History Main / DemBones

* Black John Licorice, a rival [[SweetTooth candy pirate]] of [[CaptainColorbeard Stickybeard's]] and a one-time villain appearing in the ''WesternAnimation/CodenameKidsNextDoor'' episode [[Recap/CodenameKidsNextDoorS5E12AOperationLICORICE Operation L.I.C.O.R.I.C.E.]], thanks to a cursed licorice tree [[SkeletonCrew he and his crew]] chopped down and stole, placing a curse on them that turned them into black licorice skeletons that only come alive at dusk, [[WeakenedByTheLight then are reduced to piles of licorice bones at dawn]] unless they could replant a Red Stalk Seed on the very island where they once destroyed the red licorice stalk forest in order to become human again. [[VillainSong The song]] [[EnemyMine Stickybeard and his crew]] [[TheVillainSucksSong sing about him]] is very [[https://knd.fandom.com/wiki/Licorice self-explanatory]].

* Black John Licorice, a rival [[SweetTooth candy pirate]] of [[CaptainColorbeard Stickybeard's and a one-time villain appearing in the ''WesternAnimation/CodenameKidsNextDoor'' episode [[Recap/CodenameKidsNextDoorS5E12AOperationLICORICE Operation L.I.C.O.R.I.C.E.]], thanks to a cursed licorice tree [[SkeletonCrew he and his crew]] chopped down and stole, placing a curse on them that turned them into black licorice skeletons that only come alive at dusk, [[WeakenedByTheLight then are reduced to piles of licorice bones at dawn]] unless they could replant a Red Stalk Seed on the very island where they once destroyed the red licorice stalk forest in order to become human again. [[VillainSong The song]] [[EnemyMine Stickybeard and his crew]] [[TheVillainSucksSong sing about him]] is very [[https://knd.fandom.com/wiki/Licorice self-explanatory]].

* Lord Hater of ''WesternAnimation/WanderOverYonder'' is a skeletal being, though he may just be alien rather than undead. The last shot of the series implies [[spoiler:Lord Hater was once an [[RaisingTheSteaks ape]] [[ApesInSpace astronaut]], and some accident transformed him]].

* ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry1'': Sargasso is a lesser demon that resembles a human skull. Its only attack is to try to bite Dante.
* ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry2'':
** Sargasso return from the first game and are still floating demon skulls that either attempt to bite the player character or shoot icicles at them.
** Bolverk's body is skeletal in appearance.

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", the rap group Music/BoneThugsNHarmony, the ''VideoGame/BatmanArkhamAsylum'' Gamestop Preorder map or ''Series/{{Bones}}''--the series or its eponymously nicknamed protagonist.

See also SkullForAHead, {{Calacas}}, and StrippedToTheBone. May or may not be [[TheDeadCanDance prone to dancing]]. A unique example is TheGrimReaper, so ubiquitous it's its own trope. If the Skeleton is friendly and/or comical, it's a FriendlySkeleton.

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", the rap group Music/BoneThugsNHarmony, the ''VideoGame/BatmanArkhamAsylum'' Gamestop Preorder map or ''Series/{{Bones}}''--the series or its eponymously nicknamed protagonist. See also BadWithTheBone if bones are used as {{Improvised Weapon}}s, and BallisticBone if they're used as AbnormalAmmo.

[[folder:Real Life]]
* Insects have exoskeletons, so technically they qualify.
* Nearly every living vertebrate is essentially this, actually. The only ones who don't are sharks (their "bones" are made of cartilage) and other more primitive fish like Hagfish. Every extinct vertebrate had a skeleton as well. In fact, their skeletons are worth a lot to science and people go to great lengths to find, obtain and study them.
* [[MemeticMutation There's a skeleton inside you right now!]]
[[/folder]]

* In one crossover, ''ComicBook/SavageDragon'' and ComicBook/{{Hellboy}} fought the undead skeletons of pirates while inside of a giant sea monster.

* In the first ''Literature/TheKingdomKeepers'' book, one of Maleficent's tricks is bringing the fake T-Rex fossil at ''[[Ride/DisneyThemeParks Big Thunder Mountain Railroad]]'' to life in an attempt to do away with [[TheHero Finn]] and [[TheSmartGuy Philby]].

* Averted by ''Music/AxisOfAwesome'' with "Skeleton Man" who is part man, part skeleton. Like everyone.

* ''VideoGame/TheCrystalOfKings'' have a plethora of skeleton-based enemies, from the basic skeletons (which are the weakest, a whole army of them serves the {{Necromancer}} MiniBoss but can be killed easily) to the floating Bone Sentinels and the EliteMook Red Skeletons which are far stronger and harder to defeat. THe final stage also have Skeletal Gladiators, the PraetorianGuard warriors serving the evil Nightspirit.

* ''VideoGame/SuperDungeonBros'': The enemies you face in Cryptheim are skeletons. There's the standard skeleton {{Mook}}s, archer skeletons, and even much larger [[EliteMooks heavily armoured skeletons]].

* In ''VideoGame/ThreadsOfFate'', one of Rue's monster forms that he can transform to is a skeleton warrior. It has a standard slashing attack while its special attack, is to... ''break down into a pile of bones'' (of course, pressing Triangle again makes Rue reattach himself). It does form a useful function in solving puzzles where he encounters it, as well as defense; the broken form is invincible against certain enemies.

* ''WesternAnimation/AquaTeenHungerForce'': In "Totem Pole", Shake and Carl visit a rock band performance and are used to build a troll pole, which ends up summoning hundreds of skeletons from the ground leaving them trapped in the building without anyway to escape.

* The eponymous character of Creator/BruceCoville's "YoungAdult" novel ''Literature/TheSkullOfTruth'' is completely immobile, but telepathic. He's also Yorick from ''Theatre/{{Hamlet}}''. For real, yo.

* Most of the "Deadite" army in ''Film/ArmyOfDarkness''.

* The titular character of the ''Literature/SkulduggeryPleasant'' books is a centuries old living skeleton. The secondary protagonist, when being introduced to the supernatural for the first time, actually points out that he has no muscles to move with or lungs to speak with and asks how he works. He is rather disgruntled and gives the simple answer [[AWizardDidIt "it's magic".]] Later on, she wonders if he can whistle without lungs (he can).

** Numerous Undead Skylanders are skeletal are nature.

*** Giants features the Undead elf called Fright Rider and his skeletal ostrich Ozzy.
*** Trap Team introduces a skeletal dog known as Funny Bone.
*** Superchargers has a more elaborate version of this in the form of Fiesta, a FriendlySkeleton trumpeter based on the Day of the Dead.

* ''VideoGame/RagingBlades'' have two different varieties of skeletons; HornedHumanoid skeletons with tails which appeared first in the Cavern of Vortex, and the more common human skeleton in the Tower of Apocalypse. The human skeletons comes in two colours as well, yellow and white, though it's mostly just cosmetic.

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[[caption-width-right:350:[[TagLine And that's the way it goes.]]]]

* ''VideoGame/SuperDungeonBros'': The most plentiful enemies you'll face in the game are skeletons.

* In ''VideoGame/ChronoCross'', one of the early LoadsAndLoadsOfCharacters you can meet is the disembodied skull of a clown looking for the rest of his body parts. Naturally, he asks you to help him find them all. He appears to have been getting around until then by hopping with his jaw. Later, you get to meet his family, who has been wondering what happened to him.