First Round Gon vs. Hunter x Hunter

[Kiki]

Gon Masashi Tanaka​	-	Hunter x Hunter Yoshihiro Togashi​

Rules

- You are allowed to vote for one Manga
- After 5 days, the Manga with the most votes will proceed into the next round
- In case of a tie, a staff pick will break it

Special Rules

- We proudly encourage you to share the best pics of your Manga!
- Earn the possibility to win a badge by being the proudest Mangalover around!

 

[Erinyes]

so wish you best luck @Brandish gon sounds a cute and interesting pick, might get to "read" it hopefully,

So guys you all know HxH is really special to me its definitely my fave manga

Enjoy guys some nice tracks of 99 version tracks :

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please watch this humble vid

https://streamable.com/uk2aq

video made byusing various arts / Ending credits hxh  99 kaze nu uta by Minako Honda

overview

Hunter x hunter world/mythology is probably the best manga imo, HxH universe is rich vast and imaginative yet closest to ours, the world Togashi created even if its fictive, is still realistical, he put a lot of details about everyday life, technology politics, geopolitical, anthroplogical, philosophical aspects that make it credible but still fictional.


-HxH has it own langage :
though togashi was clever enough to make it the lingua franca , with not denying the existence of others langages.

- HxH communication system & technology :
Hxh technology is somehow related to ours (internet, video games, planesn but still has its own features)

- Greed Island arc :
it was one probably the arc that pave the way for all swordart online-like anime/manga type , a clever setting game with its own mechanics, Togashi did create cards and rules to suit the own HxH universe and nen mechanisms, a pure genius level creation.

HxH Gungi fictional board game :

Gungi symbolism source here :
Even though it doesn't really impact or affect their character development, it just goes to show how deep Togashi's writing can be.
All aboard the feels train because its about to get very emotional.

Kokoriko is an advanced Gungi technique by Komugi that centers around isolating the King (as in the Gungi piece, not the Chimera Ant), separating it from the other pieces and killing it off. Just like Netero and the Hunters were planning to do to Meruem. However, Komugi unexpectedly develops a counter to this technique in the middle of a game, meaning that the King piece (representing Meruem) no longer has to die (since he unexpectedly survived the nuke). Then, later on, when Komugi uses Kokoriko again, she actually develops a counter to the counter ("she reversed my reversal???"), representing that the King piece (Meruem) apparently actually does have to die after all (because of the Rose's poison). However, immediately after beating Meruem using Kokoriko (symbolizing his imminent death), Komugi and Meruem start one final game together, a game that they never finish. 1-5-1 Black King -> 9-5-1 White Lieutenant General, I believe, or something to that extent. Immediately afterwards, they die together, leaving on the board Meruem's one black piece and Komugi's single white piece, together in Gungi forever. This represents that the two were always united through Gungi, and will continue to be together even after death, undisturbed and united for all eternity. Meruem places his piece down, symbolizing his death, and then Komugi responds by placing her piece down next to his, showing that she is perfectly willing to die at his side..

The black screen/black panels in the manga show that the Rose's poison has made Meruem go blind. That's why he has to keep asking Komugi if she's still there, because he can't see her anymore. This is ironic because his name means "the light that illuminates/shines upon all". He even got some godlike light-related photon-based powers before his death, allowing him to fulfill his name. In addition, as they are playing in the bunker before their deaths, Meruem sees a blinding light radiating from Komugi as she "reverses his reversal", making her "the light that illuminates even the all-powerful light". Despite being far weaker (and blind to boot), her light shined far brighter than his. Then, as he dies, Komugi holds him and feels his head, allowing her to finally "see" or know what his face is like. Thus, as they die, Meruem joins Komugi in blindness as she joins him in death. Meruem can finally see what Komugi has been seeing all along, and knows what it feels like to be blind like her, and Komugi finally knows his face, allowing each to understand the other more as they fade away (the OST used during their death scene is called "Understanding"). Touching, isn't it? Togashi is a mastermind, and this entire story, especially this arc, is a masterpiece, a beautiful work of art, a canvas depicting love, hatred, innocence, corruption, happiness, suffering, loyalty, betrayal, anger, sadness, life, death, malevolence, destruction, resolve, determination, avarice, sacrifice, "true" power, truth, and understanding.

lets get deeper into deeper thought

- HxH political organisations/ government/rulers :
Hunter x hunter world is similar yet biggest than ours, has some international setting and political motivations like colonization of the new world.

V6 (former V5) aka the great world leaders.

HxH philosophical/anthropoligical aspects :

Hxh is full of symbolism, imagery and deep thinking, Chimera ants itself is a huge reflexion about human nature. Togashi is great in portraying human nature, complexity, individual thoughts, he goes a lot deep in the behavior/psychological/philosophical, he uses a lot reference like in the last chapter with the Trolley problem ethics issue.

HxH Rose nuke as a counterpart of the nuke bomb irl

- HxH unique power system aka nen wont explain this, too long :

- HxH world, myths, mysteries and fantastics

A vast universed totally fictive with fictionnal creatures but still close to human world.

​

characterization

HxH characters :
HxH cast is various, unconventional, non one-dimensional, hxh characterization doesnt rely on fan service or on beauty or strenght, Togashi can highlight a servant or a blind girl over an mc, or even a king,. Main characters are not necessary your pure and nice typical shonen mc, they arequite complex, and a lot grayish, they're not driven by the philanthropia or such (except maybe Leorio), and vilains are even more interesting. Even though they are only a few of them, females are not belittled.

Shimano (a servant) being smarter than Kurapika and teaching him a lesson

:

Senritsu being one of the most interesting female :

Komugi : she's blind ( theres a whole symbolical dimension of her blindness : being blind means she cant rely on apperances so she assess people with her "heart" she was the only one who never feared Meruem, but he was judging her by her appearance, at 1st being he was disgusted then amazed by her "angelical" side" also he lost his sight before dying :

Antagonists

Phantom troupe : they re a lot of christic symbolism around phantom troupe, wont going to explain everything but Chrollo lucilfer being a kind of (anti)christ figure ( charisma, number of members, an organization built like a cult somehow, hiis being important but yet he considers himself as a replaceble pawn) with the members being like apostles, the mention of a traitor (judas mentioned ). also the new ability" sun & moon" looks like stigmates in chrollo hands.

Meruem being the ultimate antagonist evil at birth than grew and evolved so humanly, wont go deep into the darkness and light symbolism of teh arc but his names means light)

darkeness :

onegai vote /support HxH greatness !!

 

[kira]

Instavote for Gon

Spoiler

Gon Freecs...

sorry you had to go up against HxH in the first round @Brandish

 

[Brandish μ]

Thanks @Erinyes HxH is a great manga so I wish you all the best!





Gon by Masashi Tanaka

Gon tells the adventures of a little dinosaur who roams through numerous environments doing as he pleases. He's a charismatic little guy who can be kind, aggressive or silly at any given time. The stories he leaves at each locale are often familiar and universal, expressed with cheer and thoughtfulness; and at the end of your read, no matter how brief, you should feel happier and entertained.


Take this simple message about family.

You don't have to come from the same mother, or be the same species, to be family.

Families want to do things together, and if it's difficult to accomplish...

they'll be there to help out.

Gon makes friends and family throughout his journey.

In Antarctica...

The Wolfpack

Gon helps an old friend in his last days...

And many more.


But it's not always like that.
Sometimes, Gon bullies the local predators for seemingly unmotivated reasons.
And on one occasion he builds a house, which resulted in the flooding of a landscape, pissing off all the native species

It may seem like I've spoiled but I assure you that's not the case.
The experience comes through the visual storytelling Gon offers that most manga don't.
Perhaps, Gon does that better than any other. Delivering power and joy through imagery.
Gon doesn't have complex plots or story buildup (see HxH for that).
It's simple, and necessarily so.

Vote Gon!

Spoiler

Also an unlockable character in Tekken 3 lol...

 

[Spirit]

This is tough. Erin is always so heartfelt that it's hard to resist her (The perfect Mafia ).

And yet, Jarred's entry is something new. I've never heard of it before now and it intrigues me. Being based in Australia, as a manga that's something special to me. The art is Urasawa level and it's kinda cute.

Leaning towards Gon but I'll reserve my vote for now

 

[The one who laugh]

Thanks @Erinyes HxH is a great manga so I wish you all the best!





Gon by Masashi Tanaka

Gon tells the adventures of a little dinosaur who roams through numerous environments doing as he pleases. He's a charismatic little guy who can be kind, aggressive or silly at any given time. The stories he leaves at each locale are often familiar and universal, expressed with cheer and thoughtfulness; and at the end of your read, no matter how brief, you should feel happier and entertained.


Take this simple message about family.

You don't have to come from the same mother, or be the same species, to be family.

Families want to do things together, and if it's difficult to accomplish...

they'll be there to help out.

Gon makes friends and family throughout his journey.

In Antarctica...

The Wolfpack

Gon helps an old friend in his last days...

And many more.


But it's not always like that.
Sometimes, Gon bullies the local predators for seemingly unmotivated reasons.
And on one occasion he builds a house, which resulted in the flooding of a landscape, pissing off all the native species

It may seem like I've spoiled but I assure you that's not the case.
The experience comes through the visual storytelling Gon offers that most manga don't.
Perhaps, Gon does that better than any other. Delivering power and joy through imagery.
Gon doesn't have complex plots or story buildup (see HxH for that).
It's simple, and necessarily so.

Vote Gon!

Spoiler

Also an unlockable character in Tekken 3 lol...

Wow u literary changed my point of view I guess I will vote for Gon

But I will wait

 

[Erinyes]

Thanks brandish for your presentation thats interesting and you bring this family topic topic i wanted to tell about as its something recurrent in HxH, but as i said i really dont have time to commit that much and dont want to. but here’s a short overview about parents and family issues.

​

Family has always been complex in HxH world. We dont know know anything about Leorio parents and family, Kurapika has the darkest past his family has all been massacred, Gon and killua have some issues with theirs , Ging give up on his son to enjoy his hunter life, and Killua lives in a creepy family of assassins that even locked his sister (refering alluka as a girl ) also he got manipulated by his own brother. He ended up leaving his family, 1st to travel with his friend then to protect his sister he released.

Gon main goal was to find his father, he did find him eventually but their relationships sounds not like one father-son for most of the time, he even calls him by his name, he doesnt even care to know his actual mother this true mother figure is his aunt Mito.

Then you have phantom troupe and Meteor city, so just copy/pasting wikia :

Meteor City (流(りゅう)星(せい)街(がい)()()()()()()(), Ryūseigai) is a junkyard city inhabited by outcasts. People who live there do not exist in any official records and the existence of the city itself is known to very few people. Not much is known about the city; much of the information on it is shrouded in mystery. It is rumored to be at least five hundred years old and was believed to have been founded by a dictator who wanted to separate the human race. Since then, it has been a dumping ground for other countries. The city is said to have the most diverse ethnic background and its population estimated at eight to ten million people, living in an area about the size of the Lapet Republic approximately 5,985.74 km².

According to Leorio, due to the fact that most of inhabitants do not have any personal track record, the city became a huge source of untraceable hitmen and assassins whereas the Mafia community often invests a lot in the city so they can always have a huge reserve of assassins.The inhabitants share remarkable bonds which have been described as "thinner than water, and yet thicker than blood", to the point they are ready to lay down their own lives for fellow denizens. This was speculated to be the result of indoctrination from an early age.

Phantom troupe members are valuing their bonds like a family one. but they re unconcerned about their "blood" family (wether they have one or not, which is unknown, though most of them are from MC so likely orphans)

Togashi did again a great job portraying all kind of family issues, he surely is concerned by parenthood let’s look at chimera ants.
Meruem -queen ants his (mother) The queen was really worried for her son and his helth, bu when hes born, he just ignored his mother and let her die, while she still was focused on his well being. He even killed Peggy who wanted to treat her

But then he happened to change when he gained some “humanity” when being brought back to life he experienced something like being reborn and felt like he was in a mother womb. He then understand the whole value of motherhood and asked to be named by the name she chose for him.

Reina and her mother who still recognized her despite her daughter being changed into an ant and she still shows some affection and love to her.

Succession war : The king ready to sacrifice his children for the sake of the kingdom in a bloody family war. Queen oito realizing what the most important thing in her life.

Some HxH art :

Hxh genius lines :

onegai listen to this

Kaze no uta HxH 99 ending 1

1​

 

[Nii]

Again, your dedication is just too strong Erin Hunter x Hunter definitely has my vote, I simply enjoy the series way too much. Stuff like the Chimera Ant arc was just outstanding.

Though I feel very sorry for Brandy Against most other series I would've given Gon a chance, your campaign post was great and the manga looks really interesting. Like when he flies with the birds, just wow Definitely made me want to check it out, so perhaps I will do that at some point. In this case the opponent is too strong though...

 

[Jammin]

I just want to know one thing. Why is Gon a Digimon?

Does nobody care about the plight of Agumon but me?

--- Double Post Merged, Sep 29, 2018, Original Post Date: Sep 29, 2018 ---

That having been said though, as usual, the finger that would have voted for Hunter X Hunter is on hiatus.

+1 for misplaced nostalgia by default.

 

[uberfayt]

Wow, great posts from both canditates ^^

@Brandish I did not know that the character "Gon" had its own manga, I knew him from the game Tekken3 and he was one of my faves xD

@Erinyes , you did hxh the justice it deserves, and maybe even beyond, great posts ^^ (I especially liked the soundtrack inclusion )

I would just like to emphasize some of the qualities which really attract me (and everybody else) to the awesome work that is hunterxhunter:

• Characters. Their personalities, motivations, actions and interactions feel very natural and real (especially the interactions part, which I feel is stiff and cliche in many other mangas). This makes it very easy to relate to them, to share their feelings, laughter and cries. They really do behave as we, real humans, would have done if we lived in their world. Even the most minor of the characters has something to share and feels alive, as Erin also said.
• Fights come in a variety of ways and contests, from street brawls, to business sales and MMORPGs, not to forget the clever and omnipresent mind games.
  
• The supernatural power used in fights (nen) is an extremely well-thought system. Complex yet simple enough to understand, precise yet vague enough to give us room for thought and speculations, and most importantly allows for very creative powers to be used, especially if such powers are combined (Chrollo in his fight vs Hisoka gave us a good example). There is no linear power level system.

I promised myself not to write anything and to just spectate...I guess I should not dream about the impossible

 

[Elusia]

I'm not gonna vote yet, but....

As someone who has read Gon, it's a fantastic manga. A simple story of a lone dinosaur wandering in every places with the most realistic and best artstyle I've seen in a while. The best thing about it is that there's no dialogue, as expected of this kind of story. It's just a pure, visual presentation of survival, and it keeps pulling you in with every single detailed scenes.

With that being said though, hunter x hunter is also a solid manga, and I know that everyone in this thread already said a lot, so I'm gonna keep it brief. But it's an awesome shonen with three dimensional characters, excellent arcs, and best fight scenes.

Good luck to both @Brandish and @Erinyes. Hope you guys spread more about these two great mangas!

 

[Erinyes]

wow thxs @kira @niichan @uberfayt and everyone else who support HxH, its really appreciated

 

[Farfalla]

You guys put a lot of effort here xD I'll have a hard time picking my vote. Both looks like series I'd like to check, even though they seem very different.

 

[uberfayt]

To be honest, I gotta admit I'm extremely interested by "Gon" now. The art style is great (and the little story about the flood made my day xD) It's really unfair this match up happened so early...I'll definitely start reading the manga though ^^

 

[Lambu]

I will support the underdog here, Gon gets my vote. I absolutely love how badass the animals look in its panels

Besides, even if I really like Hunter x Hunter, it already made it to the semifinals last year. I would like to see new things this time around.

 

[Brandish μ]

You're doing an excellent job while busy, Erinyes.





I shall try something different, since I've done an overview. l'll go through chapter 15 - my favourite Gon adventure (link to scans).


Beware, I'm essentially spoiling a whole chapter. Which is fine if you'll never read the manga. Not so fine if you might. This could come across as forceful, to review/react to a chapter this way, but it does showcase the Gon experience. And all 'Gon Fanart' are for Hunter...

Spoiler

**note: Gon's physical strength and roaring ability have been presented in earlier chaps

After the first 2 pages, the swag is on full tilt.
I'd also like to point out the little guy early. He's in the front (you'll see more of that). It's pretty cute how his legs are drawn moving so quick. He's setting the pace!

Poor cheetah cub...

Oh no he's in trouble..

strut levels 9000+

That turnaround always gets me : )
Gon is too stronk. Cheetah cub is in awe/shock.
Last panel is badass!!

The little guy is so awesome. He's the leader of the Gon squad.
Oh, the cheetah is following them with interest.

Oh damn, a big showdown.

epic page

He's seen enough

Fin

---

Thoughts:
The chapter came full circle with it's first and last page, the difference being the new recruit. I imagine the others were recruited under similar circumstances. There was no communication between the cheetah and the others, he just joined. They could probably tell with his eyes being 'Gonified' that they shared the same attitude and spirit to be a part of the squad. The young one is always in the lead, this might be an initiation of sorts, the older cats knew to sit back as well.

The cheetah's character arc started with mourning, stalking/fanboying, then the final decision to walk tall. This was a portrait of survival in the brutal reality of nature. Relatives pass away, and moving on is essential. The cheetah nearly died several times mourning over his mother. After witnessing the Gon squad, he followed them, it was like escapism entertainment. Can he sneak around like that forever? The chapter didn't seem to think so. He had to take the next step, rather than watch your role models, become them. The expressions of the cheetah (well drawn btw) tell the arc too - sad > carefree > serious. Would you say being serious in things you do is the best way to survive? Perhaps.

There are other great Gon chaps, this one is my fave, thought it was touching. I just loved the cute cubs and swaggery

 

[Elusia]

Okay, Brandish. You've convinced me.

As much as I love hunter x hunter, Gon is really unique in my eyes and needs more appreciation. It gets my vote o/

 

[Erinyes]

To be honest, I gotta admit I'm extremely interested by "Gon" now. The art style is great (and the little story about the flood made my day xD) It's really unfair this match up happened so early...I'll definitely start reading the manga though ^^

It sounds indeed unfair, but actually HxH has a lot of haters, people who hates reading walls of text or blaming the author's art or the hiatuses while most readers gladly give a pass to Miura, Hoshino or inoue. Also despite being a masterpiece hxh is still less popular than a lot of works, people who dont know hxh will likely give a chance to Gon than to HxH. hxH popularity only grew since the anime 2011 and more precisely since Chimera ants was aired with the Youtube reviewers and stuff HxH gained a lot of popularity but before that it was underated and a lot less popular in western countries, quite like jojo.

Thats a brilliant post @Brandish the art is amazing and also because it has no text its definitely great for children who dont like reading or who cant for instance.

I wanted to write a full analysis of Chimera ants arc based on imagery, symbolism and psychological/philosophical/historical connexions (light/darkness, blindness, postures, parrallelism fall /rise, gyro back ground Humanity/monstruosity )etc .

but not only i have no time to do so, and im bad at writing, so im just posting some great parts (most of the article) i found on the web. Hxh is an extremely complex story with a lot of to say. Just the last chapter proves it with the trolley problem for instance, theres a lot of great analysis online, they probably do a better job than what i would have if i did it

so please read this (dont if you havent read/watch hxh yet) ( i will link the original full article below and give some other interesting sources) :

Credits : Bobduh
source : full article available here

part1

Imperfect Beings: Hunter x Hunter and the Chimera Ant

Humanity is an imperfect species. Actually, that’s putting it very generously – humanity is a deeply flawed species. We’re selfish and self-destructive, ignorant to the point of blindness, arrogant to the point of madness. It’s almost a wonder we’ve come so far, or at least that we haven’t destroyed ourselves along the way. For all our triumphs, every advantage of our intelligence and self-awareness is also reflected countless times in insane invention, in total megalomania. We are our own worst enemy.

In light of this, it seems somewhat reasonable to consider the possibility of a do-over. Perhaps another species could do better than us – perhaps a species more interested in its own collective survival, and more able to coherently absorb the lessons of its forebearers. Perhaps a species somewhat more animal, more willing to be part of a grand organism than a wild, unpredictable individual. Perhaps such a species deserves that chance. Or perhaps such a species doesn’t even need to be offered a chance – if we were ever put against a creation that combined humanity’s intelligence and strength with an animalistic unity of purpose, would we even stand a chance?

Chimera Ant is a story about that question – or at least, about that question and a number of others. It catalogs the rise of the (surprise) Chimera Ants, a species that continuously evolves, absorbing the quirks and powers of any species it consumes. The queen of the Ants wishes to build a Perfect Being – the ultimate animal, destined to rule over all others. In order to do that, she constructs her child out of the best pieces available – and in the first of Chimera Ant’s many strange reflections, the construction of a Perfect Being end up requiring a great deal of flawed, self-involved, self-destructive human beings. As her army of Ants grows, their human DNA becomes more and more prominent, and the “imperfections” of human nature become more and more apparent in their behavior. “Fortunately,” this intermingling of human and ant instincts isn’t restricted solely to one side – as Chimera Ant unfolds, even the humans begin to demonstrate that ant nature isn’t perhaps quite so inhuman as it seems. And by the end…


Natural Habitat


[...]
Hunter x Hunter is a shounen, and thus conflict is almost inevitable, but most shounens do not show the human cost of conflict. In Chimera Ant, it’s impossible to avoid it – each new soldier comes at the cost of a past life, and reflections of those lives crop up more and more as the ants evolve. The tragedy of its context is constantly foregrounded, but the conclusion isn’t “war is bad, don’t do war.” Chimera Ant is too smart for that, too intent on paralleling human nature against itself – war isn’t a foreign agent, it’s a symptom. It’s an evolution of our fundamental conflicts, and in Chimera Ant, evolution is key. The process of change and the shifting characters of Chimera Ant constantly reflect our darkest instincts on our lightest ones, and so it’s not surprising that against this backdrop of terrible, inevitable war, the arc somehow tells a story predicated on loyalty and love.


Unconditional Love

The alien structure of ant society is initially cast as one of the most “inhuman” elements of their nature. They do not have individual goals – they work in service of the colony. Their loyalty is absolute. This is part of what makes them strong – their initial power of unity is great, and the introduction of human individuality ends up creating cracks in their united front. But loyalty takes many forms, and even from the beginning, the Ant Queen exists as a counterpoint to the ant loyalty being a wholly alien emotion. Her loyalty is to her children, a very human emotion, and that “unconditional familial love” is echoed later on through Youpi and Pouf’s efforts to save their King. It is conditioned loyalty that keeps the ants from second-guessing their actions in service of the colony – but their own actions complicate the distance between ant loyalty and human love, and this distance is questioned in the other direction as well.

Killua is a central figure in this arc – though Gon’s journey represents the narrative at its darkest, Killua has a much broader purpose within the story. While Gon is losing his humanity in service of a single goal, Killua is broadening the arc’s expression of humanity altogether, and brings it closest to ant nature with his declaration that “I never say thanks to my friends.” This is critical for Killua – for him, the one who has grown up in a family where even familial loyalty is always based on an exchange of terms, unconditional loyalty is a kind of magic. When he helps a friend, he doesn’t have to think about what he’ll get in return – an expression of love and support for that friend is its own reward, the knowledge that they would do the same forming an iron bond.

[...].

part2

Rapid Evolution

Change is another key variable in Chimera Ant – I can’t think of another work where so much diverse character growth is so integral to the narrative itself. Which makes sense, as the arc’s “antagonists” are a species in a continuous state of evolution. Pitou shifts from a character whose only joy is diversion to one who cares deeply about their leader’s growing empathy. Youpi develops an entire personality and value system over the course of his sparring with Knuckle and the other Hunters. Shoot finds self-confidence, a reason to live, and a reason to die. Killua ends up with his role in his most important friendship reversed, and has to become far stronger and more empathetic than he thought possible. One of the great solaces of Chimera Ant is the truth that people change – they can grow, evolve, become more than themselves through circumstance. We cause each other tremendous pain, but our friction makes us better than we were. We all change each other.

Unfortunately, like all good things in Chimera Ant, this happy fact has its negative counterpart. The ways we affect each other can be a force for terrible change as well, and the consequences of this are centrally expressed through the mirrored character arcs of Meruem and Gon.

Gon is Hunter x Hunter’s Shounen Hero. Upbeat, headstrong, immensely loyal to his friends. For most of the series’ length, his passion lends strength to those around him – even as far as halfway through Chimera Ant, Killua remarks that “Gon is the light” raising him up. But by the end of Chimera Ant, all the variables that defined him have turned against him – fundamentally shaken by the loss of his mentor Kite, he ends up revealing how even the best intentions can sour if taken to their extremes. His optimism becomes an inability to accept death. His confidence ends up narrowing possible futures to the only thing he cares about, the only reality he can accept. And his loyalty becomes obsession – an overpowering need to save Kite that drives him away from everyone else who cares about him. By the time he realizes Kite is never coming back, he has become an instrument with a single purpose, and even the visual aesthetic of his final episode reflects this – as a former array of possibilities narrows to one, the color is bled from his world, till all that remains is black, white, and the red of anger, of blood. Our ability to instill value in others and our capacity for change can make monsters of even the best of us.

But just as Gon’s obsession makes him lose his “humanity,” the changes taking place in the Chimera Ant King form the greatest human triumph of the arc. The King begins his life as just that – The King, a being designed to rule over all others. His actual name is not important – all that is truly necessary is his title, because his identity is a reflection of his ability to exert power on others. He has trouble remembering any names, because they are clearly an unimportant form of identification. People have uses, people have differing degrees of strength, but individual identities? To a true ant, born to either serve the greater good or act as its arbiter, such things are meaningless. Fortunately, the strongest of ants are born of the strongest of human beings. And people change.

The King’s relationship with Komugi represents the central optimism of Chimera Ant – it is its saving grace. Dozens of named characters die in the arc, along with tens of thousands of nameless innocents. But at the center of all that senseless bloodshed, the one creature dictating the future of the ants ends up becoming too human to survive. His games with Komugi dismantle his strength-focused philosophy piece by piece. How can he say he is the “strongest” if a physically helpless girl can always defeat him? What does it mean that he enjoys being defeated, enjoys the challenge even if it doesn’t result in him impressing his will on the world? If that’s the only thing he enjoys, then what is the good of power after all? How can you measure “strength” if his attempts to impress fear on the girl backfire immediately, because her mental resolve is stronger than his own? And how can someone who possesses such strength still be so weak, so “inferior,” so willing to be obsequious and never exert her own will on the world?

Komugi “defeats” the King – what an army of Hunters could not do by expressing their will through strength, she does by expressing her identity through fragility. She demonstrates to him that people are not so simple as that – that you cannot measure them on one axis, and that they can provide value to each other in countless meaningful ways. Through Komugi’s actions, the King learns he is not happy to simply be The King – he does not want his identity to be solely an expression of his strength, because the person he cherishes is more than that, and he wants to be so too. It is through Komugi’s presence that The King becomes Meruem, a living representation of humanity’s power to change, evolve, and become more than itself.

Transient Nature

Human nature kind of takes a beating in Chimera Ant. The ants are initially posited as something “other” than humanity, but in the end, all their instincts end up being reflective of our own – and the lengths each side goes to to destroy the other demonstrate both the power and tragedy of what defines us as a species. Our loyalty is commendable, but it can justify any scale of tragedy. Our capacity for change lets us rise above ourselves, but also fall into the worst excesses of our fundamental natures. And finally, it is our individuality that both makes us indomitably strong and unconscionably heartless.

The loyalty of the ants is fundamental to their nature, but as they evolve, they continue to absorb human qualities. Foremost among those is individuality – the ability to find your own goals, to make independent choices, to innovate and grow in your own way. This instinct is given beautiful expression through the character journeys of the various ants – from Meruem to Welfin to Youpi to Ikalgo, our ability to make individual, sometimes selfish choices is regularly represented as one of the greatest triumphs of human nature. Youpi and Pouf even end up deceiving their king due to their greater belief in his potential, and this combined expression of greater faith exercised through individual choice leads him to ultimately remark he was “undeserving of their loyalty.” And both Killua and Palm’s arcs hinge on their ability to make individual choices – even when each of them is directly programmed to obey orders, they rebel, and choose to honor their chosen, individual loyalties over any programmed direction. But as with our capacity for love and change, our individuality has a dark side as well, and it’s unsurprising that Chimera Ant chooses to express this darkness through the grim irony of humanity’s final weapon.

Bloom

There is a madness in humanity – unlike the purposeful order of the initial ants, our passions and individuality both make us strong and set us against each other. The Hunter Chairman Netero embodies this madness – as Meruem remarks during their battle, it is only through pushing his body through individual struggle far past the point of sense that he could have achieved his tremendous physical enlightenment. The potential single-mindedness and self-focused determination of humanity are expressed both in his physical strength and in the secret weapon he conceals – the Poor Man’s Rose. It is the Rose that finally defeats Meruem – a nuclear weapon, a pure expression of humanity’s individualist need to make war on itself, a weapon that the narrator grimly explains shouldn’t exist, wouldn’t exist, if humanity were able to make choices in its own communal best interest. Netero sacrifices himself to destroy Meruem using an expression of humanity’s ultimately self-destructive individuality – but both his choice and Meruem’s final actions demonstrate that cynicism is not the final word of Chimera Ant. Human and ant nature each reflect the other, and each show themselves as brighter for it.

Though the Poor Man’s Rose is undoubtedly reflective of humanity’s worst instincts, Netero’s use of it is not. It’s not an expression of individuality at all, really – Netero activates the weapon by killing himself, and thus his use of it is an almost ant-like expression of loyalty, or love. His life is unimportant – his people must live. And in the aftermath of the Rose, as Meruem slowly succumbs to radiation sickness, his own actions are pointedly, individualistically human – he chooses to cede the battle of his race, and instead spend his last living hours with the human he loves. One nature reflects another, and each is enriched by the exchange. The conflict of human and ant may end in great tragedy and destruction, but through countless actions throughout the arc, the value and integrity of each philosophy is demonstrated, reflected, and shown to be part of a continuous nature. Life ends, but life goes on.

Imperfections

Chimera Ant is not a happy story, but humanity is not really a happy species, so I suppose that’s appropriate. It is a beautiful story, though, and seems intent on displaying the beauty of humanity just as vibrantly as the tragedy – ultimately they are linked, and Chimera Ant’s symmetries show them to be one and the same. Our beauty is shown in our growth, and growth always implies a shedding of the old – every lesson we learn is hard-fought, every change we undergo incurs tragic cost. Our beauty is shown in our flaws, and our flaws lead to tragic consequence – our imperfection is what makes us generous and empathetic and unique, but it also makes us violent and selfish and obsessive. Our beauty is shown in our passion, and the double-edged sword of passion is evident both in Gon’s madness and Meruem’s love.

In the end, Chimera Ant’s tragedy may present its last and most poignant symmetry – Chimera Ant’s ending is tragic because no matter who “wins,” we as the audience are losing touch with characters we’ve come to love and understand. It doesn’t matter who wins – as Chimera Ant shows, the beauty of our nature is reflected in all of us. It’s not an easy truth to admit – it would certainly be easier to see one side as “villains,” and their defeat as a thrilling victory over the tyranny of a terrifying “Perfect Being.” But thankfully, none of us are perfect creations – we are all fractured, flawed human beings. And we are stronger for it.

Posted on August 4, 2014​

Credits : boduh Source http://wrongeverytime.com/2014/08/04/imperfect-beings-hunter-x-hunter-and-the-chimera-ant/

Please ! keep in mind im not the one who wrote this source link is above

more sources

- Hunter x Hunter : Evolution and Roses by Zeroreq011 -> available here

- To what extend does "Chimera Ant"s teach us about Humanity : a thematic look at Hunter x hunter Chimera's ants Arc by Mrdrwombat : Essay available here (Pdf)

- Gon and the 5 stages of grief. an in depth Analysis by Lomayami : article available here

--- Double Post Merged, Sep 30, 2018, Original Post Date: Sep 30, 2018 ---

but elu-chan....

 

[Elusia]

but elu-chan....

It's really hard to choose, Erin. HxH's great, but Gon is really underrated. I would have waited a little more until he brought up my fav chapter (along with the dingo and the cave I believe, which the latter was really long, but damn it looks so awesome)

In the end though, you guys are really good at campaigning, and I'd love to see more of it when either of you is going to the next round.

 

[Belserion]

I haven't read either of these manga but going by the campaigns both are worth a look in the future. But as much as I love Erin's campaign I'll have to agree with Lambu and back the underdog here. Gon gets my vote.