Togashi Subverted Pretty Much Every Trope In A Typical Shounen Story And It’s Amazing.

Togashi subverted pretty much every trope in a typical shounen story and it’s amazing.

Gon- an exploration of the young male shounen protagonist in a way that actually explores the inherent selfishness and moral ambiguity that comes with the immaturity of youth. He’s earnest and loving yet so undeniably selfish and neglectful. These negative traits are seen at their absolute worst during the chimera ant arc, which, as I’ve seen people observe before, is another subversion of the trope where a protagonist pushes themselves to the absolute limit to defeat an enemy.

Killua- an exploration of emotional growth and empathy. There is a ton to say for Killua’s character, but most notably to me in the context of trope subversion is his codependency on Gon. This unfaltering, unflinching loyalty at the detriment of his physical and emotional wellbeing is something that doesn’t get explored a lot in shounen with characters of a similar archetype.

Kurapika- in terms of trope subversion, he is the most serious, stoic and calculating of the bunch while also being notably androgynous and at times feminine. He wears earrings, he has long hair, he wears robes that resemble traditionally “feminine” clothing and he crossdresses to achieve his goals. Despite all of this, he is taken seriously by the cis straight males in the fan base and is considered a total badass. I really enjoy that the femininity in his character isn’t demeaning or always played for laughs.

Leorio- the most masculine of the main group and yet also the most emotional/compassionate/empathetic. His main goal is to help others and to be a healer- another traditionally “feminine” aspiration.

I love Hunterxhunter