Hunter x Hunter Chimera Arc (spoiler free)
I normally don’t write a review for an Anime until I have finished it in its entirety (or in what is currently its entirety if the anime is still technically ongoing) but I feel the need to do a review on the Chimera Arc for Hunter x Hunter on its own.
While this is by no means a lighthearted Anime, this arc showed that no punches would be pulled. Children have their heads eaten. Characters begin dropping dead like flies. Many of the heroes suffer from a loss of innocence on a profound level. There are shocking betrayals and multiple bouts of death by despair. It comes topped off by an ending that brought me to tears and I am not ashamed.
This arc gets a whole lot of criticism from the fan base due to its massively dark departure from Hunter x Hunter as well as the Shonen Genre in general. Others don’t enjoy its incredible darkness and the themes that are far more advanced in my opinion than the rest of the Anime.
Of course, to me, the deconstruction of Shonen alongside the overwhelming darkness and loss of innocence are exactly why I love this part of the story so much.
The whole arc to me is a play on the ideas of war as well as what it means to be human. themes that I grapple with myself. And I assure to any of you who have not yet watched the Anime, that the final couple episodes will be among the most unforgettable experiences in Anime.
I will be sure to write a full review of the Anime when I complete the last arc.