History Main / AndroidsAndDetectives

SaltAndPepper BuddyCopShow [[JustForFun/RecycledINSPACE In]] {{Cyberpunk}}! When there's a series of mysterious murders or crimes taking place in a cyberpunk setting, the local [[PrivateDetective gumshoe]] is paired up with [[RidiculouslyHumanRobots a shiny new partner with all sorts of attachments]]. Usually done in the form of a WunzaPlot with one or both characters overcoming [[FantasticRacism prejudices/technophobia]]. Sometimes the human detective will say something like "I hate technology" with the android responding "I am technology".

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'' has Smitty (human) and URL (pronounced "[[PunnyName Earl]]"), who double as a parody of SaltAndPepper duos. We don't know if this is standard practice because [[OddlySmallOrganization they're the only cops we ever see]]...

* ''WesternAnimation/TransformersAnimated'': Captain Fanzone could be this to the Autobots. His {{Catchphrase}} is "This is why I hate machines", although he eventually develops a grudging respect for the Autobots. When he's actually paired with an Autobot he grumbles but does his job like a pro.

* ''Literature/LyttleLyttonContest'': From the [[http://adamcadre.ac/11lyttle.html 2011 entries]], a line from Will Nicholes that has a "robot lieutenant" with a "humanoid partner".

* In ''VideoGame/Fallout4'', Nick Valentine is ''both'': He's a (self-aware) [[FlawedPrototype old-model]] synth who has the [[BrainUploading neural copy]] of a pre-war police officer, and has a HardboiledDetective persona (and a [[UncannyValley significant amount of missing skin coverings]]).

* The ''Series/DoctorWho'' story "The Robots of Death" has a subplot revolving around an apparently unrelated human and robot (Poul and D84), who turns out to be a buddy cop team there to identify which person on the sand miner is secretly a terrorist. Unfortunately, Poul's UncannyValley [[WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes phobia]] causes him to have a meltdown and D84 dies in a HeroicSacrifice to protect the Doctor.

%%* Creator/OsamuTezuka's ''Anime/{{Metropolis}}''

SaltAndPepper BuddyCopShow [[JustForFun/RecycledINSPACE In]] {{Cyberpunk}}! When there's a series of mysterious murders or crimes taking place in a cyberpunk setting, the local [[PrivateDetective gumshoe]] is paired up with [[RidiculouslyHumanRobots a shiny new partner with all sorts of attachments]]. Usually done in TheyFightCrime style with one or both characters overcoming [[FantasticRacism prejudices/technophobia]]. Sometimes the human detective will say something like "I hate technology" with the android responding "I am technology".

* ''Manga/SteamDetectives'' pairs young detective Narutaki with a RobotBuddy named Goriki. Together TheyFightCrime in [[{{Steampunk}} a city powered by coal and steam]]. One interesting twist on this trope is that the robot detective is ''[[TheBigGuy huge]]''; he's built more like a tank than a crime-solver.

[[folder:Web Comics]]
* ''Automata'', a ''Webcomic/PennyArcade'' [[https://www.penny-arcade.com/archive/search?q=Automata&content[0]=comics sub-comic]].
* The webcomic ''[[http://registered-weapon.com/ Registered Weapon]]'' is about a SociopathicHero CowboyCop teamed up with a cash register-turned-robot who are partners as LAPD homicide detectives.

* ''Automata'', a ''Webcomic/PennyArcade'' [[http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2009/6/12/ sub-comic]].

SaltAndPepper BuddyCopShow [[RecycledINSPACE In]] {{Cyberpunk}}! When there's a series of mysterious murders or crimes taking place in a cyberpunk setting, the local [[PrivateDetective gumshoe]] is paired up with [[RidiculouslyHumanRobots a shiny new partner with all sorts of attachments]]. Usually done in TheyFightCrime style with one or both characters overcoming [[FantasticRacism prejudices/technophobia]]. Sometimes the human detective will say something like "I hate technology" with the android responding "I am technology".

* ''Film/IRobot'', which is [[DolledUpInstallment loosely based]] on Creator/IsaacAsimov's work.

SaltAndPepper BuddyCopShow [[InSpace In]] CyberPunk! When there's a series of mysterious murders or crimes taking place in a [[PunkPunk cyberpunk]] setting, the local [[PrivateDetective gumshoe]] is paired up with [[RidiculouslyHumanRobots a shiny new partner with all sorts of attachments]]. Usually done in TheyFightCrime style with one or both characters overcoming [[FantasticRacism prejudices/technophobia]]. Sometimes the human detective will say something like "I hate technology" with the android responding "I am technology".

* ''Anime/TheBigO'' episode "Eyewitness", which teams recurring [[FriendOnTheForce Military Policeman]] Dan Dastun with robot detective R. Freddy O'Reilly. And to a lesser extent, ''Anime/TheBigO'' in general, starring [[RobotGirl R. Dorothy Waynewright]] and Roger Smith (although Smith is technically only a negotiator, he ends up solving a lot of cases on his own, because he has a lot of resources the police don't). "Eyewitness" is a full-episode homage to Creator/IsaacAsimov's ''Robot Trilogy''.

* ''Manga/AstroBoy'': Though not technically [[BuddyCopShow cop buddies]], Astro's crime-fighting often leads him to work alongside [[DaChief Inspector]] [[NobleBigotWithABadge Tawashi]]. And by "works alongside" I mean [[TeethClenchedTeamwork "argues with"]]. ''Manga/{{Pluto}}'', Creator/NaokiUrasawa's re-take on one of the story arcs in the original manga, has Gesicht filling in both the detective and the robot role.

* ''Manga/{{Appleseed}}'', sorta. Less Android and more {{Cyborg}}; less Detective and more SWAT/Counterterrorism. Besides the Deunan–Briareos pairing, there is also the Deunan–Hitomi pairing; Deunan is initially shocked that Hitomi is a bioroid (artificial human).

* ''Franchise/GhostInTheShell'' is a variation, with a team of cyborg investigators (with much more of their bodies being cyber than organic). Togousa, being the least cyberized (and implied to be the most human) is TheHeart of the squad, but most of the characters are shown to still be essentially human, even if some installments of the franchise seek to explore what that exactly means.

* The premise of ''ComicBook/{{Darkminds}}'' has detective Nagawa paired up with android Akane Nakiko (well, officially she's a cyborg, but it's more a matter of being an android with some biological components) to solve the "Paradox" murders [[spoiler:which turn out to have been perpetrated by one of Nakiko's prototypes]].
* Any Autobot or Decepticon in ''Franchise/TheTransformers'' with a police vehicle as their alt-mode tends to be some form of cop, though the exact nature varies. Prowl, for example, is a rabidly ByTheBookCop [[spoiler:at least before he started suffering SanitySlippage]] while Streetwise tends to be portrayed as more of a CowboyCop.

* In ''Film/TheodoreRex'', cyborgs and dinosaurs are commonplace. The main characters are a dinosaur and a cyborg (played by Creator/WhoopiGoldberg) who are BuddyCops.

* Creator/IsaacAsimov's Robot Trilogy, starting with ''Literature/TheCavesOfSteel'', are the UrExample of this trope. These feature Earth detective Elijah Baley teaming with R. Daneel Olivaw, one of the very first "humaniform robots" -- realistic-looking androids. Lije and Daneel are partners in the first book and remain good friends throughout the rest of the series, but each book of the trilogy examines a different facet of the relationship between robots and humans at a societal level. As the UrExample, it established many of the conventions of this trope, despite the lack of many traditional CyberPunk elements (unsurprising, as the book was written before the advent of microcomputers, let alone the Internet). In "Literature/MirrorImage", the crime is {{UsefulNotes/Plagiarism}}; two mathematicians attempt to claim ownership over the same mathematical technique/proof. They are expected to find a solution from
-->"Of these two men of great reputation, one is trying to destroy that of the other. By human values, I believe this may be regarded as worse than physical murder."
* ''Brillo'' by Creator/BenBova and Creator/HarlanEllison (It's steel fuzz, get it?)

* No-one actually officially partners with them in the traditional sense, but from ''Literature/FeetOfClay'' onwards Golems begin to join the Ankh-Morpork City Watch in the Literature/{{Discworld}} series. They're treated largely in-line with this trope until eventually they're just treated as coppers.

* Mia Sorelli and Gizmo, in ''Literature/ColonyMars''

* Joey from ''Series/{{Friends}}'' gets a gig as the human half of the TV detective team "Mac and C.H.E.E.S.E."
* ''Series/{{Eureka}}'' by way of Jack Carter and Andy in one episode. Andy is back, [[spoiler:as Jack's permanent deputy, Jo is now head of security at Global Dynamics]], as of season 4.

* ''Series/HolmesAndYoyo'' is one of the earliest TV examples, as it ran from 1976-77. It was a more comedic take on the idea than the later shows that would run with it, where HilarityEnsues as Holmes tries to conceal the nature of the frequently-malfunctioning Yoyo (aka Gregory Yoyonovich) from the rest of the department.
* 1973's ''Series/RobotDetective'' had this going, though it hewed closer to the action-based {{Tokusatsu}} style common at the time.

* ''Series/FutureCop'': based on ''Brillo'', but without giving Bova or Ellison any credit, or payment, until after they sued.
* The sadly short-lived ''Series/TotalRecall2070'' (which always seemed more of a Film/BladeRunner spin-off somehow) paired senior detective David Hume with [[WetwareCPU Alpha Class]] android Farve.
* In ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'', the android Data likes to play Literature/SherlockHolmes on the holodeck, with his human best friend Geordi [=LaForge=] as [[TheWatson Dr. Watson]].

* The ''Series/DoctorWho'' story "The Robots of Death" has a subplot revolving around an apparently unrelated human and robot (Poul and D84), who turns out to be a buddy cop team there to identify which person on the sand miner is secretly a terrorist. Unfortunately, Poul's UncannyValley {{Phobia}} causes him to have a meltdown and D84 dies in a HeroicSacrifice to protect the Doctor.

* In ''VideoGame/Fallout4'', Nick Valentine is ''both'': He's a (self-aware) [[FlawedPrototype old-model]] synth who has the neural copy of a pre-war police officer, and has a hard-boiled film-noir style detective persona (and a [[UncannyValley significant amount of missing skin coverings]]).

* Connor, one of the main characters in ''VideoGame/DetroitBecomeHuman'' is an android working for the police. He gets teamed up with Hank Anderson - a grizzled cop with an alcohol problem - to solve murders. Similar to ''VisualNovel/{{Snatcher}}'', you get to decide how their relationship plays out; either they become FireForgedFriends, or [[VideoGameCrueltyPotential you effectively ruin Hank's life]].
* In ''VideoGame/{{Overwatch}}'''s comic "Searching", Zarya has to team up with the omnic hacker Lynx. Since she's one of the more bigoted characters in the setting, she is ''not'' happy about it [[spoiler:but comes around at least enough to save Lynx' life when they are threatened by Sombra's EMP]].

* ''Automata'', a ''Webcomic/PennyArcade'' [[http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2009/6/12/ sub-comic.]]

* Spoofed in ''Chuck Steel: Raging Balls of Steel Justice''. The cliched claymation CowboyCop finds himself stuck with a RobotBuddy that's more interested in sexually molesting household objects than backing him up during a shootout. In the end Steel blows it away with his HandCannon, insisting IWorkAlone!

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Futurama}}'' has Smitty (human) and URL (pronounced "[[PunnyName Earl]]"), who double as a parody of SaltAndPepper duos. We don't know if this is standard practice because [[OddlySmallOrganization they're the only cops we ever see...]]
* ''WesternAnimation/TransformersAnimated'': Captain Fanzone could be this to the Autobots. His CatchPhrase is "This is why I hate machines," although he eventually develops a grudging respect for the Autobots. When he's actually paired with an Autobot he grumbles but does his job like a pro.

* In ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'', the android Data likes to play Franchise/SherlockHolmes on the holodeck, with his human best friend Geordi [=LaForge=] as [[TheWatson Dr. Watson]].

* ''Anime/TheBigO'' episode "Eyewitness", which teams recurring [[FriendOnTheForce Military Policeman]] Dan Dastun with robot detective R. Freddy O'Reilly. And to a lesser extent, ''Anime/TheBigO'' in general, starring [[RobotGirl R. Dorothy Waynewright]] and Roger Smith (although Smith is technically only a negotiator, he ends up solving a lot of cases on his own, because he has a lot of resources the police don't). "Eyewitness" is a full-episode homage to Asimov's ''Robot Trilogy'', mentioned below.

* Creator/IsaacAsimov's Robot Trilogy, starting with ''Literature/TheCavesOfSteel'', are the UrExample of this trope. These feature Earth detective Elijah Baley teaming with R. Daneel Olivaw, one of the very first "humaniform robots" -- realistic-looking androids. Lije and Daneel are partners in the first book and remain good friends throughout the rest of the series, but each book of the trilogy examines a different facet of the relationship between robots and humans at a societal level. As the UrExample, it established many of the conventions of this trope, despite the lack of many traditional CyberPunk elements (unsurprising, as the book was written before the advent of microcomputers, let alone the Internet).

* In ''VideoGame/{{Overwatch}}''s comic "Searching", Zarya has to team up with the omnic hacker Lynx. Since she's one of the more bigoted characters in the setting, she is ''not'' happy about it [[spoiler:but comes around at least enough to save Lynx' life when they are threatened by Sombra's EMP]].

* ''Film/RobotAndFrank'' is about a human and a robot as partners, in this case partners in crime. Despite this, many of the requisite tropes remain intact.

* No-one actually officially partners with them in the traditional sense, but from ''Discworld/FeetOfClay'' onwards Golems begin to join the Ankh-Morpork City Watch in the Literature/{{Discworld}} series. They're treated largely in-line with this trope until eventually they're just treated as coppers.

Compare CopAndScientist.

* Connor, one of the main characters in ''VideoGame/DetroitBecomeHuman'' is an android working for the police. He gets teamed up with Hank Anderson - a grizzled cop with an alcohol problem - to solve murders.

* ''Mann & Machine'' was a sadly short-lived 1992 series where Yancy Butler plays an android detective that, as is often seen in such series, her human partner didn't trust to make life-and-death decisions.

* ''Anime/TheBigO'' episode "Eyewitness", which teams recurring [[FriendOnTheForce Military Policeman]] Dan Dastun with robot detective R. Freddy O'Reilly. And to a lesser extent, ''Anime/TheBigO'' in general, starring [[RobotGirl R. Dorothy Waynewright]] and Roger Smith. "Eyewitness" is a full-episode homage to Asimov's ''Robot Trilogy'', mentioned below.

* ''Series/HolmesAndYoyo'' is one of the (if not ''the'') earliest TV examples, as it ran from 1976-77. It was a more comedic take on the idea than the later shows that would run with it, where HilarityEnsues as Holmes tries to conceal the nature of the frequently-malfunctioning Yoyo (aka Gregory Yoyonovich) from the rest of the department.

* Spoofed in ''Chuck Steel: Raging Balls of Steel Justice''. The cliched claymation CowboyCop finds himself stuck with a RobotBuddy that's more interesting in sexually molesting household objects than backing him up during a shootout. It proves to be such a nuisance that Steel blows it away with his HandCannon, insisting IWorkAlone!

* Arguably the Chief in the ''WesternAnimation/WhereOnEarthIsCarmenSandiego'' cartoon. A few episodes show him to have at one point had a robot body (which he describes as "useless") and was Carmen's partner before she became a thief.

* Any Autobot or Decepticon in ''Franchise/TheTransformers'' with a police vehicle as their alt-mode tends to be some form of cop, though the exact nature varies. Prowl, for example, is a rabidly ByTheBookCop [[spoiler: at least before he started suffering SanitySlippage]] while Streetwise tends to be portrayed as more of a CowboyCop.

* ''Series/{{Eureka}}'' by way of Jack Carter and Andy in one episode. Andy is back, [[spoiler: as Jack's permanent deputy, Jo is now head of security at Global Dynamics]], as of season 4.