Black Hand Images
| Super Name: | Black Hand |
| Real Name: | William Hand |
| Aliases: | William Hand |
| Publisher: | DC |
| Gender: | Male |
| Character Type: | Human |
| 1st Appearance: | Green Lantern #29 |
| Appears in: | 15 issues |
| Birthday: | |
| Died: |
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One of Hal Jordan's oldest foes, Black Hand has evolved from a gimmicky criminal into a sadistic madman capable of siphoning lifeforce from his victims. He is reportedly the source of the mysterious "black" that is related to the rumored Black Lantern Corps. Edit
EARLY HISTORY
Black Hand is one of Green Lantern's oldest foes, originally portrayed as a villain who spouted clichés while committing his crimes. William Hand was said to have been born of a wealthy family of high society. His "black" moniker was a testament to his having been the "black sheep" of the family. Black Hand's major offensive threat to the Green Lantern was his use of a device that has come to be known as a Cosmic Divining Rod. This flashlight sized device could locate and collect Green Lantern energy, draining a Lantern's power ring. This energy could then be used by Black Hand to augment his strength, fly, create force-fields, or fired in destructive blasts. Black Hand plagued Halrepeatedly during his early adventures, and even stood toe to toe with Kilowog on one occasion, matching the powerful Lantern energy for energy until Kilowog used his brawn, rather then his ring, to knock out Black Hand.
His criminal career was largely unsuccessful, prompting Black Hand at one point to try and make an "honest: living by running an adult movie theatre. As chance would have it, Guy Gardner had brought Ice to this theatre during one of their dates. Enraged by her reaction to his poor taste, Guy spotted William Hand and delivered a vicious, all be it, unprovoked beating on the "reformed" villain. Black Hand's decent into insanity only intensified from this point on.
REBIRTH
Once again Black Hand used his divining rod in an attempted to steal Hal's ring, which was being kept safe by Green Arrow. Blasting his way into Arrow's home Black Hand did not notice the Green Arrow until the hero shot Black Hand in his hand, pinning him to the wall. Although he was disarmed and posed no threat, the spirit of Spectre arrived and turned Black's hand into coal stating "(now) he can live up to his name". The hand maintained its structure long enough for Black Hand to realize what had happened, before it crumbled into dust; the villain collapsing in excruciating pain.
Black Hand was not seen again until after Halhad been reborn as the Green Lantern. Hand was traveling cross country, clearly insane from his ordeal, when his flight was hijacked by Krolotian Gremlins, an alien race who abducts and genetically engineers other beings for sale as weapons on the intergalactic black market. Something was awakened within Black Hand by their genetic modifications. His missing hand could now be reformed and used to siphon life force from living beings. Black Hand was returned to earth, where he quickly used his power to suck the life out of an entire floor of people at a nearby hospital either by direct touch or through the use of a blast of live stealing energy he was now capable of emitting from his hand.
His murder spree was interrupted by Hal Jordan, who battled his new and improved enemy, ultimately burying the villain alive before taking him into custody. Black Hand was last seen in police custody when an unexpected surge of power killed his guards and transported Black Hand to the surface of the moon. There he appeared entranced by a mysterious voice which he heard calling out to him from deep space.
BLACKEST NIGHT -THE ORIGIN OF WILLIAM HAND
Black Hand's origin is one subject addressed in the "Green Lantern: Secret Origin" story arc. William Hand is a disturbed young man working at his family's business Hand Mortuary. He appears to hold a morbid fascination with the dead bodies within the mortuary and was twice seen secretly gazing at a corpse with an intent fascination. His morbid behavior is portrayed as an ongoing problem in his family with William's mother asking him at one point "why can't he be a good Christian like his brothers"? As if acknowledging his diseased mind, William responds "I don't know".
At this point William is unaware that he is being stalked by the alien necromancer Atrocitus. Atrocitus has foreseen that "William Hand" contains "the power of the black" an as yet unspecified power which Atorcitus believes will provide him with the means for revenge against the Guardians of the Universe. Crafting a cosmic divining rod, Atrocitus follows the device to Hand intent on eviscerating the young man to claim the power within him. Hand is saved by the intervention of Hal Jordan and Sinestro, who was then still a Green Lantern. This flashback story serves to foreshadow Black Hand’s importance to the “Blackest Night” story arc. The symbol he wears on his chest, that of the “Hand Mortuary”, has been seen reflected in the eye of “Scar” the Guardian seemingly corrupted by her encounter with the Anti-Monitor during the Sinestro Corps War. The Anti-Monitor was last seen having been entrapped within the Black Battery, the apparent source of power for the rumored undead army of Black Lanterns.
