Domo Arigato, Half a Roboto
Narrator: “Gentlemen, we can rebuild him. We have the technology. We have the capability to make the world’s first bionic man. Steve Austin will be that man. Better than he was before. Better. Stronger. Faster.”
The Six Million Dollar Man
We create technology to improve our lives. Cars and airplanes can transport us at previously unthinkable speeds, telephones allow us to communicate with people almost anywhere on the planet, and the internet contains the sum total of human knowledge.
With so many ways technology can help us, is it any wonder that thoughts turned to using tech to improve ourselves? Prosthetics and pacemakers are a good start, but we will eventually do better. Sooner or later, cyborgs will become commonplace.
Cyborgs are the ultimate melding of man and machine. The power and precision of a machine with the creativity and emotion of a human is the ideal formula for a superhero. So who are the top 5 cyborg superheroes? Let’s find out.
#5 Iron Man
Played by Robert Downey Jr.
Tony Stark: “I kept the suit. Kept tinkering with it. And I’m not sure why any more. Except maybe that it wasn’t about the future. But my future. And it allowed me to pretend that I wasn’t a man who made landmines. I went from being a man trapped in an iron suit to being a man freed by it. Iron Man command system on. Start.“
Iron Man: Extremis
You know him as the genius billionaire playboy philanthropist, but you can tack on cyborg superhero to Tony Stark’s resume.
Stark was nearly killed by a landmine exploding next to him. He survived the blast, but was left with shrapnel near his heart that was inoperable. Stark built an electromagnet to keep the shrapnel in place and integrated the magnet into what would become his first Iron Man armor.
Stark continued upgrading the Iron Man armor, culminating in The Extremis Armor. By injecting himself with nanobots that connect to his brain, Iron Man became able to store his armor internally, manifesting it through his pores whenever it was needed.
There’s a lot more to this armored Avenger’s story. Check out our Iron Man backstory for the details.
#4 Ultron-Pym
Played by James Spader and Michael Douglas
Ultron-Pym: “Every day I hold this monster inside me at bay — Do you understand what he would do if I let him loose? He would incinerate the flesh of every man, woman and child on this Earth and laugh about it! Every day I live with this, and I save the world a hundred times over!
Secret Empire (2017)
We’ve got a weird one here. One of Marvel’s oldest superheroes merging with his genocidal progeny to become an unstoppable cyborg superhero! Or supervillain. It depends on the day.
Dr. Hank Pym was one of Marvel’s smartest scientists and the superhero Ant-Man. During a nervous breakdown, he created an A.I. based on his brain patterns that he called Ultron. The newly created Ultron went rogue and began attempting to exterminate the human race.
During a fight between the two, Ultron tackled Ant-Man into another Avenger called Vision, who instinctively turned intangible to dodge the attack. Ultron and Ant-Man were also rendered intangible, soon reconstituting themselves as a grotesque hybrid calling itself Ultron-Pym. Ultron and Ant-Man have been fighting for control of their new body ever since.
Ultron-Pym is the most complicated cyborg superhero on our list. Reading up on his components might help, so check out our backstories on Ultron and Ant-Man.
#3 Blue Beetle
Played by Will Friedle
Blue Beetle: “I’m not alone in this fight, am I, Scarab?”
Young Justice “Endgame” (Season 2, Episode 20)
Scarab: “No, Jaime Reyes. Once you fought for control, now we fight together.”
Blue Beetle: “Friends, hermanos, fighting together against any attack.” –
The youngest of our cyborg superheroes is Jaime Reyes, the third Blue Beetle.
Jaime was an ordinary teenager who discovered a blue scarab in the aftermath of a meteor shower. Unbeknownst to Jaime, the Scarab was a seemingly mystical relic that had empowered the first Blue Beetle whenever he spoke the words “Khaji Da.” The Scarab bonded to Jaime’s spine and gave him the ability to summon a heavily-armored suit. Jaime took up the mantle of Blue Beetle after learning about his predecessors.
Blue Beetle also learned that The Scarab wasn’t a magical relic, but an alien superweapon created by a race called The Reach, who would send Scarabs as infiltrators to planets they planned to conquer. Earth’s Scarab was damaged in transit and further corrupted by exposure to magic, causing it to only respond to its “name”, Khaji Da.
Blue Beetle initially struggled to control the Scarab, which wanted to kill their enemies. He slowly humanized the haywire machine, causing it to develop a personality and consciousness. With both components cooperating, Blue Beetle began fighting The Reach’s forces and other threats to Earth.
#2 Robocop
Played By Peter Weller
Bob: “What are your prime directives?”
Robocop (1987)
Robocop: “Serve the public trust. Protect the innocent. Uphold the law.”
Our penultimate cyborg superhero is part man, part machine, and all cop.
Officer Alex Murphy was a highly decorated member of the Detroit police. While pursuing a notorious gang, Murphy was ambushed and blasted to shreds. His remains were appropriated by an evil mega-corporation called Walmar- er, I mean Omni Consumer Products, who gave Murphy the full Six Million Dollar Man treatment. Murphy’s corpse was rebuilt into an armored and heavily-armed law enforcement officer the public called Robocop.
Robocop tore through Detroit’s gangs like an overused metaphor through cliche, to public acclaim. Unknown to his masters, Murphy’s mind started to take control of Robocop as he slowly remembered his life and family. As Murphy’s personality became dominant, Robocop turned on Omni after discovering they were behind most of Detroit’s gang crime.
Robocop was a hit and spawned several sequels, spinoff TV shows, comics, games and more. The first movie won an Academy Award for Sound Editing and was nominated for two others.
#1 Cyborg
Played by Khary Payton
Brother Blood: “I’ve combed through your blueprints, peeled back your armor, stripped off your machinery! But still you defy me! Where in this vile contraption is the part that allows you to RESIST?”
Teen Titans “Titans East” (Season 3, Episode 13)
Cyborg: “It’s not in the circuitry, is it? It’s not the machine that resists you… It’s me, my spirit. That’s the part you can’t break!”
Our number one cyborg superhero is Cyborg. I promise he isn’t number one just because of his name.
Victor Stone was a college football star who had a bad relationship with his scientist father. When Dr. Stone missed one too many of his son’s games, Victor stormed into his lab during a critical experiment. They argued until the experiment exploded and mortally wounded Victor.
Dr. Stone performed emergency surgery to save his son, but the only alternative was to turn him into a cyborg. Victor was horrified and fled from the lab, becoming a drifter. He was eventually discovered by a sorceress named Raven and invited to join the new iteration of the Teen Titans. Victor accepted and became the superhero Cyborg.
Cyborg’s story isn’t anywhere near finished yet, so go check out our Cyborg Backstory for the details.
Is there a cyborg superhero who is missing from the list? Should the ones on the list be shuffled around? Tell us in the comments.
Jared Bounacos has written for Movie Rewind since 2016.
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