History Main / ArtificialLimbs

* [[ComicBook/RoyHarper Arsenal]], formerly ComicBook/GreenArrow's sidekick Speedy, had his right arm ripped off in a fight with Prometheus. He now has a cybernetic replacement, however it isn't "permanent" as Roy's arm is still infected with flesh-eating bacteria from Prometheus' blade. The attachment works "around" Roy's nerve endings and actually enhances the pain he already feels. It hinders his ability as an archer to the point that he's stopped using a bow, he can't wear normal clothes over it, and it's a complete eyesore. This was all {{Retcon}}ned away as of 2011.

* [[ComicBook/RoyHarper Arsenal]], formerly Comicbook/GreenArrow's sidekick Speedy, had his right arm ripped off in a fight with Prometheus. He now has a cybernetic replacement, however it isn't "permanent" as Roy's arm is still infected with flesh-eating bacteria from Prometheus' blade. The attachment works "around" Roy's nerve endings and actually enhances the pain he already feels. It hinders his ability as an archer to the point that he's stopped using a bow, he can't wear normal clothes over it, and it's a complete eyesore. This was all {{Retcon}}ned away as of 2011.

* Former ComicBook/CaptainAmerica sidekick ComicBook/BuckyBarnes has a cybernetic left arm to replace the one he lost at the end of UsefulNotes/WorldWarII.
* ComicBook/DoctorOctopus's problems started apparently when he added four arms of questionable morality to his spine...

* In the Franchise/MarvelUniverse, [[ComicBook/HeroesForHire Misty Knight]] was a cop until she lost her arm in a bombing; ComicBook/IronMan then designed a new bionic one for her.
* Nico Minoru loses her left arm during the events of ''ComicBook/AvengersArena'', but gains a magical "Witch Arm" following her death and resurrection. This remains the case until the 2017 relaunch of ''ComicBook/{{Runaways}}'', where her left arm is now back to normal. When Chase asks her how ''that'' happened, she refuses to explain.
* One of the more recent ComicBook/SheHulk series had Southpaw/Sasha Martin, a 5'5" (1,65 meters), 110 pound (50 kilos) weakling teenage girl. With a MASSIVE mecha-hand on her left hand which gave her enough strength to crush [=IronClad=] from the U-Foes' arm into scrap!
* Early in ''ComicBook/Thor2014'', Thor (Odinson) loses his left arm to Malekith. Screwbeard the dwarf provides him with a prosthetic arm made of Uru (the same metal as Mjolnir itself). Various flash-forwards show Thor continuing to use various prosthetics thousands of years into the future.
* As Agent ComicBook/{{Venom}}, Flash Thompson could use the symbiote to replace his missing legs, amputated while protecting his squad in Iraq. He doesn't use this in public, though. During the ''ComicBook/SuperiorSpiderMan'' era, Doc Ock-in-Peter-Parker's-body gave him prosthetic legs and took the symbiote for his own -- Flash dumped the legs and took back the symbiote. A later mission in ''ComicBook/VenomSpaceKnight'' forced Flash to don cybernetic legs as the symbiote would get detected.
* The ComicBook/XMen have several examples:
** [[ComicBook/WarrenWorthingtonIII Angel]] has his naturally-occurring wings amputated and replaced with razor-edged metallic wings that can shoot blades. As the procedure is [[spoiler:done by an evil mad scientist]], there are some [[FaceHeelTurn side effects]].

** ''Comicbook/JudgeDredd'' himself has bionic eyes, and a popular foe, Mean Machine Angel, has one arm that's been replaced by a giant mechanical claw-thing (he's also got a bionic eye, a metal-plated skull, and a brain implant that means he's only got four emotions: Surly, Mean, Vicious and Brutal). There's also Judge Guthrie, who has both arms and legs as well as an eye and a large portion of his skull replaced with prosthetics, which have to be contained in a bodysuit, and Nate Slaughterhouse, who has ''everything'' apart from his head replaced due to a combat injury.

* The crime boss Johnny Woo Woo from the ''Comicbook/{{Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles|Mirage}}'' "Body Count" miniseries had metal hands.

** TheBattleOfMaghTuireadh relates how Nuada, king of the Tuatha Dé Danann, lost an arm in combat and received a functional replacement crafted of silver.

** Burlok Damminson, Guildmaster of the Dwarven Engineers Guild in ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer}}'', lost his arm in a failed experiment when he was a beardling and replaced it with a SteamPunk [[PowerFist power claw]] of his own invention. Later editions added his son, Grimm Burlokkson, who has a [[PoweredArmor strength-enhancing armored gauntlet instead.]]
** Astragoth Ironhand is a bizarre example. [[OurDwarvesAreDifferent Dwarfs]] are incapable of casting spells, but the [[EvilCounterpart Chaos Dwarfs]] can, at a price. Their limbs [[TakenForGranite turn to stone]] over time. Astragoth compensates for this by grafting a mechanical body ( [[{{Magitek}} that's powered by daemonic sorcery]] ) onto his useless, petrified limbs. He technically still ''has'' his old body parts, making this a hybrid of this and PoweredArmor.

* In TabletopGame/WarhammerAgeOfSigmar, those [[SkyPirate Kharadron]] [[OurDwarvesAreAllTheSame duradin]] who have lost a limb can get it replaced with a custom made [[{{Magitek}} aether-powered]] SteamPunk augmetic.
* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'':
** "Augmetic" limbs are very common in the setting. Curiously for such an otherwise over-the-top setting, in ''TabletopGame/DarkHeresy'' it's explained that human bionics don't impart superhuman strength, exactly because it would tear the user apart. It's not entirely impossible, though -- but the money needed for that kind of expert gear could buy you a much more effective suit of PoweredArmor. Also, considering the partially poor understanding of technology, implants may work somewhere between phantastically (cortex implants from several thousand years ago that grant Franchise/{{Dune}} Mentat-like intelligence), operational (bionic limbs for average soldiers that ''mostly'' work as they should, as long as the Tech-priests observe the necessary rites) and clumsy (bionic eyes that produce grainy and black/white pictures). Finally, there are servitors, lobotomized humans or animals stuffed full with bionics to serve essentially as robots. Notable examples include:
** The Space Marines think nothing of using replacement limbs. Most notably the Iron Hands chapter, who are often seen sporting several bionic limbs and favor them over flesh and blood. This belief leads the Iron Hands marines to replace their right hand with a mechanical one upon initiation via religious ceremony.
** Tech-priests believe that becoming more mechanical brings them closer to the Omnissiah, and thus voluntary replacements are not just accepted, but essentially mandatory to be able to function in society at all.
** [[OurOrcsAreDifferent Ork]] doctors, known as Painboyz, are born with instinctive knowledge of the Ork anatomy, so they are always experimenting. The most famous, Mad Doc Grotsnik, gave several Orks ''exploding heads'' and regularly cuts off his own limbs and replaces them with 'cybork' parts or 'donations' from customers out cold on the slab.
** While many Chaos Space Marines welcome mutations as gifts from the Chaos Gods, Traitor Marines of the Iron Warriors prefer to remove the offending limb and replace it with bionics.

* Done for laughs with Fry of ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}''. In one episode he feeds a ''T. rex'' at a sort of petting zoo, and the ''T. rex'' bites off his hands. A quick stop at Hands Crafters and he's as good as new.
** Another episode features Fry winning the Robot Devil's hands. When the Robot Devil stalls for time, Fry impatiently says, "Stop being such a baby and cut off my hands."

* In ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague,'' Aquaman cuts off his own hand to save his son. It is later replaced with a hook that resembles a harpoon.

** It's... possible... that in the far future the loss and replacement of limbs is relatively common. See the ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'' example below.

* On ''WesternAnimation/RandyCunninghamNinthGradeNinja'', Hannibal [=McFist=] is easily recognized by his mechanical right arm, which also contains its own brain with a pair of eyes.

* In ''Fanfic/TheButcherBird'', [[spoiler: [[TheGunslinger Bertram Lauren]] ]] loses an arm and has it replaced with a mechanical one derived from [[CyberneticsEatYourSoul Cog]] technology.
* Teddy gets an artificial limb ''Fanfic/TheEggTeam'', gaining it almost immediately after his first appearance. It's one of the most important parts of his character, as the electric orbs he can create with it is his only method of fighting.
* In the {{Fanfic/Uplifted}} series, Joachim Hoch loses his arm and gets it replaced with one. He keeps it covered at all times with a glove in order to prevent people in 1940s Germany from knowing about it.
* A girl named Lily in ''Fanfic/RubyAndNora'' has one. It’s also a [[ArmedLegs gun]].
* Lila from ''Fanfic/TeamLVDR'' has a prosthetic leg after needing to get her original one amputated.
* The main character of Fanfic/ChristianHumberReloaded loses an arm fighting his corrupted self, and gets a robotic arm as a replacement.

See also BrainComputerInterface for characters getting "jacks" implanted to connect to computers via cable (or even LAN!), and SwissArmyAppendage for characters who hot-swap their Artificial Limbs. Often a result of the WeCanRebuildHim style of EmergencyTransformation. If the limb is awesome enough, it might be a BadassTransplant, and is usually an example of FashionableAsymmetry. Often can result in LimbSensationFascination when someone explores their new limb. See ProstheticLimbReveal for instances where a character is suddenly revealed to have an artificial limb or two despite not looking like they'd have any. For someone who keeps getting prosthetics, see SerialProstheses.

* In the ''LightNovel/DirtyPair'' issue "Run from the Future," the titular duo are hunting for several criminals, including the "Planarian Cannibals;" they ceremonially eat their own arms and legs (and replace them with cybernetics) to concentrate their spiritual essence. Oh, and they eat other people too.

** In ''Film/RevengeOfTheSith'', [[{{Cyborg}} General Grievous]] has two robotic arms that can [[MultiArmedAndDangerous split into four]] when DualWielding his lightsabers.

* ''Franchise/StarWars'': Both Anakin and Luke lose limbs to lightsaber injuries, showing off their natures. Star Wars tech being what it is, they have replacements within 10 minutes of screen time. However, Anakin's replacement hand is very obviously artificial, while Luke's is ''very'' close to looking and acting like the real thing, in a rare example where the series averts CosmeticallyAdvancedPrequel. By ''Film/TheForceAwakens'', however, the synthetic flesh on Luke's hand has worn off over the years, leaving the metal that was underneath completely exposed.
** This is actually to the point where fans mockingly or not say certain individuals ''aren't'' Skywalkers because they haven't lost a limb.

* [[https://twitter.com/Paincaked Paincaked's]] OriginalCharacter Kit Bodega has a bionic arm replacing her left one, consisting of a shoulder and a forearm [[FloatingLimbs that floats]].

* The ''Series/{{Arrowverse}}'' has a few glaring examples:

* Subverted in ''Series/{{Battlestar Galactica|2003}}''. Felix Gaeta is shot in the leg by a twitchy crewmate, and doesn't get to medical care in time to save the limb. He is given a prosthetic leg not long after the amputation; however, the prosthetic is the wrong length, doesn't fit correctly, and aggravates his healing surgical scars, making them more susceptible to infection. The series also shows Gaeta becoming more accustomed to the prosthetic and less dependent on crutches gradually, over the course of several episodes.
** In another startlingly realistic touch, his stump itches. He can't find a suitable lotion; the itch may be partly psychosomatic. Just before the end of the series, [[spoiler:after he commits mutiny with Tom Zarak, Adama's forces retake the Galactica. When Zarak and Gaeta are standing in front of the firing squad, he smiles and says, "It stopped."]]

* In the ''Series/DoctorWho'' story "Revelation of the Daleks", EvilutionaryBiologist arch-villain Davros gets his right hand (his only unparalysed limb) shot off. In the following story, he's only seen from the neck up due to heavily upgrading his wheelchair, but when he returns in "The Stolen Earth"/"Journey's End" he has a rather Freddy Krueger-esque metal hand with clawed fingertips. He has the talent to make something more realistic, so one can only assume he thinks it looks cool.

* The Franchise/KamenRider franchise in the Showa era is all about this. [[Series/KamenRiderStronger One of them]] has electric coils for hands and [[RiderMan another]] has a prosthetic [[SwissArmyWeapon arm/hook/grappling hook/machine gun/drill/mini-laboratory/etc]]. The rest of them do not show outward signs of being cyborgs. They are still pure, undiluted badasses.

* The [[Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse MCU]]
** In''Series/AgentCarter'', Agent Daniel Sousa was injured in [=WW2=], and subsequently has a prosthetic leg, which he needs a crutch to properly walk on..
** ''Series/TheDefenders2017'': Misty Knight loses her right arm when Bakuto slices through it while she's providing interference for Claire Temple and Colleen Wing. She is later seen in the hospital with Colleen telling her that Danny Rand is using his connections to arrange for Misty to get a new bionic arm. She subsequently receives the arm during Season 2 of ''{{Series/Luke Cage|2016}}''.

* On ''Series/MyNameIsEarl'', Earl had a one-night stand with a woman named Didi. When she got up to make them some breakfast, he noticed that [[ExactWords "one of her legs didn't go with her."]] He was shocked and upset, and decided to run away. He stole money from her purse, as well as her prosthetic leg and her car. She (understandably) holds an enormous grudge against him, in particular because she couldn't afford a new prosthesis, and has been getting around by hopping ever since. (Which, since this took place before Earl's AccidentalMarriage to Joy, had to be ''at least'' seven years.) She makes Earl spend a day doing everyday tasks on one foot. She is played by Tracy Ashton, who also has only one real leg.

--> '''Joy''': How did I not notice that?!

* Subverted, natch, in ''Series/RedDwarf'': Lister loses an arm in one episode and is fitted with a robot arm. Being Red Dwarf, it's a very cheap and basic robot arm and requires a full minute worth of extremely strenuous concentration to pick up a ball. In an additional subversion, turning up the sensitivity simply causes him to punch Kryten in the face [[RunningGag repeatedly]] -- it's being controlled by his subconscious, and he's angry at Kryten for amputating his arm.

* Every [[ResistanceIsFutile Borg]] drone on ''Franchise/StarTrek'' has at least one artificial limb, and they all have [[RedEyesTakeWarning glowing red camera-eyes]]. Any regular character who is assimilated however (Jean Luc Picard in TNG "The Best of Both Worlds" and several characters in ST:VOY "Unimatrix Zero") [[PlotArmor manages to keep all their limbs]].
* In the last season of ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'', Nog loses a leg in battle and has it replaced with an artificial one. (For those who are concerned about his baseball ability "afterward," the baseball episode takes place several episodes ''before'' Nog loses his leg.) Averted with General Martok who prefers to keeps his EyepatchOfPower rather than be implanted with an artificial eye.

* ''WesternAnimation/TotalDrama Island (2003)'': Zee was born without a leg and thus has a prosthetic, revealed in one episode when a shark gets a hold of it. He makes up stories about how he allegedly lost his leg to entertain people. It comes in handy quite a few times in the season, such as when he uses one in the dinosaur challenge to save himself from a velociraptor and again to lose extra weight in the catapult challenge.

** Spades Slick progressively gains more robotic parts as he suffers greater injuries. He first acquires a robotic arm after Snowman {{whip|ItGood}}s his first arm off, and, after [[spoiler:surviving the destruction of his universe]], [[FullConversionCyborg nearly all parts of him are artificial]] except for half his face.

* ''TabletopGame/GeniusTheTransgression'' naturally features a lot of options for doing this; any wonder small enough can be grafted on to your body, giving you artificial limbs of every shape, size and purpose in any style imaginable.