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Sculpted Physique

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One way to show off the inhumanity of a race of non-humans or monsters is to give them a Sculpted Physique where their entire body may look like an abstract sculpture made of organically grown metal, mother of pearl, or even feathers.

For all intents and purposes the creature or character looks as though they've been sculpted out of stone, wrought from metal, born part plastic, or a strange meld of flesh and technology. Common features include wings (especially if the Sculpted Physique is part of a Super Mode or One-Winged Angel), an arm-gun, Power Crystal studs, crystalline body parts, a Heart Drive or being covered in a too-literal body armor.

If the creature is a Monster of the Aesop made from the Victim of the Week, the result tends to look like the human took a toaster (or more eclectic fare) through a matter teleporter and got fused along the way. Usually it's highly aesthetically pleasing and (a)symmetric, and looks simultaneously inorganic and completely natural. Expect damage to be represented by actual cracks on their skin/outer shell, and the body itself to be jointed as if it were a lobster or action figure.

Compare Golem (when they are made of certain materials) and Chrome Champion. Not to be confused with a Hunk, who has an entirely different sculpted physique.


Examples:

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    Anime and Manga 
  • The Armored Titan from Attack on Titan has a Heroic Build and is covered in plates of hardened skin that give it an almost robotic appearance.
  • Many otherworldly villains of Dragon Ball have hard organic plating covering all or part of their bodies, but most notably Cell, Cooler, and post-transformation Janemba.
  • Guyver. Organic armor, steel arm blades, and crystalline eyes.
  • This is a common design for many Stands in the earlier parts of Jojos Bizarre Adventure, complete with cracking like stone whenever they get damaged. As the series progressed, though, stands became gradually less humanoid and more like robots and/or living modern art pieces, but even then there are still some newer stands that fit this trope.
  • Kotetsu Jeeg: Asamo's body seems done from brown, angled rock, with crystals jutting out of his head and back.
  • In Mazinger Z and Great Mazinger, the Mykene have bodies that are part organic, part mechanic.
  • RahXephon has a lot of Mulian Dolems like this, and the titular Raxephon is a shining example. It's organic but looks like part stone or metal with Power Crystal incrustations.
  • Most Monogender Monsters in Sailor Moon look like this, growing more and more strange and eclectic as the series went on.
  • The current page image shows Crystal Bowie from Space Adventure Cobra, an android whose transparent body shows off his golden endoskeleton.
  • Devil Kazuya and Devil Jin's newly-designed forms in Tekken: Blood Vengeance look like this.
  • Yu-Gi-Oh! has a few mons like this, more prominent in the sequel series Yu-Gi-Oh! GX.

    Comic Books 

    Fan Works 
  • Neither a Bird nor a Plane, it's Deku! has Tamako Nokogiri, whose superhuman ability makes her body look as though it were shaped from stone and her eyes look like jewels. Izuku also mentions that he's never seen a woman as muscular as her at that point in his life.

    Film 
  • In the Alien movies, the black and sleek exoskeleton of the xenomorphs make them look metallic.
  • Batman & Robin takes this aesthetic and runs with it for the design of the Dynamic Duo's costumes, including the bat-nipples.
  • From Bram Stoker's Dracula, we have the set of armor Vlad wore in the introductory segment. Whether intentional or not it appeared to have been crafted to look like it was made of exposed, raw musculature. Some suits of armor actually were similar, but rarely to that extent and almost never painted a uniform crimson.
  • The Mutos of Godzilla (2014) have a carapace resembling black metal. Gareth Edwards has said that their appearance was in part a Shout-Out to the above-mentioned xenomorphs.
  • Vision in the Marvel Cinematic Universe is an android whose body looks like a human sculpture.
  • In Prometheus, the Engineers appear humanoid but look like they're carved out of white stone, and their space suits seem to be organically fused to their bodies.

    Literature 
  • Played with in the Belisarius Series. Antonina, the wife of the titular general, had a cuirass created to her measure, which the artisan, as per the period's tradition, made in a Sculpted Physique style, while, ahem, exaggerating some of her features.note  Everyone has referred to it as the "Antonina's obscene cuirass" ever since. She still wears it for the lack of less flamboyant protection, though.
  • Discworld:
    • Sgt. Colon's Watch breastplate is described as having sculpted abs and pecs, into the inverse of which his own rather flabby chest and stomach fit like Jello into a mold.
    • The new golem made in Feet of Clay, intended by the other golems to be their king, is described as having a body like the most idealistic of statuary. By implications, the other golems once had similar physiques, but centuries of repair wore them down into vague, gingerbread-man shapes.
  • In The Fifth Season, the Stone Eaters are formerly human beings who look like stone sculptures of humans, and who tend to fall right at the bottom of the Uncanny Valley. Although they can meld into the earth and move through it with incredible speed, on the surface, they move very slowly and deliberately, so they usually just blink from one posture to another; one character once realizes that she can hear the grinding sound of a Stone Eater's eyes following her.

    Live-Action TV 
  • Forever: The mugging victim at the start of "Fountain of Youth" is in his sixties, but has the body of a man in his thirties, one who does crossfit.

    Tabletop Games 
  • Empyreans from Dungeons & Dragons seem to be made to directly evoke this trope, the children of gods in the mould of classical Greek heroes. They have skin that looks like marble and greatly resemble statues in terms of physique.
  • Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay: Alchemist wizards can transform their body parts into living gold with an obscure, costly, and powerful Ritual. It grants various mechanical bonuses (and huge bragging rights among alchemists), but is a blatant Mark of the Supernatural that most Muggles view with superstitious fear and/or reverence.

    Video Games 
  • The Maker in Aquaria initially looks like a white Greco-Roman statue. As the battle progresses it starts to break down and reveals more organic parts.
  • Most of the Angels in Bayonetta have this... At least before you've lain the smack down upon them.
  • For the final battle of Bioshock, Fontaine turns into what can best be described as a ten-foot-tall Atlas statue.
  • Many creatures in BrĂ¼tal Legend have metallic body parts in addition to their organic parts. For example, razor-boars are literally boars-on-wheels, with metal bars running the length of their bodies from one wheel to the next as part of their skeleton.
  • The Nanosuits from Crysis.
  • Devil May Cry:
    • The first game features Mundus, who looks like an enormous marble statue of an angel (with a gaping, open ribcage).
    • Devil May Cry 4 features The Savior, which essentially IS an enormous marble statue of an angel. You get to see its entire body in cutscenes and in a boss fight.
    • The Devil Trigger forms of Dante tend to look this way as well since while being good, he is still a demon.
  • Disgaea 3 had Super Hero Aurum go One-Winged Angel into a form composed of the monsters and evil gods he had slain stitched onto his own body to give him more superpowers. It wound up looking like a giant coffin/sword with wings and a halo grew out of his back.
  • Final Fantasy, being peppered with One-Winged Angel transformations, loves this trope:
    • A previous page picture was Seymour Natus from Final Fantasy X.
    • So is Angra Mainyu from FFX-2, probably, although she is a monster.
    • Golems in Final Fantasy XI are essentially walking statues of Mythril and Cermet.
  • The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword has Fi. Also, the final form of Ghirahim
  • Many of the Shadows in Persona 3 and Persona 4 are distinctly inorganic. Relics are feminine statues (that open to reveal spikes), Dice are Exactly What It Says on the Tin, Sands are hourglasses with legs...
  • Algol from Soulcalibur IV. Being fused with 2 magic swords will do that to you.
  • Warframe: Titular warframes are combat suits meshing organic and mechanical components into sleek biomechanical forms closely imitating human physique.
  • Many creatures in World of Warcraft are based on this trope, particularly in Northrend.

    Webcomics 

    Web Originals 
  • In the Whateley Universe, there are a number. Igneous looks like he is made out of solid rock. Migraine after her change looks more like something from Alien than a human being.

    Western Animation 
  • Most viruses from Reboot, of course Megabyte and Hexadecimal were the most prominent examples, were humanoid but looked as if they were made of sculpted and very shiny metal.
  • Trolls from Trollhunters make rock scraping sounds when they move, and their skin is as tough as stone. Despite this, they do seem to have internal organs and the like.

    Real Life 
  • The Greek and Roman cultures were all about Heroic Proportions and the beauty of the male form. Armor of the age often featured chestplates sporting chiseled muscles and even nipples. Faceguards on helms were often fashioned to look like blank, perfect faces.
  • Some sets of Japanese armor were made to look like the bodies of emaciated Buddhist monks, presumably to show the wearer's devotion, as samurai were quite frequently devout Buddhists as well. Other sets were made to resemble fierce demons for more obvious reasons.


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