Whenever there is a discussion about the best seinen manga, the name, Berserk always pops up. The series created by the late Kentarou Miura has garnered many plaudits, and there are many reasons why it is so highly rated in the manga community.
Currently, the manga sits at the very top of the MyAnimeList rankings with a rating of 9.46, which has been derived from the votes of over 500,000 readers. While many people disagree with the rating, it is tough to deny that Berserk is an incredible piece of fiction. As the manga is still not over, there are still many aspects of the story that are untouched, and thus, remain a secret. One of the biggest mysteries in the series is the God Hand.
The Creation
The God Hand was created centuries ago to carry out the will of the Idea of Evil, which is the closest thing to God in Berserk. In a flashback, Void and four other mysterious beings were seen gathering together. This conclave of the quintumvirate was witnessed by a person wearing the Berserker Armor.
Out of the five members, only Void continued to be a part of the God Hand. The fate of the other four members remains unknown, but it is possible that they were replaced with newer members. The creation of the God Hand was the first step toward molding the world according to the desire of the Idea of Evil.
Getting New Members
Prior to the story of Berserk, the God Hand only had four members- Void, Slan, Ubik, and Conrad. Miura never stated when Void anointed the new members into the group. However, it is plausible to assume that they were made into the members of the God Hand by Void. A new member was chosen every 216 years, and the prerequisite to becoming a member was to have the Crimson Beherit. The Crimson Beherit is also known as the "Egg of the King." It is said that the Crimson Beherit chooses its owner, and this person possesses the qualities that are needed to become a member of the God Hand. The fifth member of the God Hand was anointed during the Eclipse and that person was Griffith.
After losing his army, most of his body, and his hope, Griffith fell into despair, and he triggered the Eclipse. In the resulting Eclipse, Griffith was given the choice to either regain incredible power or to suffer a fate worse than death. While many people would have had trouble sacrificing even one of his allies, Griffith sacrificed most of his army and friends. This allowed him to be reborn as Femto, the fifth member of the God Hand. Each member of the God Hand represents a finger on the actual hand, and with Femto's induction, the set was complete.
The Most Powerful Beings
The God Hand consists of some of the strongest characters in the series. As the bearers of the will of the Idea of Evil, they hold dominion over every demon in the world. Throughout the course of the series, all the members of the God Hand have been seen using reality-altering abilities. Void and Femto can use spatial manipulation, which involves bending space, and it can be used to redirect attacks toward the opponent. The other members can manipulate physical and metaphysical things. The power of the God Hand is so immense that even the strongest apostles cower before them. So far, the only person who has been able to stand up to them is the Skull Knight.
When the God Hand first appeared, every spot was taken except for the index finger, which was eventually taken by Griffith. If one was to judge the hierarchy within the group, then Void is the most powerful, as he occupies the first spot (thumb) and he is followed by Femto and the rest. The position of the members of the hand has been consistent, which is an indicator that this pattern is important. Another thing that points toward Void being the leader of the group is that he is the only member who can perform the Invocation of Doom. He used this to mark Guts with the Brand of Sacrifice, which has caused him to be hunted by all kinds of evil creatures. In addition to this, Void is the oldest known member of the group, as none of the previous members seem to have survived.
Role In The Story
The God Hand is important to the story, and they have been responsible for many major events that have taken place in Berserk. Many notable villains have been created due to the God Hand turning them into vicious apostles.
Since the group could use their proper forms in the realm of humans, they used Femto to achieve their goals in the physical world, and once the Great Roar of the Astral World was triggered, the other four members were able to manifest their true forms in Fantasia. The God Hand is undoubtedly very powerful and at the moment, it seems very unlikely that they will ever be stopped. So, it will be interesting to see how and if they will be taken down. One thing is for sure: Guts will play a major role in the downfall of this heinous group.