2. Identity
Removing the internal struggle of man and machine from any version of RoboCop would be undoubtedly more damaging than stripping the film of all its political and social subtext. Murphy's journey to regain his consciousness and identity is simply the most fascinating plot point presented. It asks the question; if you completely erase someone's memories, would it be possible for something to trigger those memories back, or is all humanity lost? Thankfully, José Padilha understood this too - otherwise the reboot would have truly been a disaster. There's also the aforementioned fact that his family is brought into the plot, which does add an extra layer to the story, even if it does dominate all of the other plot threads. On another note, the moment when Alex Murphy - in either film - finally regains complete control of who he is, is the only possible climax for telling the origin story. Furthermore, killing the man who created you for his own personal gain makes for a sweet tale of revenge.