Hunter X Hunter - General Discussion

[Lantern7]

New arc! They ditched the opening narration, though we still have the same credits. Anyway . . . I think the Zoldycks' residence must be very profitable for the nation if the tour bus takes you to the gate. Usual hard-headedness from Gon, as the gang befriend the gatekeeper, and they meet the huge beastie that protects the estate. I have a sinking feeling that Ilumi/Glitterduck will prove to be the nicest guy in that family.

[Sandman87]

Just to recap a little: The main protagonist has made friends with another kid who's kind of standoffish and gloomy. Standoffish kid's brother shows up and messes with his head a little, resulting in him running away from all his friends. His friends decide that they're going to "bring him back." Yep, we're still watching Naruto here.

Just a guess, but I bet the gatekeeper is really one of the Zoldycks.

[Lantern7]

Apparently, Kilua is being tortured by his family. We see the level of suck set by the Zoldycks with the shooting of the lady butler who beat up Gon. I don't see this show directly ripping off Naruto, I think the weighted clothing and training sequences call for royalties to be paid to Akira Toriyama.

[Sandman87]

59 minutes ago, Lantern7 said:

I don't see this show directly ripping off Naruto, I think the weighted clothing and training sequences call for royalties to be paid to Akira Toriyama.

Weighted clothing training -> Rock Lee.

[Lantern7]

Caught up. Killua's family is basically made up of sadistic assholes. At least their hires are nicer, with Canary and Old Gate Guy. And what is with the mother with the Robocop visor?

ETA: Am I the only otaku that would want a crossover with Hayate the Combat Butler? I saw the first few volumes on DVD. Good stuff.

[ZoqFotPik]

Yorknew City? I hope Yoshihiro Togashi didn't hurt himself coming up with something that creative.

[Sandman87]

I kind of hope he did hurt himself coming up with that.

[Lantern7]

That might explain why the manga is often delayed. "And I shall call the gambling den . . . SAL SAG- motherfucker, my back!!!"

This week: the friends part ways, as they resolve to meet up in Yorknew (oy) on September 1, at the deal that lasts through the Tenth. Subtle. And I'm guessing the next mini-arc will consist of Gon and Killua palling around and powering up. We can spend that time wondering what gender Kurapika has, since we now know Kil is a boy.

[Lantern7]

This week: another freakin' letter to Aunt Mito! Aside from the end theme being played as Gon stalked Hisoka ("ARRRRRGHHH! IT'S RAPE TIME!!!"), I didn't think we needed another recap. Also, does anybody else figure that Hisoka killed his target, and Gon just let it happen in order to get his badge?

[lathspel]

True, but it seems unlikely that Gon could've stopped Hisoka at that point anyway. 

[Lantern7]

New credits!

Gon & Killua's excellent adventure begins, as they fight to win money and comped rooms. Apparently, Gon is powerful enough to defeat opponents with a shove. Kinda hope he gets to use his rod, like in the credits where he saves Leorio by wrapping a line around his neck. Anyway, we also meet Zushi, who is a young fighter with a demanding mentor, and whose discipline skills remind Killua of Illumio.

[lathspel]

I'm sorry, Zushi is always going to be a calmer Rock Lee to me.

i didn't think we'd have Hisoka back so soon, but there we are.  I should've realized when Zushi's master was turning paper into a razor blade.  

[Lantern7]

At least Zushi isn't as unkempt as Master Wing.

I'm pulling for Gon and Killua, mainly because I want to see Gon mess people up with his rod.

[Terrafamilia]

In this episode of Naruto Hunter x Hunter, Gon learns about chakra aura and has his chakra network aura nodes opened but wants to get to fighting right away rather than further learning of jutsu nen.

[Sandman87]

Looks like Gon's first opponent on the 200th floor owns the deluxe edition of Battling Tops.

[lathspel]

My kids call them Beyblades, but yeah, same principle.  

[Sandman87]

Don't remind me. I'm sure anime will find a way to mess up the names of Gnip Gnop and Finger Dinger Man too.

[Lantern7]

What is it about powering up and bad-touching on Toonami these days? The Rolling Pirates shove shadows into Luffy, Zeppeli finger-blasts Jojo and Speedwagon, and Master Wing opens up Killua and Gon's nodes. Seems very naughty.

[Lantern7]

Unsung hero of this arc: the play-by-play lady. So enthusiastic. Reminds me of Benjamin Bright from IGPX. Of course, she doesn't make a huge deal about how Hisoka is holding his dismembered arm like nothing is amiss.

This week, Hisoka gets owned by Kastro, who uses a nen-based doppelganger to attack from behind. Apparently, if Naruto were to pop up in this anime, he could blow everybody's minds with his shadow clones. In the end, Hisoka licks his lips, probably because he'll be telling people he got into yet another threesome.

[Sandman87]

I've seen anime characters lose their arms before. I've seen them seem unconcerned when losing their arms. I've even seen then throw their arm at the other guy. But I've never seen one of them pick up the arm and scratch themselves absently with it during a fight before. The only way to top that is if Hisoka uses his severed arm to flip Kastro off.

[ZoqFotPik]

I wonder what a rope-a-dope is called in the Hunter x Hunter world.

[Lantern7]

Tonight, the show should've been titled Mindfuck x Mindfuck. Hisoka basically screws with everybody and gets away with it. And he loses the other arm, but a lady from the Phantom Troop (remember, they killed Kurapika's people) stitched those back to him, while explaining everything. I'll have to rewatch, but I felt like magic works best with the mystery intact. On another note, I kinda want Will Arnett as GOB Bluth as Hisoka now. Oh, and he's not with the Troop, so that's layers and layers of lies, and we're going to have to wait three weeks for any movement.

Not that I love the guy, but what is Leorio doing these days?

[Matt K]

11 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

Not that I love the guy, but what is Leorio doing these days?

I guess getting money together for medical school (that was his thing right?).  But I can't really see him doing well on a hunter job on his own, so who knows.

[Sandman87]

I recall Leorio getting an offer for more training a couple of episodes ago, and accepting because his prospective trainer revealed that the Hunter Exam is actually still going on.

The moral of last night's episode: If you're going to specialize, do it in a general way.

Hisoka deserves special pain for using one of those stupid "pick a number and do some math" tricks. No matter what number you pick for that formula, you'd end up with an answer of 1.

[ZoqFotPik]

15 hours ago, Sandman87 said:

I recall Leorio getting an offer for more training a couple of episodes ago, and accepting because his prospective trainer revealed that the Hunter Exam is actually still going on.

That was Kurapika. Leorio hasn't been seen since they left Kukuroo Mountain. He said he was going to study for med school before meeting back up with the group in Yorknew City.

15 hours ago, Sandman87 said:

The moral of last night's episode: If you're going to specialize, do it in a general way.

And when fighting Hisoka, don't let yourself get distracted.

[Sandman87]

Damn, so hard to remember who does what when I don't really care about some of them.

[Lantern7]

"So. You didn't watch the fight?" "No, sir." "Really, Gon?" "I made a promise, and I stick with those." "You only found out about the result when Killua told you about it?" "I shut off the TV an hour before. I concentrated on my harmon . . ." "Nen." "Nen. Right. Anyway, I was trying to meditate, and I heard shouting from the other rooms. I tuned that out . . . and then I heard, 'Oh my Gawd!! He totally Tiened that fucker!!!' So I grabbed a heavy book and beat myself into unconsciousness." "Good boy."

[Lantern7]

Rewatching the last episode. In the world of HxH, mathematics is "the devil's magic." Good to know.

[Terrafamilia]

Killua doesn't need to become a floor master, he's already a Boss!

[Sandman87]

I'm disappointed. Now we don't get to see what Droopy-Face can do in a fight with his magic hand.

[Lantern7]

Is it me, or is this the kind of anime that may be geared towards guys who would've met Chris Hanson a long time ago? First, Master Wing opens up the "nodes" of the two main characters in order for them to gain and harness power. This week, three grown men drop a kid and demand matches with his peers. Also, Zushi falls unconscious with his head on Big Wheel's crotch. Dude. Dude. Fortunately, the trio of douchebags don't realize that Killua is basically a monster that can murder all of them in their sleep, and he "persuades" Droopy Dog not to show up for his match

[Sandman87]

20 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

Is it me, or is this the kind of anime that may be geared towards guys who would've met Chris Hanson a long time ago?

I dunno, seems a little dark for the Muppets. Oh wait, Chris Hansen...never mind.

There's an Ominous music track that this show plays occasionally that's a sound-alike of a classical piece, and I've been going nuts trying to remember the name of the classical piece. They play the Ominous track in this episode during the scene where Kilua learns from the scalper that the Three Douches have broken their promise. I think the original has a name something like "CharacterName1 and CharacterName2."

[Lantern7]

This week: Ol Drippy hightails it out of town, leaving Big Wheel and Hopalong behind. These are appetizer bad guys, so I'm not looking up their names. Killua decides to let them know about the folly of being assholes. Killua and Gon train some more. Gon manages to avenge himself against Hopalong, breaking his peg. Then Killua takes down Big Wheel with little difficulty. A few days later, Killua wins by forfeit when Hopalong can't battle, and Gon doesn't need his rod to defeat Big Wheel. Looks like this is a prelude to Gon facing off against Hisoka.

[Sandman87]

Now that we know exactly how Hisoka does his crazy magic tricks, I have a question: How did he turn that one guy's arms into flower petals at the beginning of the Hunter Exam? Because that isn't explained at all by what we've learned about his powers.

[Lantern7]

"Schween"?!? Ugh. Why, HxH?!? Like Hisoka is Pegasus from Yu-Gi-Oh!, only he's not content to messing up somebody's mind. I had to dig  to think of Pegasus bad-touching Mokuba Kaiba. With Hisoka, it looks like Gon would have to point out where he got touched on a doll.

To review: Master Wing breaks out the Leaf Test from Naruto to determine the boys' abilities. It's not a complete ripoff because a glass of water is involved. Gon passes . . . not only the lessons, but also the "test after the test." Because he is a special, special snowflake. But I still like him. Cut to Killua: "Do I graduate? Oh, right . . . I killed a guy in anger and got disqualified. Never mind." And being a transmuter means one can make soda by sweetening water. Also, Zushi needs more training, but he's one-in-100,000. That kinda makes him Krillin, doesn't it?

"Hello? Gon speaking." "Mmmmmmm. Just wanted to know if you've picked a date for our battle." "Soon." "That's niccccccccce." "You're naked in front of an open window, aren't you?" "You know me so well . . . "

Hey, Gon landed a blow on Hisoka! Good for him. He had to resort to overturning a tile again. He should have the pole, if only to ward off Hisoka's advances.

[Sandman87]

Damn, they're even using Naruto's chakra nature chart for nen affinities.

Q - What brand of bicycle does Hisoka prefer?

A - Schween!

I half expected Hisoka's naked phone call to segue into "So what are you wearing, Gon?"

I wonder if Hisoka will take back his number tag like he promised he would, now that Gon has landed a punch.

[lathspel]

Gon's really tearing up the battle tower - literally.  I suppose they just dock his pay for all those floor tiles?

I'm a little sad Leorio isn't training up on Nen - he always was the "normal" and I guess that will continue to be the case.  

The less said about Hisoka x Schween x Gon, the better :/ .

[Lantern7]

I'm hoping we see Leorio in the next arc. All I know about him is that he carries a knife, is an aspiring doctor, and is the Sanji of this anime. Also, he's a lot older than he looks. If IDs are a thing in this world, he could totally get the more important characters liquor. Not that it would affect Killua, since he's basically a monster.

[Lantern7]

This week: "OW!!! It feels like you poked me in the eye, Hisoka!" "Indeed I did." "But . . . I didn't see your hand move toward my face!" "No, you did not." "Oh, man. I need a shower. And an adult." "I am an ad-" "NO!"

Good news: Gon get to give Hisoka the badge. Bad news: Hisoka owns Gon, body and mind, and the referee lets him. Also, the tiles keep getting torn out. That has to piss people off. Hisoka declares that he's not going to face Gon again in Heaven's Arena, but they'll face off in the "real world." Gon and Killua take their leave of the Arena, having gotten enough training. Next: going back to Aunt Mito at Whale Island. And Killua will probably kill half the people there.

[Sandman87]

I'm calling this episode "Gon vs. The Sultan of Schween." Not only did they show Hisoka schween-ing again, but the part where Gon was punching him repeatedly made him so happy that it sounded like a hentai soundtrack.

For anyone who doesn't already know; Hisoka's "personality analysis based on blood type" is a popular nonsense thing in Japan. It's common for entertainment media there to publish the blood type of celebrities, and for celebrities to cultivate a public persona that "matches" their blood type.

[Terrafamilia]

By the way the contestants are always talking about nen in the arena it's kind of amazing more people don't know about it.

[ZoqFotPik]

On 1/22/2017 at 9:42 PM, Lantern7 said:

Also, he's a lot older than he looks.

Younger. He's still in his teens.

20 hours ago, Terrafamilia said:

By the way the contestants are always talking about nen in the arena it's kind of amazing more people don't know about it

Maybe they do. Despite their actions, Gon and Killua are just kids. They might not know everything about the world. Especially with Gon, he's always been shown to be more than a little naive. Also, it's not clear how much of their conversations can be heard by the spectators. 

Does anyone know what the deal was with the guy that just appeared in the announcer's box? Is he a new character or a reference to something else?

[Lantern7]

Last Week: Gon and Killua come to Whale Island to see Aunt Mito and her mother. We get basic backstory about Ging, and Gon gets a puzzle box. Fortunately, the boys don't summon Pinhead. Instead, Gon gets a memory card, a ring, and a cassette tape, Ging does seem that old school.

I thought the big reason to go to (eyeroll) Yorknew City was to battle Hisoka. I guess the priorities changed after Heaven's Arena.

ETA: This Week? The fun of two kids trying to find shit online!!! Gon listens to Ging talk about he doesn't want to see his son, since the guy did walk out on him years ago. Yeah, that's a bit of a red flag for me, even though Gon is basically 95 percent moxy. Gon stops the tape when Ging mentions his mother. Then the tape rewinds itself with nen and erases Ging's speech. Then the boys check the memory card, and . . . look, if you fast-forward through the last part of the episode, I won't blame you. So boring. Goku never had to go online. Granted, he'd be on the sidelines until the second half of an arc. Killua gets his fat fuck brother on the case, and the boys ship out again.

ETA2: They went back to the old cold open. Also, I have not read the manga, seen the next episodes or otherwise spoiled myself. I would be open into laying money on Ging fronting the Phantom Troop, because of anime tropes. I will say this: a Hunter riding a beast that is riding a beast of its own? Baller. As. HELL.

[Sandman87]

I can't help wondering if there's something special about the green torc that Aunt Mito is wearing. Like maybe it's a Hunter thing, or has some kind of secret nen function like the box did.

Kilua's brother sounds like he might be planning a double-cross, just to be a jerk. Also, his life sized inflatable Magical Girl is both sad and creepy.

3 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

I will say this: a Hunter riding a beast that is riding a beast of its own? Baller. As. HELL.

"Yo dawg, I heard you like riding monstas, so I put a monsta on yo' monsta, so you can ride while you ride."

[Terrafamilia]

11 hours ago, Sandman87 said:

I can't help wondering if there's something special about the green torc that Aunt Mito is wearing. Like maybe it's a Hunter thing, or has some kind of secret nen function like the box did.

If this were some other, darker, more twisted show I wouldn't be surprised if she weren't really his aunt and it would blow her head off if she ever broke character. But then again, this show does have its moments.

[lathspel]

I'm guessing Aunt Mito really is Mom, although that feels a little too easy.

Ging riding on a lizard riding on a dragon in a sandstorm was appropriately over the top. Nice!

[Sandman87]

All about Kurapika's training and what he's been up to lately. Turns out that he's into chains. Now he's looking for work that takes him to (*ahem*) York New City, because Hisoka promised to meet him there and tell him something he wants to know. During the episode we meet the Hunter from the opening credits who looks like a bald hamster wearing a flower costume, along with a few others.

Kurapika's new employer requires his new applicants to fight their way out of his house. And here you thought your boss was bad.

[Lantern7]

Looks like Kurapika is settling into his role as Grim Avenger Of His People. This is opposed to Killua, who can get a higher bodycount, but has a carefree personality.

Gotta dig the "Instant Lover" maneuver. Great if you need a human shield. "I am at your command, Mistress!" "Awesome. Go catch those bullets meant for me."

Anybody else look at the sideburns of the first uncovered agent and think, "Curly Lupin"?

Oh, and the fat fuck brother is still active. Unless Killua is losing shoes up his ass, I'm not that interested.

[ZoqFotPik]

Egypersia? Yoshihiro Togashi really sucks at naming things. Also, a video game that pulls players inside of it and if you die in game you die in real life? Great just what this show needs, an SAO arc. And yes, I realize this show is older than SAO.

Edited March 6, 2017 by ZoqFotPik

[Sandman87]

The Phantom Troupe is a bit of a letdown. I dunno, I thought they'd be more interesting.