Adam's Powers In Record Of Ragnarok Explained

The fantasy-fighting manga-turned-anime series "Record of Ragnarok" has made huge waves on Netflix, and it's still dominating the streaming platform's top 10 list. The action-packed series takes place in a reality where the many different gods of Earth meet every 1,000 years to determine if humanity has earned the right to continue living. In their latest conference, the deities decide that humans are beyond salvation and should therefore be wiped from the planet before a valkyrie named Brunhilde (voiced by Miyuki Sawashiro in the Japanese version and Laura Post in English) suggests a fairer way to settle things: 13 of the gods will battle 13 of Earth's most prolific humans, and the first group to win seven matches gets to call the shots for the fate of mankind.

The exciting first season is available to watch on Netflix, and Season 2 is likely to be renewed in the near future. For now, you can catch up with the epic fighting and even read some more in-depth explainers about the end of the first season and the future of the gods and humans. One of the most discussed topics regarding "Record of Ragnarok" is the vast array of abilities of the different fighters — such as the father of humanity himself, Adam. Let's dig into Adam's specific powers and what made him such a great match against his opponent in "Record of Ragnarok."

Adam (Soma Saito and Jonah Scott) is the first human ever created, according to the Abrahamic religions. He was made in God's image and likeness, making him a mega-powerful fighter in "Record of Ragnarok." Described as the human who despises the gods more than anybody else, Adam is personally selected by Brunhilde to fight in the second round of Ragnarok, as she considers him to be a secret weapon of sorts. And though he's supposed to fight the Hindu god Shiva (Tatsuhisa Suzuki and Benjamin Diskin), Zeus (Wataru Takagi and Chris Edgerly) gets Shiva to allow him to take his place and fight Adam instead.

While Adam appears to be a thin and not necessarily powerful man, he quickly reveals his multitude of impressive powers. Not to mention that another valkyrie named Reginleif (Rina Kawaguchi and Artemis Snow) performs Volund with Adam, becoming a pair of brass knuckles for him to use in combat on top of his other amazing abilities.

Among Adam's many powers is his amazing speed. Zeus's first attack is his near-lightspeed jab, which Adam dodges easily. When Zeus commends Adam on his speed, he winds up to deliver more intense hits, which Adam continues to gracefully avoid, even as their speed increases to 0.00001 seconds. Zeus seems to get frustrated as he releases his meteor jab, an intense barrage of hits from all sides — but alas, Adam dodges every single one with a serene look on his face. The impressive speed continues as Zeus tries a powerful kick attack, and Adam simply leaps over his leg.

And Adam isn't just a defensive fighter. His first turn on the offense is a direct strike to Zeus's face, at the same recognizable speed that we saw with Adam's dodging. Adam continues to punch in a flurry of movement, getting faster and faster — and then he copies Zeus's signature moves (though he, of course, lands his hits). Adam's ability to mimic his opponent's attacks is yet another one of his impressive powers.

After Adam first displays his amazing skills, Brunhilde's younger sister Göll (Tomoyo Kurosawa and Anairis Quinones) expresses her awe at his strength. Brunhilde explains that it shouldn't come as a surprise, since Adam was created in God's image. She continues: "Yes, mankind was created in the image of God — in other words, Adam is a copy of the divine, and so, he is able to flawlessly replicate any technique he sees a god put to use." The name of his ability is then revealed: Divine Reflection.

Adam is even able to dodge and immediately replicate Zeus's finishing move, which he calls the Fist That Surpassed Time due to its speed. The powerful punch reaches a speed of 0.000000000000000000001 seconds, yet Adam is able to turn it back on Zeus before the god even knows what hit him.

Though Adam's Divine Reflection is his greatest asset, it's also his downfall. It takes a lot of energy to use his valuable copying skill, and it eventually causes him to overheat, wreaking havoc on his nervous system. He reaches a point where his eyes are rendered useless, giving Zeus an opportunity to finally cause some damage.

Though Zeus is eventually able to land powerful blows, Adam gives a valiant effort and never gives up. His physical form takes an obvious beating as hit after hit lands and Adam's bloodied face becomes more damaged, yet he keeps fighting until his body fails him. In fact, the crowd doesn't even realize he's dead when his exhaustion overcomes him — he remains standing even after his last breath. He's able to resist giving in due to his love for mankind, whom he refers to as his children, and hangs in as long as possible in an attempt to protect his progeny.

Since Adam never surrendered, and according to Zeus even threw punches after he died, he proved himself to be plenty worthy of fighting the king of the gods. He even confessed that if it were a contest of endurance, Adam would have won. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case, and Adam's death marked a second loss for the humans — though the crowd was left with a sense of confidence that they could fight back against the gods.