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| “ | Your appearance doesn't matter to me. What's beautiful is your existence, your self. Facing your own self, setting your soul ablaze, fighting with such vigor... it's quite beautiful. | „ |
| ~ Apollo makes Python understand that what matters to him is inner beauty and not outer beauty. |
| “ | As the Sun God, I have no choice but to answer these beautiful cheers!! It's my time to shine! | „ |
| ~ Apollo decides to fight in the Ninth Round of Ragnarok Tournament. |
Apollo is a supporting antagonist in the manga/anime series Record of Ragnarok.
He is the main antagonist of the Ninth Round of the Ragnarok Tournament.
Apollo is the Greek God of the Sun and one of the Twelve Gods of Olympus, as well as the patron God of Sparta. Initially a God considered mediocre, Apollo underwent various trainings thanks to which he became a very strong God. He is also the Gods' representative of the Gods Fighters during the Ninth Round, where he faces Leonidas as the Humans' representative of the Einherjar.
Appearance[]
Apollo has the appearance of an attractive man, with long flowing light pink hair reaching down to his torso and a good physique body. He has golden pupils and lips. Like many Gods of the Greek Pantheon, he wears Greek-related items such as a laurel wreath, buskin sandals and a toga. The toga has a band around the torso and floral designs on the outside of the chest area with the opening to show the chest. He is decorated with jewels such as a necklace that extends across his chest resembling the Sun and its rays, a chain that is part of his sash and an ornate chain around his right leg. He wears a pair of golden gauntlets capable of releasing his Divine Weapon, the Threads of Artemis.
During the Ninth Round of the Ragnarok Tournament, Apollo gets a deep diagonal scar on his face which he decides not to heal and to keep, in honor of Leonidas.
When he was a child, Apollo looked very similar to how he would be as an adult, with the only exception being that he only wore a light-colored kilt.
Personality[]
Apollo appears to be an extremely narcissistic individual, who cares deeply about beauty both when it comes to himself and when it comes to others as well. When he heard the news of other Greek Gods dying in Ragnarok his first reaction was not to mourn them but rather to wish he could have been there to see their deaths because they must have looked beautiful when they died. In addition to being a narcissist, Apollo despises anyone who doesn't meet his standards of what is beautiful, especially in the case of Humans, in fact when Leonidas leapt at him before Heimdall could start the match Apollo criticized him for behaving like a wild beast, considering it hideous.
Apollo's narcissistic nature gives him a fondness for the dramatic, as he always strikes grandiose and expressive poses, regardless of what he wears. He further argues that, by his nature, he always tries to exceed the expectations that others have of him, even going so far as to fight on the opponent's favorable ground. Apollo only cares about beauty or if they treat him according to his wishes, this is evident with him not focusing on the Greek Gods that fell before him or when for fun, he gave Sparta the Oracle to give them the "myth of pacifism".
Despite this, however, Apollo promotes self-love, trying to teach both Humans and Gods that we must first learn to love ourselves before others. He, more than anyone, knows this lesson because, despite having started from scratch compared to the other Gods, he has become strong with his own strength, and consequently knows perfectly who he is. Precisely for this reason he continues to consider himself beautiful even after being disfigured and always wants to give his all in battle, trying to exceed the expectations of others. He is also willing to change his mind about his opponents, as he admitted that Leonidas' attacks are beautiful, that he is the peak of beauty at the moment of death and not to care about the scar on his face as proof of the battle fought with him.
Biography[]
Apollo is the Greek God of Sun, one of the Twelve Gods of Olympus and the patron God of Sparta. Apollo, unlike all the other Gods, was born without any fighting ability and weak, however by committing himself and training with all of himself he manages to improve, until he becomes a very strong God and is admitted among the Twelve Gods of Olympus.
Following the proclamation of Zeus as the new ruler of the Gods, the Primordial Goddess Gaia unleashes the Giants against the Greek Gods by not accepting Zeus' nomination, thus starting the Gigantomachy during which Apollo participates using his archer skills to take the Giants by surprise and kill them without them realizing what's happening. In the end the war is won by the Greek Gods with Zeus defeating the Giants in Valhalla and Hades defeating the Titan followers of Kronos who escaped from Tartarus.
When Python is kicked out of Valhalla because he is too ugly and begins to spread fear among the Humans, Apollo descends to Earth to face him after the troops of Ares were all defeated. Apollo defeats Python with a single attack, but the latter insists on continuing to fight and Apollo agrees, continuously defeating him, until Python tells him his story and Apollo convinces him that he is beautiful and that he must learn to love himself before being loved by others. Python was struck by his words to the point of building the Temple of Delphi in his honor by writing at the entrance "Know Thyself", a phrase which however was misinterpreted by the inhabitants of Delphi, and subsequently of Sparta, with the belief that Apollo considered Humans inferior and who must bow before him.
As the patron God of Sparta, Apollo orders the Spartans never to fight during the Carneia Festival, a celebration in his honor that takes place once a year, to send a message of peace. However, because of this the Gerousia are determined not to fight during the Carneia Festival even when the Persians of Xerxes invade Greece, thus risking it being conquered. Leonidas, however, rebels against the decision and, together with 300 other Spartans, faces the army of Xerxes, an action which then leads to the victory of Greece over the Persians a year later.
Millennia later, following the proclamation of the Ragnarok Tournament, Apollo is chosen by Zeus as one of the Gods Fighters, the representatives of the Gods during the competition, however he does not attend any match of the Tournament remaining in his palace having fun with some girls.
At the end of the Eighth Round Zeus, Hermes and Ares reach Apollo and ask him to fight in the Ninth Round: Apollo initially doesn't seem interested, but when warned that Poseidon, Heracles and Hades died in Ragnarok Apollo regrets not having been able to witness their "beautiful death" and accepts. Apollo fights in the Ninth Round, representing the Gods, against Leonidas, representing Humans, who hates him deeply because he holds him unjustly responsible for the almost conquest of Greece by the Persians because of the Carneia Festival. In the end, Apollo manages to defeat and kill his opponent, who ends up forgiving him during the fight. However, during the fight Apollo remains disfigured on the face with a scar, which he decides not to treat as proof that he gave his all in that fight. Apollo, injured and distraught from the match, is taken to the infirmary by Python.
Powers and Abilities[]
Overall Abilities: Narcissism aside, Apollo is a formidable God in combat thanks to his extreme reflexes and speed, making him nearly impossible to hit. Combined with his natural boxing talent, Apollo can counter any attack without losing momentum or breath, so much so that he can corner fighters like Leonidas, who even with the Völundr failed to surprise the God enough to let his guard down. Apollo was initially born weak compared to the other Gods, but acquired these abilities with training and dedication, until he became a very strong God.
Divine Physiology: As a God, Apollo is unable to die of old age, possesses physical abilities far superior to those of any normal Human, to the point that he can be used as a living arrow to break through enemy defenses using the ropes generated by the statue of Artemis, and his body cannot be harmed by deadly weapons. However, he can be injured and killed by physical attacks with superhuman strength or by Divine Weapons.
Divine Speed and Reflexes: Apollo has been shown to possess speed possibly exceeding that of any Human or God. This was demonstrated when an angry Ares, the Greek God of War, tried to strike the God of Sun for his insolence while he was naked, but Apollo easily dodged by plunging him into the water. Apollo is also able to quickly adapt to the opponent's fighting style and sudden attacks, as he managed to dodge many of Leonidas' surprise attacks, despite having never seen them before, and to muffle the damage from Leonidas' first attack using his threads, despite realizing the danger too late.
Boxing Expertise: Apollo displayed immense prowess in boxing, evident in his ability to dodge Leonidas' quick attacks and counterattack quickly. Thanks to his abilities, he is able to throw very powerful punches, capable of damaging even the most impenetrable defense. Apollo was also able to defeat Python multiple times with a single attack thanks to his boxing skills.
Archer Expertise: Using his Divine Weapon to summon an enormous statue of his twin sister Artemis, Apollo is able to generate an arc of light, which he uses to launch arrows generated with the manipulation of light at his opponent. Apollo has perfect aim and his arrows travel at the speed of light, to the point where they can be deflected only through instinct, and are strong enough to pierce several objects and/or people in their path.
Photokinesis: As God of Sun, Apollo can produce and control light, using it to power his gloves and generate thin and durable threads that can easily block attacks launched after performing a Völundr or his opponents themselves. Apollo can also use threads to manipulate material and generate the weapon of his choice, such as a pair of boxing gloves, gloves that cover the entire arm and arrows of light. His strongest technique consists in absorbing all the light emanating from the love and hatred that others feel for him and transforming it into strength.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- In the name of Apollo's Divine Weapon there is "Artemis", which in Record of Ragnarok and Greek Mythology is the twin sister of Apollo and one of the Twelve Gods of Olympus.
- During the introduction of Apollo in the Ninth Round of the Ragnarok Tournament, Heimdall stated that Apollo killed Python with his bow and arrows, which ultimately proved to be a misinterpretations of true events.
External Links[]
- Apollo on the Shuumatsu no Valkyrie Wiki
