace with a spell she learned from her grandmother, the robot comes back to life. The robot nearly destroys the base trying to reach Sheeta, whom it is programmed to protect, as she is Laputian royalty. When it gets to Sheeta on the roof of the fortress, the robot does protect her, but it is ultimately destroyed by the airship Goliath.

When Sheeta and Pazu reach Laputa, they discover many more robots, but all save one are inert and deactivated. The single surviving robot spends its days tending the Laputian plants and animals, including several fox squirrels, and leaving flowers on a gravestone. The robot is kind and gentle to the children as well, and Pazu realizes that although it is the last of its kind, it isn't lonely because it has the animals as friends.

However, when Muska seizes control of Laputa, he activates many of the inert robots, which he uses as weapons to attack the military and destroy the Goliath. After Sheeta and Pazu recite the spell of destruction that tears most of Laputa apart, nearly all the robots fall into the sea and are destroyed. As the children fly away from what remains of Laputa, they see the gardener robot has survived and is still taking care of the island's flora and fauna.

Trivia
The Iron Golem's holding out flowers to villagers is a reference to the ancient robots in Hayao Miyazaki's animated film Laputa: Castle in the Sky.   When the villager children notice the poppy in its hand, they slowly approach, and take the flower eventually. Iron golems do not actually pick up poppies; they spawn them in their hands.