Hunter x Hunter Chapter 185 Discussion

G.I is better in the anime (2011 adaption) imo. That said, I dislike the changes they did with this chapter (Gon and Kite not remember each other, and the plot hole regarding the Chimera Ants origins).

Damn, Ging is literally me

Greed island arc completed



Boring and amusing at the same time.

The conclusion of Greed Island is meet with a seamless transition to the next, & best, arc, Chimera Ant. But Chimera Ant aside (I don't even have the volumes for it yet [aside from this one]) let's talk Greed Island.



Greed Island is perhaps my third favorite arc in all of Hunter x Hunter & for a series as diverse in arcs as Hunter x Hunter, it stands out for numerous reasons among the rest of the series stories. For example, this is the first arc of the series that follows the conventional route of battle shonen arcs. In that, we get introduce to our big bad, our heroes beat the big bads in a one-on-one confrontation then they get rewarded for it. It's something akin to what you'd see in say, One Piece, at least in base general  structure. Of course, Hunter x Hunter isn't One Piece & it has it's own method of executing the structure.



The most apparent difference, in my opinion, is that defeating Genthru is not the ultimate objective in the arc. No, he's ultimately just another obstacle to clearing the game. Granted, his defeat more or less coincides with Gon clearing the game with only one mere quiz serving as the bridge from beating Genthru to winning the game. Even though it's obvious Gon would win the quiz, it still stops Genthru from being the final checklist but regardless, the point here is that since Genthru was just the biggest obstacle, it allowed the arc to focus elsewhere. While the threat of the Bomber is built throughout the arc, the focus of our main characters are elsewhere until the final act. The training, which takes up a big portion of it, isn't for the purpose of beating Genthru & neither is the much lauded Dodgeball game. I'm not sure how much this changes in the grand scheme of things but one thing is for certain, Hunter x Hunter delivered a great conclusion when it reached the end-game. The boss fight with Genthru is one of my favorite fights in the series. Angel's Breath or not, it gives us a scary insight into Gon's character while also giving us one of the best strategies in the series. Not only does it take perfect advantage of the Bomber's abilities (the gasoline) but more importantly, it takes perfect advantage of the rules of Greed Island. It's easy to chalk up the victory simply to intellect & knowledge (as Genthru underestimated them, for understandable reasons) but it's undeniable that Gon won because of the way Greed Island operates. It ties back to my point, the Greed Island arc scope exists far outside of Genthru, who is treated as the final hurdle.



As for the training & dodgeball games well, the former was entertaining if for no other reasons than the interactions with arc main character Bisky. Who, by the way, is a fantastic addition to the already great cast. Admittedly, I think I'm a little done with training segments, Hunter x Hunter's already provided me enough for life & while they've never really been bad or boring, it's time to jump into something a little more interesting. like the Dodgeball game, which is easily one of the highlights of the series. It's one of the funnest experiences I've had with manga & anime. Just an perfectly well-constructed game that makes exquisite use out of the varied nature of everyone's abilities, as well as the dynamics between the characters themselves.



That aside, Madhouse adaptation spoilers for this chapter . . .


This version of the story, where Gon & Kite both know each-other, is by far the best version of the story. I'm still bitter about them leaving him out of the beginning of the 2011 anime adaption.

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                        So, they changed the card into Accompany and split up with Bisky. Gon was wrong in thinking it would Ging they would meet, instead it was Kite. Greed Island is over, time for the next arc.

The Greed Island arc is actually what I consider to be the second worst arc of the series. I like it more than the Zoldyck Family, but that one was so short that it's difficult to compare. I do still think that Greed Island is a great arc though. My biggest problem with it is that I feel it has a lot of wasted potential.



First of all, there’s so much build up (the whole Yorknew City arc) to the game. And when they actually start playing the game, it’s all very detailed and everything feels very thought-out. The mechanics are great with the monsters, quests and the card system. But that’s also its downfall, because most of it is simply not used enough. For example, in the early chapters Gon and Killua talk of how they are going to save money, but then money is never a problem again. And there are so many cards explained in the manga, but so few of them are actually used. It’s mainly just the teleport and steal cards variations. I also would have liked to see a bit more quests, and I really enjoyed whenever we did. The whole Razor affair is the only real long quest we see, and it is probably the best thing about the arc.



Instead, a big part of the arc is just training. The training is great so I wouldn’t want to have less of it, just more of everything else.



My biggest problem with the arc though is the antagonists. Genthru is a generic moustache-twirler, and his goal is to get rich I guess. But Genthru is kinda saved in his fight against Gon. Many of Togashi’s other villains wouldn’t get shocked at Gon’s behaviour, so it does work somewhat. But what doesn’t work is Genthru’s two friends, Whatshisface and Thatotherguy. There’s no ability, no personality, not even an interesting design. I can imagine Togashi adding those weird face markings to try to fix this, but it isn’t enough.



The other side characters are overall good though. Bisky is a great addition to the main cast, and probably my favourite part of Greed Island. She just adds a lot of humour, which is a big part of this arc. Some of the other characters are pretty forgettable though, like Tsezguerra being completely useless even though he’s a Single Star Hunter.



Overall, I do love Greed Island but I think it has the most flaws of any arc in the series.