History Main / PosthumanNudism

* During the backstory to ''VideoGame/TheSecretWorld'', the Soviet organization known only as the [[SovietSuperscience Red Hand]] tried to create "Phantom Cosmonauts" by infusing chosen candidates with injections of [[TheLifestream Anima]] and [[OminousObsidianOoze the Filth]]. The only survivor of this was Halina Ilyushin, who -- when you finally meet her in "The Facility" dungeon -- is now a bald, completely-naked humanoid figure [[EnergyBeing composed entirely of golden light]].

* {{Parodied}} in the ''WesternAnimation/StarTrekLowerDecks'' episode "[[Recap/StarTrekLowerDecksS1E04MoistVessel Moist Vessel]]": when Lieutenant O'Connor {{ascend|ToAHigherPlaneOfExistence}}s to become an EnergyBeing, all his clothes burn off (with his genitals conveniently out of frame). He then vanishes, leaving behind nothing but a pair of gently smoking shoes.

For milder versions when the character in question eschews only footwear, see BarefootSage and MagicalBarefooter. Similarly, see BaldMystic for when baldness specifically is used to emphsaize that a character is mystical, magical, supernatural, and/or simply enlightened and wise. Also compare OutOfClothesExperience and ShapeshiftingExcludesClothing.

For milder versions when the character in question eschews only footwear, see BarefootSage and MagicalBarefooter. Also compare OutOfClothesExperience and ShapeshiftingExcludesClothing.

Compare OutOfClothesExperience and ShapeshiftingExcludesClothing.

For good measure, it's not uncommon for the otherworldly natures of such posthumans to be emphasized by [[BaldOfAwesome lacking]] [[BaldOfEvil hair]] or even [[BarbieDollAnatomy genitalia]] [[NonhumansLackAttributes and other attributes]] (also an easy way of conveying this trope in strictly PG-13 settings).

* In the finale of the ''ComicBook/TwoThousandAD'' comic series ''ComicBook/StoneIsland'', David Sorrell returns from the dead, having managed to AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence thanks to being used as an interdimensional gateway by the Otherworld entities. Now one of several EnergyBeings resulting from the attempted invasion of Earth, he briefly retakes human form in order to rescue Harry and Sarah from the Otherworld, though it's a bit disquieting because he's now sporting GlowingEyesOfDoom and very, ''[[MaleFrontalNudity very]]'' naked -- and clearly doesn't care.

* The finale of ''Film/TwoThousandOneASpaceOdyssey'' features Dave Bowman transcending human existence and becoming the Star Child, a giant floating godlike fœtus -- naked, of course.
* Zig-zagged in the sequel, ''Film/TwoThousandTenTheYearWeMakeContact'': when he first appears in the monitor to his ex-wife, Dave appears with ShouldersUpNudity; however, when he appears before Dr Floyd, he cycles frequently between several fully-clothed forms before finally reverting to his true, Star Child form -- once again, completely naked.

* The finale of ''VideoGame/IndianaJonesAndTheFateOfAtlantis,'' takes place in the Colossus, an ancient machine reputed to be able to transform humans into gods. With the Nazis determined to make use of it, someone has to test the device; depending on Indy's choices, it can be himself, Sophia Hapgood, or Dr Hans Ubermann. Whoever enters the machine is instantly transformed into a tall, glowing, naked HornedHumanoid with no genitalia. [[spoiler: Unfortunately, after a brief demonstration of its powers, the new god appears to lose stability and tear itself to pieces -- taking Atlantis with it.]]

[[folder:Web Original]]
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tobCRVxf3Uo The Quest for Cheese ANIMATED]]: [[ParodiedTrope Parodied]] when Wallace, after finding the cheese he has been searching for, seemingly ascends to a higher plane of existence and is seen nude as he approaches the cheese. However, the camera then pans back to show that he has not really gone anywhere and is simply naked in public.

* {{Parodied}} in the ''WesternAnimation/StarTrekLowerDecks'' episode [[Recap/StarTrekLowerDecksS1E04MoistVessel "Moist Vessel"]]: when Lieutenant O'Connor {{ascend|ToAHigherPlaneOfExistence}}s to become an EnergyBeing, all his clothes burn off (with his genitals conveniently out of frame). He then vanishes, leaving behind nothing but a pair of gently smoking shoes.

* ''Series/{{Angel}}'': subverted. Fred Burkle dies from a mysterious infection, which turns out to be her body being taken over by the ancient goddess Illyria. As she declares her intent to be worshiped again, she rips off her clothes and stands nude... but moments later, her skin hardens into a crystalline armor that she wears permanently afterward.

* Most of the TranshumanAliens in ''Literature/AllTomorrows'' don't wear clothes, except the Killer Folk (who are shown wearing hats, and thus have become a literal SpeciesOfHats in fanon).

* The BigBad of ''VideoGame/DragonAgeAwakening'' is eventually revealed to be a Darkspawn Broodmother known only as "The Mother"; unlike other Darkspawn, Broodmothers [[WasOnceAMan were once members of other species]] before being forcibly converted into powerful [[BabyFactory baby factories]] for the horde, though the Mother has a distinct advantage over others of her kind in that she's fully sentient and capable of speech. However, where other sentient Darkspawn like [[AntiVillain the Architect]] downplay their former monstrousness by wearing more ornate clothing, the Mother doesn't even try to hide the naked upper half of her body -- a sign that she has rejected her humanity despite having the opportunity to at least partly reclaim it.

[[quoteright:350:[[ComicBook/{{Watchmen}} https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/posthuman_nudism_watchmen.png]]]]

* Panafill de Alice, from ''Videogame/{{Kamui}}'', a [[BrainUploading brain uploaded]] pilot into the unmanned Kamui, which you will take control for the entire game.

* During ''ComicBook/{{Hellblazer}}: The Devil You Know,'' Constantine and Ritchie Simpson are able to bait Nergal into a deadly trap on the astral plane, allowing the latter to [[GrandTheftMe seize the demon's vacant body]] as a replacement for his now-deceased physical form. After reshaping it into a format more to his liking, Ritchie manifests of a neon-skinned humanoid figure crackling with electricity, completely naked and lacking genitals -- and makes it clear that with his power, he might just be able to take over the world. [[spoiler: However, before he makes up his mind what to do with said power, [[ThoseTwoBadGuys Agony and Ecstasy]] [[DraggedOffToHell drag him off to Hell]] so he can learn the ropes of being a demon.]]

* In ''VideoGame/{{Overwatch}}'', Genji has weirdly zig-zagged this. Having been rebuilt into a cyborg after being cut in half, he normally forgoes clothes in his default appearance. By the time of ''Overwatch 2'', however, he was redesigned with a full outfit overtop his normal body consisting of a hoodie and casual pants -- this could be a show of CharacterDevelopment as he's finally made peace with his place in between machine and man, but even the developers realized that this might have made him retroactively [[FullFrontalAssault "naked"]] in earlier appearances.

* In ''VideoGame/{{Overwatch}}'', Genji, who had to be given cybernetic augmentation in order to survive an injury, normally forgoes clothes in his default appearance.

* Phase IV of ''ComicBook/{{Zenith}}'' belatedly reveals that the [[EldritchAbomination Lloigor]] were once human, [[spoiler: more specifically, the superhero team Cloud 9]]. When the newly-ascended Lloigor are first witnessed emerging from the Black Sun, they the form of stark naked, [[LightIsNotGood glowing, angelic recreations of their human selves]], albeit with no hair, no pupils, no nipples and no genitals; however, they soon take on their [[OneWingedAngel Lovecraftian forms]]. In the aftermath, [[MouthOfSauron their representative]] [[spoiler:Ruby Fox]] will occasionally revert to humanoid form in order to give the doomed Michael Peyne [[AFormYouAreComfortableWith a comprehensible face to talk to]] in his final days -- but even then, that doesn't extend to wearing clothes.

* Combined with NakedNutter in ''VideoGame/FirstEncounterAssaultRecon'': psychic superbeing Alma Wade is always naked in her true form, though this is partly due to being imprisoned naked. Once released from captivity and growing more powerful than ever before, however , she never bothers to wear a stitch of clothing -- the better to emphasize her primal nature as a PersonOfMassDestruction.

* The finale of ''Film/TwoThousandOneASpaceOdyssey'' features Dave Bowman transcending human existence and becoming the Star Child, a giant floating godlike fetus -- naked, of course.

* Over the course of the flashback sequences in ''ComicBook/TheBadBadPlace'', Lady Malise Castavette delves deep into eldritch magic in order to take revenge for her son's death, ultimately [[EldritchTransformation transforming herself]] into an immortal MotherOfAThousandYoung. Initially, she remains attached enough to humanity to still wear clothes, passing herself off as a morbidly-obese woman on crutches. However, by the present day, Malise has given up on wearing clothes altogether - revealing her multiple tentacles and breasts in the process.

* During ''ComicBook/{{Hellblazer}}: The Devil You Know,'' Constantine and Ritchie Simpson are able to bait Nergal into a deadly trap on the astral plane, allowing the latter to [[GrandTheftMe seize the demon's vacant body]] as a replacement for his now-deceased physical form. After reshaping it into a format more to his liking, Ritchie manifests of a neon-skinned humanoid figure crackling with electricity, completely naked and lacking genitals - and makes it clear that with his power, he might just be able to take over the world. [[spoiler: However, before he makes up his mind what to do with said power, [[ThoseTwoBadGuys Agony and Ecstasy]] [[DraggedOffToHell drag him off to Hell]] so he can learn the ropes of being a demon.]]

* Phase IV of ''ComicBook/{{Zenith}}'' belatedly reveals that the [[EldritchAbomination Lloigor]] were once human, [[spoiler: more specifically, the superhero team Cloud 9]]. When the newly-ascended Lloigor are first witnessed emerging from the Black Sun, they the form of stark naked, [[LightIsNotGood glowing, angelic recreations of their human selves]], albeit with no hair, no pupils, no nipples and no genitals; however, they soon take on their [[OneWingedAngel Lovecraftian forms]]. In the aftermath, [[MouthOfSauron their representative]] [[spoiler: Ruby Fox]] will occasionally revert to humanoid form in order to give the doomed Michael Peyne [[AFormYouAreComfortableWith a comprehensible face to talk to]] in his final days - but even then, that doesn't extend to wearing clothes.

* ''VideoGame/Bioshock1'' concludes with [[spoiler: Frank Fontaine]] splicing himself up with all the ADAM he has on hand, transforming himself into a gigantic, hugely-muscled superbeing empowered with numerous Plasmid abilities. Also, he's naked - albeit with BarbieDollAnatomy - partly because his clothes no longer fit him but mostly because Splicing has left him too deranged to care.
* The BigBad of ''VideoGame/DragonAgeAwakening'' is eventually revealed to be a Darkspawn Broodmother known only as "The Mother"; unlike other Darkspawn, Broodmothers [[WasOnceAMan were once members of other species]] before being forcibly converted into powerful [[BabyFactory baby factories]] for the horde, though the Mother has a distinct advantage over others of her kind in that she's fully sentient and capable of speech. However, where other sentient Darkspawn like [[AntiVillain the Architect]] downplay their former monstrousness by wearing more ornate clothing, the Mother doesn't even try to hide the naked upper half of her body - a sign that she has rejected her humanity despite having the opportunity to at least partly reclaim it.
* Combined with NakedNutter in ''VideoGame/FirstEncounterAssaultRecon'': psychic superbeing Alma Wade is always naked in her true form, though this is partly due to being imprisoned naked. Once released from captivity and growing more powerful than ever before, however , she never bothers to wear a stitch of clothing - the better to emphasize her primal nature as a PersonOfMassDestruction.
* The finale of ''VideoGame/IndianaJonesAndTheFateOfAtlantis,'' takes place in the Colossus, an ancient machine reputed to be able to transform humans into gods. With the Nazis determined to make use of it, someone has to test the device; depending on Indy's choices, it can be himself, Sophia Hapgood, or Dr Hans Ubermann. Whoever enters the machine is instantly transformed into a tall, glowing, naked HornedHumanoid with no genitalia. [[spoiler: Unfortunately, after a brief demonstration of its powers, the new god appears to lose stability and tear itself to pieces - taking Atlantis with it.]]

* During the backstory to ''VideoGame/TheSecretWorld'', the Soviet organization known only as the [[SovietSuperscience Red Hand]] tried to create "Phantom Cosmonauts" by infusing chosen candidates with injections of [[TheLifestream Anima]] and [[OminousObsidianOoze the Filth]]. The only survivor of this was Halina Ilyushin, who - when you finally meet her in "The Facility" dungeon - is now a bald, completely-naked humanoid figure [[EnergyBeing composed entirely of golden light]].

* In the ''WesternAnimation/LoveDeathAndRobots'' episode "[[Recap/LoveDeathAndRobotsZimaBlue Zima Blue]]," the eponymous ReclusiveArtist has modified his body to the point of being effectively immortal, being capable of marching through molten magma unharmed, striding barefoot through snowy wastelands, and meditating in deep space without a spacesuit - all feats being accomplished completely naked. When a lone journalist is allowed to see him, he greets her nude (and apparently without genitals), the better to emphasize his glossy-black artificial skin. [[spoiler: However, it also turns out that he's not merely posthuman, but post''robot'' as well: he was originally a simple pool-cleaning robot before he was gradually remade as a human being by successive generations of owners.]]
* In ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'' episode, "Thank God it's Doomsday," after Homer laments that his prophecy of the end of the end of the world didn't come true, he notices that he's naked and ascending to heaven. When he gets there, an angel introduces himself as Homer's tour guide, and offers him a robe. Homer says he's comfortable walking naked, but the angel says [[FanDisservice the robe is for the sake of everyone else]].

->'''Barbecue Sauce:''' Why are you naked?
->'''Unwinder:''' Because my atomic powers have caused me to lose touch with human culture. You'd get nude too.
-->--''Webcomic/UnwindersTallComics''

Often, this is used to signify a disconnection from human social mores, that the posthuman believes themselves too different from humanity - or too superior to it - to abide by its middling taboos. Or, it can be a sign that their new bodies are immune to low temperatures, inclement weather or other harsh conditions; in which case, you can expect scenes in which the posthuman casually wanders through blazing wreckage or Antarctic snowfields without even reacting. And in some cases, it's simply because literally nothing will fit on their new bodies anyway.

Of course, this is far from the only variant of this trope encountered: such Posthuman Nudists take a huge variety of forms, ranging from outwardly human to barely recognizable as the same species; as long as the posthuman is a) somehow superior in nature and b) naked, it counts

!!Examples

[[folder: Anime & Manga]]

[[folder: Comic Books]]

* In the finale of the ''ComicBook/TwoThousandAD'' comic series ''ComicBook/StoneIsland'', David Sorrell returns from the dead, having managed to AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence thanks to being used as an interdimensional gateway by the Otherworld entities. Now one of several EnergyBeings resulting from the attempted invasion of Earth, he briefly retakes human form in order to rescue Harry and Sarah from the Otherworld, though it's a bit disquieting because he's now sporting GlowingEyesOfDoom and very, ''[[MaleFrontalNudity very]]'' naked - and clearly doesn't care.
* Of the many [[DeityOfHumanOrigin artificial deities]] created in ''ComicBook/{{Supergod}},'' the Chinese supergod, Maitreya, is one of the few confirmed to [[WasOnceAMan have once been human]] rather than being built from scratch: a test subject implanted with tunnelling electron microscope eyes, he was forced to study his own atomic structure until he could comprehend it on the quantum level, granting him {{Biomanipulation}} by way of EnlightenmentSuperpowers. Having been naked at the time of the experiment, he remains naked for the rest of the story, and is easily distinguished by his hairless BarbieDollAnatomy.

[[folder: Film - Live-Action]]
* ''Film/EventHorizon'' unexpectedly concludes with [[spoiler: Dr Weir]] being brought back from the dead as a HumanoidAbomination by the eponymous ship; along with being given powerful new abilities in this new form, he's also stark naked - the better to show off the fact that he's bald and covered in bloody rune-marks.
* The finale of ''Film/TwoThousandOneASpaceOdyssey'' features Dave Bowman transcending human existence and becoming the Star Child, a giant floating godlike fetus - naked, of course.
* Zig-zagged in the sequel, ''Film/TwoThousandTenTheYearWeMakeContact'': when he first appears in the monitor to his ex-wife, Dave appears with ShouldersUpNudity; however, when he appears before Dr Floyd, he cycles frequently between several fully-clothed forms before finally reverting to his true, Star Child form - once again, completely naked.

[[folder: Literature]]

* In ''Literature/TheMagicians,'' magicians who blunder powerful spells run the risk of suffering a spectacular SuperpowerMeltdown that transforms them into a monstrous, all-powerful being of pure magic known as a [[HumanoidAbomination Niffin]]. Beyond sanity and all comprehension of human nature, Niffins wear nothing whatsoever, the better to emphasize their bodies of glowing blue energy - aptly demonstrated [[spoiler: in the finale of the first book, when Alice willingly transforms herself into a Niffin in order to defeat the Beast.]]

[[folder: Live Action TV]]

[[folder: Video Games]]

[[folder: Webcomics]]

* ''WebComic/UnicornJelly'': in the DistantFinale, [[http://unicornjelly.com/uni666.html while greeting the newest wave of castaways]], the Humano-Jellese seem to wear only 'floaty butt covers' on various parts of their bodies.

[[folder: Web Original]]

[[folder: Western Animation]]

[[/folder]]

* During ''ComicBook/{{Hellblazer}}: The Devil You Know,'' Constantine and Ritchie Simpson are able to bait Nergal into a deadly trap on the astral plane, allowing the latter to [[GrandTheftMe seize the demon's vacant body]] as a replacement for his now-deceased physical form. After reshaping it into a shape more to his liking, Ritchie takes the form of a neon-skinned humanoid figure crackling with electricity, naked and lacking genitals - and makes it clear that with his power, he might just be able to take over the world. [[spoiler: However, before he makes up his mind what to do with this power, [[ThoseTwoBadGuys Agony and Ecstasy]] drag him off to Hell so he can learn the ropes of being a demon.]]