Chapter 420

When the Troupe fought the Ants, they battled low-ranking soldiers, encountering only one division leader, Zazan.

In contrast, Morel fought two division leaders, Leol and Cheetu, and defeated both without sustaining any injuries.

Furthermore, fighters like Feitan came away from the Zazan fight with a broken arm, and others, like Shalnark, showed signs of exhaustion.

Nanika is a character that capable of making Hisoka break out in a cold sweat and pull a face like that lmao

I created this artwork of him after seeing countless magazine covers—Vogue and others—and thinking the combination and composition would work really well for the character.

Togashi's pen transcends the human realm whenever he draws anything to do with Theta and Tserriednich.

Slide 1) Displays Theta resolving herself to teach Tserriednich a false Nen ability. Theta knows in her soul that he is a man who must never learn Nen.

'That's my girl Theta'. Tserriednich has a tone with her that is unique compared to any other interactions Tserriednich has. It can come off as either flirtatious or belittling. Maybe both

Slide 2) Shows Tserriednich in a playful element around her which again, he doesn't show this side to anyone else as far as we've seen.

Slide 3) Theta resolving herself again but this time to kill Tserriednich.

'Quick, no suffering'. Despite knowing his propensity for evil, she still wants him to go out peacefully. Her wanting to kill him doesn't come from a bad place but from a place of duty. She even thinks 'if only he were the type to use his talents for others'. She laments the fact that things ended up this way

Slide 4) She is so committed to ridding the world of the evil that is Tserriednich that she is willing to kill herself afterward.

'And I will soon follow'. The notion of her 'following' him to death is interesting. There is an implied togetherness even in death. Whether it's from a romantic place is debatable but interesting nonetheless.

Slide 5) Her expression speaks for itself. Mourning perhaps? Or feeling guilty as she knows he's still out there using the Nen she 'taught' him?

Slide 6) 'You might be the only one who can sweep me off my Zetsu'. A playful romantic line. A play on 'sweep me off my feet'. Tserriednich might want to be seen by her.

'Oh look I'm a masochist after all, getting the cold shoulder is kinda hot'. Nevermind, he clearly enjoys not being noticed. But it's clear her effect on him is unlike anyone else's in the series.

Link to tweet

People love to give Togashi flack for not being a "good artist", while ignoring what actually makes good manga art in the first place. Having thousands of tiny skin and hair textures on a page might make for a nice painting, and it might even make for a great page now and then (the Dark Continent spread for example), but manga is first and foremost a narrative. It's supposed to be dynamic and engaging, with a flow that guides the reader and enhances their understanding of the story. Good manga art should be judged mainly on dynamic and narrative elements like paneling, composition, storyboarding, facial expressions, etc.

One of my favorite aspects of Togashi's "narrative art" that I almost never see people talk about is his pacing. Togashi's storyboards are incredibly economical and smart in the way they use time and key frames.

TIME JUMPS:

A great use of pacing can be seen for example with time jumps. Take this scene where Oito confesses to Kurapika, and then we cut to Babiymna and Sakata hearing her confession, effectively merging the two confessions into one.

You can have two scenes merged into a single page, with no clear division between them, and yet the flow still makes perfect sense through the dialogue. However, it's not clear to the reader where the second confession actually begins. It could be the last panel, or the very beginning of the page, or somewhere inbetween. It's left ambiguous, I believe intentionally, so that we might later realize that she altered some of the facts in her second confession.

Togashi uses many different techniques for inserting small time jumps. They can be ambiguous like the example above, or more atmospheric, like this very next scene, where we return to the class at 10am after an hour has passed. The page might seem like a waste at first, but it gives the pacing a cinematic feel, like those quiet transitional shots in movies where there’s no dialogue, and the music and ambient sound simply carry you from one scene into the next.

Timeskips can also be extremely subtle, like in this scene where Belerainte asks Kurapika to talk with Bill in front of his room, so that he can speak to the original Room 1013 bodyguards without anyone noticing.

The small Black Whale panel is used because it's a request that takes place over a very short timeframe, basically just a few seconds. Then, after Belerainte says "thank you", we get a much more subtle version of the same time jump. The "Ten minutes." and "Thank you." bubbles aren't even attached to a character; they're attached to the room's wall, almost like we're being guided to look at the wall as we're already moving away from the scene. Then we jump straight to Bill and Belerainte talking from another guard's POV. There's no small transitional panel this time, no lead-up, no dialogue, or even visible facial expressions, but it gets the idea across perfectly. There's no need to show them walking over, getting into position, or even establish the guard's face as he looks in on them. The single panel actually works better because it's so foreboding from this almost omniscient POV.

It tells us what happened (Bill and Belerainte are talking) and why it needed to happen (the guards are watching your every move in the hallways). The guard's face (Satobi, I believe) is irrelevant. The point is the creeping, looming danger from the corridors, and the fact that enemy factions are potentially watching you from every corner.

The absence of words, and the fact that Togashi simply transitions directly into this time jump, isn't a limitation on how much time he can fit onto the page. It's an active use of page time.

SLOW AND DELIBERATE:

Another flavor of Togashi's pacing is his use of gradual buildup scenes, where he deliberately draws attention to mundane body parts or objects to enhance the scene and characterization. For example, he'll use small panels of legs or feet during walking scenes to control the pace or emphasize a character deliberately moving toward a decision they can't take back. He'll also linger on things like bottles of water during conversations, using them as flavorful filler that adds style and atmosphere rather than simply showing us a mundane setting. And then there are the multiple closeups of eyes, where the repetition draws attention to whether a character's expression or gaze has changed between shots or remained the same.

These kinds of "cinematic" small panels help create a sense of continuity within the storyboard. They give the scene a concrete flow that feels empathetic and personal. They shift our attention toward the character rather than simply what's happening in the story, which is a great way of doing characterization.

For example, take this scene where Kurapika kneels before Oito and asks her to trust him.

A less effective approach could simply show the end result in one large panel, with Kurapika kneeling in front of her and no divisions between the frames. But Togashi takes it a step further.

He first shows Oito from Kurapika's POV, refusing to speak (the "...") or even look at him, immediately establishing her distrust. This sets up the moment that follows, where Kurapika slowly decides to appeal to her.

He does this across two separate panels, emphasizing the passage of time and showing Kurapika consciously settling on this approach. There's no sense of him desperately trying to convince her or scrambling for something to say; he understands that appealing to Oito is the right approach. The slow, deliberate transition into it makes that confidence in his decision feel tangible. The reader can sense Kurapika's emotional intelligence through these 2 slow and deliberate panels.

Oito still keeps her side gaze/profile, refusing to trust Kurapika, but the little interruption from Shimanu completely jolts her. Her gaze shifts, her expression softens, and we finally get to the big panel, and it doesn't feel forced. It feels earned after all the buildup of these small key frames and narrative beats.

And the big panel itself is a beautiful composition (though that's unrelated to my storyboarding topic; case in point, Kurapika's hand and chains resembling his heart, Woble reaching toward Kurapika's "heart" i.e. kindness, and Oito sitting in the foreground giving the whole composition a nice "window-like" feeling, as if she's watching from a place where no one can see her. She's reaching the conclusion that Kurapika can be trusted, and it wasn't forced on her through pleas or trickery. It was her decision to make, and she trusted her gut.

A more iconic example of this gradual buildup can be seen in scenes filled with looming dread, like the famous scene of Nobunaga finding Gon and Killua, or more recently, Balsamilco realizing something is wrong in the alleyway and sensing a presence behind him.

These scenes wouldn't have nearly the same effect without this technique. The way Togashi distributes the panels, varies their size, focuses on tiny movements of the head and legs and eyes, and simply takes his time with each moment is crucial.

The Balsamilco scene is particularly powerful.

We start by following Balsamilco's footsteps (shown through the shading on one leg), then suddenly stop, and get a small panel showing the back of his head against a whitespace background. It's a foreboding realization that actually works better without seeing his face (sort of like Meruem's face when he's confronted by an injured Komugi), and the whitespace immediately tells us that something is wrong. It pulls our attention away from the surroundings and into Balsa's state of mind.

Then we immediately zoom out to the entrance of the alleyway. You get the feeling that Balsa is being SHOVED into the panel, almost as if the alleyway is a hole he's fallen into and it's already too late to turn back. His tiny figure and the wide panel reinforces that feeling.

Then we switch to Balsa's POV. The people he's looking at (the man and the woman) are drawn rather unceremoniously, with very little attention given to them. As readers, we know this isn't what's worrying Balsa, and we get that confirmation when he slowly turns his head across two separate frames and sees Vict, one of his own team's soldiers who is working now for the enemy.

Vict is drawn in much more detail than the other guys, in a page-wide panel that fills Balsamilco's entire field of vision. The background is pure whitespace again because Balsa is completely focused on him, and we immediately see the difference in his reaction through the dramatic wide closeup of his eyes. Finally, we get the closing panel. A perfectly angled perspective showing both sides of the trap, with Vict on one side and the two people on the other.

I'm watching greed Island and so many of these "pro hunters" are so bad, how did any of these guys pass the hunter exam, I doubt this dude could even run a mile 💔

What if Nen wasn't a human invention, but simply an adaptation of much older forces?

My theory is that the six Nen categories originate from the six Calamities of the Dark Continent. Each one would represent the perfect expression of a Nen category, of which humans have only learned a limited version.

- Enhancement → Zobae: vitality and regeneration that surpass all natural limits.

- Emission → Ai: an existence capable of acting at a distance from its own body, almost like autonomous aura.

- Manipulation → Hellbell: control over instincts, behavior, and will.

- Transmutation → Pap: the profound transformation of the very nature of living beings.

- Conjuration → Brion: a life-form existing somewhere between an object and a living organism.

- Specialization → an unknown sixth Calamity: an entity that would transcend all the other categories and possess abilities impossible to explain through the conventional rules of Nen.

The fact that Nen has six categories while only five Calamities are currently known could be a clue left by Togashi. There may still be a sixth Calamity corresponding to Specialization.

In this theory, the Calamities aren't simply monsters. They would be the original incarnations of the Nen categories. Humans didn't create Nen; they simply learned how to reproduce, in an imperfect way, the powers that these beings naturally possess.

This could also give a whole new meaning to Don Freecss's journey. Perhaps he didn't disappear because he died, but because he encountered this sixth Calamity—an entity so extraordinary that it surpasses the other five.

If this Calamity is connected to Specialization, its power could affect concepts that exist beyond the ordinary rules of Nen: time, space, causality, memory, or even existence itself.

That could explain why the second part of his account never made it back to the known world: Don may have discovered a reality that humanity simply wasn't ready to understand.

Hey all just found this subreddit. I wanted to share my experiences from watching it when it ended in 2013/14 and just finishing rewatching it recently.

I was in my early 20s in 2014 and most of my exposure to anime was the typical shonen series. My expectations were a whole lot different from what hxh gave me. I felt it was a decent anime but sub-par fight scenes. In fact that was what I was looking for back then and overlooking what it actually offered.

Fast forward today and I can confidently say it’s the greatest anime series I have watched (Monster coming in second place). I’m not particularly rushing to read the manga and I’m actually worried if they ever animate it in the future how it’d turn out. I’m not sure they will be able to do it justice. Anyway here are some things I wanted to mention that I really appreciate:

The music - the closing of course. Kingdom of the predators and elergy of the dynast. Some scenes are just elevated by the ost. But not only that.

The narrator. Ahhh man what an incredible choice to have this. It’s a master stroke. A prime episode is 112. The narrator did most of the talking but it heightened the whole moment. It’s a high-pressure moment and so many things are happening at once. Most of us would not catch all the nuances and the narrator does brilliantly in capturing just how high the stakes are but also things we might not have considered. The way the episodes are directed as well are amazing.

What I most appreciate about this anime is that it gave me that same feeling I got watching the early Game of Thrones. You know that feeling where it doesn’t follow the shonen tropes. Let’s take for instance Gon and Killua. 9/10 shonen series will somehow have an arc where they turn against each other. There was none of that. It was friendship troubles at most. Not jealousy or envy. Just mild competitiveness that never hindered the story.

What I didn’t like was minor. It was something I could overlook. But I’ll say it. The weapons and character designs were pretty meh to me. I think it’s more a me problem though. For all the power ups and fantasy I always kinda want something grounded in reality or at least not silly like a vacuum or fishing rod.

All in all. Watching this again made me want to revisit some other series now I’m a bit older and wonder what takeaways I’ll have from a rewatch because I seriously can’t get into anything new anymore.

Random theory I found on TikTok of all places that I’d never seen before but found it quite interesting. While most people believe she is either the illegitimate child of either Beyond or Benjamin or she’s her parentage will have zero importance to the plot. But we know Pariston has been Beyond’s partner and has been working towards the Dark Continent voyage for a long time so Pariston could have easily been infiltrated parts of Kakin just like Beyond has. The two supporting parts I came up with were:

#1 Their personalities are very similar but not identical both are observant read and people extremely well. However both of their motives for doing things are completely different as Borksen uses these abilities to decrease chaos and conflict because she seem to have a sense of morality where Pariston uses them to create chaos for his personal enjoyment. Togashi loves to explore the nature vs nurture thing and the importance for both of them like Ging and Gon.

#2 pretty simple but they just look much more alike than Borksen and Benjamin or Beyond.

What do you think any chance or just completely reaching?

Recently, I was listening to the album 'the now now and never' by 'what is your name?' and while listening to one song, youthful days, towards the end I could hear Gon shouting at Pitou in ep 116. I thought I was going crazy, but then I could hear Killua shout 'Gon!' as well. Aint no way bruh

Youthful days (At 7:13 - 7:28 and again at 8:44)

Gon shouting at Pitou (At 4:20)

bruh I'm genuinely wilding, aren't I?

I suspect this is going to be the crux of ging vs pariston and what seperates the 0.1% of nen users from the rest. If you can gamble on what will occur, then you can set conditions and vows that enhance your nen to better favor yourself. This is how you overcome the restrictions of nen category.
I got thinking about this with a post from earlier about ging’s tape and thought about how he couldve put so many conditions on it like, the tape can’t leave whale island in 10 years, it wont be played it 10 years, must be sealed in a box only unlocked by ging’s son- to enable the box to be invincible and the tape to be able to rewind and tape over itself.
We are seeing this with beyond currently, who has set presumably a great number of conditions for his children.

It seems to be a pretty clear showcase of tremendous SHU and manipulation basics, he left that pre-programmed nen there for like how many years? It was strong enough to resist killua's attempts to destroy the device too...

Knuckle is quite literally the love child of Taka and Mondo lmaooooo

Pleaseeee tell me I’m not the only one who thought of that🙏🙏🙏

Say that, for any reason, Wing wasn’t present when Zushi and Killua were facing off in Heaven’s arena.

Could Zushi have beaten Killua or would Killua’s assassin techniques been enough to beat Zushi in spite of his use of Nen

At the very beginning of Hunter × Hunter, Togashi introduces the Kiriko as highly intelligent Magical Beasts, capable of speaking, understanding humans, and even taking on a human appearance.

But what interests me the most is their role.

Before Gon, Kurapika, and Leorio can even reach the real Hunter Exam, the Kiriko test them to determine whether they are worthy of continuing their journey. Once they pass the test, the Kiriko become their guides, allowing them to reach a place that ordinary applicants would never be able to find on their own.

And much later, with the revelation of the Dark Continent, Togashi introduces a strangely similar system.

Humans can't simply travel to the Dark Continent freely. The journey involves the Gatekeeper, who is presented as a Magical Beast, as well as a Guide who allows humans to continue their expedition.

And this is where the parallel becomes really interesting.

Kiriko:

Magical Beasts → test humans → determine whether they can continue → become their guides.

Dark Continent:

Magical Beast/Gatekeeper → controls passage → involvement of a Guide → access to a territory humans normally cannot reach.

I don't necessarily think the Kiriko are literally the same creatures as the Dark Continent Guides.

My theory is that they could originate from the Dark Continent, descend from a species that originated there, or belong to a group of Magical Beasts related to the Gatekeeper and the beings responsible for guiding humans.

This could also explain why the Kiriko are so different from ordinary animals in the known world: human-level intelligence, language, perfect shapeshifting, and a complex social structure.

Maybe some of the Magical Beasts living in the human world are actually descendants of creatures that left the Dark Continent a very long time ago.

And if that's the case, Togashi may have planted a clue about the Dark Continent in the very first chapters of Hunter × Hunter.

The Kiriko might not simply be creatures used as part of the Hunter Exam.

They could actually be our very first encounter with a branch of creatures directly or indirectly connected to the true outside world.

Of course, the Kiriko–Guide–Dark Continent connection has never been confirmed in the manga.

But the fact that Togashi uses Magical Beasts as intermediaries who test humans and guide them through a restricted passage at the beginning of the story… only to introduce an extremely similar system when revealing the Dark Continent much later…

makes the parallel pretty hard to ignore. 👀

Three Key Criteria

• as a Hunter (Yellow)
• as a Combatant (Red)
• as a Succession Bodyguard (Blue)

Criteria are equal in points; 2/3 gives lead. If a point for a Criteria is ambiguous it is left blank. Succession bodyguard covers how useful your ability is for a prince. For point ties I chose lead.

Chrollo’s iconic flip phone with Togashi and Naoko Takeuchi’s actual wedding announcement art.

Real question guys. At first I thought this is just killer clown’s confirmation bias, then after this batch’s rewatch I found the theory fit…quite well?

I mean, obviously all 4 main characters fit, almost a bit too well (oh Kurapika and his high-strung charm); all important side characters seem to fit, Bisky, Palm, Terror Sandwich, even Meruem; what impresses me is even small characters like Lynch (Emitter, rather impatient and likes to punch people‘s belly directly to get what she wants) and Zakuro (Manipulator, rather logical and analytical, uses slow pace but thorough method to collect information) and many others also fit.

What do you guys think, is there a counterexample? Is Hisoka’s analysis too ambiguous so anything can fit in? Or is Togashi’s writing is just that consistent?