The Angel (天使, Tenshi?) is a recurring motif in the Final Fantasy series. They often appear as a small child in a white gown with blond hair and a halo above the head, or a cherub, a chubby male child, usually nude and with a pair of wings.
They share a distinct similarity: they appear whenever someone uses the spells Raise and Arise. Angels are often associated with life and granting protection against death, but in some rare cases they can inflict harm on the player's characters if used by enemies to attack the party.
White feathers are associated with divinity, purity and magic in some games in the series. In Final Fantasy VIII, white feathers represent Rinoa Heartilly, whose motif is angel wings. In Final Fantasy XIII-2, white feathers represent goddess Etro.
Appearances
Final Fantasy
The angel that appears in most versions (starting from the PlayStation version) appears as a blond male child dressed in a white gown with a pair of large white wings on his back.
Churches are scattered across the world within towns, and talking to the priest will revive KO'd party members in exchange for gil. Two angels will descend upon the fallen party member(s) and revive them before the angels take their leave. They resemble the angel from the Life spell effect. In several versions, a pair of angels appear to revive a KO'd party member when using the Full-Life spell on them.
In the Pixel Remaster version, angels no longer appear when revived inside a church. They still make an appearance when using the Life spell where they are also depicted having a halo on top of their head; this depiction is also used for the angel's appearance in Final Fantasy II Pixel Remaster. Only one angel appears during the Full-Life spell animation in this version.
Final Fantasy II
The angel in the Game Boy Advance version is depicted as a blond male child dressed in a white gown with a pair of wings on his back. Unlike the other angels in the series, his hair covers most of his face. Sanctuaries are scattered across the world within towns, and praying at the altar will revive KO'd party members in the party with 1 HP at no cost. Two angels will descend upon the fallen party member(s) and revive them before the angels take their leave. They resemble the angel from the Life spell effect.
Final Fantasy III
The angel is depicted as a blond male child with a pair of wings on his back and a halo above his head.
Final Fantasy IV series
The angel is depicted as a blond male child with a pair of wings and a halo above his head. They appear with the Raise and Arise spell, descending from the heavens and bringing back the fallen ally before leaving the battlefield after accomplishing his task.
The angel's depiction remains the same in Final Fantasy IV -Interlude- and Final Fantasy IV: The After Years.
Final Fantasy V
The angel is depicted as a blond boy with a pair of wings and a halo above his head. They appear with the Raise and Arise spells, and the Chemist's Revive, as well as reviving mixes.
Final Fantasy VI
The angel is similar to the previous Nintendo and Super Nintendo era angels, a blond male child with a pair of wings on his back and a halo above his head. The Raise and Arise spells call forth a single angel, bringing the target back to life. Heartless Angel brings down multiple angels, one for each target, dropping the character's HP down to a single digit.
The Reraise spell calls forth pairs of angels to encircle party members, and bestows protection against death.
Cloudy Heaven calls forth pairs of recolored angels who bestow a curse upon the entire party, turning them into Zombies that last for the rest of the battle after the countdown expires.
Final Fantasy VII
The angel appears as a blond male child with a halo above the head, dressed in a white gown with a pair of white wings on his back. He appears in the Life, Angel Whisper, and Heartless Angel abilities.
At the Nibel Reactor Jenova's container is covered by what has been referred to as the "Jenova Cover" or "Jenova Doll". The effigy is a presumably man-made metal construct that resembles the torso of an angel that obscures Jenova while the wings cover the side of the container.
The final boss evokes imagery of a fallen angel with a single dark wing in place of an arm, and numerous white wings that enable flight.
Crisis Core -Final Fantasy VII-
Subjects of Project G exhibit some angelic qualities: those associated with Angeal Hewley have white wings, whereas those associated with Genesis Rhapsodos have a dark wing. Angeal's name is also close to the word "angel". Though he at first sees his mutation as a sign of being a monster, Zack Fair tries to convince him they represent the goodness of angels. Angeal later takes the allegorical role of an angel as a messenger from the lifestream, guiding Zack.
Final Fantasy VIII
Rinoa Heartilly is associated with angels and angel wings. She has a pair of white wings on the back of her duster, her ultimate weapon is made of white wings and white feathers represent her during the opening and ending cinematics. In juxtaposition, dark feathers are associated with evil sorceresses.
Ultimecia will use "Absorbed into time..." on a character that is KO'd if the player left said character KO'd for too long. An angel will descend on the fallen character and remove them from battle.
Final Fantasy X
The angel in Spira is depicted as an androgynous young child with glowing rainbow-colored wings with a velificatio floating around the angel that loops above its head. Its overall appearance is more evocative of East Asian religious figures, from bodhisattvas and tennin, whose roles do not differ much.
Final Fantasy XIII-2
White feathers symbolize the presence of goddess Etro, who is herself not met in person. When Lightning is blessed by Etro, white feathers swirl around her, and she gains a half-skirt made of white feathers. In juxtaposition, Caius Ballad has dark feathers in his design, being Etro and Lightning's adversary, and a Guardian who has fallen from Etro's grace.
Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII
White feathers continue to represent divinity, as the Angel of Valhalla is a white chocobo whose true form is linked to Valhalla. It is said to herald the end of the world.
During the final battle, when Bhunivelze casts Heartless Angel, two angel-like figures that Bhunivelze calls his "messengers" resembling the fal'cie Eden appear and circle Lightning giggling all the while before draining her HP to 1 (if she fails to block their attack) before disappearing.
Final Fantasy XV
The Oracle in the prophecy painting is an angelic figure who has one wing. She also appears on the game's logo. When a young Noctis Lucis Caelum reads the Cosmogony, there is a page that depicts a king, an Oracle, and the gods' Messengers who have angel wings. Among the Messengers are Gentiana, Umbra, Pryna, and Carbuncle. Another Messenger who does have wings, Garuda, has been slumbering so long she is almost lost to history. Bahamut is depicted with angel wings in the Kingsglaive emblem, but his true form has wings made of swords.
Ardyn Izunia at times wears a black wing accessory, likening him to an image of a fallen angel. The insignia of Lucis is a winged skull and the Lucian kings' royal arms each bear white wings, but usually only one.
There is also an island called Angelgard.
Final Fantasy Tactics
The angel is depicted as a chubby male child, nude with a pair of wings. The spells Raise, Arise, and Reraise make a single angel descend from the heavens in a ball of light and materialize above the KO'd character. If the target unit does not have a high enough faith stat (a character's belief in God), there is a chance the unit will not hear the angel's voice and will not be revived.
Final Fantasy Mystic Quest
The angel appears as a small child wearing a white gown with blond hair, a halo above the head, and a pair of wings. The only spell it appears in is the Life spell.
Final Fantasy Legend II
The angel appears as a small child wearing a white gown with a halo above the head. It appears above the enemy with his hands fold, flapping his wings while ascending. The angel appears when attacking an undead enemy with the Prayer during battle.
Final Fantasy Dimensions
The angel is depicted as a blond male child with a pair of wings and a halo above his head. He appears when a character uses a Phoenix Down item, Raise, and Arise spell. Descending from the heavens and bringing back the fallen ally before he leaves the battlefield.
Non-Final Fantasy guest appearances
Secret of Mana
Two angels appear when the Dryad spell Revivifier or the item Cup of Wishes is used on a KO'ed character. The icon in the ring menu is that of an angel. The angel is the same sprite as the one from Final Fantasy V, but with slight different coloration.
Chrono Trigger
An angel appears in the following spells; Raise, Arise, Lifeline, and Green Dream through the Reraise status. Raise and the Athenian Water item has a single angel swirling around the KO'd character while Arise has three instead of one. The angel is the same sprite as the one from Final Fantasy VI.
Etymology
An angel is a non-physical entity or spirit found in various religions and mythologies. In Abrahamic religions and Zoroastrianism, angels are often depicted as benevolent celestial beings who act as intermediaries between God or Heaven and Earth, or as guardian spirits or a guiding influence. Other roles of angels include protecting and guiding human beings, and carrying out God's tasks. The term "angel" has also been expanded to various notions of spirits found in many other religious traditions. In art, angels are often depicted with bird-like wings on their back, a halo, robes and various forms of glowing light.