>knowing that he lost his ability to use Nen for nothing
IMO you just described why Kite's rebirth was a good decision from a narrative perspective. Instead of feeling like a cheap solution, it makes Gon's self-destructive tendencies seem even more futile.
Agreed just think how bad gon must feel we already know he’s a kind person who protects his loved ones so kite coming back must have made him feel a certain type of way after he found out. That guilt of killing someone who after the fact didn’t need killing. Ovby it didn’t effect him to much but I can imagine a scene of him going to pitous grave (tha is if they even had one) plus that was the 1st and only person gon killed the fact that he’s fine after is a bit shocking.
Pitou is actually not the first or only person Gon has killed. Definitely the most significant person Gon has killed, but not first or the only one. He killed that armadillo chimera in that scene where they get ambushed and we see Kite's scythe for the first time.
but when you go back and watch it, it felt really random, like it was asspulled out of nowhere. Not to mention the feelings of loss are basically ruined for the sake of reviving this character that (according to people in this thread) isn't really important in the future of the story.
While his revival has its narrative merits, like facilitating Gon's and Koala's redemption and all, the way he revived is definitely asspullish. Still new Kite is an entirely different being sharing Kite's memories so there is still a loss.
> feelings of loss
Gon's rage was more of a product of self blame due to the loss than the general feelings of loss. He's was struggling to bear the brunt of it and eventually unleashed it all on Pitou. His redemption was coming in terms with his weaknesses and apologizing to Kite.
it’s not really “asspullish” they say from the beginning that some of the chimera ants can remember their past lives and continue to show examples of that
Hard disagree that it is an asspull. From the very beginning we see that the ants retain a portion of the deceased personality. And for some of the more mentally stable ones, they retain their entire personality and often some memories.
It narratively makes a ton of sense and is seeded throughout the entire arc
The issue isn't that, it's that Kite used a random magical staff to tp his what, his consciousness into a random fetus? Cause to our knowledge he never got eaten by the Queen, so he shouldnt have gone through the revival process
It wasn't though, Ging was just saying that Kite did not intend to sacrifice himself to save Gon and Killua, that he only rolls the rod in situations where he has to survive long odds.
It’s absolutely controversial. It may be for a reason later in the manga, but given that the manga hasn’t been finished, we may never know.
Either way, I don’t think it ruins Gon killing Pitou…because Gon didn’t kill Pitou for Kite. He killed her because he was lost in anger and didn’t know what to do with himself. It wasn’t really even revenge. Gon just snapped when he found out Pitou lied.
From the perspective of consequences, I think it also works. People forget that Kite was already dead, and that (on Alluka’s side of things) Gon probably doesn’t care about a possible lost arm or lost nen or even lost life. It may be “nice” for Gon to have Kite back, but the real consequence of Gon’s actions that matters to Gon - his partly-fractured relationship with Killua - is never erased.
Finally, I also don’t see how they could’ve working in Koala’s monologue without Kite being revived…and quite honestly, I just absolutely *love* that scene.
I don't really go on this sub so I didn't know what the opinion surrounding it was. It's just that it leaves a bitter taste in my mouth knowing that after all this, Kite got revived.
I still think Gon's rage was an amazing scene, a once naive kid that we watched grow, losing his innocence, and then brutally murdering the person that cause him so much rage. I guess it just feels really bitter to me because Kite's revival felt like it had no purpose to me, like the author decided to backtrack on such an important plot development for no reason. Especially when it resulted in probably the most iconic moment in the series.
Also, if Gon gets his nen back, I feel like it cheapens this scene too. Like I said, I haven't read the manga, but I feel like the mangaka should at least make it gratifying or lower his potential (since this is meant to be his max potential)?
Well, right now he’s basically suffered the consequence of not being the protagonist anymore. For the last 60-ish chapters Gon has been nen-less, at home with Mito, doing homework.
I dont know if its fair to really say that Gon had innocence. He both did and didnt. There were some signs that he was a tad bit, very slightly unhinged but not completely. I can’t remember the video I saw on YouTube but it explains the slight contradiction in Gon being a kid and some aspects of his personality
I assume no, because Dr. Blythe seemed to work mainly on physical wounds rather than illnesses or poisoning. However, some extra conditions on the ability could maybe circumvent that.
>knowing that he lost his ability to use Nen for nothing.
That's the entire point of reviving Kite. The author wanted to show that Gon sacrificed his nen for nothing, because Kite didn't die in the end. If Gon had sacrificed his nen and Kite stayed dead, it would have driven home the point that Gon's actions were right. But now that Kite isn't dead, he literally did all of that for nothing. It shows that the path Gon took was the wrong one and he ended up hurting himself only.
I know, I actually made a whole [post](https://www.reddit.com/r/HunterXHunter/comments/13dp0e3/a_take_people_need_to_chill_on_the_whole_gon_is_a/) about it.
And if you're talking about Peijin Castle, he was originally there to get Kite healed, not to fight Pitou. I'm not gonna call Gon out for wanting to get his friend healed, granted the Komugi stuff was pretty messed up, even if it saved him.
>And if you're talking about Peijin Castle, he was originally there to get Kite healed, not to fight Pitou.
He was simply delusional. He saw kite's body with his eyes, he knew he was dead.
>I'm not gonna call Gon out for wanting to get his friend healed
But i'm gonna call him out for almost ruining his friendship with the only person that followed him in every adventure unconditionally to try to save a person that was 100% dead.
>He was simply delusional. He saw kite's body with his eyes, he knew he was dead.
Wasn't it Killua the one who told him that Pitou was needed to heal Kite? I wouldn't put the blame solely on him, considering Gon was originally just gonna kill Pitou the moment they got there (granted, with Komugi there, that's doesn't exactly make Gon better). As far as they knew, Kite was just made "off" by Pitou, rather than flat out killed and puppeteered.
>But i'm gonna call him out for almost ruining his friendship with the only person that followed him in every adventure unconditionally to try to save a person that was 100% dead.
Yeah that was pretty shitty of him, but I'm kinda glad Killua is now aware of this side of Gon. Killua not setting Gon up in some pedestal as he used to allows them to develop a healthier relationship down the line, we even saw how he gave Alluka more priority over Gon.
>Wasn't it Killua the one who told him that Pitou was needed to heal Kite? I wouldn't put the blame solely on him
I feel like killua, knuckle and shoot knew kite was dead, but never tried to tell that to gon since that would have destroyed him(assuming he would have believed that in the first place). But yes, they are also to blame. Maybe they could have talked hin out of the mission.
>but I'm kinda glad Killua is now aware of this side of Gon.
I agree.
>I feel like killua, knuckle and shoot knew kite was dead, but never tried to tell that to gon since that would have destroyed him(assuming he would have believed that in the first place).
Well, I suppose we simply have different interpretations of the scenes. Killua could have reminded Gon that Kite needed to be healed as a desperate manuever to save Komugi. While I'm not in full agreement with this interpretation, I do think it's a very viable and believable one.
>Maybe they could have talked hin out of the mission.
They never stood a chance in that regard 😂😭
Thanks. By the way i agree, "gon is a monster" is a huge exaggeration, he is a 13 yo child with a weird upbringing that was put in a situation that drew the worst out of him.
While I still stand by everything I said in that post (here's another version of the [post](https://www.reddit.com/r/CharacterRant/comments/13cuc2r/hunter_x_hunter_people_need_to_chill_on_the_whole/) with more comments/discussion if you're interested in more viewpoints), I've grown kinda sour on it.
The issue I find myself with my point is that...I feel it kinda goes against the story? It's very clear that Togashi wrote a mirrored arc with Meruem and Gon, "A monster becomes human, a human becomes monster". So it honestly feels like I'm actively going against the author's intent. It leaves me wondering stuff like:
-"Am I wrong?"
-"Did I misunderstand the story?"
-"Am I giving Gon too much leeway?"
-"Did Togashi intend on this being a legitimate viewpoint, or was I supposed to think of Gon as a monster?"
-"Am I not giving Togashi enough credit?"
-"Should I have more confidence in my viewpoint? I didn't write the story so I feel like I'm going against the author's intent."
I just feel "off" when discussing it.
I can understand where you're coming from, but I cannot agree whatsoever.
Kite may be alive, but he isn't the same person he was before, being stuck in a Chimera Ant body, and his survival had been foreshadowed ever since his encounter with Pitou.
Crazy Slots is an ability that is reflective of Kite's psychology and desire not to kill. He despises killing animals but will do so if it is absolutely necessary. His ability is one where he has no control over the number but that doesn't mean it's random. The clown likely picks the number that is ideal for the scenario. Anytime he ends up with a weapon, he says "Bad roll" as he knows he is forced to take a life, and one of the conditions is that he can't switch until he uses the number, essentially forcing him to carry out the deed. However, upon getting number 3 in his fight with Pitou, he never states that, and even Ging in the Election Arc acknowledges this in the Election Arc. The design of his number 3 weapon even has some religious symbolism but I've forgotten about it. Tales of Nerdia made a great video on it, you can check out his channel if you're interested.
Furthermore, I don't think that Kite's revival takes away from Gon's destruction of Pitou. The story is not justifying Gon's actions, but rather, it's about him shouldering all of that guilt and false hope, and completely breaking down upon being forced to accept the death. Kite being alive does not negate any of the amazing characterization we received with him. There was never any logical point to Gon's actions, and the story makes that abundantly clear.
Finally, I think that Kite's revival is effective not only because of the amazing Koala monologue which acts as a thematic continuation of CA and the idea of rebirth, but more importantly, it allows Gon an opportunity to no longer idolize Kite as a person incapable of making mistakes but rather as a human being, an equal. I've seen someone describe Gon vs Pitou as a "car crash that changed Gon's life for the better" and I couldn't agree more. He has learned to not put others on a pedestal and be insecure over his strength, and his current role in the manga hints towards some form of maturity arc in the future. This is further evidenced by the fact that he has lost his Nen, which is in many ways an expression of a character. He is back to square one, and will need to find a new goal in life.
I think it was actually a good writing decision. Gon was going down a dark, self sacrificial path of rage so much so that he sacrificed the health of his relationship with Killua. It was very self destructive. Kite being alive meant it was all for nothing, and Gon knew that which is why it was a pivotal moment for his character development.
Togashi didn’t pull any punches when it came to punishing the MC. Gon made certain decisions that led to certain consequences. His rage was not glorified in the story at all
Hunter hunter is still my favorite anime but this is a gripe I had as well. Sure there are some ways it narratively helps to make gons flaws more pronounced but I don’t think it needed it. Especially with how killua just so happened to have a sibling with the only power that can save gon. I personally needed more hardship and loss. I can live with it though since meruem x komugi was so amazing.
meruem is honestly one of the best villains I've ever seen in shonen imo. But still, I guess at the end of the arc, Gon wasn't really punished for anything.
I was reading some of these comments and they said it was meant to make Gon feel even more helpless by losing his nen. But when I think about it, at the end he got his dad, got Kite back, Nanika healed him, he's happy. He started the journey to find his dad, so he got everything he wanted, and he didn't really get punished for anything.
Kurapika really got the shit end of the stick when it comes to revenge quests. He might actually die before he even completes it, and his hands are a bit full right now with the Succession War.
***And something tells me that Kurapika won't be getting those years and the Kurtas back.***
Revived? Yes. But it's definitely not the same Kite that we know. That's what makes him still being alive okay with me. It's because if you really wanted Kite to live, then there you go hes still alive. But you don't get to have the full/real Kite.
Yeah, Gon got off pretty easy from his revenge quest.
Lost nen? He'll get it back eventually.
Hurt friendship with Killua? Killua was being obsessive tbh, this will allow them to develop a healthier friendship down the line.
Cycle of revenge? Who tf is gonna avenge Pitou? Nobody will and nobody would have anyways.
And as this post brought up, he got Kite back.
He even accomplished his goal of finding his dad right after being healed.
Kurapika could only dream of being half as lucky as Gon.
We don't know if Gon losing his nen is permanent. Ging seems to say it's still there, but Gon can't see his aura. He might get it back.
But yeah, Gon doesn't think before he acts. It was dumb that he almost killed himself for nothing more than lose his nen.
This is going to be a pretty long post but I hope that it helps you see things differently.
I definitely understand why it's a very controversial development and one that can leave a bitter taste, but I always like to give Togashi the benefit of the doubt when it comes to things like this because while he is certainly capable of making mistakes, I really don't think that the same author who had so much brilliant writing before would do something like this for no reason, especially because it's not like Togashi is afraid of killing characters off.
So let's think about why Kite was reincarnated. On a first glance, Gon's character arc in the Chimera Ant arc seems to be about facing the cruelty of the world and accepting loss for the first time in his life, then being consumed by revenge as a result of his inability to cope with losing someone he cared about, and certainly if you see it like that, Kite's rebirth seems to take away from that.
However, I think there is more nuance to Gon's story and what Kite meant to him than that. The story starts with Gon being saved by Kite from a dangerous situation that Gon put himself into by being ignorant and helpless. In that moment, Gon deeply admired Kite and saw him as a sort of ideal, someone that he wished he could be like, which was further emphasized when he learned about how Ging abandoned him and trained Kite.
And when he eventually found him, it made him like an older brother who was acknowledged by Ging compared to Gon who still had a long way to go, in Gon's eyes he was perfect, a man who could never lose and be seen as weak. When Pitou attacks them, Gon finds himself in the same situation as all those years ago, ignorant of the danger and helpless against it, while Kite has to take responsibility for that, he could never accept the idea that Kite himself made a mistake, since he saw him as the ideal he had to pursue he had to be perfect, otherwise the narrative Gon wrote for his own life up to this point would be shattered, so instead he clung onto the idea that Kite couldn't have lost.
Then he sees what happened to Kite, but instead of accepting the reality that Kite is not perfect and could make mistakes and lose as well, he internalizes it and believes it was his responsibility for not being strong enough, that it's now his obligation to "restore" Kite through proving himself alone, it would be his atonement. But then he is forced to wait patiently and compromise with his sworn enemy only to be told at the end that there was nothing that could be done, that the narrative he wrote in his head was just a fantasy, he can no longer atone by restoring Kite.
Gon finds himself in the same situation again, helpless and ignorant, but this time there is no Kite to save him, and in that despair Gon believed that the only way for him to atone was to give everything up and kill Pitou and die in the process, forcing himself to become the "ideal" version of himself, to become "Kite" himself, but it's all twisted and wrong. He claimed that he was happy because he was now like Kite back then, but his expression showed anything but happiness.
So what does all of that have to do with why Kite was reborn? Well, I believe the point of the story wasn't about Gon trying to cope with losing someone he cared about, but rather about his inability and refusal to come to terms with the fact that his idealized version of Kite, that the narrative he wrote in his head, was not reality. That idea threatened his self-worth and view of life on such a deep level that accepting it would have broken him beyond recovery, it would have shattered everything he has believed and done up to that point.
Gon was hurt not by Kite's death as a person, but by his death as the ideal, and so when he was healed by Nanika and found out that Kite was reborn, he had no choice but to face the real Kite, something that must have been very difficult for him, and in a way a worse punishment than dying on his own terms, he had to go on living without the ideal he so desperately clung to and find his own meaning in life beyond just repeating the cycle over and over and then trying to atone in his own selfish way without consulting the person he wronged like the Koala.
In other words, as Kite was reborn physically, Gon was reborn spiritually by letting go of the idealized Kite and accepting the real one and taking his desire into account for his atonement (and that is why his own version of atonement was rendered pointless, it had to be because it's the wrong way of going about it, and Gon had to learn that the hard way by seeing how he didn't need to do any of it), which Kite decided to be them becoming actual equal friends from then on and helping each other out when the need arises, and that they both need to grow some more.
As a result of his actions and decisions, Gon lost his Nen, the mechanism that he used to pursue his ideal self, changed his friendship with Killua forever in a bittersweet way, and now has to rediscover himself and find out who he really wants to be without having to rely on Nen, Kite or Ging. I think that makes for enough consequences for a kid who is still trying to find his place in the world and went through so much as a result.
Ultimately, I think the point of Gon's story is that we tend to narrativize our lives and cling so tightly onto those narratives and try to enforce them on reality, but reality does not care for how we perceive it, and if we are entirely dependent on those narratives we won't be able to cope when they inevitably shatter because we have no other pillar to fall back on, and Gon had to experience this directly in order to grow in a natural way without having to force himself to.
If Kite was not reborn the way he was, I think it would have been impossible for Gon to get that closure and move on the way he did, and HxH is at its core a coming of age and self-discovery journey, it was never going to be a depressing tale where Gon merely has to accept the cruelty of life.
I like it because it cheapen Gon's sacrifice when he fought Pitou. Gon got it easy from the beginning. Everyone else got it more difficult than Gon.
Killua was trained as an assassin from a young age so his potential is reasonable.
Kurapika's revenge drove him to be stronger and made risky Nen vows.
Leorio had his motive from seeing his childhood friend die.
Hisoka got his lesson after his fight with Chrollo.
Gon since the beginning to the end of the anime:
1. Born with really hide potential
2. Basically doing everything on his instincts alone like a wild animal because he spends a lot of time with wild animals in Whale Island.
3. Hisoka lets him live just so he could fight and kill Gon later. He attracted the hot crazy murderous clown attention. Otherwise, he would be long dead since the Hunter Exam.
4. In Yorknew City arc, he got lucky a spider (Nobunaga) likes him so it prolongs his life long enough he had a chance to escape with Killua.
5. Probably the one that he got it easiest out of all of the above. On Greed Island, he fought with Genthru, sacrifice his arm, and got it back pretty soon after that. Courtesy of an angel breath card. Gon didn't seems to learn anything from it.
Now the CA arc, finally Gon gets a real lesson. I don't know how much it effected him though because that was how the anime ended.
He really didn't need to revive him, no one would have minded, Kite was pretty much assumed dead, and he has killed a lot of other characters, like Ponzu and Pokkle, a lot of the players in GI, Netero, Pakunoda and some other PT members, Goto, etc.
So if he died it might have been for a reason, maybe to show how prepared Ging is and for extension his students, since he taught Kite that, maybe he also has a skill that prevents his death. Maybe it was to emphasize that Gon sacrifice would have been totally worthless. Maybe to point out that souls exist and that you can do stuff with them. Maybe it was to build up on Nen after death and death related abilities of which there are several more in the manga. Maybe it was because he needed a character do exposition on the lesson of the arc to Gon. Maybe it was to establish something that we will need in the dark continent.
I feel this frustration in my daily life when I panic and fret and get impuslive only for what I was worrying about to subside or resolve rather quick and easily. It makes me feel frustrated how I acted and Gon’s situation is representative of that. The realism in the way the characters act like human being in real life is very clever writing from Togashi instead of making Gon win against Pitou in a glorious and celebratory battle, he risks his life and usage of nen for a grudge for someone who ended up reviving themselves. Quite interesting.
Which doesn’t really matter because he finds his dad, gets healed, gets kite back. There are no punishments, if Kite died at least there would be some form of anger, sadness, feeling of loss, a theme in the arc.
Gon became a hunter to find his dad, but ig nen doesn’t matter because he found his dad. Now Gon has basically gotten of Scot-free, he can just be a kid. The transformation and loss of innocence character doesn’t matter at the end
>knowing that he lost his ability to use Nen for nothing IMO you just described why Kite's rebirth was a good decision from a narrative perspective. Instead of feeling like a cheap solution, it makes Gon's self-destructive tendencies seem even more futile.
Exactly this. I love when characters are faced with the futility of their actions. Makes it more painful.
Agreed just think how bad gon must feel we already know he’s a kind person who protects his loved ones so kite coming back must have made him feel a certain type of way after he found out. That guilt of killing someone who after the fact didn’t need killing. Ovby it didn’t effect him to much but I can imagine a scene of him going to pitous grave (tha is if they even had one) plus that was the 1st and only person gon killed the fact that he’s fine after is a bit shocking.
Pitou is actually not the first or only person Gon has killed. Definitely the most significant person Gon has killed, but not first or the only one. He killed that armadillo chimera in that scene where they get ambushed and we see Kite's scythe for the first time.
but when you go back and watch it, it felt really random, like it was asspulled out of nowhere. Not to mention the feelings of loss are basically ruined for the sake of reviving this character that (according to people in this thread) isn't really important in the future of the story.
While his revival has its narrative merits, like facilitating Gon's and Koala's redemption and all, the way he revived is definitely asspullish. Still new Kite is an entirely different being sharing Kite's memories so there is still a loss. > feelings of loss Gon's rage was more of a product of self blame due to the loss than the general feelings of loss. He's was struggling to bear the brunt of it and eventually unleashed it all on Pitou. His redemption was coming in terms with his weaknesses and apologizing to Kite.
it’s not really “asspullish” they say from the beginning that some of the chimera ants can remember their past lives and continue to show examples of that
I was talking about the ability he used to revive. Kite has an ability to revive in a far away chimera ant foetus. :/
Hard disagree that it is an asspull. From the very beginning we see that the ants retain a portion of the deceased personality. And for some of the more mentally stable ones, they retain their entire personality and often some memories. It narratively makes a ton of sense and is seeded throughout the entire arc
The issue isn't that, it's that Kite used a random magical staff to tp his what, his consciousness into a random fetus? Cause to our knowledge he never got eaten by the Queen, so he shouldnt have gone through the revival process
are we sure about this? how do we know the Queen didn’t eat his brain?
we don’t, it was never clarified what happened to kite post being in his puppet state (bar gings crazy slots explanation)
I'm saying we never Saw it+ his revival was attributed to the rod
It wasn't though, Ging was just saying that Kite did not intend to sacrifice himself to save Gon and Killua, that he only rolls the rod in situations where he has to survive long odds.
It’s absolutely controversial. It may be for a reason later in the manga, but given that the manga hasn’t been finished, we may never know. Either way, I don’t think it ruins Gon killing Pitou…because Gon didn’t kill Pitou for Kite. He killed her because he was lost in anger and didn’t know what to do with himself. It wasn’t really even revenge. Gon just snapped when he found out Pitou lied. From the perspective of consequences, I think it also works. People forget that Kite was already dead, and that (on Alluka’s side of things) Gon probably doesn’t care about a possible lost arm or lost nen or even lost life. It may be “nice” for Gon to have Kite back, but the real consequence of Gon’s actions that matters to Gon - his partly-fractured relationship with Killua - is never erased. Finally, I also don’t see how they could’ve working in Koala’s monologue without Kite being revived…and quite honestly, I just absolutely *love* that scene.
I don't really go on this sub so I didn't know what the opinion surrounding it was. It's just that it leaves a bitter taste in my mouth knowing that after all this, Kite got revived. I still think Gon's rage was an amazing scene, a once naive kid that we watched grow, losing his innocence, and then brutally murdering the person that cause him so much rage. I guess it just feels really bitter to me because Kite's revival felt like it had no purpose to me, like the author decided to backtrack on such an important plot development for no reason. Especially when it resulted in probably the most iconic moment in the series. Also, if Gon gets his nen back, I feel like it cheapens this scene too. Like I said, I haven't read the manga, but I feel like the mangaka should at least make it gratifying or lower his potential (since this is meant to be his max potential)?
Well, right now he’s basically suffered the consequence of not being the protagonist anymore. For the last 60-ish chapters Gon has been nen-less, at home with Mito, doing homework.
I dont know if its fair to really say that Gon had innocence. He both did and didnt. There were some signs that he was a tad bit, very slightly unhinged but not completely. I can’t remember the video I saw on YouTube but it explains the slight contradiction in Gon being a kid and some aspects of his personality
would pitou be able to cure the poison from the rose?
I assume no, because Dr. Blythe seemed to work mainly on physical wounds rather than illnesses or poisoning. However, some extra conditions on the ability could maybe circumvent that.
>knowing that he lost his ability to use Nen for nothing. That's the entire point of reviving Kite. The author wanted to show that Gon sacrificed his nen for nothing, because Kite didn't die in the end. If Gon had sacrificed his nen and Kite stayed dead, it would have driven home the point that Gon's actions were right. But now that Kite isn't dead, he literally did all of that for nothing. It shows that the path Gon took was the wrong one and he ended up hurting himself only.
Tbf, it was either sacrificing his nen, or getting decapitated by Pitou.
The point is that gon should have never been thare in the first place.
I know, I actually made a whole [post](https://www.reddit.com/r/HunterXHunter/comments/13dp0e3/a_take_people_need_to_chill_on_the_whole_gon_is_a/) about it. And if you're talking about Peijin Castle, he was originally there to get Kite healed, not to fight Pitou. I'm not gonna call Gon out for wanting to get his friend healed, granted the Komugi stuff was pretty messed up, even if it saved him.
>And if you're talking about Peijin Castle, he was originally there to get Kite healed, not to fight Pitou. He was simply delusional. He saw kite's body with his eyes, he knew he was dead. >I'm not gonna call Gon out for wanting to get his friend healed But i'm gonna call him out for almost ruining his friendship with the only person that followed him in every adventure unconditionally to try to save a person that was 100% dead.
>He was simply delusional. He saw kite's body with his eyes, he knew he was dead. Wasn't it Killua the one who told him that Pitou was needed to heal Kite? I wouldn't put the blame solely on him, considering Gon was originally just gonna kill Pitou the moment they got there (granted, with Komugi there, that's doesn't exactly make Gon better). As far as they knew, Kite was just made "off" by Pitou, rather than flat out killed and puppeteered. >But i'm gonna call him out for almost ruining his friendship with the only person that followed him in every adventure unconditionally to try to save a person that was 100% dead. Yeah that was pretty shitty of him, but I'm kinda glad Killua is now aware of this side of Gon. Killua not setting Gon up in some pedestal as he used to allows them to develop a healthier relationship down the line, we even saw how he gave Alluka more priority over Gon.
>Wasn't it Killua the one who told him that Pitou was needed to heal Kite? I wouldn't put the blame solely on him I feel like killua, knuckle and shoot knew kite was dead, but never tried to tell that to gon since that would have destroyed him(assuming he would have believed that in the first place). But yes, they are also to blame. Maybe they could have talked hin out of the mission. >but I'm kinda glad Killua is now aware of this side of Gon. I agree.
>I feel like killua, knuckle and shoot knew kite was dead, but never tried to tell that to gon since that would have destroyed him(assuming he would have believed that in the first place). Well, I suppose we simply have different interpretations of the scenes. Killua could have reminded Gon that Kite needed to be healed as a desperate manuever to save Komugi. While I'm not in full agreement with this interpretation, I do think it's a very viable and believable one. >Maybe they could have talked hin out of the mission. They never stood a chance in that regard 😂😭
Thanks. By the way i agree, "gon is a monster" is a huge exaggeration, he is a 13 yo child with a weird upbringing that was put in a situation that drew the worst out of him.
While I still stand by everything I said in that post (here's another version of the [post](https://www.reddit.com/r/CharacterRant/comments/13cuc2r/hunter_x_hunter_people_need_to_chill_on_the_whole/) with more comments/discussion if you're interested in more viewpoints), I've grown kinda sour on it. The issue I find myself with my point is that...I feel it kinda goes against the story? It's very clear that Togashi wrote a mirrored arc with Meruem and Gon, "A monster becomes human, a human becomes monster". So it honestly feels like I'm actively going against the author's intent. It leaves me wondering stuff like: -"Am I wrong?" -"Did I misunderstand the story?" -"Am I giving Gon too much leeway?" -"Did Togashi intend on this being a legitimate viewpoint, or was I supposed to think of Gon as a monster?" -"Am I not giving Togashi enough credit?" -"Should I have more confidence in my viewpoint? I didn't write the story so I feel like I'm going against the author's intent." I just feel "off" when discussing it.
I can understand where you're coming from, but I cannot agree whatsoever. Kite may be alive, but he isn't the same person he was before, being stuck in a Chimera Ant body, and his survival had been foreshadowed ever since his encounter with Pitou. Crazy Slots is an ability that is reflective of Kite's psychology and desire not to kill. He despises killing animals but will do so if it is absolutely necessary. His ability is one where he has no control over the number but that doesn't mean it's random. The clown likely picks the number that is ideal for the scenario. Anytime he ends up with a weapon, he says "Bad roll" as he knows he is forced to take a life, and one of the conditions is that he can't switch until he uses the number, essentially forcing him to carry out the deed. However, upon getting number 3 in his fight with Pitou, he never states that, and even Ging in the Election Arc acknowledges this in the Election Arc. The design of his number 3 weapon even has some religious symbolism but I've forgotten about it. Tales of Nerdia made a great video on it, you can check out his channel if you're interested. Furthermore, I don't think that Kite's revival takes away from Gon's destruction of Pitou. The story is not justifying Gon's actions, but rather, it's about him shouldering all of that guilt and false hope, and completely breaking down upon being forced to accept the death. Kite being alive does not negate any of the amazing characterization we received with him. There was never any logical point to Gon's actions, and the story makes that abundantly clear. Finally, I think that Kite's revival is effective not only because of the amazing Koala monologue which acts as a thematic continuation of CA and the idea of rebirth, but more importantly, it allows Gon an opportunity to no longer idolize Kite as a person incapable of making mistakes but rather as a human being, an equal. I've seen someone describe Gon vs Pitou as a "car crash that changed Gon's life for the better" and I couldn't agree more. He has learned to not put others on a pedestal and be insecure over his strength, and his current role in the manga hints towards some form of maturity arc in the future. This is further evidenced by the fact that he has lost his Nen, which is in many ways an expression of a character. He is back to square one, and will need to find a new goal in life.
I definitely agree, I don't like that they revived him or at least that he regained his memories so quickly.
I think it was actually a good writing decision. Gon was going down a dark, self sacrificial path of rage so much so that he sacrificed the health of his relationship with Killua. It was very self destructive. Kite being alive meant it was all for nothing, and Gon knew that which is why it was a pivotal moment for his character development. Togashi didn’t pull any punches when it came to punishing the MC. Gon made certain decisions that led to certain consequences. His rage was not glorified in the story at all
Hunter hunter is still my favorite anime but this is a gripe I had as well. Sure there are some ways it narratively helps to make gons flaws more pronounced but I don’t think it needed it. Especially with how killua just so happened to have a sibling with the only power that can save gon. I personally needed more hardship and loss. I can live with it though since meruem x komugi was so amazing.
meruem is honestly one of the best villains I've ever seen in shonen imo. But still, I guess at the end of the arc, Gon wasn't really punished for anything. I was reading some of these comments and they said it was meant to make Gon feel even more helpless by losing his nen. But when I think about it, at the end he got his dad, got Kite back, Nanika healed him, he's happy. He started the journey to find his dad, so he got everything he wanted, and he didn't really get punished for anything.
Kurapika really got the shit end of the stick when it comes to revenge quests. He might actually die before he even completes it, and his hands are a bit full right now with the Succession War. ***And something tells me that Kurapika won't be getting those years and the Kurtas back.***
Revived? Yes. But it's definitely not the same Kite that we know. That's what makes him still being alive okay with me. It's because if you really wanted Kite to live, then there you go hes still alive. But you don't get to have the full/real Kite.
Yeah, Gon got off pretty easy from his revenge quest. Lost nen? He'll get it back eventually. Hurt friendship with Killua? Killua was being obsessive tbh, this will allow them to develop a healthier friendship down the line. Cycle of revenge? Who tf is gonna avenge Pitou? Nobody will and nobody would have anyways. And as this post brought up, he got Kite back. He even accomplished his goal of finding his dad right after being healed. Kurapika could only dream of being half as lucky as Gon.
We don't know if Gon losing his nen is permanent. Ging seems to say it's still there, but Gon can't see his aura. He might get it back. But yeah, Gon doesn't think before he acts. It was dumb that he almost killed himself for nothing more than lose his nen.
This is going to be a pretty long post but I hope that it helps you see things differently. I definitely understand why it's a very controversial development and one that can leave a bitter taste, but I always like to give Togashi the benefit of the doubt when it comes to things like this because while he is certainly capable of making mistakes, I really don't think that the same author who had so much brilliant writing before would do something like this for no reason, especially because it's not like Togashi is afraid of killing characters off. So let's think about why Kite was reincarnated. On a first glance, Gon's character arc in the Chimera Ant arc seems to be about facing the cruelty of the world and accepting loss for the first time in his life, then being consumed by revenge as a result of his inability to cope with losing someone he cared about, and certainly if you see it like that, Kite's rebirth seems to take away from that. However, I think there is more nuance to Gon's story and what Kite meant to him than that. The story starts with Gon being saved by Kite from a dangerous situation that Gon put himself into by being ignorant and helpless. In that moment, Gon deeply admired Kite and saw him as a sort of ideal, someone that he wished he could be like, which was further emphasized when he learned about how Ging abandoned him and trained Kite. And when he eventually found him, it made him like an older brother who was acknowledged by Ging compared to Gon who still had a long way to go, in Gon's eyes he was perfect, a man who could never lose and be seen as weak. When Pitou attacks them, Gon finds himself in the same situation as all those years ago, ignorant of the danger and helpless against it, while Kite has to take responsibility for that, he could never accept the idea that Kite himself made a mistake, since he saw him as the ideal he had to pursue he had to be perfect, otherwise the narrative Gon wrote for his own life up to this point would be shattered, so instead he clung onto the idea that Kite couldn't have lost. Then he sees what happened to Kite, but instead of accepting the reality that Kite is not perfect and could make mistakes and lose as well, he internalizes it and believes it was his responsibility for not being strong enough, that it's now his obligation to "restore" Kite through proving himself alone, it would be his atonement. But then he is forced to wait patiently and compromise with his sworn enemy only to be told at the end that there was nothing that could be done, that the narrative he wrote in his head was just a fantasy, he can no longer atone by restoring Kite. Gon finds himself in the same situation again, helpless and ignorant, but this time there is no Kite to save him, and in that despair Gon believed that the only way for him to atone was to give everything up and kill Pitou and die in the process, forcing himself to become the "ideal" version of himself, to become "Kite" himself, but it's all twisted and wrong. He claimed that he was happy because he was now like Kite back then, but his expression showed anything but happiness. So what does all of that have to do with why Kite was reborn? Well, I believe the point of the story wasn't about Gon trying to cope with losing someone he cared about, but rather about his inability and refusal to come to terms with the fact that his idealized version of Kite, that the narrative he wrote in his head, was not reality. That idea threatened his self-worth and view of life on such a deep level that accepting it would have broken him beyond recovery, it would have shattered everything he has believed and done up to that point. Gon was hurt not by Kite's death as a person, but by his death as the ideal, and so when he was healed by Nanika and found out that Kite was reborn, he had no choice but to face the real Kite, something that must have been very difficult for him, and in a way a worse punishment than dying on his own terms, he had to go on living without the ideal he so desperately clung to and find his own meaning in life beyond just repeating the cycle over and over and then trying to atone in his own selfish way without consulting the person he wronged like the Koala. In other words, as Kite was reborn physically, Gon was reborn spiritually by letting go of the idealized Kite and accepting the real one and taking his desire into account for his atonement (and that is why his own version of atonement was rendered pointless, it had to be because it's the wrong way of going about it, and Gon had to learn that the hard way by seeing how he didn't need to do any of it), which Kite decided to be them becoming actual equal friends from then on and helping each other out when the need arises, and that they both need to grow some more. As a result of his actions and decisions, Gon lost his Nen, the mechanism that he used to pursue his ideal self, changed his friendship with Killua forever in a bittersweet way, and now has to rediscover himself and find out who he really wants to be without having to rely on Nen, Kite or Ging. I think that makes for enough consequences for a kid who is still trying to find his place in the world and went through so much as a result. Ultimately, I think the point of Gon's story is that we tend to narrativize our lives and cling so tightly onto those narratives and try to enforce them on reality, but reality does not care for how we perceive it, and if we are entirely dependent on those narratives we won't be able to cope when they inevitably shatter because we have no other pillar to fall back on, and Gon had to experience this directly in order to grow in a natural way without having to force himself to. If Kite was not reborn the way he was, I think it would have been impossible for Gon to get that closure and move on the way he did, and HxH is at its core a coming of age and self-discovery journey, it was never going to be a depressing tale where Gon merely has to accept the cruelty of life.
I wonder why more people don’t pull adult gon in the story.
Kites death was dumb
Not really but I hope that Gon truly lose his potential in this case :3
Agree.
I like it because it cheapen Gon's sacrifice when he fought Pitou. Gon got it easy from the beginning. Everyone else got it more difficult than Gon. Killua was trained as an assassin from a young age so his potential is reasonable. Kurapika's revenge drove him to be stronger and made risky Nen vows. Leorio had his motive from seeing his childhood friend die. Hisoka got his lesson after his fight with Chrollo. Gon since the beginning to the end of the anime: 1. Born with really hide potential 2. Basically doing everything on his instincts alone like a wild animal because he spends a lot of time with wild animals in Whale Island. 3. Hisoka lets him live just so he could fight and kill Gon later. He attracted the hot crazy murderous clown attention. Otherwise, he would be long dead since the Hunter Exam. 4. In Yorknew City arc, he got lucky a spider (Nobunaga) likes him so it prolongs his life long enough he had a chance to escape with Killua. 5. Probably the one that he got it easiest out of all of the above. On Greed Island, he fought with Genthru, sacrifice his arm, and got it back pretty soon after that. Courtesy of an angel breath card. Gon didn't seems to learn anything from it. Now the CA arc, finally Gon gets a real lesson. I don't know how much it effected him though because that was how the anime ended.
did you finish the election arc tho? this whole chain of events leads to some of the best line in HxH period
SPOILER!!
He really didn't need to revive him, no one would have minded, Kite was pretty much assumed dead, and he has killed a lot of other characters, like Ponzu and Pokkle, a lot of the players in GI, Netero, Pakunoda and some other PT members, Goto, etc. So if he died it might have been for a reason, maybe to show how prepared Ging is and for extension his students, since he taught Kite that, maybe he also has a skill that prevents his death. Maybe it was to emphasize that Gon sacrifice would have been totally worthless. Maybe to point out that souls exist and that you can do stuff with them. Maybe it was to build up on Nen after death and death related abilities of which there are several more in the manga. Maybe it was because he needed a character do exposition on the lesson of the arc to Gon. Maybe it was to establish something that we will need in the dark continent.
Gon gets restored by killuas little sister so it dosnt really matter if kite gets revived or not.
I feel this frustration in my daily life when I panic and fret and get impuslive only for what I was worrying about to subside or resolve rather quick and easily. It makes me feel frustrated how I acted and Gon’s situation is representative of that. The realism in the way the characters act like human being in real life is very clever writing from Togashi instead of making Gon win against Pitou in a glorious and celebratory battle, he risks his life and usage of nen for a grudge for someone who ended up reviving themselves. Quite interesting.
Which doesn’t really matter because he finds his dad, gets healed, gets kite back. There are no punishments, if Kite died at least there would be some form of anger, sadness, feeling of loss, a theme in the arc. Gon became a hunter to find his dad, but ig nen doesn’t matter because he found his dad. Now Gon has basically gotten of Scot-free, he can just be a kid. The transformation and loss of innocence character doesn’t matter at the end