#Should I really be tagging everyone?? Marcus and Krane get the most here but Idk

[bionicbore]

I’ve been thinking about bionics and how the show provided several different versions of the tech, so I wanted to brainstorm a bit, featuring a mix of Canon and Headcanon

So YEAH here’s that essay I mentioned

All we’re told about Adam, Bree and Chase is that their abilities stem from the bionic chips implanted in their necks. And other than this image,

the show never says anything otherwise about them having legitimate components inside of them. It’s primarily implied that they only have the chips, since once the chip is destroyed, they are essentially normal humans

Which... how? How could strapping a tiny little circuit board to your cervical allow you to shoot lasers from your eyes? Or run at 300mph without hurting yourself. Or... do anything that Chase has going on

Not to mention that anything like the diagrams above would require regular upkeep if implanted in say, a baby, ‘cause said baby’s gonna outgrow any physical modifications

Then it hit me

Nanobots. They’re noninvasive and wouldn’t be affected by things like growing, so giving these to a child wouldn’t require regular updates or replacements

We’ve seen that, without direction, the nanobots are capable of physically enhancing biological traits. So Douglas may have designed the chips as directives to guide the nanobots. And each chip is programmed with a specific set of abilities that correspond to avoid over-exertion

So that begs the question, what's shown in the diagrams?

I think they might be Marcus’s bionics, and the pictures simply reference who shares what abilities. He doesn’t have a nervous system or any sort of biology, so nanobots wouldn’t apply, he’d have to rely on traditional mechanics

It’s also implied that his power source is in his neck, which makes me think that his version of the chip works multipurpose: energy source and a directive. But rather than bionics, it simply directs his overall functions, since bionics would just fall under that umbrella.

And this is how the tech was originally designed before Douglas got his idea. So Marcus doesn’t glitch, but considering his lifespan, maybe the downside is the more bionics, the quicker an android is to burn out? It’s no easy feat to keep a machine that complex up and running- something’s bound to fry

So we have the Rats (and the Soldiers) with the chip/nanobot combo and Marcus with the classic, albeit likely improved, built-in approach. He’s not even bionic by definition but the show says he is so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Then there’s Krane and Leo. I don’t think it’s ever said whether or not Krane has a bionic chip, but Leo definitely doesn’t. Leo’s got what is likely a full-blown prosthetic with limited abilities, so that probably requires regular maintenance

But Krane... Krane is a Lot. He’s got a plethora of implants and abilities, BUT unlike the Rats and Soldiers, he apparently doesn’t have to deal with his bionics going haywire from the excessive amount. This could mean either,

A) Krane does not have a chip, and his bionics are solely driven by physical implants

Or B) Krane has multiple rudimentary chips to disperse the strain, and physical implants for additional support

Both are feasible for overlapping reasons: Douglas no longer having his original schematics after losing the Rats. He’d have to start from scratch no matter the amount of funding Krane provided, and depending on the amount of time given, Douglas may have been forced to cut corners

Downside is they probably hurt like a bitch. I mean look at these things. Ow