History Main / DemBones

** In some stories [notably, ComicBook/KingdomCome], Deadman's ghostly form also appears significantly more skeletal than usual.

* ''VideoGame/TheCurseOfMonkeyIsland'' and ''EscapeFromMonkeyIsland'' had the fearsome Murray, the demonic animated skeleton with plans to conquer the world, who would have been significantly more fearsome if he wasn't just a skull and unable to move around by himself. Still, with lines like this, it's no wonder "Murray the Mighty Demonic Skull" is [[EnsembleDarkhorse so popular]]:

** ''VideoGame/MonkeyIsland'' had more examples in [=LeChuck=]'s demonic crew. ''MonkeyIsland2'' notably featured Dem Bones actually singing "[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dem_Bones Dem Bones]]".

* Fernando from the ''HalfLife'' mod ''Elevator: Source'' who stands at the back of the elevator [[spoiler:until he gets dragged off by a giant hand and later returns as an Asian man]].

* ''MightyMorphinPowerRangers'': Season 1 gives us Bones, Season 3 gives us Rita Repulsa's halfwit brother Rito Revolto. Who's based on Gasha Dokuro from ''NinjaSentaiKakuranger'', who's based on an actual folklore creature of a gigantic skeleton.

Not to be confused with [[Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries Bones McCoy]], who has [[TheMcCoy his own trope]] too. Also not to be confused with the Music/AliceInChains song "Them Bones" or the ''VideoGame/BatmanArkhamAsylum'' Gamestop Preorder map. See also BadWithTheBone if bones are used as {{Improvised Weapon}}s, and BallisticBone if they're used as AbnormalAmmo.

* ''InLivingColor''. JimCarrey riffs how the cast of StarTrekTheOriginalSeries are getting too old. Captain Kirk calls for Bones to come to the bridge, only to find he really lives up to his name this time.

* On the virtual pets game ''Website/{{Neopets}}'', [[http://www.neopetshive.com/Hive/piratekiko.gif the old Pirate Kiko]] was one of these.

* ''Blood Omen: LegacyOfKain:'' Animated skeletons are encountered. Some of them walk in a fixed route and explode on contact with you. Others can [[PullingThemselvesTogether pull themselves together]] and need to be destroyed [[LudicrousGibs more]] [[KillItWithFire thoroughly]].

* The skeletons in ''DarkSouls'' aren't that tough. However, nearby necromancers (which fortunately don't respawn if you rest at a bonfire) will revive them if they aren't slain with a Divine weapon. The ''giant'' skeletons are much tougher but fortunately don't revive immediately like their weaker cousins. And then there's the ''Bonewheel'' skeletons that love to run you over and stun-lock you to death if you're wearing light armor.
* The original ''GoldenAxe'' has an army of skeleton swordsmen. The first one appears as the boss of the second stage and the rest are {{elite mook}}s. ''Golden Axe II'' also had skeleton warriors, while ''Golden Axe III'' has the Dead Frames, which are the reanimated skeletons of reptilian humanoids.
* The Free-to-Play TCG/tactics game PoxNora features skeletons as one of the main race types in the Forsaken Wastes faction. Fully skeleton-themed decks are viable and typically play as a horde of expendable lesser skeletons backed by powerful mages, tomb lords and the occasional skeletal ice dragon.
* One of the varieties of Fryhtans in the ''SevenKingdoms'' series are skeletal warriors called "Deezboans".
* In Killer Instinct, a animated skeleton named Spinal who has a quirk: to perform certain moves, he must gather energy—represented by tokens shaped like skulls under his life bar (SNES version) or skulls floating around him (arcade and gold versions)—by absorbing opponents' projectile-energy attacks (with his shield in absorbing position) or performing combo breakers. Despite requiring these tokens, his special moves are no stronger than normal special attacks. Spinal can store up to five skull tokens, overloading if he tries to absorb energy for the sixth time. On the sixth attempt he will not block the projectile, and it will cause normal damage and knockdown; he will then be left with one remaining skull. Spinal has two No Mercy moves: one where he repeatedly stabs the enemy with a spike on his shield and another where he summons ghostly, skeletal hands to drag his opponent underground (in the SNES version, the latter became his summoning a bolt of lightning to strike his opponent).
* MediEvil gives us Sir Daniel Fortesque. A cowardly knight who died in the first hail of arrows, he's now been reanimated to take on Zarok. And he's the good guy! Although [[EyeScream he got hit in the eye and killed, and is effectively a cyclops]] and has had his jaw decompose so he can't communicate without subtitles, he's still one tough cookie.
* Hiante from ''StarStealingPrince'' is a more friendly example than most; a skeletal soldier [[spoiler: formerly of the Original King's army]] raised from the dead to protect Astra.

* Spoofed in [[http://www.theprincessplanet.com/?p=19 this]] ''[[ThePrincessPlanet Princess Planet]]'' strip.

* In ''{{Endstone}}'', GraveRobbing [[http://endstone.net/comic/issue-1-page-32/ rouses one]].
* In ''BeyondTheCanopy'', skeletons are The Baron's standard {{mooks}}. They're intelligent, and seem to have individual personalities.

* ''{{Nedroid}}'' has a skeleton whose name is unpronounceable by above worlders, but you can call him [[http://nedroid.com/2009/08/introducing-skeleton/ Ethan]]. (His ex does.)
* A ''very'' rare protagonist example would be [[OurLichesAreDifferent Duane Adelier]] of {{Unsounded}}, a Ssaelit rector and family man cursed via currently unknown means to an undead existence. Due to a number of factors including both the unusual retention of his intellect and his particularly potent affinity for magic, however, he manages to continue on significantly past the points the more typical zombies in-story crumble, masking the fact he is an animated skeleton with glamours, bandages, and cloaks.

* On the virtual pets game ''{{Neopets}}'', [[http://www.neopetshive.com/Hive/piratekiko.gif the old Pirate Kiko]] was one of these.
* [[YoutubePoop Youtube Pooper]] {{Ricesnot}} specializes in making videos about skeletons, especially the skeleton from the advertisement for the 80's board game "Rattle Me Bones".

* A ''very'' rare protagonist example would be [[OurLichesAreDifferent Duane Adelier]] of {{Unsounded}}, a Ssaelit rector and family man cursed via currently unknown means to an undead existence. Due to a number of factors including both the unusual retention of his intellect and his particularly potent affinity for magic, however, he manages to continue on significantly past the points the more typical zombies in-story crumble, masking the fact he is an animated skeleton with spells, bandages, and cloaks.

* A very rare protagonist example would be [[OurLichesAreDifferent Duane Adelier]] of {{Unsounded}}.

* ArmyOfDarkness, anyone? Quite a few of the Deadites were nothing more than skeletons.

* In a memorable film example, RayHarryhausen's animated skeletons make up half of a ChromaKey battle scene in ''Film/JasonAndTheArgonauts'', after they sprout from the earth where hydra teeth are sown. This depiction is likely to yet further [[SadlyMythtaken simplify the original story]] by letting Jason kill [[WhatMeasureIsANonHuman apparently]] mindless {{Mooks}}, since in the original myths, the dragon's teeth grow into the perfectly sentient warriors called ''[[http://www.theoi.com/Gigante/Spartoi.html spartoi]]'', none of whom Jason left alive.

* Some of the Bonus content in ''VideoGame/GodOfWar'' talked about how they wanted to put Dem Bones in the first game, in [[ShoutOut direct homage]] to [[HarryhausenMovie Ray Harryhausen]]. Naturally, they appeared in the sequel, and first show up when you catch up to Jason and the Argonauts.

* Dokuro Skull of TheWorldGodOnlyKnows is this after having cast away her flesh to create New Hell.