‘Hunter x Hunter’ Makes Surprising Shonen Reference

Hunter x Hunter‘s manga has returned from hiatus, and fans are loving every page of the Succession Contest. The latest chapter took everything to the next level, however, by referencing a major shonen series.

With an event referencing fellow Weekly Shonen Jump series JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, Hunter x Hunter does its best Stand impression as Prince Halkenberg’s guardian Nen Beast catches a bullet he aimed at himself.

In the third iteration of Hirohiko Araki’s Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure, Stardust Crusaders, viewers are introduced to Jotaro Kujo and his stand Star Platinum when he tries to shoot himself in the head. The bullet is stopped in mid-air by his Stand that’s automatically protecting them, and the same thing happens during the latest chapter of Hunter x Hunter.

When Prince Halkenberg confronts his father about putting an end to the Succession Contest, his father refuses. Halkenberg then tries to shoot his father, but the bullet is stopped in mid-air by his father’s Nen beast. Halkenberg, discouraged, then turn the gun toward himself and tries to commit suicide. But, like in JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, the bullet is halted in mid-air by an entity automatically protecting him. Fans loved seeing this iconic moment recreated in Hunter x Hunter, and like JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, this arc is only heating up from arc.

Hunter x Hunter was originally created by Yoshihiro Togashi for Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump magazine in 1998. The story follows a young boy named Gon Freecss, who discovers that his previously thought to be dead father is in fact alive. Not only is he alive, he is a famous Hunter, a professional traveler who specializes in finding rare treasures, exploring unidentified lands, and hunting down dangerous individuals. Gon then decides that in order to meet his father he has to become a licensed Hunter, but in that journey gets wrapped up in way more strangeness than he ever could have anticipated.

As for JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, the series was originally created by Hirohiko Araki for Shueisha’sWeekly Shonen Jumpin 1987. Currently the second longest running series in the magazine with over 100 volumes collected, the series tells the story of the Joestar family, who are each entwined in a destiny battling outrageous foes. The series has been split up into eight parts, with each part following a different generation of the Joestar family.