Meruem: Hunter x Hunter's Lesson in Power

“In the hands of an incompetent,

power

brings nothing but ruin.” While the expression of a character's perspective in a story does not necessarily equate to that story endorsing that message, these words, spoken in the midst of a shameful display from the top of humanity's totem pole, are arguably the most succinct summary of this story. Togashi's message on the topic of

power

. Or at least... half of that message. As described in a couple of really interesting think pieces that are currently up and which I'll link in the description, many times, and especially in the case of shonen, it takes power to achieve one's goals or bring about necessary changes.

In shonen, young people tend to possess the desire to use their power to make changes. One of the main mantras of many of these types of stories, and Hunter x Hunter in particular, is this: if you have power, USE IT. If you have influence over social patterns or if you are in a position to bring about some kind of change, you have no excuse to sit idly by and you have the obligation to pursue your efforts or change the world for the better. Now, that "better" differs depending on your personal vision of how the world should be, and certain characters in the series would probably benefit the world by abstaining, but the point is that the presence of personal power should motivate you to take action. , be proactive and shape the world in the way you think is most beneficial, while being obviously smart and contextually realistic about it.

Humans have pure desires. But humans are often upset with society or their lives in one way or another, but they are passive and decadent, unwilling to get off their butts and make a change in the world, and this is reductionist. We all have a small amount of power and ability to act at a minimum, and it is up to us to use it. Now, this type of philosophy is communicated in an incredibly revealing way in the Chimera Ant arc, through the most important character in that arc, because this is an aspect of life that the Ant King is very aware of.

Perhaps because he was born into the world as an intelligent and philosophical outsider with a new perspective, Meruem is constantly aware of the nuances of his personal power since his birth. He initially plans to conquer the world and wipe out humanity because he is essentially programmed to see this as the best course of action and, because of this, sees it as his duty. Although his mentality is one-dimensional and superficial at first, he is an advocate of the idea that power, which he initially conceptualizes as pure physical force, dictates the world, which is shown through his initial reflections when alluding to how the weak are inferior and let the strong prevail.

And being aware of his strength, Meruem knows that he must use it to create a paradise for his new kingdom, one that is beneficial, from his perspective. But he proves to be flexible and absorbing, and assimilates what he learns about the world as he is exposed to different things. He observes the cowardly and disgusting indulgence that characterizes the leaders of the current order, sees the illogical focus on aristocracy and bloodlines rather than fitness to rule, and subsequently sees that humans are pathetic; Interested, hypocritical and incapable of seeing things beyond their own needs. Meruem sees this and observes that this is society, and that he is not wrong to want to break it and start over.

However, his learning does not end there, because he begins to pursue some alternative ideas besides physical strength and nutrition: intellectual games, philosophy, purpose and identity. He realizes that he doesn't know everything and is willing to have his philosophy shaped by opposing and synergistic ideas. Because he comes to learn that humans (that is, both others and himself) are dualistic. And because it is a supreme demonstration of how to wield power: deliberately and carefully, but with conviction. What is remarkable and profound about Meruem is that he has both the power and the material influence and the physical strength to do virtually anything he wants... and yet he reflects.

And he thinks. And he is not reckless with his power, because he really knows the full extent of his influence and wants to learn about himself and the world around him before choosing what to do. Even before he began to really show the end results of his development, his restraint is palpable, aside from his initial focus on eating Nen-powered brains and killing children. While his soldiers and henchmen organize the plan of conquest, begin to gather military power and turn the world upside down, Meruem does not care and is more occupied with learning about himself and the planet he has come to inhabit by learning about others, something that initially started. as a quest to become the best at everything, but it slowly evolved into a constant flow of understanding and an exercise in perspective.

And the surprising thing about his desire to learn about others is that it is almost subconscious: he broadens his horizons and begins to see other perspectives without meaning to at first. Thanks to a certain goongi master, he becomes empathetic and sees that power is not as superficial a concept as he thought: that it can manifest itself in different ways, not just brute force. And seeing a physically weak person being hurt by a representation of physical strength in the eagle, he rejects that philosophy by choosing his emotions and clings to an unknown philosophy. He is not arrogant or inflexible, and that is the key to his way of governing and living.

He doesn't know what to make of the person he is, how he conceptualizes Komugi and how he subsequently sees the world. So, instead of destroying those weaker than him in the way he can understand, and instead of assuming that all of humanity is like the worst of humanity, he decides to learn, wrestling with his inner desires to make the most difficult decisions. informed for both. his own personal happiness and that of those over whom he is destined to rule. As stated above, Meruem was born with a set role in which he would destroy all humans. You could say he was genetically coded to follow these principles, but his humanity is what gave him pause.

It's what gave her empathy and deep, complex thinking, and what made her consider what his great power and authority meant. As he said, “in the hands of the incompetent, power brings nothing but ruin.” So Meruem's personal journey throughout Chimera Ant is a combination of his quest to understand himself and what he wants in life, and it's also his method of figuring out how to be competent. How to use the power of it responsibly. It is his duty, and his countless coincidences with Komugi, his self-reflection, his very human desire for a name and an identity, his reflections on the stupidity and wonders of humanity, his reflections on royalty, and finally, what he learned about humans through his fights with Komugi and Netero - all of these factors influence his role.

He had never really thought about the details of government before learning from Komugi and Netero, but he formed a proper idea for the path to follow once he gathered enough knowledge, wisdom, and experience. The first time, the first literal instance in which Meruem proclaims his plan for the world in the future, other than that imposed on him by the soulless title of king, was when he decided that he would allow certain select humans to live, and later, that the ants would reevaluate their strategies and allow humanity to live in certain sections of their new world in greater numbers.

Yes, it is still a form of oppression and yes, it is still a bit above what most would consider reasonable, but perspective is needed here. Meruem started at a point where he came to this world thinking that he had to totally destroy all humans, that there was no other option there. He was exposed to the hilariously inept way the world works: how hypocritical people are, how self-destructive and burdensome the world is, how those in power are totally inadequate. He took all of that into great consideration and still decided that the human race deserved to exist. This very fact is HUGE given everything he was programmed to do and everything he learned.

He claims that these areas designated for human survival are only for special people, people like Komugi and Netero, who stand out and are extraordinary in some way. But this is not necessarily as hierarchical and brutally meritocratic as it seems, because what he also admits during his journey is that people can acquire skills in various, almost countless fields. It's essentially his way of beginning to conceptualize the idea that people can be special in many ways. It is highly significant that the only two humans Meruem knew and came to know properly were those whom he came to deeply admire.

Now, obviously not everyone is as special as Netero or Komugi, but regardless of that, I think it's conceivable that he allows, in his hypothetical world, more people than he initially appears to be. I would come to learn and understand that others can be extraordinary in even more different ways. I think that was his starting point, and that he would become a little more forgiving if he continued to develop his philosophy if he hadn't died. And at the same time, he clearly intended to end injustices and dismissals like the fake Deigo, to ensure that those in power not only use that power, but use it properly and build a prosperous world.

In the midst of his fight with Netero, Meruem was in the process of becoming an excellent demonstration, embodiment, and extension of the ideal way to wield power. Due to his growing self-understanding, empathy, perspective, and most importantly, humanity, he has the ideal amount of intelligence, deliberation, and restraint, but he has systemic plans and the ability and intention to use his power as he sees fit. After all, he was not at all willing to fight Netero, he did not want to use his strength for what he perceived as a useless excuse for bloodshed, until Netero offered him something of great value.

And in terms of his plans for the partnership, he was clearly approaching them with similar tact, as I explained. So what does all this mean regarding Togashi's messages about humanity? Well, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that he punishes the human race a lot for several obvious reasons, particularly in the Chimera Ant, Choice, and Dark Continent arcs. He is very adept at using his characters as powerful emotional vehicles to show his thoughts on the darkness of humanity. However, he is not a cynic at all. For some more elaborate ideas on where, why and how Togashi presents his most positive ideas about humanity, I would direct you to my videos on Killua, Leorio or Shaiapouf, but there is also an obvious flip side to this topic. .

Chimera Ant in particular is a story about the different perspectives and subtleties of humanity: the good, the bad, the painful, the dark and the hopeful, and we get to see that through Meruem, not just through his journey to find happiness through human connection and love, but through its use of power. I have already established that Meruem is a brilliant example of how to exercise authority through his malleability, moderation, and deliberation. However, why does it have these layers in the first place? Because he is human. Without humanity within him, Meruem would not have bowed, felt or accepted opposing or contrary ideas.

He would have simply destroyed and oppressed without thinking, as he was programmed to do. But he did not. And through this, we can see that we, as a people, are more than capable of being empathetic and thoughtful and using power appropriately; It's just that arrogance and self-interest often cloud that. Meruem could see clearly, immersed in a very imperfect world with open eyes and a new perspective, and through his humanity, he showed what the world needs. His mother said his name meant “the light that illuminates everything,” and he might have been right if he had lived. Again, don't confuse my position here with that the plan proposed by Meruem to Netero was the perfect plan.

Like I said, it was still too extreme to be reasonable. Meruem didn't have it all figured out, but the trajectory of his development - his growing humility, empathy and understanding, his patience and deliberation, his continued desire to learn and broaden his horizons - all lend evidence to the idea that he would eventually be king. ideal for everyone. The final song of the second half of the Chimera Ant arc presents the predominant idea here: the title of that song, Hyori Ittai, can be directly translated as "Two Sides of a Coin" in English. Incredibly indicative of the different aspects of the arc I've talked about in the past, but arguably there's more to it here.

Humans are capable of turning the world into the very pits of hell and creating monstrosities like the miniature Rose, but they are also capable of all the beauty that is shown through the characters we see. Chimera Ant is by no means a cynical and nihilistic story. It is a multifaceted and layered work of broad and branching perspectives, of duality and depth and, possibly most importantly, of light, accentuated and highlighted BECAUSE of the darkness. Hunter x Hunter is full of people who use anypiece of material or physical power they have to change the world around them in the way they see fit.

It is a story of people full of personal agency. Kurapika maximizes his abilities to carry out what he believes is his duty, Leorio uses what little influence he has to set out to positively impact the world in his own way. Killua uses his power to free his little sister from captivity and save his best friend, the anti-chimera ant squad does what they can to protect humanity, and Hisoka constantly strives to get on his nerves. And appropriately, Netero is also one of the best and most interesting displays of power and conviction, as his final stand and battle are the predominant result of his life's ideals: a combination of his ambition to remain at the top of his game. strength and his duty. to humanity.

And Meruem's existence provided him with the opportunity to use all of his power in a way that he simply longed for: to fight with everything he had using his mastery of martial arts to defend his race, something that was recognized by his expression of gratitude amidst their fight. As I said before, Togashi rarely moralizes in Hunter x Hunter, but this case is one of the cases where it can be argued that he does, with a combination of the ideals carefully developed by Meruem over time, the nature almost Meruem's prominence by the climax of the Chimera Ant arc, and Netero's own recognition that what he was doing may have been wrong, showing that Meruem was the one closest to the right here.

And that's why Netero had to do what he did with so much regret. He knew that Meruem had unconditional desires for a just world and that he was prepared to do so and become a great leader. And deep in his soul, he probably wanted to see Meruem accomplish his goal. But Netero had a responsibility: a quote-unquote method of “winning” that unfortunately undermined all the things he stood for, aside from his blazing pride in his race's penchant for cynical victory. By using the Rose, he destroyed both her desires for true victory as a result of his strength and skill, and Meruem's honest motivations for a better world.

And having his heart pierced is a symbolic representation of that. Netero disregarded the things his heart longed for, becoming what many may perceive as an ant by carrying out what he had to do. He did what he did with reluctance but with conviction, because it was his duty. It is absolutely cowardly to sit back and wait for your own ambitions and goals to fall into your lap, and expect the world to change without implementing that change. It's a pretty empowering idea; However, I must emphasize that this is obviously not a story that APPROVES of using power in a reckless and psychopathic manner like people like Hisoka do.

He does not espouse any philosophy or ideal of any character in the story, except possibly that of Meruem, at least not in appearance. He just shows these different characters and shows how they use their influence regarding their motivations to reflect and study the nuances of power in the hands of different types of people. In this sense, Togashi does not pander to the audience and, as I have said, often avoids moralizing, partly to ensure that his perspectivism is carried out in full force, but also to allow readers and viewers to think for themselves and form. his own opinions given what he presents.

This is a story that advocates ACTION AND AGENCY, full of people striving to use every means possible to improve the world, with different definitions of "better" depending on whose point of view it is. But this very aspect reinforces the aforementioned perspectivism that permeates the narrative: each has their own story, their own ideals, and their own motivations and desires, and each sets out to affect and shape the world. There is very little passivity in Hunter Hunter, because virtually the entire cast has a means to impact the world and considers it their duty to do so. From psychopaths who seek to use their power for fun, to those who kill as a means, end and method of identity in themselves, to a curious child, with his eyes wide open and determined to discover the answers he seeks. - Power is a necessity to achieve objectives and impact society.

Power is a responsibility and must be handled with care but USED. And no one in this story realized this more than Meruem. Thanks so much for looking.