Robotic Resembance Poem by Ananta Madhavan

I was neither old nor young when,
Some five decades ago,
I got hooked on to a TV serial
Of way-out futuristic adventure episodes.
Even in the 20th century, we could imagine
Spacecraft without wings or turboprop,
And deep sea mobility without fins.

The actors were live. Some of them were teamed
With creatures seemingly human, but they were puppets,
Robotic contrivances resembling our species.
I was amazed and amused by the skill
Of the designers and assemblers of creators
Who contrived, directed and presented
Such robotic marvels that mimic actors.

Who are the automatons? Who mimics whom?