is a fictional character in the popular anime and manga series Oh My Goddess!. She was created by Kōsuke Fujishima as one of three Goddesses who come to Earth to reside with Keiichi Morisato, and she serves as his love interest. She is depicted as a beautiful and powerful young woman, with strong nurturing tendencies, a trusting and innocent character, and an extremely kind heart. Belldandy is accidentally summoned from heaven by Keiichi in order to grant him a wish and stays when Keiichi wishes for "a goddess like you to be by my side forever". The stories follow Belldandy as she builds a relationship with Keiichi, using her powers (which include teleportation, telekinesis, telepathy, and levitation) to help both Keiichi and his friends while keeping her true identity a secret.
Her first appearance was in Kodansha's Monthly Afternoon magazine in September 1988. Belldandy has also featured in a novel, two TV series, a movie, and three OVA series. The character has gained considerable respect throughout the various formats, as evidenced by her appearance as one of the most popular characters in the Newtype and Animage polls. The concept of Belldandy draws loosely from Norse mythology, with "Belldandy" being a transliteration of the Old Norse Verðandi, one of a trio of Norns. She is joined by characters representing the other two of the trio of Norns—her sisters Urd and Skuld.
Belldandy is regarded by commentators as an example of the magical girlfriend character, and comparisons have been drawn with the characters of Samantha from Bewitched and Jeannie from I Dream of Jeannie. The character's very conservative nature, however, which almost completely subordinates her to her boyfriend, Keiichi, has led to some concerns from Western critics and has polarized Western audiences despite relatively steady popularity among Japanese audiences.
Creation and conception
Belldandy was created by Kōsuke Fujishima and features as one of the two principal protagonists in the manga Ah! My Goddess! (along with the character of Keiichi Morisato). Her first appearance was in Kodansha's manga magazine Monthly Afternoon in September 1988, but she has also been depicted in a novel (Ah! My Goddess: First End), three anime series—Oh My Goddess! (OVA), Ah! My Goddess and The Adventures of Mini-Goddess—and in Ah! My Goddess: The Movie.
Belldandy's original concept was loosely based on a depiction of Miyuki Kobayakawa, one of the main characters of You're Under Arrest, which was also created by Kosuke Fujishima. Miyuki was featured as a goddess in an advertisement for a You're Under Arrest T-shirt giveaway and appeared as a goddess character in a "four panel gag strip" in the You're Under Arrest manga, leading to claims that Oh My Goddess is a spin-off series. The character Ken Nakajima from You're Under Arrest appears in the first episode of the original OVA. He is driving the car that Keiichi almost hits with his motorcycle.
Norse origins Fujishima was particularly interested in the concept of a goddess "as a job", and turned to Norse mythology as he felt that it was relatively unknown in Japan. Thus Belldandy is based on Verðandi (or Verthandi), the Norse Goddess of the present, (whose name is literally translated as "to become" or "becoming"), and she is one of the three Norns or "fates" from Norse mythology. Verdandi, when translated into Japanese, becomes ベルダンディー (Berudandī). As the Japanese phonetic system does not distinguish between "b" and "v" or "r" and "l" (although ヴ can describe "v".), "Belldandy" can emerge as a product of consonant substitutions. Indeed, it was in the first chapter of the manga that her name was transliterated as Belldandy rather than Verdandi, and this romanization has stuck since. When the English translations were being prepared, Toren Smith considered returning the name to "Verthandi", (which Smith had determined to be the correct translation of the Old Norse), but chose to stick with Belldandy on the grounds that Fujishima was already "playing fast and loose with the mythos" and thus felt that no further harm was likely to come from employing Fujishima's transliteration. (Nevertheless, in the Swedish translation of the manga, released in 2007, her name was returned to Verdandi).
Character outline Background Belldandy is depicted as being a Goddess working with the fictional "Goddess Relief Agency". Although the series never specifically mentions her age, there are hints that she is between 18 and 28 when the series begins: in the original manga her birthdate is shown as NOT KNOWN—the English translation offers no year, but simply says "UNKNOWN"—while in the anime the more specific 1985/01/01 is employed. This should not be seen as conclusive as Eileen Stevens, who provides the voice of Belldandy in the English-language version of the TV series, states that while Belldandy is "young in appearance, late teens to early 20s, she's ageless, perhaps thousands of years old." This is supported in-universe, in the manga, when Peorth mentions that gods and demons are essentially immortal, ageless beings - but they'll never forget those they meet.
Fujishima provided the character with two sisters—Skuld and Urd—each with notably different personalities from her own. These two sisters represent the other two Norns from Norse mythology, with Urd (the eldest of the three) representing the past while Skuld (the youngest) represents the future. In recent volumes, Fujishima revealed the identity of Skuld and Belldandy's mother, a goddess named , who seems to have a rivalry with Hild, Urd's mother.Oh My Goddess, Volume 45, chapter 286
When the series begins, Belldandy is working on the "Goddess Technical Helpline", also known as "Goddess Relief Office / Agency"" and is responsible for granting wishes to those who call. As such, her role is similar to the character Peorth's work at the Earth Assistance Agency. In spite of working for Heaven, Belldandy, unlike her two sisters, does not appear to play a significant role in maintaining Yggdrasil.
Personality The "magical girl" character, of which Belldandy is an example, typically combines powerful abilities with very feminine characteristics. For Western audiences, a comparison can be drawn with the characters of Samantha Stephens from Bewitched and Jeannie from I Dream of Jeannie. As such, Belldandy is depicted as being very sweet and exceptionally kind-hearted, with very "old-fashioned" sensibilities. Combined with domestic skills portrayed through the series and her loyalty to Keiichi, this makes her a classic example of the concept of Yamato Nadeshiko. As a slight departure from the concept though, Belldandy can be highly competitive, be it in a race where she's Keiichi's co-pilot, or on those rare cases where she competes against him, as seen during Sora Hasegawa's nomination as the auto club's president.
Belldandy is exceptionally kind-hearted, even for a goddess. She can easily sense other people's emotions and tries her best to be empathetic to all those around her, displaying a combination of "serene beauty and acceptance". She rarely holds a grudge and is always willing to forgive anyone who does injury to her, unless Keiichi is involved. Even though Belldandy tries her best to be as kind as possible, it is revealed that at times she can become very insecure and sad, especially when she is confronted with an implication that involves Keiichi in one way or another. This aspect of her character provides one of the biggest plot points in the Ah! My Goddess movie: Belldandy's possessiveness of Keiichi could make her an easy target for manipulation or even brainwashing, if the right buttons were pressed; her jealousy of Morgan Le Fay was what allowed Celestin, her teacher, to lure Belldandy into his plans.
As noted by Perper and Cornog, Belldandy, as a depiction of what they term "kirei", is comfortable "being loved and admired" and very much aware of her own beauty—yet this does not equate to vanity.
Abilities Belldandy is unflinchingly kind, patient, and warm, not only to Keiichi but to everyone, without exception. This, however, does not mean that she is to be taken lightly; Belldandy is licensed as a "goddess first-class, unlimited", and as such is depicted as being highly skilled. Her power is so great that she is required to wear a special earring on her left ear which constantly seals the full brunt of her magical strength. The only time at which she has ever revealed her true strength is during the "Lord of Terror" arc. At the end of this arc, Belldandy completely reconstructed their home from rubble, mentioning that doing so only took one ten-millionth of her power.
Belldandy's capacities and talents are diverse, whether magical or worldly. Not only can she change the appearance of her clothing and levitate (and, by extension, fly), but she can also teleport through mirrors, speak to and understand animals, "see" people's emotions as auras, heal minor wounds by speeding metabolism, and "speak" to machines. Furthermore, she is a superb cook, and her singing skills are held to be the best in the heavens. She is also incapable of becoming inebriated on alcoholic drinks, but instead becomes so with soda. (One can is enough to send her in a drunken rampage—although given her personality, "rampage" takes an entirely different, but no less destructive, meaning). During the manga's publication, more of Belldandy's capabilities are discovered, but she probably has many more : Urd notes that Belldandy loves accumulating capabilities, but usually doesn't mention them herself. Among those seen in the manga, she has a Valkyrie diploma - as demonstrated when she neutralizes Thrym the Invincible in hand-to-hand combat - and she's a champion flying broom racer. The only thing she can't do is lie (it is linked to her qualification as a goddess first class). She will go to great length to not hurt others provided Keichi isn't in harm's way, otherwise she will "deal" with anything and anyone standing in her way (see Thrym above for the most out of character example) whatever the cost on herself.
Holy Bell Each of the fully-fledged goddesses in the series is teamed with an "angel", that represents the goddesses' "True Self" or "Higher Self". Belldandy's angel is called Holy Bell (Blesséd Bell in some versions of the English manga); her elemental attribute is wind. Like the other angels in the series, Holy Bell augments Belldandy's magical powers when called upon, and like all angels, she also reflects her master's current state. For example, when Belldandy falls unconscious after being infected with a virus, Holy Bell emerges comatose and covered with crystals that represent the virus.
Plot overview Belldandy is introduced to the series when Keiichi Morisato, portrayed as a typical college student with a notable lack of experience with women, accidentally dials the "Goddess Relief Agency" when attempting to order take-away noodles (the reason is simply explained as fate in the manga and anime adaptations). Belldandy appears before Keiichi and offers to grant him a wish. Convinced that the whole incident is a prank played on him by his seniors (Senpais), Keiichi half-jokingly wishes her to stay with him forever. ("I want a goddess like you to be by my side forever"). The wish, of course, is granted—thus providing one of the key premises of the series.