Emerald Power

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.
Notice a pattern here? [1]

For some reason, the color green is associated with mystical/mysterious powers. In fiction, it's translated by the Artifact of Doom or the phlebotium glowing green or being made of emerald. Sometimes, a character himself is this if his green skin is a distinctive feature.

Possibly due to the fact that normally nothing gives off green or purple light except from artificial sources. Natural incandescent light (such as flame) is red, orange, yellow, white or more rarely blue.

Not to be confused with Green Rocks, which has nothing to do with... green rocks. Related to Sickly Green Glow (sub-trope, for when the green thing is evil). Sister Trope to Supernatural Is Purple.

Examples of Emerald Power include:

General

  • Depicting willpower or courage as a green energy is quite popular:
    • The Green Lantern Corps, obviously. Though as of the 2000s their power has been established as only one of several and not particularly any more special than other colors.
    • Gurren Lagann's mechas and even their pilots turn green when they fight seriously.
    • Same for GaoGaiGar .
    • The Legend of Zelda: Link, The Triforce of Courage, and the Goddess of Courage Farore are represented by Green
  • Radioactive stuff almost always glow green, too.
  • A bag of money in any media is usually full of green dollars. And money is a power.
  • A witch brew is almost always green - if not the witch herself.


Anime and Manga

  • Averted with Jingoro Amayo from Basilisk: he is green skinned and possess abilities, but his supernatural power (being a slugman) is probably the lamest in the series.
  • C.C. is an "immortal witch" with long, green hair.
  • D.Gray-man: the Innocences glow green, with Allen's leaking green light in its first, weaker stages.
  • While a Super Saiyan glow is usually yellow, Broly has a green one.
    • Also, both the Earth's God and Dragon Ball final boss, Satan, are Namekians.
  • Zero, Brain's Super-Powered Evil Side, uses green colored Dark Magic.
  • GaoGaiGar G-Stone, which translate raw courage into energy
  • Sacred Gears in High School DxD glow green when activated.
  • In Sengoku Basara, Mitsuhide has a Sickly Green Glow Battle Aura. Considering that he survived afer being left in a burning temple to die and that he also tries to resurrect his former master Nobunaga with a dark ritual, we can see something "Mystical" in it.


Comic Books

  • Kryptonite
  • Both The Incredible Hulk and She Hulk are green. And they're indeed powerful.
  • Martian Manhunter. A simple glance at him tells you he's just as strong as Superman.
  • The original Green Lantern, Alan Scott, has the literally magical equivalent to the Green Lantern Ring.
  • The Spectre, God's spirit of vengeance on Earth, wears a green robe and frequently uses green flames with his powers.
  • Alan Scott's daughter Jade has an internalized version of his powers, plus green skin (and though she has traveled in space, she is not a Green-Skinned Space Babe).
  • The phrase "Magic is green" is used to refer to Matt Wagner's Mage comic book, as that color is used for the effects of the wizard character.


Film


Literature

  • Magyk in Septimus Heap is natural and symbolized by green, and Wizards have Green Eyes.
  • The Warlock Lord from The Sword of Shannara is a wraith made of eerie green mist.
  • Arya from the Inheritance Cycle. Her magic color is green, her eyes are green, (hell, anything associated with her is green) and she is probably one of the most badass characters in the series.
  • Akhor/Varien's soulgem in Tales of Kolmar is green. As a great silver dragon he's got some psychic powers. As a human he loses them unless he's holding his soulgem against his forehead. It's also used to awaken the Lesser Kindred and restore the Lost later in the series.


Live Action TV

  • Promicin, the luminous green neurotransmitter from The 4400.
  • The tip of the Eleventh Doctor's sonic screwdriver glows green. Nine and Ten's was blue.
  • Lorne in Angel...he was an empath who could tell the future when other characters sang, and he was also a green-skinned demon.
  • The Green Ranger of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers is the most powerful one. (Generally doesn't apply to following series, though, where their Green Rangers are just one of the team.)


Video Games


Web Comics

  • In Homestuck, the near-omnipotent First Guardians are powered by the Green Sun. Use of their powers is associated with the color green, and occasionally they themselves flash green.
    • Lord English and his gang The Felt are also associated with green, in part due to their connection with the game of pool.


Western Animation

  1. Source Clockwise, from top left: The Green Lantern Ring, a 1-up mushroom, a person wearing The Mask, The Incredible Hulk.