Tserriednich’s nen beast is creepy AF. I’m going to quote the always wise @aspoonofsugar from a conversation we had a few days ago about the nen beasts representing the prince’s unconscious desires theory: for Tserriednich, he is probably more in touch with his unconscious. He doesn’t really seem to hold himself back from his desires like say Momoze was definitely repressing, and Sale-Sale too. But Tserriednich is an entitled $%^& who gets what he wants, when he wants, and he has no care at all for anyone else who suffers. He views women in particular as existing to serve his desires:
Tserriednich’s beast has prominent breasts and womanly features, but is an animal, showing how he objectifies women in particular (for the love please let Oito, his foil, be the one who takes him down).
It also has a mouth that, when it opens, reveals another layer, and so on, probably showing layers to Tserriednich’s facade. There are probably horrors we don’t even know yet.
Benjamin’s looks like a bug. Which is ironic, but it looks like a beetle which is generally hardy but also it’s a bug.
Not to be graphic here but the head looks like the head of… well it’s a phallic symbol, which again fits because Benjamin is very much a manly man. He kind of represents toxic masculinity in a lot of ways, and that seems to be a theme this arc is directly trying to deconstruct with Oito vs Tserriednich, Tserriednich being a predator, etc.
It also has multiple mouths, like Sale-Sale’s, perhaps indicating that Benjamin, despite his being very in touch with what he wants (to be king and ruler), also really just wants to be heard as well as consume.
Me too. Illumi is my favorite, and I too am interested to see how he and Kalluto interact since they are foils. Both of them are active in trying to get their brother back (for both of them likely it’s Killua too), but I somehow wonder if Kalluto’s loyalty to the Zoldycks is a bit… different than Illumi’s.
Yeah, I would like to see them interact with Morena. I definitely think she and Chrollo will interact because her ability to create murderous followers is a direct contrast to his Troupe. But Morena was scarred and cast out by her king father because she was illegitimate. Illumi and Kalluto were rejected as heirs by their parents (side note: I sincerely doubt it’s a coincidence Killua is the one who looks the most like Silva and was chosen as the heir. Ugh.) For Illumi this probably stings more because he’s the eldest, and frankly despite him never hinting verbally he has no problem with it his actions kind of betray that he does. He wants to have control of the family via Killua, but he also wants Killua’s love.
A fundamental characteristic of Illumi’s is that he is repressed. Even on the volume cover every other spider is frowning. Illumi has no mouth, fitting with the repeated comments that he is expressionless.
But we know he has those feelings.
Anyways all that to say I see the potential for an encounter with Morena, should one happen, provoking said repressed feelings in Illumi. (This arc already seems to be dealing with repression via the princes and their nen beasts.) Which I actually think would make him more dangerous to Killua and Alluka in the short-term but also gives me some hope for his character in the long run. But that’d be beyond this arc.
I think Illumi and Hisoka should interact. They’re engaged-ish, so we should see them. I’m also wondering, again, if Illumi is as serious about this as he says he is. He is emotional even if he’s repressing, so is he really a-ok with killing Hisoka, who is the closest thing he has to someone actually liking him? Does he really want to do it? Or might he find another solution? Illumi joining the Spiders is also a fundamental conflict of interest with his supposed loyalty to the Zoldycks, so… does he expect them to survive? Or is that conflict going to blow up in his face this arc or the next? I’m also curious to see if Kalluto and Illumi will have conflict, even if neither of them express it to each other.
Another note: neither of them are really at risk of dying imo. Illumi has too much unfinished business with Killua so there’s no way, and Kalluto also has that set up for finding his brother so I’m not really concerned for him either.
1) Oito. I wrote a whole meta on how excited I am for her here.
2 & 3 Kacho and Fugetsu. If they die, I die. Kacho’s brattiness disguises her genuine care for her sister, and Fugetsu is a sweetheart.
4) Morena. She’s set up as a good female antagonist (#weneedmore) and she foils Chrollo in leading a group of murderers on a killing quest (but without any restrictions) and potentially Illumi as well should Togashi explore that this arc, which he may or may not do (passed over for other siblings).
5) Virgei. He and Bisky are adorable together.
Least Favorite:
1) Tserriednich. A sexually abusive monster who collects body parts. He’s been set up as a good foil for Oito, though..
2) Nasubi. He takes being a bad dad to a whole new level, murderous bastard.
3) Beyond Netero. I am just not intrigued yet.
4) Benjamin. He seems arrogant.
5) I don’t really have anyone else I dislike and Benjamin and Beyond I don’t really dislike exactly, I just am not as interested + am betting on Benjamin dying.
Instead of Love Boat we’ve got Death Boat. It’s a disaster :)))) Also Morena and her crew are out to get the princes and everyone else on the way. Game of Thrones got nothing on this. 😛
My predictions for this arc are that Chrollo will lose several more Spiders. Shizuku, Bonolenov, and Franklin I think are the most at risk since they have the least development and were less of a part of the whole ‘law vs people being with you’ debate when it came to saving Chrollo in Yorknew–Machi and Nobunaga were very much on the people side (Paku too), and Feitan and Phinks (and Shalnark) on the law side–law being in this instance the rules Chrollo has set. The whole thing is both of those spider sets, if you will, love Chrollo, but for Feitan and Phinks it’s more about Chrollo’s philosophy whereas for Machi and Nobunaga it’s more about him as a person. I think Chrollo will have to make a choice since he tries to toe the line between philosophy and people–his quest to simultaneously be close to people while being aloof is a defining trait of his character. Either choice he makes may result in him losing more regardless, but if he leans towards protecting his Spiders, he’ll probably have to team up with Kurapika.
Kurapika is not entirely likely to be okay with hurting Illumi or Kalluto, imo (well, more Kalluto, and those two are not at all at risk thanks to plot armor named Killua). So while I can see a temporary team up with Hisoka for Kurapika to mirror the one in Yorknew, I can also see a solution to this arc being Kurapika eventually turning on Hisoka again and helping Chrollo get his Spiders off this boat, and Oito and Woble with him. Kurapika will almost certainly have to choose between the eyes and his (living) clients (Oito and Woble) and I can see Chrollo having to choose between his revenge and stealing the treasure, or saving his friends as well. Since they’re shadows, I would hope that would end in them working together, though it could also end in them having a moment of understanding but choosing separate paths. I think the former is more likely though/more interesting thematically, since Chrollo is his shadow and you should reconcile with it.
So one of my favorite characters introduced in the current arc of HxH–perhaps one of my favorite side characters in the entire series–is Queen Oito Hui Guo Rou. She’s a really interesting character to me, notably in how she foils several characters with long-running arcs, and through that foiling she carries great potential for thematic resonance not just for this arc, but for the arcs of Chrollo, Kurapika, and even Ging and the Zoldycks. I’m very excited to see what Togashi will do with her.
Oito, Kurapika, Chrollo, and Neon: Changing Fate
To start with, I want to mention that the Succession Contest Arc has a lot of blatant similarities to the Yorknew Arc in terms of set up. Oito is, after all, not the first woman Kurapika has been hired to protect in an arc that also focuses on Chrollo, the Phantom Troupe, and their inevitable interactions with Kurapika. Back in Yorknew, we meet Neon Nostrade, a girl who, just like Oito, is treated like a pawn by all the men in her life and who Kurapika and Chrollo don’t treat any differently: both of them, despite Kurapika being a protagonist and Chrollo an antagonist, treat her as a means to an end.
For Chrollo, that end is to steal her power, for Kurapika, it’s to collect the eyes. Clearly Kurapika is more sympathetic and did not intend to harm Neon, but the reality is he was still aiming to use her (and no, Neon was not a saint; collecting body parts is creepy). But, Oito is similarly treated like a pawn in a game by a King Man Child who marries her as his eighth wife and wants his offspring to kill each other. (It’s worth noting that there’s a faint parallel there between Nasubi and Neon’s father as well, in that both of them view their children as valuable by what they can do.)
Neither Chrollo nor Kurapika are willing to look deeper at Neon, to notice what she potentially had to teach them as @aspoonofsugar writes in her brilliant meta on Neon here. As a result, they both suffered for it and went down paths that led to their current predicaments, and to Neon’s own death, because she was treated as a pawn. Neon’s death is probably on both Chrollo and Kurapika because of the stealing of her powers and the thereafter ruination of her family finances to hire protection, regardless of whether it was Hisoka or a mafia enemy who killed her.
Oito herself describes her past as, well, exactly like Neon:
But Neon was not a pawn, and neither is Oito, as she’s making it clear. If the lesson Neon could offer Kurapika and Chrollo (both fatalists) is that life is not written, that fate can be changed, that choices do matter and that those choices affect other people as well (and that people are more than just their worst qualities) then it stands to reason that perhaps that is the lesson Oito offers as well. Of course, we haven’t seen Oito and Chrollo interact, but honestly I expect them to at some point.
Oito herself changed–she is essentially Neon changed–obviously, as she expresses. She also expresses remorse for her past actions, realizing that they’ve led to her daughter being in extreme danger–yet at the same time, she has her precious daughter. She has the capability to offer the same lesson Chrollo and Kurapika missed from Neon: people can change. The future isn’t written.
And Oito is changing her future specifically to protect the one she loves. It mirrors Kurapika’s decision back in the Yorknew Arc, because he chose to save Killua and Gon above revenge and as a result the future Neon predicted changed.
I do think it’s entirely possible that both Chrollo and Kurapika this arc will have to choose whether to protect someone they care about, or to continue their selfish path. Chrollo is the one most directly at risk, as I do suspect he’ll have to choose between his Spiders and revenge on Hisoka/Tserriednich/s treasure, but I can see Kurapika having to choose between saving Oito and Woble like he promised and Tserriednich’s treasure/the eyes as well. (Which is what @aspoonofsugar theorized the other day in her own Oito meta!)
Oito and Tserriednich: Human Value
Neon’s body collecting also has a parallel in this arc, and this character also foils Oito: Tserriednich Hui Guo Rou. Interestingly, look at the description of the women he says he hates (and presumably kills after sexually abusing):
He dehumanizes them and says their humanity comes down to what they know. Tserriednich doesn’t even seem to think change is part of the equation; all that matters is if a person can satisfy him and if they can’t, they are worthless. He’s an even darker reflection of his father.
But back to Oito. Unlike both Tserriednich and Neon, Oito is not prodigiously talented in nen.
In this sense she is also unlike Kurapika, and unlike Chrollo–both of whom are noted to be talents for their ages. Again, this returns to the idea that the lesson Oito has to offer is not in nen or her abilities, but in her ideals and her ability to change, which is necessary to keep living (something Neon originally pointed out).
If Oito is symbolic of life, as a mother, Tserriednich is symbolic of death–he’s the fourth prince and four is associated with death in Japanese culture, collecting the dead’s eyes, murdering women, the water turning into some kind of putrid mixture during the nen type test, etc. I’d also expect this foiling to continue.
Which leads me to my next foiling/theme I want to discuss, about how Oito’s influence could spread beyond just this arc and beyond just Chrollo and Kurapika’s long running arcs.
Oito: A Good Mom.
Besides Mito Freecss (who while lovely isn’t fleshed out), she’s like, the only good parent we see in HxH. She’s willing to do whatever it takes for her child, which sets her up as a sharp contrast to Ging, who abandoned his son (and will presumably have a role on the Dark Continent), as well as Kikyo and Silva Zoldyck, and of course Nasubi.
Nasubi, Light Nostrade, Kikyo and Silva, and Ging as well, seem to value their children and their relationship with them solely by what they can do. Can they gather the wits and strength to kill their siblings? Are they talented enough to propel the Zoldyck name forward? Are they good enough at being a hunter to find their father?
Woble can do nothing at all. She’s a prince, yes, but a baby. She’s helpless in a Succession War. She’s helpless in the world as a whole. And Oito loves her daughter and will risk anything for her anyways.
If the Succession War continues to be a deconstruction (which every arc in HxH has been and which it already is so far in Kurapika’s abilities being revealed to be killing him, etc) I’m going to venture a guess that however this ends (and I do expect Oito to make it out alive), it won’t be through abilities or powers or even shrewd strategy, but through connections, through the things Oito identifies as being “what really matters”: friendship, family, love, all those good things HxH likes exploring the limits of, but also the beauty of. Oito is symbolic of the beauty and good in the world that makes it so exciting. The journey matters, but it’s the people you love along the way, the relationships you cultivate, that make it worthwhile, not the power struggles and fights. That’s at the very core, I think, of what makes Hunter x Hunter such a great story.
hamliet 