History Main / ArtificialLimbsAreStronger

A regular trait of the HandicappedBadass. Contrast BiotechIsBetter, where an organic creation is treated as stronger than, or otherwise superior to, a mechanical one.

* Doomfist of ''VideoGame/{{Overwatch}}'' lost his right arm during the Omnic Crisis. The cybernetic replacement is leagues stronger than his original arm. Best displayed when he uses it to punch his way out of his concrete prison cell.

* This actually is a real long-term goal of many people involved in the bionic prosthetics and implants industry (Huge Herr is a good example), for the tech to advance to the point that one day people will actually want to replace natural parts of their body with artificial replacements that perform better.

A regular trait of the HandicappedBadass.

* Modo of the ''WesternAnimation/BikerMiceFromMars'' confronts the MadScientist Doctor Karbunkle, and reminds the man that he took Modo's right arm while he was Karbunkle's guinea pig. "But I got me another one: see?" Modo retorts, pointing his enhanced and weaponized cybernetic arm at TheDragon. Karbunkle compliments Modo on his new limb, then introduces his Terminator {{expy}} bodyguard.

There's a popular perception that robots are stronger than creatures of flesh and bone, and by logical extension this would mean that people who replaced parts of their bodies with [[ArtificialLimbs cybernetics]] would also be stronger than those with just flesh. Prosthetic arms let one lift a car or punch through a wall, legs run faster or jump higher.

In reality though, as those metal limbs would still be anchored in flesh and bone, someone who tried lifting a ton weight with a prosthetic arm would be more likely to rip their arm out of its socket. It could be doable but you'd [[RequiredSecondaryPowers need a lot of extensive reinforcement all over the body]].

* ''VideoGame/ForgetMeNotMyOrganicGarden'': The IllBoy who gets magical replacement organs from Irene, gets accused of [[spoiler:doing something "shady" by his friends who marvel at his strange improvement]]. Irene offers to [[spoiler:sell the boy's friends better organs]] to smooth things out between them.

* ComicBook/MistyKnight was a private detective in the 1970s. She was brought back in 2006 in the ''ComicBook/UltimateGalactusTrilogy'' (in the ComicBook/UltimateMarvel universe) and then in ''ComicBook/DaughtersOfTheDragon'' (in the mainstream universe). In both incarnations, she has a bionic arm designed by Tony Stark, that grants her several super powers including super strength, various Iron Man-based repulsor weaponry and, due to being made of Antarctic Vibranium, the ability to liquefy metal.

* In ''Videogame/TalesFromTheBorderlands'', Rhys is not really a physically strong guy, incapable of even choking out guard, but in episode four, [[ArtificialIntelligence Jack]] reminds him that his cybernetic arm is a lot stronger than his real one, and therefore good at punching both people and things.

* In ''Videogame/TalesFromTheBorderlands'', Rhys is not really a physically strong guy, incapable of even choking out guard, but episode four, where [[ArtificialIntelligence Jack]] reminds him that his cybernetic arm is a lot stronger than his real one, and therefore good at punching both people and things.

* ''VideoGame/ForgetMeNotMyOrganicGarden'': The IllBoy who gets magical replacement organs, gets accused of doing something "shady" by his friends who marvel at his strange improvement. The boy's shopkeeper offers to sell the boy's friends better organs to even things out between them.

* In ''Videogame/TalesFromTheBorderlands'', Rhys is a physical wimp incapable of even choking a guy out by himself, at least until Episode 4, where the Handsome Jack AI inhabiting his mind reminds him that he's got a cybernetic limb that's a lot stronger than his real one.

* Aruni from ''VideoGame/RainbowSixSiege'' has prosthetics replacing the limbs she lost to a bomb. While other operators use knives and butt stocks for melee, Aruni uses her robo-fist instead, leaving head-sized holes in soft surfaces and one-hitting barricades (other operators require three hits to break a barricade and only make small holes). Her leg, however, doesn't make her any faster but comes with a built-in knife sheath.

* Aruni from ''VideoGame/RainbowSixSiege'' has prosthetics replacing the limbs she lost to a bomb. While other operators use knives and butt stocks for melee, Aruni uses her fist instead, leaving head-sized holes in soft surfaces and one-hitting barricades (other operators require three hits to break a barricade and only make small holes).

In reality though, those metal limbs would still be anchored in flesh and bone, someone who tried lifting a ton weight with a prosthetic arm would be more likely to rip their arm out of its socket. It could be doable but you'd [[RequiredSecondaryPowers need a lot of extensive reinforcement all over the body]].

* This is the subject of [[https://www.npr.org/transcripts/10580771 genuine]] [[https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/page/VeteranNBA151111/how-advanced-prosthetics-impact-future-sports debate]] within the sports world, where prosthetics have given some athletes abilities far in excess of their human competitors. South African sprinter Oscar Pistorius' artificial legs, for instance, enabled him to outrun many of his able-bodied competitors, leading to questions about whether or not he should be permitted to compete in the UsefulNotes/OlympicGames as opposed to the Paralympics, and whether records set by athletes with artificial limbs should stand as is or be counted separately from those set by athletes without.

* Bucky Barnes/the Winter Soldier (Creator/SebastianStan) from the ''Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse'' is a SuperSoldier enhanced with a knockoff of Captain America's SuperSerum, but he's not as strong as the Cap. However his left arm is a bulletproof prosthetic that can punch through solid concrete, and close-ups show that he has metal reaching into his shoulder and ribs to help reinforce it. After it gets destroyed by Iron Man's ChestBlaster at the end of ''Film/CaptainAmericaCivilWar'', he receives a new one made of Vibranium (the strongest known metal on Earth) in ''Film/avengersInfinityWar'' courtesy of Wakandans.

* The Winter Soldier from the ''Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse'' is a SuperSoldier enhanced with a knockoff of Captain America's SuperSerum, but he's not as strong as the Cap. However his left arm is a bulletproof prosthetic that can punch through solid concrete, and close-ups show that he has metal reaching into his shoulder and ribs to help reinforce it.

* Averted in ''And A Star To Steer Her By'', a 1954 AtomPunk by Lee Correy (G. Harry Stine). The protagonist is a [[RetroRocket jetman]] who has lost a hand; at one point he has to build extra tools for leverage to help him carry out repair work because he hasn't sufficient strength in his artificial hand to tighten things.
* Averted in ''Literature/CChute'' by Creator/IsaacAsimov. John Stuart had mangled his hands irreparably, but alien surgeons grew him artificial hands out of artiplasm instead. The new hands are weaker than the originals, and require delicate care.

* Inverted in ''Film/ExMachina'', where Nathan easily smashes off Ava's arm [[spoiler:and Kyoko's jaw]] with a single swing of his baton, [[spoiler:and they are only able to beat him because Kyoko snuck up on him. We also see a video of Jade, one of Nathan's earliest robot models, smashing her arms off as she helplessly bangs on the door trying to get out.]]

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* Inverted in ''Film/ExMachina'', where Nathan easily smashes off Ava's arm [[spoiler:and Kyoko's jaw]] with a single swing of his baton, [[spoiler:and they are only able to beat him because Kyoko snuck up on him. We also see a video of Jade, one of Nathan's earliest robot models, smashing her arms off as she helplessly bangs on the door trying to get out.]]

* In ''Videogame/TalesOfTheBorderlands'', Rhys is a physical wimp incapable of even choking a guy out by himself, at least until Episode 4, where the Handsome Jack AI inhabiting his mind reminds him that he's got a cybernetic limb that's a lot stronger than his real one.