Metal Cats by Alexandra Crockett / powerHouse Books

Metal Cats by Alexandra Crockett / powerHouse Books

Metal Cats by Alexandra Crockett / powerHouse Books

Metal Cats by Alexandra Crockett / powerHouse Books

Metal Cats by Alexandra Crockett / powerHouse Books

Metal Cats by Alexandra Crockett / powerHouse Books

Metal Cats by Alexandra Crockett / powerHouse Books

Metal Cats by Alexandra Crockett / powerHouse Books

Metal Cats by Alexandra Crockett / powerHouse Books

Striker - 'Armed To The Teeth' A skeleton of a carnivorous canine returned to life as a machine-gun and dual-flame-thrower toting, homicidal battledroid? Doesn't seem all that sensible.

Exodus - 'Shovel Headed Kill Machine' Similarly, this robotic death tank with optional slaughter plough also seems misguided. Especially if somebody works out how to 3D print one.

Riot - 'Thunder Steel' Having said that, by comparison Riot's idea Exodus look positively Apple-like in their vision of functional murder weapons. This robotic tank has its basis in a decent enough idea, but literally sticking half a humanoid holding a (drop-able) gun onto a ridiculously small motorised tank is not going to do much for anyone. And we're pretty sure the Campaign To Stop Killer Robots would be against it.

Iron Maiden - 'Somewhere In Time' Undisputed gods of the heavy metal world they may be, but designers of responsible android technology they are not. With this famous album cover, Iron Maiden demonstrate why using advanced cyborg brain implants and robotic skeletons is not a good idea if you're going to give it to an oft-reincarnated zombie demon

Battle Beast To some it might appear that these classic cyborg robotic aliens are on the right lines when thinking about the next evolution of (ethically problematic) battlefield drones. But then you realise they're being easily defeated by a pair of lions in lioncloths. We can do better.

Scanner - 'Terminal Earth' The final humiliation. A once proud mechanical marvel reduced to the status of a down-and-out, frizzed by urinating dogs and watched piteously by a traffic warden.