If you're coming here after watching part 1, thanks for sticking with me through what
I know is an overly long way of reaching my point.
Though by now I'm sure you realize that the point of these videos is two-fold.
Now, you may not necessarily agree with my opinions on the tone of each arc that I presented
but hopefully my rationale should at least give you an understanding of where my reasoning
is coming from.
And understanding this reasoning is important because the tone of each arc is one half of
the equation when trying to understand how Togashi uses villains.
The other half of the equation? each arc's approach to themes.
Along with tone, Hunter Hunter has HUGE variability in the complexity, depth, and type of themes
in each of it's arcs.
But there is a pattern here - when looked at in conjunction with tone, the theming in
each arc paints a perfect picture of what the antagonist of that arc needs to be.
Now, I won't be talking about every theme in each arc because if so I'd never ever
finish editing this video, so instead I'll be discussing the broad strokes ideas of each
arc and how they combine with the tone to show us what each arcs villain had to be like.
The themes and purposes of the Hunter Exam are multi-dimensional.
Through the nonchalant attitude towards death, the perilous tests and the scheming that occurs,
this arc is communicating that this is a punishing world, and that you must have conviction,
power and skill to become who you want to be.
This is done in this context using the goal of becoming a hunter, but this idea is not
set and is insinuated to extend beyond what was portrayed in this arc.
In other words, no matter what your goal is, to get what you want in this setting, you
most likely have to work tooth and nail for it if you aren't born into influential power.
People like Tonpa are outliers, but Through Kurapika and especially Leorio, we see this
- such different goals that can only be achieved through the same means - fighting took and
nail for what you want.
This idea doesn't apply much to Killua in this arc, but it extends across the entire
series to form a substantial part of his journey by the end.
There are other primary themes such as the importance of friends (cliche as it sounds)
and the duality of discovery, but primarily the purpose of the Hunter Exam is to awaken
the characters and the audience to the sheer scale of power in this world and how arduous
the journey to the top is, yet significantly it frames this not as a struggle, but as an
awesome challenge.
Now, this idea also strongly applies to Gon - he wants to become a hunter to find his
father, but he also needs to get stronger to do so.
Yet, the amount of power he needs is unknown and arbitrary, so to conceptualize a true
sub-goal that will help him reach his goal, a person like Gon needs a concrete benchmark
to strive towards.
Togashi needed an antagonist in this arc that could display how punishing this world is
and show enough power to mark how far Gon was and where he had to get to be.
To show not only how much resolve Gon and friends had to have in the exam to get their
license, but how strong the world was outside of the exam.
The antagonist needed to achieve all this, and because of the light tone of the arc,
they could not be a too dark of a villain.
They needed to be whimsical, even funny at times, yet because they also needed to portray
and foreshadow how dark this world would get, they could not be a friendly rival antagonist.
They needed to possess a mean streak, they needed to be a killer.
He also needed to have an awesome character design.
And, well, I think Togashi found what he was looking for.
The Zoldyck family arc was all about painting a sympathetic picture of Killua by using this
family as an antagonistic figure, a boundary blockinh Killua's freedom and potential
for personal growth.
The primary theme of this arc is the idea of doing what is best for you in life, regardless
of obligations that are forced upon you, fillial or otherwise.
It's about determination, not just for Killua, but for his friends trying to get to him.
It's also about development and purpose - realizing that you want to learn about yourself
and the world, and making strides to overcome anything that blocks the path to that.
This block was personified mainly through Kikyo, who is the most antagonistic character
here and dark and unhinged enough of one to be consistent with the tone of the arc.
Heaven's Arena themes are essentially a more serious take on what was communicated
during the hunter exam.
It had to be a manifestation once again of the idea that progress in this world is incremental
and difficult.
The boys learn about Nen and Gon in particular has grown in spades since the Exam, and Heaven's
arena acknowledges that through the quick climb through the ranks at the tournament.
But simultaneously, it's a tease that's meant to show that Gon is still far from where
he needs to be.
It's saying that life endeavors are a marathon, not a sprint - and that the goal on the horizon
is only attainable by paying attention to the details along the way.
Interestingly enough,, It sort of ties in with Ging's words at the end of the series.
However, looking at this arc alone, it needed to be reinforced that Gon still had a long
way to go through an antagonist that was once again not too dark.
And this antagonist needed to be able to contribute to the shifting tone, maybe through, I dunno,
having some sort of connection with the Phantom Troupe.
As always, Hisoka checked all of the boxes, proving that he is as great of a character
mechanically as he is in terms of characterization.
Yorknew is by far the richest of the arcs in terms of theming up until this point.
I won't dwell on this much as I have covered it extensively in other videos, but so many
ideas are packed into these chapters.
The theme of losing oneself, the nuances of revenge, the concepts of belonging, purpose,
and family, identity, the series' first tussle with moral ambiguity and more are all
tackled here.
And while the elements I talked about earlier keep the arc from getting too grim, it still
needed someone to crank up the darkness.
Chrollo allows all of this to happen and does it with pure artistry.
Now, a good portion of these themes are expressed through Gon and especially Kurapika, but they
only manifest in our protagonists because the stimulant of Chrollo and the Spider caused
them to react in that specific way.
Anyways, I'll stop gushing about Chrollo, but check out my video on him and the sources
I included in the description of it for an elaboration on why he's excellent.
In an arc that explores the nuances of human vs monster, it seems a bit superfluous to
talk about why Meruem was essential.
The foreshadowing of his birth and his early life set the incredibly dark tone early on.
His later dynamics with Komugi are the basis for the arcs ideas on love and the pivot that
influences the audience's change in perspective on him.
His parallels with both Gon (see TalesOfNerdia's video in the description for an explanation
of this) and Netero drive home the ideas on humanity's monstrous nature and are essential
to the bait and switch - the key representation of Meruem slowly turning more "human"
As Netero personifies the destruction that humanity can bring through the miniature rose
and as Gon gets lost in darkness.
He also serves as the focal point for the Royal Guards' admiration, which then reveals
each of their human fixations, their pseudo-tragic flaws.
Not only this, but he formed one half of one of the best fights of the series while his
character arc's conclusion served as arguably the most emotional story beat in the entire
series.
Simply put, Meruem was the most important character in the chimera ant arc and it is
because of his design that its and dense and rich as it is without feeling like a mish
mash of ideas.
Everything flows through his narrative - even the big moments in the arc that feel distinctly
seperate from Meruem are indirectly affected by him, and it is because his journey is so
well-executed that every major thematic point is given significance.
As said before, the Election arc is particularly quirky with it's design.
Because it has two parallel, segregated plot threads going simultaneously, it's use of
antagonists and themes is unlike anything else prior.
The first plot thread has Killua as the protagonist, and it consists of everything to do with his
quest to save Gon and free Alluka.
Themes of dismissing baggage and duty for what you believe is right are rife here, and
Illumi's insertion as the pseudo-villain is logical; it provides a natural boundary
to both of Killua's goals through his desire to keep Alluka imprisoned, it demonstrates
and personifies the Zoldyck's cruel treatment of Alluka and subsequently builds up an emotional
attachment and sympathy for her due to this, which is very important for the emotional
climax, and of course it provides us with someone who is twisted and cruel yet not stoic,
ideal for the tone of the arc.
But Illumi is only one half of the equation.
We are also first introduced to Ging here, and after such a long wait to see him, Togashi
understandably wanted to make sure that he was fleshed out quickly and efficiently for
a decent payoff.
However, there is a problem here - Ging was established even prior to the Election arc
as a strange, guarded, unshakeable man who did things without reason and who was a bit
of a mystery to most who encountered him.
In most situations, Ging sleepwalks his way through life without much emoted internalization
because things come so easy to him most of the time.
However, because of this, it is not easy to adhere an audience to a character or show
them what he is all about without compromising the characterization that had been established
previously.
So in order to make Ging interesting, this arc needed an adversary to push him and make
him come out of his shell a little bit before Gon's revival continued that even further
- a rival that was dark and deliciously unlikeable enough to firmly make the audience root for
Ging in the situation, yet one that was not so dark that it interrupted the tone.
And because Ging was part of the election plotline, this adversary also had to be one
that helped to communicate Togashi's messages about politics - primarily, that the whole
thing is pretty silly and easily influenced by groupthink, public perception and the echo
chamber effect.
Pariston ticks all the boxes and does it with a flourish and incredibly interesting characterization
to boot, and him and Illumi form the ideal antagonistic duo for the short little story
that the election arc wanted to be.
So after that extremely long diversion, let's head back to Greed Island.
Once again, Togashi used this arc in a lighter manner to diverge and change things up from
Yorknew, and he also let it function as a conduit to communicate his nerdy fascination
with card games and MMORPGs.
It was an arc whose function was essentially to further strengthen Gon and Killua's relationship
and increase their power for the hike that was about to occur in the Chimera Ant arc.
It was also used as a way to further build and flesh out the setting, carry on Chrollo's
plot thread just a little bit, and give us a bit of an insight towards Ging and what
he's like.
Thematically, it says a lot about raw human desperation, and how far we are willing to
go to reach our goals.
Look at the depths that some went to to try and get more cards - how far Gon and Killua
went to win the dodgeball game, how Gon literally sacrificed a limb to give himself a better
chance at winning, how much money Batteru spent trying to find someone who could beat
the game to save his love.
It's also about personal growth and betterment - choosing the path that might not be easy,
but that will be more beneficial in the long run.
This is shown through a subtle wink at video game speedrunning when Gon decides not to
join Genthru's group, who were essentially offering a way to reach the game's end faster
than ever using methods that were morally questionable by his standards, in order to
play the game the right way, the way he thinks his father meant it to be played - with integrity,
to challenge the players to level up the right way for the maximum benefits.
Greed Island is full of these thematic overtones - it's just that they're simple and nowhere
near the depth and moral ambiguity of other arcs.
This is because just as with the tone, Togashi varies the complexity of theming between arcs
as well.
It's clear that in Hunter x Hunter, he does not ever want to have two incredibly thought-provoking,
thematically dense arcs one after another.
Yet again, he craves variaibility because part of this story's identity is in it's
dynamism and refusal to maintain the status quo.
Yet you might notice that despite me repeatedly saying that Greed Island is among the most
lighthearted arcs in the series, these themes are kind of morbid.
It's an arc that displays the lengths people will go to satiate their greed, and this is
not a lighthearted idea.
Players are sadistically killed at the drop of a hat, people's livelihoods are wasted
by the stealing and underhanded tactics of others, Gon and Killua spend two weeks with
a cannibalistic mass murderer to train, and the game itself has essentially become a survival-of-the-fittest
hellscape where only the strong, pragmatic and cruel succeed.
Yet, if you've watched Greed Island, you'd know that these dark concepts are far from
the focus.
Again, I will stress that subject matter does not necessarily dictate tone.
The story dwells on the death and violence just enough to make their presence felt and
make Gon and Killua's conviction feel appropriate, before cutting to the boys digging tunnels.
It focuses just enough of the darkness to make the lighter moments feel overpowering
and substantial, but it doesn't make that darkness a primary element.
Especially in 2011 but also in the 1999 anime OVAs, the colour palette is exceptionally
bright.
It's almost always daytime, and the music has shifted back to a more upbeat, adventurous
score as opposed to the operatic and ominous sounds of Yorknew.
The feel of the arc is one of adventure and fun, supplemented by the cutting yet endearing
certified 2nd best girl in the series Bisky.
But there's no need for me to tell you all this.
If you've watched or read the arc, you know that it feels much more hunter exam than chimera
ant.
So, when fitting in an antagonist for Greed Island, we need a person who is able to be
detestable and cruel in order to properly show the competitive nature of this game,
one who goes against what Gon believes the game was made for.
Someone who does terrible things out of desperation and greed to communicate that theme, a player
that is not overly complex because the themes are not overly complex.
And to top it all off, he needed to be able to keep the tone of the arc light, because
that's what Togashi was going for.
A twisted cheat who provides a huge challenge for the boys, causing them to train and improve.
One who works as a platform to show off the mechanics of the game.
A person with enough to his characterization to shoulder the themes of the arc and perform
his function, yet straightforward enough to maintain the simplicity of the story without
overstepping his bounds.
Almost a simple, one-minded final boss archetype - which makes sense given everything about
Greed Island.
Someone who, as a result, almost had to be cliche and campy to fulfill all these requirements.
So it makes sense that Togashi penned Genthru the way he did.
Once again, it's ALL ABOUT WHAT BENEFITS THE NARRATIVE.
His insanely reckless display in the final fight foreshadows a future darkness in Gon
and significantly, Genthru pushes him to do this.
But aside from this recklessness, Gon wins not just a physical battle, but an ideological
one against Genthru.
By beating him, he is showing that his choice at the beginning of the arc to reject the
speedrun and take the slower path with more potential for growth was the right one.
By winning, he shows him that while everyone experiences desperation, there are certain
ways to go about achieving one's goals with honesty without being a terrible, immoral
person, and that experience and working hard are more beneficial than shortcutting one's
way through life.
Genthru is a personification of the desperation that defines the arc, and most importantly,
he is overshadowed by the fun and hype moments.
Genthru was a terrible person, but he didn't have any presence.
His words never struck a chord and he wasn't that interesting of a man.
And this was a GOOD thing, because if you felt the aura of a cruel villain in almost
every scene throughout the tale like Togashi did with Chrollo and Yorknew, Greed Island
would have been far darker than intended.
Even his character design is forgettable - compare it to the other villains in the series and
it's clear that this was intentional, because it's not as if Togashi has trouble creating
memorable looking characters.
Genthru is simple and lacking because he NEEDED to be, not because he was written poorly.
He's powerful and has an interesting nen ability but his personality is nothing to
write home about and there are no particularly thought-provoking themes associated with him.
As such, a lot of people think of him as underwhelming.
But the problem is that this is usually in comparison to the other villains in the series
when this is not the proper way to evaluate Genthru.
The truth is that he is exactly what the arc needed in a villain.
Since we understandably have a craving for interesting, complex antagonists in fiction,
all of the good that Genthru does functionally tends to be overlooked because he isn't
that noteworthy.
Does he serve as important of a role as Hisoka?
No, but that's fine.
Is he as expertly crafted as someone like Chrollo, Meruem, or Shaiapouf?
No, but he didn't need to be.
Could he have had more interesting characterization?
Yeah, but he didn't for good reason, and therefore chastising him in comparison to
the other villains in the series is not a fair way to go about it.
Hisoka is present throughout the series and his personality, along with his constantly
shifting roles add freshness, dynamism and fun to the story, so it's easy to see why
he's beloved.
Chrollo and Meruem are obviously brilliant characters that deeply resonate with people
but in fairness, their arcs give them much more meaty material.
People tend to look at villains as stand alones.
However, they should not just be judged independent from their story, but also through how they
contribute to their narrative.
Genthru is a prime display of bigger picture thinking when it comes to writing.
Greed Island may not be everyone's favourite arc, but it's still an important one full
of great moments.
And Genthru is probably everyone's least favourite villain.. hell, he's by far my
least favourite.. but he's vital.
Everything works like clockwork because of him, and he's the type of character who
you don't really take note of when he's there, but who's absense or replacement
would leave a gaping hole and a mess of an arc in it's wake.
Thanks very much for watching - this was a bit of a different style of video for me but
I hope you enjoyed a slightly different look at Hunter Hunter.
I'd just like to thank my Patrons so much for their continued support - in particular,
this month I'd like to show appreciation to Han Zhang, Daniel Hughes, Jimmy, Jon Mundle,
Daniel Hild, Gaius, Anonymous, Scaffo, Gabriel Nair, Sufian S, Neel Sharma, Jeremy Butler,
and all of the rest.
If you enjoyed this video and want to see me make more, consider subscribing, commenting,
liking and even contributing on patreon if that's something you're into.
Cheers again and have a good one.
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