Rocket Punch

Or, if you're watching the Trope Maker, "ROCKETTO PANCHI!"

"Suck on my missile punch!"

—President Michael Wilson, Metal Wolf Chaos

"In the end, it's hard to get fired up about a super robot if it doesn't have a rocket punch!"

—Takasu, Gravion Zwei

The Humongous Mecha isn't so much a speculation of practical weapon design as a convenient visual metaphor for the character(s) who pilot it. Steed, sword, and shining armor in one unified package. Extending that metaphor, it may be more satisfying if the hero's final blow for justice is dealt with "his" own right hand across the villain's jaw.

Problem: Said villain is half a mile away, and flying.

Solution: Fire your forearm (usually down to or just below the elbow) like a missile!

Problem solved. Don't forget to tell everyone what you're doing, though. And be sure you don't miss; large-scale Rocket Punches tend not to have retrieval mechanisms.

THE most famous Super Robot weapon, even more so than drills. So much so that many old Super Robot toys would include a firing-fist gimmick even if the actual show never used it.

Examples of Rocket Punch include:

Anime and Manga

• Mazinger Z is the Trope Maker here. Depending on the iteration, the arm would come back on its own, or he'd have to pick it up. The standard rocket punch is eventually upgraded to the Kyoukagata Rocket Punch ("Reinforced Rocket Punch"), consisting of identical fists with stronger armor. Mazinger Z possess a technique called Daisharin Rocket Punch ("Giant Swing Rocket Punch") in which it spins its arms rapidly, building up momentum before firing off both fists in standard Rocket Punch fashion. Mazinger Z also once used a technique called "Boomerang Fist", in which the rocket punch was attached to the upper arm with a retractable chain, and the "Iron Cutter", a Rocket Punch with blades extended on the sides of the forearms.
  • Great Mazinger has the Atomic Punch and adds spinning blades for the "Drill Pressure Punch", meaning it has the most and second-most ubiquitous Super Robot weapons in one.
  • ... as does Grendizer when using the "Screw Crusher Punch".
  • Mazinkaiser uses the Turbo Smasher Punch.
  • In Shin Mazinger Shougeki! Z-hen, Mazinger Z can literally transform into a fist.
    • More than halfway through the series, Physical God Zeus (Yes, that Zeus) sees Mazinger Z pull off a Rocket Punch and decides that it's so awesome that he should do it as well... By chucking his own severed hand/forearm at an evil God. It works.
    • Kouji himself does the same thing in the Shin Mazinger Zero manga, ripping his arm off and throwing it as a projectile.
  • As if the Big Bang Punch wasn't awesome enough, they manage to top themselves again in the final episode. "Rocket Punch 100 Rapid Shots" is all that needs to be said. We're not sure whether that falls under Rapid-Fire Fisticuffs or Macross Missile Massacre.
  • Mazinkaiser SKL has it, of course, but it also hangs a lampshade on their Awesome but Impractical nature:

Ken Kaido: Yeah, it looks impressive, but I freaking hate having to wait for the damn things to come back!

• Nana from Elfen Lied is capable of doing this without any sort of machinery. She uses her diclonius abilities to literally launch her prosthetic arm at her opponent for a long range punch that is capable of covering about 4 meters in a fraction of a second.
• Neo Getter Robo has the "Chain Knuckle", which as the name suggests, is a Rocket Punch on a chain; inspired by Getter Robo Go, which had a normal Rocket Punch.
  • Not to be confused with Voltes V's own Chain Knuckle, which swaps the fist out for a nasty-looking mace.
  • Steel Jeeg's Dynamite Punch.
    • Not to mention the two-handed Knuckle Bomber.
  • Daikyuu Maryuu Gaiking. The original 1976 series had Gaiking equipped with a typical rocket punch titled the "Counter Punch".
    • The new one has the Puncher Grind, which Daiya can bring back with Zector Hooks. In Super Robot Wars K, Daiya only uses the Hooks for a Dynamic Kill where he retrieves the fist, then punches the enemy with it and immediately fires it again.
• GaoGaiGar's BROKEN MAGNUM was a combination of this trope and the other most notable Super Robot Weapon, due to the high-RPM spinning of the fist. In GaoGaiGar's case, the fist pilots itself back to the main arm.
  • Genesic GaoGaiGar is an unusual case, in that only the hand from the wrist down detaches from the rest of the arm.
• Dangaioh's Boost Knuckle is a PILOTED Rocket Punch. The Token Mini-Moe of the group really hates this maneuver.
  • So is Gravion's.
• In G Gundam, the Master Gundam has the Distant Crusher, which is a Rocket Punch on a wire (though it's more of a Rocket Stab, used with the hand positioned as if preparing for a handshake).
  • In Gigantis' Counterattack (a non-canon manga Crossover between Gundam's Universal Century and Space Runaway Ideon), the Mega Zeta has a psychically-controlled Rocket Punch; when Amuro first uses it, Judau is left wide-eyed and stunned.
  • Gundam Seed Destiny's Destroy has these in the form of two "Detachable Arms", which can either be used as Attack Drones, or to invoke this trope. Judging by their size, they probably weigh more than the mobile suits they're launched at.
• In the second movie, Lagann-hen, the title mecha of Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann has a Rocket Punch function on both of its hands (can fire several shots over and over).
  • Similar to the Shin Mazinger Shougeki! Z-hen example above, Kamina snaps Simon out of a Heroic BSOD by throwing Gurren's severed forearm at Lagann. Not quite a "Rocket" punch, but the HUD on Lagann adds a starburst graphic as an allusion.
• Gaiking: The Legend of Daikyuu Maryuu. The 2005 revival includes a playful subversion: the boy hero uses the attack in his first fight only to find the fist isn't equipped to return on its own, and has to recover it manually.
  • And then one of the greatest upgrades the super-powered combined form Gaiking the Great gets? Rockets built into the Counter Punch to bring it back. He of course uses this to beat up and embarrass Proist during the initial fight.
• Robonimal Panda Z: The Robonimation. This 2004 series of super robot parody shorts features Panda-Z, a cute, teddy-bear-proportioned pastiche of Mazinger's design elements. The mecha has rocket fists that don't return on their own, leaving the question of how to reattach them to its pilot Pan-Taron, who, utterly mystified, stands there in his armless robot staring down at the fists on the ground as the sun sets. Day turns into night, and we find the robot and its pilot still incapable to resolve the situation. One can only assume that the Photonic Research Laboratories sent someone out to get him when he didn't come home.
• Parodied in an episode of Pokémon, where Pikachu seems to do this (shocking the onlookers)... until the cloud of smoke coming from the fist's wrist end is revealed to be Pikachu in a cloud of dust, having thrown itself bodily at the opponent.
  • Pikachu did hit its opponent...trouble was, said opponent was a Hitmonchan, who received little more than a bruise on its face and proceeded to KO the mouse when its own trainer showed up.
• One of the Tachikoma Omake episodes from the first Ghost in the Shell TV series has one firing off a fist like a rocket, whilst saying the name of the trope, a second one beside him tries...and everything but his fist goes flying, the first one claims the second one is 'skillful'.
• Medabots. In the final battle against the Big Bad, who is in a giant robot, Dr. Aki reveals a giant version of Metabee(complete with a Medawatch that is the size of a belt) that Metabeee and several other Medabots hop in to pilot. One of the Giant Metabee's attacks? Rocket Punch. Gets lampshaded by Ikki, asking if Aki has a spare arm. Aki responds, moderately angrily, by saying "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!" before the giant arm rocket propells itself back to the Giant Metabee.
• In the first episode of the Patlabor OVA, the villain knocks the right arm off Noa's beloved Labor Alphonse. Her partner urges her to turn her grief into rage and strike back with the "fist of justice". She catches up with the crooks and flings her Labor's severed arm at them. Of course, she shouts, "ROCKETTO PUNCH!!" while doing this.
• Dai-Guard pays homage to the idea in one fight by having its robot team pick up and hurl their robot's disconnected arm like a javelin.
• While not a Humongous Mecha, the titular hero of Space Adventure Cobra can eject his fake left fist (revealing a laser gun), which can come back on its own.
• In the anime version of Goku's fight with the giant android Major Metallitron in Dragon Ball, the latter uses one of these to attack the former..., who takes the full brunt of it. Ouch!
  • Likewise, Android 16 in Dragonball Z has this ability, and uses it against Cell. The trope isn't played qute straight, as the arm doesn't explode, and he has to grab it and reattach it after using the attack.
• Lampshaded in Ah! My Goddess, where Sigel's rocket punch is thwarted by a pair of scissors. Those fists might be tough, but the strings used to reel them back in aren't.
• Chachamaru does this to her creator in the Mahou Sensei Negima manga after getting particularly flustered. As does the robot Tanaka in the Tournament Arc. Both are attached to cables that can be used to quickly reel their arms back in.
  • She also does it to Negi after he recover from his initial fight with Kagetaro.
  • Earlier, during the battle with Evangeline, She Rocket Nose-flicks Asuna, who Cross Counters with a flick of her own.
    • And now Negi's gotten into the act with a lightning-based version.
    • And now Dynamis too, with a shadow-based one. Kind of. He teleports his shadow hand and impales Negi with it. And later in that fight, he spams it.
• In Bleach, the science master Captain Mayuri has an internal mechanism in his arm that allowed him to launch it in an attempt to grab the fleeing Orihime.
  • When it fails to return, he cuts it off and regrows the arm.
• In the Houshin Engi manga, Taikoubou loses an arm in battle and it gets replaced by an artificial one with multiple abilities, the Rocket Punch being one of them.
• One Piece has the following characters:
  • Franky (a cyborg), whose rocket-punch include a chain;
  • Buggy has a somewhat similar move due to his Devil Fruit powers, that extend to every part of his body less feet;
  • Both Akainu and Ace have a similar move - made of lava and fire respectively.
  • In a mail, a reader suggested a new move for the protagonist: when he throws one of his elongated super-punch, the swordman Zoro cuts the arm. As the reader noted, "It works only twice". The author was not enthusiast of this idea.
• The Asura Path body of Pain in Naruto can detach his fist and fire it with great force at enemies, with it partially fortified with chakra.
  • Those stitches on Kakuzu's arms? Yeah, the technique isn't called Zeong Jiongu for nothing.
• One of Vash's opponents in an early episode of Trigun has a rocket punch attack: Gofsef Nebraska, a 23 feels-tall cyborg mutant whose dad rides on his shoulder. His fist has a retractable cord, enabling him to bring it back and shoot it repeatedly. Vash takes it all in stride, though. He taunts the brute after one attack by scrawling graffiti onto the fist. He then proves his dominance by deflecting the fist in mid-flight by firing five precise shots at it.
• In one Axis Powers Hetalia strip, Sealand, who is literally made out of metal, tells Japan how much he likes Sentai shows. Japan then teaches him how to turn into a Humongous Mecha, complete with one of these.
  • In a gloriously hilarious Deconstruction, it doesn't come back, forcing the poor kid to call his target and beg for its return.
• In one Fullmetal Alchemist Omake, Winry installs a "rocket punch" function on Ed's Automail, and he accidentally shoots his arm off into the distance, resulting in her beating him up for losing her work.
• In S-Cry-ed, Kazuma's primary attack is a Rocket Punch... only the fist doesn't detach, so... I guess it's more like a Rocket Man?
  • In a different variation, we have unrestrained Zetsui's "Vigorous Fists", which are more like missiles.
• In the mock battle of Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha ViVid, after getting far away from Corona's Mighty Glacier of a Golem, Rio and Lutecia starts double-teaming Caro thinking they're safe, until Corona's golem raises its arm and fires it at the two, complete with "ROCKET PUNCH!" command from its controller.
• Okita does his version of this to Hijikata in Gintama.
• Kedo from Gash Bell has a couple of variants of this, including a rocket fist the size of a train.
• The Aestivalis Real Robots from Martian Successor Nadesico could fire their fists, retracting them with the cables trailing back to the mecha. Ascended Fanboy main character Akito sometimes refers to this as "Gekigan Punch" after the Rocket Punch move used by his favorite anime Super Robot, Gekiganger 3 (itself a none-too-subtle pastiche of Mazinger Z and Getter Robo).
  • Similarly, the Tetsujin used by the Jovians even bigger Ascended Fanboys than Akito have Rocket Punch-like attacks.
• Possible subversion: The Big O: Big Fau uses its entire forearms as missiles in the Grand Finale. Since the Mega Deus robots in Big O have forearms that are about as big as their torso, this would seem like a more formidable attack than the typical super robot's. Fortunately, since it's piloted by the Big Bad, it fails, resulting in it being literally 'disarmed'. Big O averts this with its piston punch, though, which is as Rocket Punch-y as you can get without actually being a Rocket Punch.
• In the second season of Code Geass, Kallen's new and improved Guren SEITEN is upgraded to fire its radiation wave arm at enemies while still remaining connected to the mecha through a cable.
  • In the first episode, Kallen's Glasgow takes critical damage to one of its arms and she attempts a Rocket Punch by weaponizing the system that automatically purges useless limbs. Sadly, it doesn't work.
  • Geass also has the slash harkens, bladed projectiles on wires that are equipped on practically every Knightmare Frame. The ones that get closest to being Rocket Punches are all incarnations of the Lancelot (mounted in its arm shields), Gawain and Galahad (all ten fingers) and the Shen-Hu (mounted in the forearms and explicitly based on the rope dart).
• Not quite a Rocket Punch, but close, is the Mugen Punch from Sousei no Aquarion.
• Super Robot Wars, in addition to pretty much all of the above, also features many original mecha with rocket punches, such as the Grungust series and its Boost Knuckle.
  • Or Soulgain's Rocket Soul Punch Genbu Goudan
• The OVA Z-Mind had a variation where the title mecha created a wormhole which it punched through. Ion-shooting arm at the enemy, while still connected to the Guren through a cable.
• The Daichis: Earth Defense Family combines this with the Macross Missile Massacre with Dai's "Missile Punch" - the glove of his Powered Armor sprouts several duplicates that Robotech at the target.
• In Rebuild of Evangelion, Unit 01 has one. Yes. Unit 01. It's a very special case involving haxmagic and an energy-based "replacement" arm, but it's a freaking rocket punch!
  • And it is awesome.
    • And it's only made even more awesome by the fact that Shinji is actually badass in that particular scene. Yes. Ikari Shinji, the whiny kid who's got absolutely no self-esteem at all, is channeling Simon's spirit while curb-stomping Zeruel in an extremely awesome, beautiful and sad scene.

I don't care what happens to me... I don't even care what happens to the world...! But I'm getting Rei back! I promise I'll save you Rei, EVEN IF IT'S THE LAST THING I DO!!!

• • To be fair, the rocket in this case is Zeruel. Still, when you can launch an enemy for what has to be a couple of miles with your badass energy arm, no one is really looking for clarification any longer.
  • Sachiel has the piston punch variant: The elbow spikes go through the arms and can be slammed into the target through the palms of the hands.
• God Ginrai in Transformers Super God Masterforce has one of these. Overlord has a similar weapon, but it's actually the front part of the Megajet.
• An antagonistic version in Giant Robo The Day the Earth Stood Still with GR-2.

Comic Books

• In The Big Guy and Rusty the Boy Robot, Big Guy sometimes uses explosive rocket punches, when he has a spare arm handy.
  • Let's not forget, Rusty's "Hypersonic Kicks". Although the feet stay on, they are given really high momentum by the feet jets.
• Not rocket-powered, but DC Comics has a couple of characters that use the same basic principle. Green Lantern Hal Jordan is famous for using his ring to create a giant boxing glove, and Green Arrow often uses boxing glove arrows. Cyborg has a for-some-reason detachable arm with a rocket in it, but never used it as such (only using the rocket to retrieve/move he arm for surveillance) in the Teen Titans animated series, but not in the original comics. (Yet.)
  • S.T.R.I.P.E. in Justice League Unlimited uses this in the episode "Chaos at the Earth's Core.
    • He uses it in his own book as well.
• Spider-Man had a villain who later turned hero named "Rocket Racer" who had this via rocket powered gloves. They didn't detach though; he had mini missiles for ranged attacks.
• In an issue of Hellboy, he briefly fights a cyborg Nazi with robotic fists linked ot his forearms by chains. This character is soon killed off but probably inspired Mr. Wink in the second film (see below).

Film

• Ultraman-ripoff Inframan receives a new weapon called "Thunderball Fists" before the final confrontation in his self-titled film. Two guesses what they do. Strangely, the original Ultraman didn't have a rocket punch, and isn't exactly a robot either.
• In the Arnold Schwarzenegger film Jingle All the Way there is a parade based on a show themed after a Sentai show, where both the protagonist and antagonist steal (for some reason fully functional) outfits of the corresponding characters. The antagonist gets a rocket punch amongst his abilities, which surprises both of them when he uses it.

"TA TA, Turtleman!"

• What about Robot Jox? Especially the climactic fight scene after our hero is ejected from his Humongous Mecha. He proceeds on foot to hotwire the rocket fist from a fallen piece of his opponent, defeating the enemy mech with its own severed arm.
• And let's not forget the fist bazooka in Hot Shots: Part Deux.
• A troll called Mister Wink in Guillermo del Toro's Hellboy II: The Golden Army has a prosthetic metal hand that he can fire and call back using a chain and the hand's ability to crawl with its fingers.
• The Omnidroid 6000 from The Incredibles could fire its appendages off on rockets, with the claws pressed together like a huge spear.
• Megamegamind in the Megamind: The Button of Doom short can fire its arm at the target, which then flies back and re-attaches itself.

Live-Action TV

• Super Sentai (and therefore Power Rangers) have mecha that do this on occasion. Count on the body part fired, which typically explodes, to be back in place and intact in the next shot of the mecha.
• Super Robot Red Baron has the "Baron Punch", which involves launching both of its fists at the enemy robot and stun/knock it down. The actual "launching" sequence consists of a stylish wipe, that depicts the fists heading towards the screen.

Music

• The Korean rock band W And Whale had a song called Rocket Punch Generation Shine (or RPG Shine), which invokes this trope in both the lyrics and video. And it's catchy as hell.
• The Japanese pop singer T.M. Revolution has a song called Madan -der freischutz- (Magic Bullets) has this trope in the video.

Tabletop Games

• The 4th edition of the Dungeons & Dragons setting Eberron has this. A Paragon Path for Artificers called the Self-Forged starts by replacing a hand with a Magitek replacement called a Battlefist. The ultimate "spell" for the Path allows the Artificer to shoot the Battlefist away on a chain of energy, allowing them to continue to control it even while it's detached from their body.
  • 3.5 Warforged (or in theory anyone with access to the Kensai Prestige Class) a +1 throwing returning fist.
    • The Blood Wind spell from 3.5 lets a creature throw its natural weapons, which return by magic. Monks treat their unarmed strikes as natural weapons, and can make unarmed strikes with any part of their body.
  • 4e Barbarians can get the feat "Hurl Weapon", which lets them use any off-hand weapon as a thrown weapon. The Monk's unarmed attack counts as an off-hand weapon...

Toys

• Several of the original Takara Diaclone robot toys that were used when Hasbro originated the Transformers line had spring-launched fists, but this ability was never incorporated into the original cartoon.
  • For a more recent example, Reveal The Shield Lugnut's forearms are both spring loaded for double-fisted P.O.K.E goodness.
• The Playskool Transformers Go-Bots (aka "1-2-3 Transformers" and "Go-Go-Go-Bots!") toy line featured a character called Aero-Bot, whose toy had launching fists (attached by strings, so they don't get lost) which hung under his wings in jet mode. There was also a slightly redesigned version in different colors named Silverbolt. This was a forerunner of Lugnut's more fully realized equipment.

Video Games

• The page quote comes from a literal Rocket Punch in Metal Wolf Chaos, where the main character grabs a single missile out of a Macross Missile Massacre, and punches his enemy in the face with it.
• Parodied in BlazBlue. In the segment of Teach Me, Miss Litchi!, Kokonoe installed a Rocket Punch in Iron Tager (it's not part of his actual moveset). However, she's not satisfied with the result and was thinking to move it somewhere else. Maybe on his chest... or his -- GIGANTIC TAGER!!!!
• Robo from Chrono Trigger had a Rocket Punch as his weakest special ability, where he would throw his fist at the enemy; it was hooked to a chain so he could reel it back in. A stronger attack, named "Uzzi [sic] Punch", had him do this multiple times in rapid succession.
• Some of Geno's weapons in Super Mario RPG do this. Then again, he's an animated doll.
• In Super Paper Mario, Lord Crump's mecha, Magnus von Grapple, fires its fists which turn into targets.
• Jedah, everyone's favorite self-harming vampire, not only fires his arms off in bloody geysers, but also his fingers and his goddamned head
• In the Dragonball Z games, Android 16 has the Rocket Punch as a basic ki attack. And yes, he does yell his attack.
• Kurtis, whether in human (cyborg) or Prinny form, has at least one variant of this as an attack in each of his appearances throughout the Disgaea series. He also yells it out in 3 and 4, though only with the Japanese audio on.
  • His Final Arm attack (Used in 2, 3, and 4) seems to pay homage to the rocket punch's origins, as it drills though the target, then inexplicably causes them to explode after they crackle with electricity in a fashion you'd expect from a damaged Humongous Mecha.
  • In 3, and the remake of 2, his robot clones can magichange into a fist weapon (With two rocket punch special attacks), while his true Prinny self magichanges into a gun that can shoot rocket punches.
• Lady X uses this as a Finishing Move in Rumble Roses, but it doesn't look nearly as cool as you'd think.
• Robot Alchemic Drive: Vavel's a big remote-controlled homage to Mazinger Z, so it stands to reason it would have its own version of the Rocket Punch, called "Assault Knuckle"
• Persona3's Aigis has this as one of her weapons. By the time you get it, however, it's usually outclassed.
• Aschen Broedel, the Lamia Expy from Mugen no Frontier: Super Robot Wars OG Saga, has a wired rocket punch, which is generally announced by her Genki Girl "released" personality: "Aschen PUNCH!"
• Area, a Mad Scientist (even though she looks more like the daughter) from the Street Fighter 'EX games has something similar. Instead of launching her arm, she wields a huge mechanical gauntlet (named 'Cancer' for some reason). Some of her attacks feature it launching in various manners. Her most powerful attack fires it off and then detonates it; while the move does excellent damage, you then lose the gauntlet for the rest of the match, which basically kills her offense.
• Several weapons from the Mega Man series give the Blue Bomber the ability to do this, starting with Mega Man 3's Hard Knuckle.
  • V (Game Boy) replaced the usual Mega Buster with this as its charged attack. Megs can also do this in 6 with the Rush Power Adapter.
  • In Mega Man Battle Network, by using an arrow combination as he activates the Guts Punch chip, Rock can transform it into the Rocket Guts Punch. The combination, of course, is down, down-right, right. Gutsman himself enjoys using the Rocket Guts Punch at higher versions. In the anime, Rock uses the Rocket Guts Punch as his primary weapon when in Guts Soul (in Battle Network 4, he can only do the Guts Punch). Also possible a Program Advance consisting of selecting Guts Punch, Ice Fist and Dash Attack, (In that order) to fire a stream of fists straight ahead, while time is frozen.
    • In the second game of the series, there are three successive powered-up versions of Guts Punch that have increasingly complicated Rocket Punch commands - Bronze Fist fires a single rocket punch, Silver Fist (this troper's favorite for its ease of use) fires an individual Rocket Punch down every row, and Gold Fist fires three punches down each row.
  • Spring Man from 7 has the retractable-arm variety of rocket punch in the same vein as Robo.
  • The Rush Super Adapter of 7 shoots powerful rocket punches on a full buster charge. After picking up a certain upgrade, they become homing punches.
    • In the same game Bass has a rocket punch in the second Dr. Wily stage when he's merged with Treble.
  • The General in Mega Man X 4 has a rocket punch attack. Arguably it's a subversion however; the most dangerous thing about this attack are that 2 laser cannon weapons that appear where his wrists used to be. The fists themselves are pretty harmless, and can be used by X/Zero to get a better shot at General's weak spot, his head.
  • In Maverick Hunter X, Vile can obtain an entire set of weapons which launch his fist forward with differing amounts of speed, damage, range and power usage. They're used in place of arm-mounted vulcans or missile launchers, and are usually stronger on average but harder to work with since Vile can't fire more than one of his arm at a time.
• Precis Neuman from Star Ocean the Second Story fights in a suit of self-made Powered Armor, so naturally, a Rocket Punch is included in one of her special attack sets.
• This is Rayman's main power, where he swings his fist around and then swings it at his opponent. It helps that his fists (and feet, and head) aren't attached to his body.
• In Cyborg Justice, the Launch arm works like this, but it requires you to walk over to where it landed and pick it up to reattach before it blows up.
• ZHP: Comes in two flavors, depending on which arm you equip the Rocket Punch to: the left arm uses Rapid-Fire Fisticuffs, while the right arm launches its target in the air and smacks him around a few dozen times.
• Annihilator Droids in Champions Online regularly use rocket punches. Somehow, they leave them with their arms intact.
  • The fake Dr. Destroyer also uses that same attack. What's more, partway through the fight he loses his arms, which proceed to fly around and beat players up, while he fights using eye beams and chest blasts. At least unless he heals up a bit.
• Blitzcrank from League of Legends, much like Robo, also has a rocket punch. However, the arm is retractable, and it's main purpose isn't to punch enemies out but grab them and drag them away from their allies to Blitzcrank and his allies, where they'll be promptly slaughtered.
• The Defenders in Final Fantasy X can fire one of their fists to halve a character's HP. Another one instantly locks into place afterwards.
  • This is a Blue Magic spell in Final Fantasy V. Among its users are Omega and Gilgamesh, the latter of whom was also given the attack in Dissidia 012: Final Fantasy.
  • One of Barret's weapons in Final Fantasy VII has the appearance of a boxing glove instead of the usual gun-arm and is actually named "Rocket Punch", but it subverts the trope as a close-range melee weapon instead of a ranged attack.
• Falcon of Power Stone uses this as his main method of attack in his super form.
• Byrne from The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks has a huge-ass power glove that he can fire to grab or punch his opponents. It's attached to a chain, making it retrievable.
  • Word of God says Link was going to get one in Skyward Sword in lieu of the Beetle.
• Unzan from Touhou shoots giant pink fist-shaped bullets. He's also a giant pink living cloud.
• Demolitions expert Araym from Septerra Core blew his arms off in the last war, and had them replaced with, essentially, big rocket arms. He gets very few attacks that aren't some form of Rocket Punch.
• In X-Men: Children of the Atom and Marvel vs. Capcom 2, Sentinel can fire its arm at a foe. It even says "Rocket Punch" when doing so. In the words of Yipes- "PLAYING BLOODY KNUCKLES"
  • Cyber-Akuma, the modified clone of Akuma made by Apocalypse in Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter also has one of these as one of his attacks.
  • In Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3, Nova does a variation where he fires his entire body at the enemy at full speed to deliver a powerful punch. Considering his nickname is the Human Rocket.
• Spyborg in Star FOX 64 likes to fire both of its fists in succession.
• In Makai Kingdom, the Bonus Boss Robosuit uses this as one of its attacks. The Robosuit is obviously intended as an homage to the classic Giant Robot school of mecha design.
• In Battle Clash and Metal Combat, Garam is able to use these (in the latter game, they can be charged up for devastating damage...especially useful in 2P Combat mode, where one player gets to control the mecha). They can only be fired once per match, though.
  • The AI usually only uses it when you've placed it in critical or when you've blown off certain parts as well. It's also pretty cool in the amount of variations of rocket punches it can do as well.
• The Grungust series of mechs in Super Robot Wars Original Generation have the BOOST KNUCKLE ability, which launches their entire forearm at an enemy like a missile. It returns afterwards.
  • The Garmraid from Super Robot Wars MX attaches it's shoulder guard to it's fist before launching it. The guard then opens up, revealing More Teeth Than the Osmond Family.
  • The Coustwell from Super Robot Wars J launches fists made of Hard Light. Its upgraded form Brachium makes copies of itself to fire three huge ones.
• Asgard in Wild ARMs 5 uses one as a sort of ejection seat to get Avril out of harm's way before the start of the game. He uses it again near the end of the game, this time in the traditional manner, when his missing arm returns during his time of need and Rocket Punches Volsung's Humongous Mecha in the face.
• In one scenario of Radical Dreamers Mecha-Lynx uses this attack.
• Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker has a tongue-firmly-in-cheek variation performed by Zadornov, where he makes a peace sign and shoots it while shouting "Rocket peace!" The theme of the game is nuclear deterrence (peace gained through rockets), so Your Mileage May Vary on whether this is symbolic or just one of Kojima's references to the anime he watched as a kid. Or both.
• "Rocket Kubochi" and "Double Rocket" In Inazuma Eleven, rocket punches that are used in a soccer match as a goalkeeper's punching techniques.
• In Dissidia Final Fantasy 012, Gilgamesh has a move which is him firing two boxing gloves at extreme speed towards the opponent, conveniently called Rocket Punch. Once he enters his EX mode, he fires 8 (mainly due to the fact he gains 6 more arms).
• The Robot costume's main attack in Costume Quest is a Rocket Punch, even called by that name.
• In Star Wars: the Old Republic, the Bounty Hunter has an ability called Rocket Punch where he uses rocket boots to uppercut an opponent
• Plok is a rare biological example in which the title character is able to shoot out and reattach not only his fists, but his legs as well.

Web Original

• In Volume 5 of RWBY, Yang Xiao Long demonstrates something that might be a rocket punch to win at arm-wrestling against Nora by ejecting her bionic arm so vigorously that Nora is sent flying into a wall.

Western Animation

• Voltron (specifically Go Lion) had its "Lion Head Attack," which fired its "hands" and "feet" at the enemy. Naturally, Voltron was always flying at the time, so it wouldn't fall over from suddenly losing its feet.
• Bump in the Night was a series that took place with all the monsters and toys that live in a kids room. One of the Running Gags was a Lawful Stupid toy robot firing its "Fist Missiles" at the titular Mr. Bumpy. Said fists frequently stopped, looked around for Bumpy, and lifted up objects and used tools to better help them find him.
• In Batman the Brave And The Bold, the Batmobile pulls this off against Babyface.
• Avatar: The Last Airbender of all places has a variation: members of the Dai Li have gloves made of rocks that can be launched as a punch or to grab someone inconspicuously.
• On episode of the Men in Black TV Series had J shrunk down to the size of a small alien, and forced to use a robot suit built to look just like him. The robot suit in question could actually fire off its fists as Rocket Punch attacks, which unfortunately bit J in the ass when he missed and set the arm way farther than he had the chance to get back to.

J: I like that arm.

• A truly bizarre variation occurs in a rare and obscure experimental cartoon called The Little Island. One of the three unnamed characters raises his fist, which suddenly enlarges and pops off his wrist, then comes crashing down on him from the heavens. Several times. It starts at the 3:46 mark of this segment.
• Lugnut from Transformers Animated possesses a rather different kind of Rocket Punch, in which jet engines attached to his forearm propel his explosive-tipped (and still attached) fist into the ground at supersonic speed. The result is an enormous explosion of kinetic force that can level a city block. Bulkhead counters this by triggering the explosive prematurely with his wrecking ball. Wreck-Gar just used a high-five.
  • In the season 2 finale, Lugnut actually uses launches his fists (in both robot and jet mode), to little effect against Omega Supreme.
  • Lockdown, on the other hand, plays it straight. Since he's made largely of stolen parts, it's no surprise that they can fly off.
  • And Bulkhead's wrecking ball probably counts too, since it takes the place of his fist and swings out on a cable.
• Teen Titans: Cyborg's arms worked somewhere between this trope and Attack Drone when he launched them.