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The Hug of the Gods!!!
The standardised, FDA-approved display of affection for The Big Guy (especially if s/he is a Gentle Giant and/or a Boisterous Bruiser), this consists of the hugger grabbing someone — or multiple people, if necessary — from behind (usually) with a big, sweeping motion and pulling them close (sometimes lifting them off the ground entirely), with the hugger's arm(s) wrapped tightly around the huggee's neck and/or shoulders. Being The Big Guy is not actually required, but having a large "stage presence" (whether it stems from size or sheer charisma) helps make this more convincing.
Note that this is as much a means of displaying the character's dominance/strength as it is of showing that they're just a big ol' teddy bear, and like its cousin The Glomp, is oftentimes far from consensual; the huggee often doesn't appreciate being manhandled by somebody twice their size, and you can tell a lot about a character based on whether they give in to the hugger's crushing embrace or struggle helplessly to escape. If the hug goes on for too long, expect cries of "can't... breathe..." or something similar. Despite all this, there is often little-to-no risk of actual physical injury unless the hugger Does Not Know His Own Strength on top of being overly affectionate, in which case the odds of Amusing Injuries being inflicted vastly increase.
This is Truth in Television, as any real life Gentle Giant (or a close friend of one) will tell you.
Similar to The Glomp, but with less full-body tackling and a far higher risk of asphyxiation. Unrelated to bears in general as a trope, though they can coexist in very specific circumstances. Like many tropes, can be deconstructed to horrifying effect.
Examples
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Anime & Manga
- Goku's father-in-law Ox-King from Dragon Ball could give a pretty good bear hug when the situation called for it.
- In The Twelve Kingdoms, Youko's reuniting with Rakushun. When Youko arrives in En only to find that Rakushun had made it there on his own and had been coming to the docks every morning when the ships bearing immigrants from Kei arrived, hoping that Youko would be among their number. Youko then proceeds to give him a "d'awww" inducing bear hug in gratitude.
- Gendo Ikari expressed his desire to bear hug Shinji from behind in Ikari Shinji Raising Project, among, er... other things.
- THIS BEAR-HUGGING TECHNIQUE HAS BEEN PASSED DOWN THROUGH THE ARMSTRONG FAMILY FOR GENERATIONS!
- Gentle Giant Kurita in Eyeshield 21 is prone to bear-hugging his teammates when he's happy. When Musashi returned to the team, Kurita went to Bear Hug Musashi who dodged and Kurita ended up crushing the truck Musashi was driving.
Comic Books:
- In The Boys former Soviet superhero Love Sausage bearhugs Billy Butcher (in a friendly fashion) when they first meet.
- In Marvel Comics, former Soviet Super Soldier Ursa Major (who turns into a bear) uses this as his main attack move.
Films
- Chewbacca from Star Wars is something of a bear, and he is as fond of hugs as he is of ripping out arms from their sockets.
- Something similar to this happens in the 1996 film Michael, during Archangel Michael's dance with hippie waitress Anita. During the dance Anita excitedly jumps towards Michael, who catches her in a hug and lifts her up before playfully spinning her around with Anita's giggling showing she is enjoying it, especially with her doing some Foot Popping. (In this case, Michael is supporting her with one hand on her waist and the other under her buttocks).
Live-Action TV
Literature
- The Doctor Who Eighth Doctor Adventures novel Halflife has the Doctor do this:
And with that, the Doctor bounded over and gave Fitz a huge, rib-cracking hug, lifting him clear off the ground.
- They're both fairly slim and unremarkable to look at, although, in another book, the Doctor lifts Fitz up in a rather effortless Bridal Carry, so he's kind of got that Muscles Are Meaningless/Waif-Fu thing going on.
Video Games
- Debilitas from the Survival Horror game Haunting Ground, the Psychopathic Manchild gardener who chases Fiona around the castle because he's mistaken her for one of his dolls and just wants to play with her. Unfortunately, his over-excitement means he'll violently beat her to death in glee if you let him get close, or pick the poor girl up and squeeze her to death in a Bear Hug while giggling manically.
- Sumo wrestler E. Honda from the fighting game Street Fighter II has this in his arsenal of attacks.
- Bear Hugger is a huge Canadian lumberjack from Punch-Out!! that would love to give his opponents Bear Hugs.
Bear Hugger: NEED A HUG?!
- In the ending of the Dodongo's Cavern in Ocarina of Time Darunia decides that he and Link are now Sworn Brothers, and to celebrate this he gives him two gifts: the necessary Plot Coupon, the Goron's Ruby and a Goron group Bear Hug. Cue Link running off screaming.
- In Pokemon Heart Gold And Soul Silver, the player's walking Pokémon with high happiness will sometimes hug the player. Cue the message "Whoa! (Pokémon's name) suddenly hugged you." and a heart speech bubble over the player's Pokémon's head.
- In Kingdom of Loathing, September 2012's Item of the Month gives you the right to bear arms
 - as in, literally, when you purchase it, you are given 2 arms that came from a bear. Unsurprisingly, with both of them equipped at once, you can hug enemies.
- Grim Fandango's ending cutscene features the demon Glottis doing this to Manny. Manny can't die from suffocation due to being already dead, yet he is still very uncomfortable with this, which would've been funny if not for the general Tear Jerker value of the moment.
Manny: So... I guess this is it, then? (extends his hand for the last handshake with his best friend)
Glottis: C'mere. Gimme a hug. (grabs Manny) You were the best boss... I ever had... Bye. (squeezes Manny, who tries futilely to get free)
- One of Bamboo Pandamonium's attacks in Mega Man X8. If this gets you, it will drain a huge chunk of your health unless you call your partner in to get you out.
Web Comic
Web Original
- Blue Team's original leader Captain Butch Flowers from Red vs. Blue:
"Men, your delightful tomfoolery puts a spring in my step, and a bounce in my britches. If I weren't your commanding officer I'd pick you both up, give you a giant bear hug, and make you call me Daddy."
- Want to see a pony do a bear hug? Introduce yourself to Kettle Cornflakes.
Western Animation
- Genie in the end of the first Aladdin movie.
Genie: Aww! Group hug, big group hug!"
- Owen from Total Drama Island
- Chien-Po, The Big Guy from Mulan
- Lampshaded in The Simpsons with a real bear hug. The bear itself was only lashing out because of an electronic tag, and embraces Homer after he removes it. Unfortunately, it still has claws.
Homer: (looking at the marks) I don't know why bear hugs enjoy such a great reputation....
- Road Rovers:
Exile: I give all my comrades big kiss!
Blitz: Stop with the kissing, or I'll start with the biting.
Exile: OK, I give you big bear hug instead!
Blitz: (straining) Go back to the kissing! Go back to the kissing! Kiss me! Kiss meeee...
Exile: Don't be a weird boy.
- The appropriately named Lotso-Hugging Bear in Toy Story 3.
- Timon and Pumbaa are quite fond of this◊
- Beezy J. Heinous on Jimmy Two-Shoes, occasionally.
- In Xiaolin Showdown, Clay, who Wouldn't Hit a Girl, defeats Catnappe with this, on the basis that he's not actually hitting her.
- My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic: Princess Luna gives one to a shell-shocked Fluttershy after Fluttershy helps her learn to turn down the volume.
- Pinkie squeezes the stuffing out of Rainbow Dash after learning that Dash was accepted as a Wonderbolt cadet in Wonderbolt Academy.
- In the The Legend of Korra episode "Welcome to Republic City" The titular character uses an Effortless Amazonian Lift to pick up three kids and their father and give them a massive group hug. She's only seventeen.
- For bonus points, her actual Polar-Bear-Dog gets in on it.
- In the second season of Jackie Chan Adventures, the Enforcers are trying to make a getaway from their hideout when they see their old buddy Tohru in the way. Having not seen him since the previous season's finale, they don't realize he'd switched sides until the big guy grabbed all three in a Bear Hug and tossed them aside.
- Starfire of Teen Titans likes to hug this way. Unfortunately for the other person, Starfire has super strength and may forget that when she's being affectionate.
- Junko of Storm Hawks gives a couple of these to his teammates. They don't protest the hugs, but are obviously struggling to breathe.
Real Life
- Kim Komenich, a Pulitzer Prize winning photographer and professor foiled a bank robbery by wrapping the perp in a bear hug until police arrived. The fact that Komenich has covered wars in places like Vietnam, is 6'2" and weighs about 230 pounds probably helped.
- Ozzy Osbourne isn't particularly fond of them:
I have a message for anyone coming to the Ozzfest this summer (2000): If you're planning to jump up onstage during my set, please do not give me any bear hugs, because they fucking hurt. Listen to me, I'm dead serious. On the first night of last year's tour, this enormous guy jumped up onstage and gave me a huge bear hug. He crushed three of my ribs and I had to do the whole tour in absolute agony. I couldn't believe it, the first fucking show!
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