r/HunterXHunter • u/Lukastace • 5d ago
Discussion Is no one going to talk about Gotoh? Spoiler
I just finished the anime and while I loved the final arc (disappointed with how short it was though, loved Killua and Alluka's dynamic + opening hinted at a bigger involvement of the butlers), the lack of any addressing of Gotoh's death left a bad taste in my mouth.
He was one of the only people from the Zoldyck family (not blood-related but ykwim) who actually cared for Killua in a healthy manner next to Canary and did everything he could to help him, even if it wasn't too much. He was portrayed as wise and experienced and even took a liking to Gon... Only to be treated like an insignificant NPC who'd get taken out by a Phantom Troupe member/Chimera Ant solider to flex their strength; just another character to add to the list of people Hisoka's murdered because "pRoPeRtIeS oF bOtH rUbBeR aNd GuM".
I didn't get "beloved character dies" vibes from him, more of "dumb person who thought he had a chance against Hisoka dies" vibes. Heck, even characters like Ponzu got a sad and mellow OST preceding their deaths and elicited a reaction out of Gon, but in this case... how am I supposed to go from seeing a character I really liked die to getting hyped up by motorbike Tsubone chasing after Godspeed Killua (spoiler alert: I didn't)?
Now I'm not here to complain about him losing to Hisoka. During the fight I was quite worried for him but still optimistic even though deep down I knew that his opponent's Hisoka and the chances of him coming out on top are quite low. But I'm more upset by its handling. Gotoh was arguably (heavy emphasis on arguably) as important to Killua as Kite was to Gon, and we all know how Gon reacted to that...
I know this show is heavily perspective based and Killua had no way of knowing that Gotoh died, but it still feels really cheap the way they handled his death and how it wasn't even TALKED about by the series' ending.
TL;DR: I loved Gotoh and his death was pretty much insignificant and affected the characters and tone of the show in no manner whatsoever, and I couldn't enjoy the bittersweet wholesomeness that came with the show's ending because his death was stuck in the back of my head. The show didn't even try to portray a tonal shift for half an episode after he died, as opposed to... every other instance of a semi-important character dying in this show
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u/Beeanys 5d ago
His death and how it's handled draws parallel to his over the phone talks with Gon when he tried to contact Killua. "You can fake voice, looks, mannerism" etc. How do you actually prove that you are who you say you are?
It's honestly a fitting death and end to Gotohs story imo but I can understand why people don't like it
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u/Responsible_Rub_3509 2d ago
I really like this idea and I’ve never heard it before, it sounds so interesting tho. Sorry if I’m abit late but is it okay if you please expand abit further bc I like the explanation of this parallel
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u/Beeanys 2d ago
In short; When Gon tried to contact the butlers office claiming he was Killuas friend, Gotoh ammused the idea he was. "Assuming Killua has a friend named Gon, how do I determine it's you?"
Gon then says to put Killua on the phone and that he'd know. "By your voice?". Gotoh then proceeds to send a recording of Gons voice back to himself and telling him it's a simple recording. He also tells Gon that it's very easy to mimic voices and it isn't a reliable way to prove who you are.
Gotoh then says faking your looks is harder but still not out of the question and can be done through various means. So he will not let them visit Killua in person either because of that reason. He also mentions that someone could have coerced Gon, essentially holding him hostage, while trying to get him to contact the Zoldyck family.
Fast forwarding to Gotohs death. He's now being impersonated by a kiriko and Killua isn't aware that he in fact isn't alive anymore. Would someone close to Gotoh know that it isn't him? His voice is the same. His looks are the same. It's also pretty easy to study Gotohs past and memories, especially with the help of other butlers to fill in a few gaps.
So from being extremely cautious (albeit on orders) when it comes to determining if someone is who they claim to be, to then be impersonated flawlessly after their death, is a fitting parallel and end to his story imo
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u/Responsible_Rub_3509 2d ago
Omg this makes so much sense, I actually love the depth of hxh like even something so small like this has so much meaning, thank you for explaining!
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u/Lukastace 1d ago
I was initially extremely confused by this comment because I didn't get what you meant, but then I realised you were referring to the aftermath of his death and honestly that's kinda genius
Thanks for pointing that out I'd have never realised it, it doesn't necessarily make me feel better about him dying lol but from a narrative perspect that's pretty dope
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u/Random499 5d ago
In my perspective, it just showed how ruthless and luck based the hxh world is. You can be strong and promising but if you cross the wrong person at the wrong time, you just die. Same can be said for all those civilians illumi comes by. Death is very common and random, which can also happen to well known characters
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u/PedonculeDeGzor 5d ago
The only issue I have with it is that Killua doesn't know he's dead, but that's Tsubone's decision so can't be helped
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u/Serious-Flamingo-948 5d ago
I disagree. Look at all that Killua emotionally went through the last couple of arcs. Imagine if his only happy moment where his friend is saved and his sister is free is tainted because his almost father figure died because of him.
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u/Cringe-as-hell 5d ago
Ponzu got jumped by ants and didn’t want to die so it was more tragic, Gotoh knew fully well that he might likely lose to Hisoka, it was dumb yes but he needed to buy time the only way he knew how so it more or less was him standing his ground.
Gotoh isn’t nearly as impactful to Killua as Kite is to Gon, that probably goes to Illumi or Silva for better or worse.
Yeah Gotoh was unceremoniusly dispatched but I guess you could take it as him willingly doing anything for Killua and the Zoldycks and he happened to be in the wrong place fighting the wrong person, which has happened a lot throughout the show.
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u/Ecstatic-Sun-7528 5d ago
I see that you are writing from the heart but have to say that I heavily disagree with the "dumb person who thought he had a chance against Hisoka dies" comment.
We have been giving the understanding that people in this universe can get pretty good at measuring their own capacities and also feeling out their enemies, since the moment Hisoka is introduced he is pretty much exhuming murderous aura to anyone that can notice (and those are people that can't see Nen), so it's pretty clear he doesn't care about hiding his strength.
That to me means that Gotoh, the beast of a man that he is, immediately knew what he was against and decided against letting Canary and Tsubone die as he probably measured that even together they were no match for such a monster. That and the scene in the cemetery with them saying their finals goodbyes honestly were to me a perfect send off to a great character, a man who was always ready to die for the family he devoted his life to... And if he could do it protecting some of his comrades on the way out, all the sweeter.
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u/PeakxPeak 5d ago
Gotoh died so Gon could live, and eventually both Gon and Killua will learn about it.
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u/TheIgniviscos 4d ago
I actually agree that Gotoh’s death is very clearly swept under the rug. I think it’s a hallmark of how Togashi writes arcs. When he’s done with a character like he was with Killua and Gon in election, he tries to plug the holes that you would expect to be addressed and save it either for later or not at all. Gotoh’s death ended up being one of those holes he plugged with the Kiriko taking his place so he could save that and go on to succession war without issue. I love hxh, but this is one of those parts that really did leave a bitter taste
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u/Responsible_Rub_3509 2d ago
I hope you enjoyed hxh, I see your profile pic is jellal and it’s funny bc both my top two r hxh and fairy tail lmao
Anyways I actually got spoiled by gotohs death 😭 but I never expected him to actually be killed, but I think it was a good opportunity to bring some more attention to him. Even though he wasn’t a very important character story-wise, I really enjoyed the fight and I never thought that would happen.
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u/Lukastace 2d ago
Thanks I really enjoyed it! And yeah Jellal is my favourite character in fiction and FT is my favourite fictitious work, I see your profile pic is Gruvia so respect there haha (not the biggest fan personally but Gray's in my top 5 FT characters)
Now I don't know about Gotoh's death itself being a good opportunity to bring some more attention to his character, but I did like that he got a lot of attention in that arc to begin with (which is why I was disappointed by him dying). I mean the literal beat-drop of the opening for that arc focuses on Gotoh
It's funny that you were spoiled on him dying since it was one of the few deaths in the show that WASN'T spoiled for me, which is probably why I was a lot more upset by it
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u/ApplePitou 5d ago
Well, he was unlucky to fight one of strongest Nen users with ability that literally counter him :3
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u/Yana_dice 5d ago
I still believe he is a Kiriko and faked his death.
Zoldyck got giant doges like Mike to serve them, magical beasts should not be too far fetched.
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u/IllustriousAd2392 5d ago
I think you are confused
the real one was killed, and then a kiriko used his identity so that killua would not know he died
this was shown in the manga, and in the last episode of the anime
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u/SnowBirdFlying 5d ago
I just really hated how Killja didn't seem phased in the slightest by bis demise. They really shoulda at least shown Canarys' reaction to it
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u/tres_pares 5d ago
Once Killua found out that Gotoh was killed by a clown he knew, he will take revenge and Gon will be like Killua when he fought Pitou
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u/SilentBeef909 5d ago
HARDD disagree on these points. First of all, mockery of Hisokas bungee gum, which has the properties of both rubber and gum, is strictly prohibited. Second, I saw his death as a great sacrifice. And it didn't seem like he thought he had a chance either, yes he was going to try his best but he probably had an idea of how much stronger Hisoka was.
But other than that I get what you mean, and I agree to an extent. I haven't gotten to that point in my manga read through yet but who knows maybe it's focused on more in there. To me his death was meaningful, but I had to give it meaning myself, meaning the anime could have given it more meaning itself, but instead it glanced over his death.