Due to my somewhat unique position, over the years, I’ve come across more Hunter x Hunter
opinions than I’ve been able to handle at times, so naturally I’ve pretty much seen
it all. I’ve seen the agreeable, I’ve seen the baffling, and I’ve seen everything in between.
And a general criticism I’ve often seen leveled at the series that manifests in all sorts of ways is
a discrepancy between what Hunter x Hunter is and what others think or expect it should be.
Togashi uses anticlimaxes, shifting perspectives and at times eccentric focus to have the story
flow in a way that is completely natural for the world and characters, but unnatural and
at odds with traditional storytelling - where there is often an expectation for a big climax,
a huge fight, a predictable flow. He writes this story in the most organic way I’ve ever seen,
with an intimate understanding of how the characters will act and progress in this world
and what following them means. But ironically due to that raw and real understanding, this
leads to divergences from classic storytelling expectations. And naturally, people sometimes
don’t like that. Whether it be because they wish for the story to be something it isn’t, or whether
they just think it’s bad or unfulfilling. To that end, I’ve seen the conclusion to the
2011 anime criticized and looked at as a negative for the adaptation - I’ve seen some say that they
can’t rightfully call the show a masterpiece or give it a ten out of ten because of the
loose ends not being tied up, or things like that. Yet to me, this is an absolutely wild sentiment,
because it is totally in keeping with the organic style of the story while integrating
with the main theme that we’ve had this entire time that is spelt out for us at the end.
Truthfully, this is not only a great conclusion to the adaptation despite it stopping with more
manga material ahead and so much more potential greatness, it is actually one of the best endings
to any story I’ve ever experienced. It is one of the most powerful, metaphorical and ingenious
integrations and implementations of a story’s main theme that I’ve ever seen. It’s not the
legitimate, definitive ending to the story, as we know the manga continues past this. But it itself
works as conclusion so well that I struggle to envision a more appropriate end to the adaptation.
And this is due to the late addition of Ging and the frontloading of the detours concept.
As someone who would go on far off adventures and explore catacombs and try to uncover mysteries
and relics and artifacts, Ging was knee-deep in desirable results and end points to define
his expeditions in life. And yet what he came to realize is that he really never cared much
for the reason he was there in the first place once he succeeded. He realized that the friends,
stories and experiences he gathered along the way to that goal were far
more important to him than any end point, and so he based his life’s philosophy around
hunting “that which he cannot see” right in front of him, because the long journeys
towards that would end up being infinitely rewarding. Glory lies beyond the horizon.
Now, Ging’s lesson that he teaches here is brilliantly presented, but it isn’t
really something new. This is something we have been learning every step of the way.
Subconsciously, gradually, building in the back of our minds with or without
us realizing it. And his words just bring it all together.
And so we can take this detours concept and apply it directly to the entirety of the structure of
Hunter x Hunter. Gon’s end goal and the focus of the lightly overlying plot has always been to find
Ging, from chapter and episode one. And yet the people he met, the things he saw, the wonders he
took in, and the experiences he had ended up being the reason to have set out in the first place.
Wide-eyed and curious, whether it be about black market dealings or Nen or new types of wildlife,
Gon is the perfect vehicle for taking us on this journey. The variability between
arcs is so drastic while containing genuine flow that it not only keeps things fresh,
but offers us a creative stream of consciousness of Togashi’s ideas and world.
Each one is so different, and that makes total sense since each one is one of these detours.
It does this while not ever losing momentum, focus or heart, but always letting us stop and smell the
roses to enjoy these wondrous little stories and characters and thematic beats that have absolutely
nothing to do with Ging. Not everything has to coalesce perfectly, wrapped up in a nice little
bow - sometimes existence is just a series of experiences that add up to parts of a whole. This
is not only completely true to life, but it is the philosophy of the story, and it all comes together
in the final episode, as father and son overlook the setting Sun from the top of the World Tree.
And yet, that gargantuan world tree is stated by Ging to just be a sapling that stopped growing.
There are far bigger trees out there and far grander lands to explore.
The world is so much bigger than what Gon has come to know, and this offers so much promise for his
future. And yet, some look at that potential, along with some of the unresolved plot threads,
and say this is disappointing, or unfulfilling. And while I can relate to wanting to see more and
more of this world and story, I couldn’t disagree more. I find nothing but fulfillment here.
Kurapika’s plot line, Chrollo’s path, Hisoka’s role, whatever else you can think of - One could
say that the clear nature of the fact that some of these threads are unresolved means
that it doesn’t work. But only in traditional storytelling terms, only in a vacuum. In context,
it works and is actually incredibly cohesive and in tune with the story’s structure and style.
The fact is, Togashi has such a keen instinct and idea of who these characters are in tandem
with their place in the setting. He consistently has them progress through in ways that subvert
traditional fictional expectations in favor of what makes sense. It’s such natural and confident
writing, and it gives the impression of these characters being less of characters in a story
with distinct and important roles, even if that is true, and more of believable, organic and almost
real people. And with that in mind, do peoples’ stories ever truly end whilst they’re still alive?
There will always be another horizon, another potential plotline to explore, more promise,
et cetera. There will always be interesting things to see, and an open-ended nature to so
much of what we experience. But consistent with that organic approach, that is a huge
part of what gives life spark. And combining that with the detours theme - we were lucky
enough to be given a drop into the lives of these characters and experience these detours with them.
But life goes on. Yes, I’d love to see what happens with Chrollo after this, but even still
this is sure as hell a great way to creatively present that life is full of end points,
and those end points just won’t be fulfilled right away or even at all sometimes, and so we must take
solace from and see the beauty in the journey. And I’m okay with that. I can take a deep breath
and understand that there were many stories in this world before, and there will be many stories
in the world after. We were just lucky to be able to see some of it as a detour in our own life.
Episode 148 remains to this day to be such a therapeutic encapsulation of one of my
favourite stories of all time. Not only does it look gorgeous and serve as a brilliant summation
of all that came before, but it just grounds me when things get hectics and helps me remember
that there’s no need to rush in life. Take your time, breathe, take in the possibilities,
and savour the seemingly never-ending adventure of these little distractions. There is always
another adventure or conflict or journey beyond the horizon. But focus on the now and don’t miss
the chance to appreciate the moment, because the experiences we have on the way to these are
invaluable. Hunter x Hunter has never once been a story that is interested in trying to be what you
expect it to be. It just wants to be what it is. And so as much as I do enjoy totally comprehensive
endings to my stories when they’re done well, what I love more than anything are contextually
consistent, meaningful and powerful conclusions that stick with you long after you experience
them. That is what we get in spades with this, and regardless of whether or not the manga continues,
I wouldn’t change a thing about this adaptations final episode. Many thanks for watching.