"My arm, my arm, my arm, my arm, my arm! I summon up the power of the God Hand!"
God Hand (or Godhand, or God's Hand) is a popular name for a person, item, or skill, almost exclusively in Japanese media and usually related to melee combat.
The appeal of the name is obvious. By comparing one's hands to those of a god, a fighter makes it seem like he can do impressive feats with them. For those who fight with their hands, obviously it's an appealing notion. Additionally, it evokes the idea of the "hand of God", while still being concise.
The reason this is primarily a Japanese-media trope is that the Japanese tend to use "god" in their names without considering it as blasphemous as western audiences do.
Compare Red Baron, which this often gets used as when it's a title. When it's a weapon, it's usually a Power Fist (see Stock Weapon Names). If the hand literally is God's hand, then The Hand Is God.
Examples:
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Anime and Manga
- The Big Bads of Berserk are called the Godhand. They are the five most powerful demons in the setting, so powerful they may very well be gods themselves, what with them manipulating the fate of everything in the world. And later, they are revealed to represent the power of the Idea of Evil and are manipulating reality to further its goal, finally explaining why they are also called Five Angels.
- Barely averted in Mobile Fighter G Gundam, with the Mid-Season Upgrade's primary attack being the God Finger, despite the fact that it's either a Facepalm of Doom or a Hand Blast. Averted entirely in the English dub, which changes it to Burning Finger.
- The titular surgeon from Black Jack is referred to as "The Surgeon with the Hands of God" for his ridiculous ability in the operating room.
- Digimon Adventure: Though its Japanese name was "Heaven's Knuckle," Angemon's signature attack was called "Hand of Fate" in the English Dub. By any name it's a Hand Blast which can overwhelm enemies who gave the entire team a lot of trouble. At least in season one; it's So Last Season in season two.
- Not a weapon or fighting technique, but it still counts: Go plays are called "hands", so in Hikaru no Go all of the high-level Go players (Sai in particular) are looking for the "hand of God".
- Kenichi: The Mightiest Disciple, Akira Hongo of YAMI's One Shadow Nine Fists is known as God Fist.
- In Machine Robo: Revenge of Cronos, the Baikanfu's Finishing Move is named God Hand Smash.
- The Big Bad of Samurai Champloo Kariya Kagetoki is known as the Hand of God due to his skills.
- Parodied in Heaven's Memo Pad, where Narumi is called "God Hand" by Souchirou's gang members because they are fantastically computer illiterate and he knows how to run a virus scan, so he inevitably has to fix their computer after they visit too many sketchy porn sites.
- Kurogiri Satsuki from The Garden of Sinners bears the title of "God's Word" for his mastery of the Divine Language.
- Erina Nakiri of Food Wars! has the "God's Tongue" thanks to her incredibly refined palate.
Film
- Twister. In-universe, an F5 tornado is known as "The Finger of God".
Literature
- Michael Carpenter in The Dresden Files is known as "The Fist of God." Unlike most of the Japanese examples, this isn't just a boast; Carpenter is a Knight of the Cross and empowered by God to fight evil (his sword is made from a nail from the Cross).
Live Action TV
- Used as the name of a Limit Break in sentai series Hikari Sentai Maskman. Unfortunately, its effectiveness didn't last very long and eventually a new Limit Break is introduced.
- It comes back in Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger, where the new characters can transform into past heroes and use their abilities.
Tabletop Games
- Magic: The Gathering: Not In-Universe, but used as fanspeak. A different definition of "hand" than most uses of this trope, but a "God Hand" is generally considered seven cards that, when drawn, will defeat an opponent in the first round. The exact definition of a God Hand can sometimes be a source of great contention.
- In a post on the RolePlay Online site (rpol.net), a poster demonstrated the game-breaking potential of the Hulking Hurler Dungeons & Dragons class by taking advantage of every possible loophole to create a monstrously powerful character, Urldred the Mountainthrower. His weapon was an eighteen-foot nickle-iron meteorite he called the Fist of Heaven.
Video Games
- One of the guns Lance from Epic Battle Fantasy can use is the God Hand, appropriately a Holy-elemental cannon that vaguely resembles a hand.
- Obviously the game God Hand, where the title refers to a legendary warrior's actual arm. The trope name comes from a line from the game's ending theme song, which is hilarious
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- Kun Lan, Big Bad of the game Killer7 has the title "God Hand." At one point he catches a bullet shot at his hand and uses its momentum to fly away.
- A recurring Fist-type weapon in the Final Fantasy series is called the Godhand (God's Hand in Final Fantasy VII). It tends to be among the most powerful weapons of its type, and often has a Holy attribute.
- Another Squaresoft game, Ehrgeiz, has a protagonist nicknamed Godhand.
- The best Fist-type weapon in Phantasy Star Online is called "God Hand." It's actually popular since it provides a slight boost to all stats while still keeping the unarmed animation, which for some Casters is the fastest.
- The second-strongest Fist-type weapon in Disgaea is called "God's Hand".
- The most powerful Strike attack in Persona 3 is called God's Hand. This is more literal than most, as it involves a giant golden hand striking from above!
- The skill returns in Persona 4 as the second strongest single-target physical attack.
- Shows up again as one of Chie Satonaka's supers in Persona 4: Arena. Persona 4: Arena Ultimax also gives this move to Margaret, albeit as a special attack.
- It returns in Persona 5 in a three-way tie for being the strongest single-target physical attack.
- One of three Advanced classes in Dragon Quest VII is called the Godhand.
- Shadow Hearts: Covenant: Lenny makes a pact with a demon known as "Godhand". It gives Lenny an One-Winged Angel form that has a massive claw larger than his entire body. In From the New World Johnny can call Lenny for help as his ultimate "Handy Tools" attack. It's consists of Lenny delivering a blow with Godhand's claw from anywhere in the world.
- Mamoru EndÅ, main character in soccer RPG Inazuma Eleven has a special technique known as "God Hand" which creates a giant hand out of his energy. Naturally, he primarily plays as goaltender, the one position allowed to use their hands.
- While the exact name isn't used, the Force Mage's "Fist of the Maker" spell in Dragon Age II is similarly evocative.
- One of the new power-ups in Mortal Kombat X's Test Your Luck mode is called "God Fists". Whoever picks it up gets powerful enough to give the opponent a One-Hit KO.
- God-Hand is an available character class in 7th Dragon III: code VFD. They specialize in jabbing enemies to build up "God Depth", and then inflicting burst-damage attacks on the afflicted target.
- In Tales of Legendia, Grune's ultimate spell is God's Press, which calls a glowing golden hand to slap the designated area. The English version incorrectly refers to it as the recurring Judgement spell.
- Yakuza 0 has "God Hands" Wen Hai Lee, a former assassin turned acupuncturist and masseur.
Visual Novels
- In Fate/stay night, God Hand is the name of Berserker's passive ability which negates any attack below a certain ranknote and grants him a total of twelve lives, one for each of the twelve labors Heracles realized in his life. Combined with the fact he's a demigod with inherently high strength, speed and toughness, enhanced even more by the Berserker class, this makes him one of the more dangerous servants of the war... except when it doesn't.
Real Life
- Mas Oyama, Korean-born (but spent most of his life in Japan) Karateka was nicknamed "Godhand."
- Hirohito Furui, the keyboard player from the J-Rock band GARNET CROW, is nicknamed "Godhand" for his playing skill.
- A rare subversion in Argentinian soccer player Diego Maradona. He was nicknamed The God's Hand not because of his ability as a soccer player (of course, soccer is played with feet), but by the fact that he managed to score a goal by tapping the ball with his hand (the most obvious possible infraction) over English keeper Peter Shilton's head, during their 1986 World Cup quarter finals match. The referee didn't see it, and that goal gave Argentina the advantage in the match, which they would eventually win 2-1. In other words, his God's Hand was his ability to cheat with that hand without getting caught, or that the score was really thanks to the Lord Himself hitting the ball. It's a disparaging nickname to his detractors (English coach Bobby Robson called it "the Hand of a Rascal"), but his fans and worshipers use it in a complimentary and only partially-ironic fashion.
- He would do it again in the next World Cup, during a group stage match against USSR; from a corner set play, he swiped the ball away before the Soviets could open the score sheet. Argentina ended up winning that one 2-0.
