[[quoteright:298:[[Anime/MobileSuitGundam00 https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1b162f6f00679d2d7ec7948104ab524a.jpg]]]]
[[caption-width-right:298:[-You should see how she brushes that thing.-]]]

->''"I gave you hair! (ROBOTIC HAAAAIR)"''
-->-- Music/TheMegas, "The Message from Dr. Light"

Robots are curious beings. They may vary in [[MechanicalLifeform lifestyle]], [[RidiculouslyHumanRobots behavior]], [[TinCanRobot design]], [[SlidingScaleOfRobotIntelligence intelligence]]... even [[{{Fembot}} gender]]. Indeed, [[OurRobotsAreNonStandard they come in a myriad of forms]]. But a particularly curious thing about them, humanoid ones in particular, is that no matter where they come from, no matter how they appear, they may have some form of a trait found most commonly on mammals. By which we mean... hair.

The hair in question could be a wig made to resemble normal human hair (or at least attempt to) or it could just be a series of mechanical parts (functional or not) which resemble a hairstyle. Either way, (as with AlienHair and NonMammalianHair), the main purpose of this trope is to show the audience a humanlike robot either by making it seem more human (since hair on the head is a very specifically human trait, especially for entities that [[LongHairIsFeminine are meant to appear female]]), or by emphasising a more human-like robot's mechanical nature (by making the "hair" look stiff and unnatural or having an ImplausibleHairColor). A variation of the latter often appears in theatre and low budget live-action movies with android characters; the actor's hair is fixed with hairspray and a combination of careful trimming and makeup is applied around the hairline (so there's a clear line) to make it look synthetic.

Only list animal examples which clearly have parts designed to resemble a particular feature, like a mane. Cyborgs also count, but only list examples with hair that is actually synthetic (rather than their original hair). Robots and cyborgs who are [[RidiculouslyHumanRobot indistinguishable from normal humans]] shouldn't be listed unless their hair fits the "makes them look artificial" variation. HumongousMecha which have styles resembling their pilots' also merit a mention.

A common feature of any {{Fembot}} (for which it can serve as TertiarySexualCharacteristics) and more or less mandatory for a RobotGirl, although masculine robots are not exempt. A RobotMe will have this trope by necessity (unless it's a copy of someone bald, of course). Naturally, other HairTropes can be applied to the "hair".

Compare WeirdBeard and SciFiBobHaircut. Sister trope to RobotAntennae.
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!!Examples:

[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
* ''Anime/OvermanKingGainer'' has King Gainer, the only mech with hair. It's even called "The [[AMechByAnyOtherName Overman]] with hair" in-series.
* [[SiblingTeam Eriya and Neriya]]'s guymelefs, Teiring, in ''Anime/TheVisionOfEscaflowne''. Each has hair in the same colour and style of their pilots'.
* The Nadleeh Gundam in ''Anime/{{Mobile Suit Gundam 00}}'' has long red cables of some sort at the back of its head, which move around like long hair. It resembles a longer version of its pilot, Tieria Erde's, hair.
* Chachamaru of ''Manga/NegimaMagisterNegiMagi'' has hair which is pastel green. It's a synthetic material which functions as her heat sink, but only the color visually distinguishes it from normal hair. Because it is her heat sink, though, she can't tie it up in alternate hairstyles, since that would interfere with the heat dissipation.
* The [[EleventhHourSuperpower Genesic]] ''Anime/{{GaoGaiGar}}'' has big red hair of the synthetic variety. Each strand is actually the same as the battery "braids" Guy wears with his armor that power his SuperMode. Galeon himself's [[MechanicalLifeforms normal form is a Lion]] with a mechanical mane facsimile.
%%* The douji in ''Manga/KarakuridoujiUltimo'', most of which also have some pretty impressive {{Anime Hair}}.'''[ZCE]'''
* ''Literature/FullMetalPanic'': Several Lambda Driver-equipped Arm Slaves have long flowing hair which actually serves as heat sink for the Driver. This includes Gauron's Codarl and Sosuke's final upgrade, the Laevatein.
%% * ''Anime/TheBigO'' [[http://www.zerochan.net/115886 R. Dorothy Wayneright]] a redheaded robot girl and resident DeadpanSnarker. Her angular bob cut fits into the "robotic looking 'human'" variation.
* Drossel from ''Anime/{{Fireball}}'' has absolutely gigantic pigtails. They can transform into a rocket engine to enable her to fly.
* The Operator androids in ''Anime/GhostInTheShellStandAloneComplex'' and ''Manga/RealDrive'' all have synthetic hair to help them closer resemble humans. People who opt to switch over to prosthetic bodies also have bio-synthetic hair, even though they're now cyborgs instead of being complete robots. In the later category, The Major is unusual for selecting an unnatural colour for her hair.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Asian Animation]]
* Some of the generic robot citizens in ''Animation/HappyHeroes'' have full heads of hair. In addition, Season 5 episode 4 is about them experiencing [[RapidHairGrowth rapid facial hair growth]] after Big M. mixes a facial hair-growing formula into a lotion.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Comic Books]]
* Skydolls in ''ComicBook/SkyDoll'' have a bald heads, with helmet-like, very synthetic, wigs (some of which resemble normal hair and some which don't).
* In Creator/JossWhedon's run on ''ComicBook/XMen'', the Danger Room developed sapience and (after creating a body from an old [[MechaMook Sentinel]]) became [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Dangeroom.PNG Danger.]] "She" has cables coming out of the back of her head that resemble hair.
* [[http://i263.photobucket.com/albums/ii137/Rogue_75/JocastaAN1.jpg Jocasta]] from ''ComicBook/TheAvengers''. She's a robotic copy of [[ComicBook/TheWasp Janet Van Dyne]], and thus has a head shaped like her hairstyle.
* Enigma from ''ComicBook/{{Incandescence}}'' has a head full of multicolored wiring that functions as her hair. She even asks “Who does your wires, girl?” while looking at Incandescence’s hair.
* Platinum from ''ComicBook/MetalMen'' is the only {{Fembot}} of the six ChromeChampion robots and, naturally, is the only one with "hair". In the New 52 incarnation, Gold is reimagined as a self-aggrandizing narcissist, and so has stylish, wavy "hair"; Platinum still has hers, don't worry.
* Sung "Girl One" Li of ''ComicBook/TopTen''. She can control its color and project patterns on her hair (and on her body).
* Warlock from the ''ComicBook/NewMutants'' was technically a "techno-organic" alien, but his cable hair fits this trope in spirit. [[ComicBook/Warlock1999 His own series]] saw his appearance change to a more humanoid form.
* In the ''ComicBook/MegaManArchieComics'' series, Doctor Light calms down a distraught Mega Man, in a conversation that is [[WaxingLyrical almost a word-for-word quote]] from the refrain of Music/TheMegas song ''The Message from Doctor Light'', which includes a reference to Rock's hair.
* [[ComicBook/CaptainAmerica Samuel "Starr" Saxon]], the Machinesmith, had BigOlEyebrows and mutton chops that become spikes on his robot body.
* In ''ComicBook/{{Chassis}}'', Tommy Tropic's {{Fembot}} chauffer Caddie has 'hair' of what appears to be black lacquer resembling a TwentiesBobHaircut: very much in keeping with the Art Deco aesthetic of the book.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Fan Works]]
* In addition to her entry under "Video Games" below, Fairy Leviathan in ''Fanfic/ManehattansLoneGuardian'' is eventually revealed to have [[spoiler:frizzy ocean blue-and-white hair]] after she's finally convinced to remove her helmet. One character wonders how much work went into making it, citing the average number of hairs on one's head.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
* ''Film/{{Spaceballs}}'': Dot Matrix (the film's equivalent to [=C-3PO=] from ''Franchise/StarWars'') has hard hair.
* ''Film/Slipstream1989''. [[ArtificialHuman Byron]] takes a hair from his head, stretches it to a long length and uses it for surgical thread.

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Literature]]
* [[JustifiedTrope Justified]] with the [=PICAs=] in Creator/DavidWeber's Literature/{{Safehold}} novels. They are built to be a perfect replica of a specific human being. The hair is usually "grown" from ingested organic materials (i.e. food that the PICA "eats").
* Some of the more human-like robots (including Freya the protagonist) in ''Saturn's Children'' by Creator/CharlesStross have hair.
* Franny's Franbots in the ''Literature/FrannyKStein'' book ''The Fran With Four Brains'' have triangular pigtails to mimic Franny's hair.
* Various kinds are displayed by the titular Clockwork Cherubs of ''Literature/TheCrewOfTheCopperColoredCupids'' depending on the model. Mark 1s like the Colonel have an inverted metal bowl with ridges on the side, of a darker colour than their "skin", giving the vague appearance of a bowl cut, though it can also look reminiscent of a WWI helmet; later models including Juliet, Marksmanship, Edwin and Pessimist have actual hair made of metal wire, in various colours including golden, silver, electric-blue, and black. A few including Mandragora and Zaroff even have beards, though this doesn't seem to be standard for any Mark.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
* ''Series/AmbassadorMagma'': Magma/Goldar is a "living giant" forged from gold with long gold hair. His normal-sized, human-looking wife and son are also behaired, but it's less unusual on them.
* Kryten (previously bald) dons a toupée in the last episode of ''Series/RedDwarf VI''.
* ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' has Data, and his brothers, who are androids designed to be superficially similar to human beings in many ways. Their hair is made to look artificial by heavy application of gel, and keeping Creator/BrentSpiner's hairline sharply trimmed.
* In the ''Series/DoctorWho'' story "The Robots of Death", the robots have hair that resembles wavy, combed-back male hair with a widow's peak, as a solid block as part of the stylized head. (The general aesthetic of the robots is RaygunGothic and they borrow heavily from art deco sculpture.) Notable in that when Taren Capel reveals his identity to the Doctor, he has actually waved and styled his hair in such a way as to resemble the robot hair.
* ''Series/KikaiSentaiZenkaiger'': Gaon has a bunch of cables which resemble dreadlocks, and Magine has a single cable which looks like a ponytail.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Music]]
* ''Music/TheMegas'' called attention to this rather memorably in "The Message from Dr. Light":
-->'''Dr. Light:''' I gave you hair! ''(ROBOTIC HAIR!)''
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Toys]]
* ''Franchise/{{Transformers}}'':
** Arcee, the go-to {{Fembot}}, generally has a helmet-like structure on her head which resembles [[Franchise/StarWars Princess Leia's famous hair buns]].
** Windblade has hair resembling a geisha's, complete with a large [[ClothingAppendage "hair clip"]].
** Elita One used to have a ponytail-like shape on her helm in her past identity as Ariel.
** Solus Prime, one of the Thirteen, has a long mass of metal hair-like appendages coming out of her head.
** Rarely, Transformers can have [[http://tfwiki.net/wiki/Facial_hair facial hair]], sometimes as an indicator of old age or [[BeardOfEvil evilness]]. [[spoiler:In ''ComicBook/TheTransformersMoreThanMeetsTheEye'', Minimus Ambus goes so far as to have his intermediate armour, which puts him up to the size of someone like Rodimus, wear a ''fake'' moustache to mimic the ''real'' one on his inner body. At one point a panicking Nautica hits him with her wrench and it comes off.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Video Games]]
* Fulgore in ''VideoGame/KillerInstinct'' is a robot who has a red/brown, ponytail-like protrusion coming from the back of his head.
* The Lin Kuei robots in ''Franchise/MortalKombat'' had a set of cables on the back of their heads which resembled pony tails.
* Most reploids from the ''Franchise/MegaMan'' series (although the eponymous character hides his under his helmet most of the time). ''VideoGame/MegaManZX'' justifies the trope by explicitly saying it was an attempt to "making humans and reploids closer to each other to make better peace":
** Most famously, Zero's long blonde ponytail from ''VideoGame/MegaManX''.
** [[VideoGame/MegaManClassic Roll]] sports golden locks neatly tied up with a ribbon, whereas Plum (from ''Rockman Battle & Chase'') has pink hair.
** ''VideoGame/MegaManZero'' has Elpizo (blond), Omega (a pinkish/fuchsia ponytail sprouting out from the top of his helmet), and Kraft (dark spiky hair which appears to also form GoNagaiSideburns), among others. Seeing as [[spoiler:Omega's body is a shell[=/=]PowerLimiter for Zero's original body, this means that Omega also shares Zero's infamous long hair.]]
** ''VideoGame/MegaManZX'': Promotheus and Pandora, the former of whom [[PrehensileHair actually utilizes it in battle]]. This is more easily noticeable when the player sees a glimpse of the siblings in the past (as detailed by [[spoiler:Master Albert]]'s Cipher report) [[spoiler:until [[ShapeshifterModeLock they were permanently fused to a piece Model W and stuck in their Megamerged states.]]]] Reploids Girouette, Prairie (heavily implied to be Alouette from ''VideoGame/MegaManZero''), Serpent, Grey, Thetis, and Siarnaq also sport human-like hair.
** Splash Woman (from ''Mega Man 9'') and [[VideoGame/MegaManZero Fairy Leviathan]] fall into the "Mechanical Facsimile" category: their helmets frame their faces in a manner that resembles hair (specifically, a SciFiBobHaircut, with a few extra bangs in front in Leviathan's case).
** Proto Man has [[AnimeHair oddly-styled hair]] [[http://vignette4.wikia.nocookie.net/megaman/images/a/aa/Helmetless_Protoman.png/revision/latest?cb=20091230212135 under his helmet.]]
* ''VideoGame/MetallicChild'': [[PlayerCharacter Rona]], along with several other Metallic Children, have very human-looking hair. Rona's is white, with others come in varying shades.
* Emeralda in ''VideoGame/{{Xenogears}}''. Of course, since she's entirely made of nanomachines, it sort of makes sense that she can make them into hair if she wants to. She also uses it as a weapon in some of her attacks.
* In ''VideoGame/BlazBlue'' Nirvana has a crest on "her" head in the shape of [[spoiler:her hair when she was still Ada Clover.]] Occasional joke character [[RobotMe Mecha Tao]] has a metal version of [[CatGirl Taokaka]]'s hair. The [[RobotGirl Prime Field Devices]] [[spoiler:including Noel Vermilion]] all have normal looking blonde hair (although it's not stated if they're RidiculouslyHumanRobots or {{Artificial Human}}s).
* In ''VideoGame/CaveStory'', both the protagonist and Curly Brace respectively have black and blonde hair, making them stand out from other, less humanoid robots.
* [[RobotBuddy Candy Diamond]], Kula's [[NotBloodSiblings "sister"]] from ''VideoGame/{{The King of Fighters}} 2000'', slides from one type into the other. [[http://images.wikia.com/snk/images/0/03/Kula_y_Candy.gif In her intro with Kula,]] she's shown to have regular hair, but then sheds her disguise to reveal her true robotic form, which has metallic hair.
* In ''VideoGame/MassEffect3'', EDI's robot body sports a bob made out of steel. When it was masquerading as [[spoiler:Dr. Eva Core]], is was most likely made out of synthetic fibers that were [[spoiler:burned away in the explosion]]. Notably, while it looks solid, it can be switched to a mass of hair-like fibres, making it both variations of the trope at once.
-->'''EDI''': ...and when it gets wet, I can't do anything with it!
* In ''VideoGame/Fallout3'', there is a side-quest to retrieve the Declaration of Independence. In it, you will eventually encounter a Protectron that due to a malfunction believes himself to be the real [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Button_Gwinnett Button Gwinnett]] and wears a powdered wig.
* ''VideoGame/{{Scrapland}}'''s main character D-Tritus has hair made of optical fibers, tied in a tuft in the back of his neck. There's also Betty with a thick piece of purple metal over her head and face, designed to look like a bob cut with a bang over her eye.
* ''VideoGame/RisingThunder'':
** [[{{Fembot}} Chel]] has linked metal plates coming out the back of its head that look like locks of purple hair.
** Edge has green FlamingHair coming out of an exhaust port on the back of its head.
* The {{Fembot}} hooker in ''VideoGame/{{Jazzpunk}}'' has what may be either a wig or simply a head shaped like a head with hair; the whole game is too stylized to tell.
* In ''VideoGame/LeagueOfLegends'', Lissandra and Soraka's "Program" skins give them masses of wire for hair.
* Mettaton's EX form in ''VideoGame/{{Undertale}}'' has bangs concealing the unfinished right side of his face.
** Mettaton EX's ''Underswap'' counterpart Napstabot has a head of feathered hair. Unlike Mettaton his hair doesn't cover his face and is white instead of black.
* In ''VideoGame/{{Overwatch}}'', [[ColdSniper Widowmaker's]] Noire skin has what appear to be cables and connection ports coming off her head and [[RobotWizard Ramattra]] has a set of ribbon cables about his head that resembles dreadlocks.
* ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles2'': [[spoiler:After two bodies with metallic protrusions that merely look like hair, Poppi QTπ has realistic, but apparently synthetic hair.]]
* In ''VideoGame/SpeedKills'', a robotic race contestant has a mass of long, purple tubes extending from her head which approximately resemble (unusual) hair.
* Kit from ''VideoGame/RatchetAndClankRiftApart'' has two lightbulbs on her head that resemble OdangoHair, in contrast to her dimensional counterpart Clank's single antenna.
* RobotButler Fred from ''VideoGame/KukooKitchen'' has two long purple appendages protruding from a tube above his mouth screen, which are designed to resemble a long, twirling mustache.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Comics]]
* ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'':
** Jade Harley, Dirk Strider, and Andrew Hussie all have robots of themselves complete with matching hair that appear to be carved/shaped out of the same metal used for the body.
** Aradia Megido's soulbot has synthetic hair that is the same long, curly hairstyle that she had when she was alive.
** The herd of robotic Maplehoofs have the same mane as their living counterpart.
* Doris in ''Webcomic/ValAndIsaac'' [[http://tredlocity.tumblr.com/post/170871634485/doris-hair-is-made-out-of-an-artificial-substance has an "artificial substance that mimics hair"]]. Minnow approves.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Videos]]
* ''WebVideo/{{Kara}}'' has a RidiculouslyHumanRobot who is designed to appear human in just about every way, including a head of short brown hair (which is seen being installed on her significantly more obviously mechanical-at first-body).
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Western Animation]]
* Jenny from ''WesternAnimation/MyLifeAsATeenageRobot'' has triangular metal pigtails. Inside them are [[{{Jetpack}} a rocket propulsion system]] and [[DoAnythingRobot god-only-knows what else]].
* Any {{Fembot}} that appears in ''{{WesternAnimation/Futurama}}'' tends to have some sort of hair-like structure on their head, notably Bender [[GenderBender as Coilette]].
* In the ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'' ''Franchise/StarWars'' parodies, Cleveland "plays" [=R2-D2=] by having an afro on the robot. [[RuleOfFunny The hair doesn't seem robotic, it's just a wig stuck on top.]]
* ''WesternAnimation/BeastMachines'': [[FemmeFatale Blackarachnia's]] robot form sports what appears to be a long mane of something that evokes the appearance of long hair. In ''WesternAnimation/BeastWars'' she had a headpiece which more resembled a helmet or bob cut instead.
* While Peridot from ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'' isn't a robot (no matter how much she [[EmotionlessGirl acts]] like one), she looks the part, which includes a triangular hairdo that look so much like a helmet that WordOfGod had to specify which it was. [[spoiler:When she loses her [[ArtificialLimbs "limb enhancers"]] and ends up captured by the gems, her hair becomes [[SeriouslyScruffy notably scruffier]] and less artificial looking.]]
* A one-off gag in an episode of ''WesternAnimation/DextersLaboratory'' shows an electrician snipping a few frayed wires sticking out of a robot's head, which have been styled into an elaborate hairdo. The robot appreciates the "haircut".
* The [[AmbiguousRobots robotic-appearing]] characters in ''WesternAnimation/{{Mixels}}'' have characters that have a few robotic hairstyles, such as Volectro with thick strands of piping making a spiky static-charged hairdo, while Niksput has a fin that resembles a pompadour with sideburns.
* ''WesternAnimation/OKKOLetsBeHeroes'' has multiple robot characters. Some of them have hair:
** Shannon has a head shaped like a turned-up hairstyle.
** Raymond's pompadour appears to be realistic hair.
** Under his top hat, Ernesto has a combover.
[[/folder]]
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