Eerie Anatomy Model

And how'd you like it if in the dead of night some children that shouldn't be there were holding a light in your face?

Anatomy models are creepy. Always were, always will be, and the better they are, the worse it gets. Of course, they are essential to understanding the human body, and to that the only alternative is having an actual corpse around. Which would make an anatomy model the Lesser of Two Evils, were it not for the fact they usually show up in Horror stories. Mayhaps they are a corpse; the work of a Mad Doctor who now has to add the protagonist to their collection. Mayhaps they are a cleverly disguised member of The Undead. And mayhaps they actually are just plastic, plaster, or something else inorganic, but unless part of a work in which monsters are friendly, they'll be out to kill.

Eerie anatomy models are predominantly an East Asian trope. There is no particular reason these things aren't used all that much in Western media, but the high popularity in Japan can be traced back to Gakkou no Kaidan and in particular the 1995 film in which the anatomy model was one of the more memorable youkai. The urban legend itself — that the model walks around school at night — goes back at least as far as the 1950s. Anatomy models have since become a common pick for one of The Seven Mysteries — haunting the science room, the biology lab, or rarely the infirmary — but just as easily show up as part of a full-blown Big Boo's Haunt. Sometimes, it's a two-for-one deal featuring an anatomy model ("jintai mokei") and a skeleton model ("kokkaku mokei") as a Red Oni, Blue Oni-style duo. A step further they're joined by the science room specimens of cut-open animals preserved in formaldehyde. The typical model seen in East Asian media is a full-bodied male figure that looks normal on the right side and flayed on the left side. Comedic works might make use of this by showing the model's normal side in profile first, then startling the audience or the cast by its turning.

There's an analysis page that looks further into the why of a few of the above trends. It also gives context to several of the references mentioned in the examples.

When it comes to skeleton models, those being actual human remains is still Truth in Television. Up until the early 20th century, it was not uncommon to preserve an actual skeleton instead of going through the trouble of reproducing one. Every so often there's another story of another school that either realizes their skeleton model is real or decides to investigate whom their skeleton model belonged to. And that's in regards to places that have principally switched over to artificial models; there are countries where digging up actual bones is ongoing.

Depending on the nature of the anatomy model, Sub-Trope of Youkai, Living Statue (a Sister Trope of Murderous Mannequin), The Undead (Dem Bones in case of skeleton models), and Dead Guy on Display. May be a form of Body Horror and/or Uncanny Valley. Compare Free the Frogs, which is the closest the West has to the way Japan handles this trope, and Wax Museum Morgue, which is its artistic counterpart.

---

Examples:

Anime & Manga

• There's 7x7 mysteries to deal with in one of the challenges in As the Gods Will Arc II. The anatomy model debuts in Chapter 26 and is one of the traditional inclusions, although a peculiarity is that its normal half-face is a The Phantom of the Opera-like mask. It seeks out humans to turn them into art, which doesn't require them dead but sure makes them more cooperative. Fortunately, its only victim before being blown up is a wannabe rapist.
• Dandadan: Ayase, Okarun, and Jiji chase after an animated one named Taro, who's in love with a female mannequin named Hana who was thrown out. Hana is also sentient but lacks arms and legs.
• Futari wa Pretty Cure: Early on the show's run, a Zakenna of the Week took the appearance of a human anatomy model. It was remarkably creepy.
• Ghost Stories:
  • The anatomy doll appears in the second episode, where it's encountered in the hallways of the old school building by Satsuki and Hajime. Instead of running, it does a Ghostly Glide. While trying to escape, Hajime knocks over a broom that hits the anatomy doll and smashes it to pieces. This isn't the end of the doll, as its flayed hand wanders off, but at least it leaves them alone.
  • The ending credits depict a Hyakki Yagyou in which an anatomy figure participates. It is drawn to resemble one of the human muscle figures in the De humani corporis fabrica.
• Gakkou no Kaidan (Anime Video Joukan):
  • An anatomy model named Jinta is one of the eight hosts presenting the horror story segments. He does not appear in the story segments himself. In the manga, he has a best friend named Kokka, a skeleton model and apparently one made of real human bone. Jinta makes clear that he himself is from a factory.
  • In the second segment of the first episode, a skeleton model poses the main threat to a boy who shifts from his own school into the Dream School. Forced into a life-or-death situation, the boy smashes through the skeleton. He later wakes up in his home dimension, where he finds the science room's skeleton model broken on the floor.
• An anatomy model and skeleton model duo show up as a single unit in Haunted Junction, with one important difference between manga and anime. In the manga, they're lesser ghosts among several that have their home in Saitou High School. They are useless. In the anime, they remain useless, but nonetheless they are one of The Seven Mysteries of the school tasked with aiding the Sato Holy Student Council in defeating evil spirits. They replace Beethoven's painting as the youkai associated with the dark green badge. The anatomy model is called Haruo Sato and the skeleton model Bones Suzuki. They're good only for doing That Russian Squat Dance and in the final chapter of the manga Haruo turns out to have a younger brother, who of course also is an anatomy model.
• In Chapter 39 and Episode 12 of Great Teacher Onizuka, Onizuka vandalizes the brand new anatomy model by cutting off its skinless half and reworking it into a costume, ostensibly to dress up as Baron Ashura. In the anime but not in the manga, Onizuka unintentionally scares Azusa with it.
• In the tenth episode of the sixth series of GeGeGe no Kitarō, the focus is on the Seven Mysteries at Mana's school. Among them is an anatomy model. The Mysteries get taken prisoner by one of them, Yousuke, who is after Hanako. The protagonists defeat him and allow the Mysteries to return to their parts of the school.
• Jewelpet: Magical Change: Airi and Ruby are tricked by Laura and Luea to come to the school late at night to investigate the local ghosts. In truth, they're all products of Luea's magic and they fail miserably at being scary. The moment the living anatomy model sees itself in the mirror, it runs away in fright.
• Chapter 26 of Hell Teacher Nube stars an anatomy model in a Become a Real Boy plot. Having been around students so much, it had gained sapience and thought itself a student too. At night, it would tidy up the entire school, which made it well-liked but nonetheless feared. Nube's class came together at night to pretend class while working towards a gentle exorcism, but the revelation it wasn't human was still a huge shock to the model. It did accept the truth and was given a few hours to play with its "fellow" students as if it were a human, allowing it to go peacefully. Nonetheless, its wish to be human was so strong that it was granted by Kannon. She didn't, however, give him full skin with it, but he's good at hiding that.
• In episode 28 of Glitter Force, the protagonists go investigate the ghost stories told about their school. Majorina hears of this and turns the school building into a super buffoon filled with regular buffoons, some of which take after urban legends. A buffoon-ified duo consisting of an anatomy model and a skeleton model show up as well.
• In the sixth episode of Love Tyrant, the protagonists visit a school building at night. They are harassed by the local spirits, among which an anatomy model, but Guri and Akane beat them into a pulp.
• An anatomical model named Jinta appears in Episode 5 of Yo-kai Watch: Shadowside. He's in love with the student Minami. So is Koji, who uses Jinta as the canvas of his love confession because he knows Minami likes the model. It angers both her and Jinta, and when Jinta is shot (twice!) by Fukurou his negative feelings get the better of him and his Shadowside form Jingeki, a giant who uses his organs as bludgeoning tools, comes forth. Fortunately, Minami manages to calm him down. Upon his subsequent Love Confession, she replies that he's already been talked about by her grandmother Machiko, who went to the same school 50 years ago and whose resemblance to her triggered Jinta's new feelings. He melancholically remembers Machiko and needs time alone upon learning that she's no more but thought of him until her end.
• Corpse Party: Tortured Souls changes a few details regarding the anatomical model compared to Corpse Party. Instead of Yoshiki and Ayumi, the anatomical model goes after Yuka. He captures her inside the Science Lab and commences a dissection, injuring Yuka beyond survival but never getting to the finishing blow because Yoshiki storms up and smashes his head off with a lead pipe.
• In Chapter 50 of Zekkyou Gakkyuu, there's a skeleton model that stands abandoned in the preparation room. It has only one desire: to be free to leave and have friends and for all that, it has to be human. It kills two notorious bullies for their flesh, but can't use their heads because those would not make getting friends easy. Then Asato, a fallen once-bully who thinks the model killed her former friends for her sake, comes to ask the model not to harm Chiba. Chiba used to be the trio's main victim but has since befriended Asato. Knowing enough, the model kills Asato and takes her head so it can go hang out with Chiba.
• In Episode 112 of Case Closed, the anatomy model of the infirmary is witnessed running around at night, but this turns out to be a misinterpretation of a teacher moving it.
• Kaidan Is Dead has The Seven Mysteries concerned they'll cease to exist if children no longer believe in them. Among the mysteries are a moving anatomy model and a dancing skeleton model. They count as separate mysteries, respectively #3 and #6, even though they both are active in the science room. Normally, they get along, but stress will make them competitive over the spot.
• In episode 5 of Dusk Maiden of Amnesia, Kirie and Momoe gather an old anatomy model from an abandoned part of the school for a haunted house attraction. Momoe knows of a rumor that the model has lost its own heart and therefore kills people to replace it with theirs. Kirie isn't impressed and so they take it with them. Along the way, it becomes evident to the audience only that the model is alive, but not evil and limitedly mobile. There's also an old skeleton model that just might be alive based on the fact it fell over Kirie in what looks like a comforting hug. Although The Seven Mysteries are an element of Dusk Maiden of Amnesia, those all relate to Yuuko and don't refer to any models being alive. This is due to the fact that the anatomy model's sapience and the skeleton model's very existence are unique to the anime and do not occur in the corresponding Chapter 19 of the manga.
• Late at night, Isumi is banishing evil spirits from the old school building of Hakuou Academy in Episode 9 of Hayate the Combat Butler. Then Hayate and Hinagiku wander in and so Isumi possesses an anatomy model to scare them away. They, however, fight back. Isumi concludes that giving the duo a sense of victory will coax them to leave, so she triples the model's amount of arms and sticks out its ribs as if she's handling an Iberian ribbed newt. Then she makes it explode.
• The Wallflower:
  • Sunako considers herself a creature of the dark ever since the boy she liked called her ugly. She's basically a hikikomori whose most important friend is an incomplete anatomy model she's named Hiroshi. As per Chapter 44 (or Episode 20), after she was called ugly she found it among the trash of a school and took it home, which was the start of her macabre collection. Her other friends, in order of importance, are the skeleton model Josephine, the limbless anatomy model Akira, and the skull model John. They are joined in Chapter 50 (Episode 18) by another skeleton, George Maximilian du Veloce, who is Josephine's brand-new husband. She interacts with them as if they are alive, presenting her inner ponderings as their words to her, and most people close to Sunako join in on that kind of projection. In the anime, Hiroshi is alive as the episode's presentator. He also dances during both outros and is joined by Akira and Josephine in the second one.
  • Sunako visits an abandoned school building in Chapter 25 in the hopes of meeting ghosts, including a walking anatomy model, but to her dismay, there aren't any.
• Tesshou from Wild Life threatens the proud principal of an orphanage in Chapter 2 by killing him and turning his corpse into an anatomy model.
• Jinta from Yo-kai Watch: Shadowside is a yokai that resembles a human anatomical model and that is his lightside. His shadowside is a bigger and scarier version of him.

Films — Animation

• After School Midnighters stars the St. Claire Elementary School duo of Kunstlijk and Goth. Kunstlijk, an anatomy model, is a Mad Scientist, and Goth, a skeleton model, is somewhere between his Beleaguered Assistant and his Best Friend. They are set to be disposed of when the science room gets demolished the next day, a prospect that terrifies Goth but doesn't bother Kunstlijk because he's convinced they'll just go to another school. When a trio of girls vandalize Kunstlijk, he has them brought back at night by a gangster trio of dead half-skinned rabbits preserved in formaldehyde that he revived. Goth saves them from Kunstlijk on the argument that the girls should partake in the After School Midnight Party, a challenge of which the prize is one wish. The wish could be used to prevent the science room's destruction, but Kunstlijk is more interested in revenge. His tricks backfire, of course, and one launches him all the way into the town where he hides in a fashion mannequin depot. It's upon seeing the mountain of mannequin limbs that he realizes there won't be another school for him and Goth; they're over 40 years old and replaceable by the dozen. Setting aside his hatred, he goes back to ensure the girls ace the ASMP. They do and wish "to play again". Because this can only happen if the science room is spared, it, along with Kunstlijk and Goth, are restored to prime condition and the plans for demolition erased.

Films — Live-Action

• The villains of Anatomy are the Anti-Hippocratic Society, who pursue knowledge through the bodies of people they deem undesirable. Their preferred murder weapon is the poison Promidal and some of their victims are plastinated for future use. Ambitious new member Hein defies the society's controlled M.O. by poisoning his love interest and stabbing her boyfriend out of jealousy. He disposes of the boy, but plastinates the girl (after decapitating her to avoid her being recognized). He then goes after the protagonist, Paula, and her boyfriend for the same reason and with the same plan of preservation of Paula's corpse. They kill him before he kills them, though, and escape. While they are now safe, the ending makes clear that the Anti-Hippocratic Society and their practices continue unopposed.
• In The Doctor Takes a Wife, despite being unable to stand the sight of anatomy diagrams, June takes a liking to the anatomy head Tim has on his desk because it reminds her of her uncle Chester. As such, she starts calling it Chester and talks to it as if it were a real person, which includes promising it that Marilyn won't be its mother (ie, that Tim won't marry Marilyn).
• In the science room of the Old School Building in Gakkou No Kaidan, when the status of the old school building as haunted has been well-confirmed, the three boys of the group first come face to face with a reanimated cut-open toad specimen that menacingly stands up on its hind legs. Seconds later, the boys notice the skeleton model they'd found earlier, toyed with, and left at one of the building's exit doors, in the room with them. (It's left ambiguous in the film whether the skeleton moved itself or was brought over. The booklet sold to the theater audience at that time states that it is, in fact, another monster.) In fright, Hitoshi walks straight into the anatomy model, which organs have started looking decidedly organic and functional. Hitoshi accidentally pulls out its intestines, angering the model and requiring the other two boys to save him by using a stuffed bear as shield. The trio escape into the preparation room, the door of which the anatomy model bashes its head through, but they push it back and block the hole. The anatomy model gives up once the janitor arrives.
• The titular character of Pin is an anatomically accurate model that is ventriloquistically given voice by his owner Dr. Linden to entertain young patients. His son, Leon develops a split personality so he has a friend in Pin. With Pin at his side, he commits two murders to ensure nothing changes between him, Pin, and his sister Ursula, but Ursula fights back by destroying Pin when her boyfriend is harmed. Leon breaks down at losing his one friend and fully becomes Pin, losing the ability to move and to put on a voice other than his late father's deformed one. Unlike the book the movie is based on, there is a scene that makes it possible Pin is alive beyond Leon's imagination. During the hectic car ride that kills Leon's parents, Pin is in the backseat and rises up, then loses the sheet covering it. The fear this puts Leon's parents in is part of what causes the car crash.
• A half-dog anatomy display gets turned into a creepy, whimpering, and twitching zombie by the 2-4-5 Trioxin gas in Return of the Living Dead.
• In Frankenstein (1931), Fritz gets spooked by an anatomical skeleton at the medical school just before stealing the brain.

Literature

• In Creature of Havoc, the skeletal Mad Doctor Quimmel Bone hides in plain sight by impersonating an anatomical skeleton on a stand.
• One of the most powerful enemies from Into the Jaws of Doom is the Visible Man, a living anatomy humanoid was previously a display model, but was reanimated by the Super Computer to hunt down intruders.
• The titular character of Pin is an anatomically accurate model that is ventriloquistically given voice by his owner Dr. Linden to entertain young patients. His son, Leon develops a split personality so he has a friend in Pin. As the story flows, Leon notes that more and more his body stiffens up and he loses his sense of touch. With Pin at his side, he commits two murders to ensure nothing changes between him, Pin, and his sister Ursula, but Ursula fights back by destroying Pin when her boyfriend is killed. Leon breaks down at losing his one friend and fully becomes Pin as a living anatomy model.

Manhua

• An Old Master Q strip has Master Q visiting his local doctor, who is then told to change into a surgical gown, only for Master Q to be scared of the model skeleton in the changing room.

Live-Action TV

• The villain of CSI: Extinction leaves a fly-filled anatomy model in an Abandoned Warehouse for Grissom to find, as part of his Criminal Mind Games.
• In the Supernatural episode "Mannequin 3: The Reckoning", a series of murders is committed by possessed dummies. Among them is an anatomy model in a lab and its victim is the janitor. The Cold Open where this happens is one of the most downright eerie moments of the whole series.
• The killer in one episode of Midsomer Murders left his victim's body Hidden in Plain Sight for years as an anatomical skeleton in a classroom.
• Im Scared But Want To Know About The Body is a Japanese educational series in which schoolgirl Elina learns anatomy and physiology from anatomy model Jintaro. In the intro, she is afraid of him, not helped by the fact that she is meeting him in a darkened school lab at night, and she faints when he drops his lab coat and shows his whole, half-skinned plastic body. During the episodes, Elina and Jintaro interact quite happily, though she is still uncomfortable when he drops sections of muscle to show his organs.

Tabletop Games

• Anatomy Dummy, Migi Nice Guy is one of the urban legend-inspired Legend World cards of Future Card Buddyfight. It made an appearance in episode 15 of Future Card Buddyfight X as a friend of Hanako in the Toilet. His normal half is dressed in a fancy suit and Kuguru thinks he's handsome until he turns and she sees his undressed and skinless left side.
• Warhammer Fantasy: The natural form of the Doppelgänger is like a living anatomy model, skinless and with exposed viscera. They're also malevolent magical constructs who eat the victims they duplicate out of preference rather than need.

Video Games

• The anatomical model is, along with Sachiko, a core villain in the Corpse Party franchise. In the original game, it is the only deadly thing neither a ghost nor a trap. In the remake, the model is the only default threat encountered who is introduced while still human: Yuuya Kizami. In the official games, trying to Kill It with Fire is a bad idea, while the fan games recommend removing the legs. That won't stop it but such will reduce its potential to a Stern Chase. The model usually resides in the Science Lab and sometimes has teleportation powers.
  • Official games:
    • In Corpse Party (PC-98), the anatomical model is the critical element as to whether Yoshiki and/or Ayumi survive until the end. If it catches the duo, the model corners Ayumi, and Yoshiki can choose to run or save her. Running leads to Ayumi's bloody death. Saving her prompts Yoshiki to attack the model with a gas burner, but the model teleports behind him and shares the flames, leading to Yoshiki's death.
    • In Chapter 5 of Corpse Party, Yuuya is killed and presumably it's the Infirmary where he's made into the anatomical model. Yoshiki and Ayumi later may encounter the result in the Science Lab. If so, it will be joined by the zombie-like Yoshikazu and give chase. If either ghost catches them, that's an immediate bad end. Ayumi will be the one captured and Yoshiki will set the anatomical model afire with a gas burner to free her. It doesn't work out: the model gets up and embraces Yoshiki, engulfing the both of them in flames.
    • Corpse Party: Sweet Sachiko's Hysteric Birthday Bash takes place on the one day the cycle of death is lifted. On this day, Yuuya does not exist as the anatomical model. He does, however, obtain a belt of transformation that on the count of 40 re-outfits him into an anatomical model suit. It has an in-built igniter. He tries to burn Mitsuki through it, but she defiantly pulls him into a nearby gap with her.
    • By the time of Corpse Party: Blood Drive, the anatomical model has partnered up with the mentally all-gone Azusa. They try to kill Yoshiki, but he outruns them. Next they encounter Magari, who has been tasked with retrieving her cult-colleague Azusa. Magari subdues both of them and logically got Azusa out thereafter, but Yuuya's fate is currently unknown.
  • Fan games:
    • In Corpse Party Zero, the anatomical model inserts itself between the Hasegawa sisters during a momentary power outage and moves in on Shiho when the light returns. If Kaori doesn't create an escape route timely, Shiho is killed and Kaori soon after. If Shiho is saved but the sisters get caught still, Kaori is knocked out and Shiho decapitated. If all goes well, the sisters lock the anatomical model up inside the Science Lab. This only stops it for so long, as it launches itself through the window, but crashes through the floor. When much later Kaori has to escape the school, the anatomical model returns without its legs to give a steady but slow chase.
    • In Corpse Party: Cross Fear, either Seita or Sayako enters the Science Lab looking for Kaori. If Seita does, he can't escape the anatomical model and will have his throat crushed until decapitation. If Sayako does, the anatomical model will instead attack Doctor Amagasaki, pushing him along into a fall. Amagasaki survives that and the model by offering to kill the children himself. The model shows up again to chase after Kaori and Seita when they're headed to the dimensional exit.
    • Yoshiki left Ayumi to be murdered by the anatomical model years ago. He relives his choice when he's brought back to the school in Corpse Party if... and is the only one who can save his student Akari from the model. This time, he grabs a katana and cuts the model in half. It later returns to crawl after Akari when she runs to escape the school.
    • Traumatized Yoshi is a Mini-Game unlocked in Corpse Party if: PAST END. It's about Yoshiki making his way through hordes of anatomical models to save Ayumi, but the models will always get him first.
    • Anatomical models are enemies encountered in Seiko MindBreak! (Nebulous 8bit Style). There's a light and a dark variant. The dark variant will lose its legs upon taking damage but continue on attacking regardless.
• While no anatomy model appears in Danganronpa, this was the original idea for Monokuma. His half-white & half-black look are reimagined from the anatomy model's half-skin & half-skinless look.
• With White Day: A Labyrinth Named School, the role of the Living Manikin of Yeondu High School depends on the version of the game. Its area of action is the biology lab, but in the PS4/PC version of the remake it can also be found in the science lab and the nurse's office.
  • In the original game, the manikin is fairly harmless as well as the "owner" of the Sanitary Gloves that enable a disarming ddong-chim to be pulled on the janitors. To obtain them, Lee Hee-Min must be exhausted and wait in the biology lab. Whether a hallucination or possessed, the manikin will approach and drop the Sanitary Gloves from its ass. It's easy to avoid thereafter (unless the bug where it won't stop chasing is encountered).
  • In the remake, the manikin is uplifted to a proper entity, but the Sanity Gloves are removed. To get it to move, Lee Hee-Min must be exhausted and light the alcohol lamp in the biology lab. He then has to stay out of the manikin's reach until the lamp goes out, at which point the manikin will return to normal and be added to the Ghost Collection. Its related story is "The Mystery in the Biology Lab", which states that Yeondu High School is the location of a concentration camp for political prisoners from the occupation era. It elaborates that horrendous experiments on human subjects took place, and either the ghosts of the victims or the ghost of the head researcher could be linked to the manikin. It may even be so that the manikin is the reworked corpse of one of the victims.
• Lost Judgment: a sidequest at Seiryo High School involves a rumor that the biology department's anatomy model is cursed and comes to life at night. Yagami investigates and finds that it's actually a student in makeup trying a very roundabout way to cheat on his upcoming exams.
• Persona has Anatomy, a demon of the Foul order. Curiously, it never appears anywhere in the school or the hospital — the closest it gets to either is the different towers in the Snow Queen Quest.
• There's the Running Mannequin in Yomawari: Night Alone. It appears when the protagonist moves onto the road in front of the school's main gate. It'll come running up from behind her and make the sound of a car crash when it kills her.
• On February 17, 2019, an anatomical figure was added to the infirmary in Yandere Simulator. The accompanying dev notes explain that it's meant for a plot regarding The Seven Mysteries that will be added in the future.
• There's a lower level in Omega Ranch in Deus Ex: Human Revolution where many muscle models are on display, continuously cycling through several poses. Hiding as one of them is Jaron Namir, who attacks Adam Jensen on Zhao Yun Ru's command. Once he's beaten, all models will come to stand still doing a salute. It's not explained why they do or, for that matter, what they are, but the facility houses plenty of Unwitting Test Subjects and their remains. The developers have stated the area was inspired by the Body Worlds exhibition.
• There are a couple of these in the Science classroom in Dark Fall - Ghost Vigil. Although not too ghastly, the one near the classroom door does have the creepy tendency to always face directly toward you.
• In The Room: Old Sins, the Curiosity Room of Waldegrave Manor has a Clock Punk-esque model, with various puzzles centered on different parts of its body. At one point, the player can use their eyepiece to travel inside the model's eye and see a flashback of the house's inhabitants.
• An upper torso model appears in Resident Evil – Code: Veronica. Replacing its missing glass eye unlocks a hidden pathway.
• Conversely, Silent Hill: Origins has a surgery model in Alchemilla Hospital that requires you to replace its missing plastic organs in order to obtain its set of glass eyes for another puzzle. In an extra-creepy twist, visiting the Dark World version of the same room sees the anatomy model replaced with a real corpse, with its guts exposed and its eyes missing.

Visual Novels

• Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc started out as a game called Distrust, whose mascot was a living anatomical model named Phantom.
• Subverted in Spirit Hunter: Death Mark. There's an anatomy model in the preparation room in an abandoned and haunted school building. It is filled with snakes, but otherwise it is a regular plastic model. This is despite the fact that the building is home to Miss Zoo, a one-woman Cult Mad Scientist, who slaughters and dismembers humans and animals (except snakes) alike as offerings and For Science!. The anatomy model itself stands right next to a cabinet displaying preserved human body parts. But the model is just a model. Go figure!
• The school nurse Yujin of Nameless has a thing for bones. Fortunately, his tastes are satisfied by artificial bones as well, and so he is in a relationship with Beatrice, one of the skeleton models in the infirmary. He is, however, not on good terms with Beatrice's half-brother Christopher, a limbless anatomy model. But Beatrice adores him so he does his best to be nice to Christopher.

Western Animation

• The "E. Peterbus Unum" episode of Family Guy had Peter mention that he intends on selling his body to science simply so that he can scare children as an elementary school class's skeleton model.
• A gigantic and interactive human anatomy model is on display at the Natural History Museum in The Simpsons episode "Smart and Smarter." Most of the Simpsons nearly die from being trapped inside of it, but they end up being saved by Maggie.

Real Life

• In India, unclaimed corpses may be put in mass graves and later dug up to make room for new ones. The old bones may then be sold to both medical students and animation students. The country has many of both and they're all encouraged to get a skeleton for themselves to use as study material. As a result, the demand is much higher than the supply. On top of that, medical students are particularly encouraged to get access to the real deal because more knowledge can be gained from that than from a mass-produced replica.

---