Semi-haunted cassette players? I’ve truly seen it all, now…
‘Nen’ is starting to seem like the halfway point Togashi found between
chi and ectoplasm. If I’m understanding it correctly, anyway. With enough
training, a Hunter can build up his life force and command it to do… pretty
much anything, as long as he concentrates hard enough.
In most other shows,
that’d translate to hurled fireballs and not much else; but you can see a bit
of the paranormal research that probably went into YU YU HAKUSHO creeping over
here. Ectoplasm is basically a “fool’s good” for matter at large - - allowing
spirits to make manifestations of anything - - and Nen is more-or-less
wrapping that up into a martial art.
The other side (pun intended) of that, of course, is that ghostly
manifestations are also supposed to be physical manifestations of feelings or
ideas. Is a victim angry over being murdered? Then she represents that anger in
bleeding walls, pungent smells, et cetera. Here, the show continues Gon’s many
tests of virtue as Ging designs this Nen trap to essentially force his son to
own the decisions he makes.
Do you want to learn about your father? Then listen on, right now. Don’t
want to hear about your mother at this moment? Then you should never want to -
- and you’ll never get to, because this tape is getting erased. It’s a rather
pointed lesson, especially in an era where you can almost always “re-do”
things; and there’s a sharp irony to Ging imparting this just after he’s admitted
that he was irresponsible about fatherhood.
While we’re on that subject, I do find it amusing that the show’s only
now circled back on that classic pillar of the Monomyth- - Reconciliation with the Father. Normally, the Hero’s Journey starts
with that being out of place. This almost feels like Togashi abruptly realized,
“Oh shit! I should maybe put some subtext beneath this big, long story about a
kickass homeschooler...”
Watch “Ging X And X Gon" and “Reply X From X Dad" and
decide for yourself, then read my comments on the previous episode.
About the Author
 | Tom Pinchuk’s a writer and personality with a large number of comics, videos and features like this to his credit. Visit his website - - tompinchuk.com - - and follow his Twitter: @tompinchuk |
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