i was one of the people who complained that EVERY character in star wars seems to wear a glove when they loose an arm. It bugged me because Luke only did so after having some of the skin shot off and it looked gross and probably wasn't to good for it to be exposed to air and dust. HOWEVER, with Anakin, I see the need for it because its a visual actualization of the theme of him slowly becoming more mechanical, a theme that carries on to Luke in ROTJ, when he looks at his hand and realizes he's becoming like his father, thus strengthening his morals and teachings. So with Anakin, I agree. Plus his hand is kinda creepy for anyone who's gotta hang around him. 😄
I am beginning to think that it is this arm that saves Anakin.
I would have a theory after watching I Robot, that when Anakin falls down a crater, he would use his Proshetic arm against the rugged walls of the crater's interior to slow him down.
I would picture Obi1 seeing Anakin falling into a cloud of sulphur and vanish. Obi1 thinks Anakin is dead. but Anakin would actually be using that arm as an expendable means of survival.
He would then be wedged in the cliff face breathing all those poisonous gases while getting slowly blistered by the heat below.