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Ging isn't nearly as shitty as you think: a thread/analysis. Major Hunter x Hunter spoilers.
For right now, I'm only going to try to rebuttal the man point people have against Ging: the fact that he didn't go to see Gon after the Chimera Ant arc.
I believe that Ging already went to see Gon in the hospital but didn’t tell anyone for *Gon’s* sake.
Ging and Gon are almost identical, especially in their thinking. That’s why Gon isn’t mad at Ging for “leaving," because he understands him.
We know that Gon has one goal throughout the show: to find Ging. Ging knew this too. Everyone knows this. Hell, it’s the reason for the whole show.
However, we know Gon as a character, and he refuses to achieve victory in a half assed way.
The first example of this is when he refused to use his Hunter License until he punched Hisoka in the face.
Another example of this is the Greed Island dodgeball game.
If Ging didn’t know what transpired in the dodgeball game at Greed Island already, (voodoo Game Master magic, I don’t know. Hell, we don’t even know what his Nen ability is yet.) he likely found out through Razor himself. It’s possible that after hearing that the game had been
cleared, by his own son nonetheless, he would come pop in for a visit. We also see him with List and Dwun during the Chairmen Election arc, so they could’ve told him what happened there.
My last example is at the beginning of the Chimera Ant arc, when he said “no” when Kite asks if he wanted to know where Ging was at the time.
Kite also told Gon about how he also had to complete the same task as Gon: finding Ging. This is another reason why Gon admires Kite because he had accomplished the impossible feat. Kite is Gon’s hero, he is everything Gon wants to be. So naturally, Gon would want to do it in the
the way Kite would, he wants to be like Kite.When Pitou’s corpse cuts off his arm, Gon states that he is happy, because now he is like Kite.
You would think that if Gon had the chance, he would want to find Ging, right? Jump at any opportunity?
But Gon refused when offered the chance to know, because then it wouldn’t be done correctly. Kite knew this, too. He knew that Gon would never take him up on that offer, because he’s like his father in that regard.
So, Gon is in the hospital. If Ging went to see him, and someone saw him and told Gon, how do you think Gon would feel?
His journey to find his father, the sole reason he became a Hunter, is so important throughout the series. And he wasn’t even there to witness the thing he worked so hard for happening.
To Gon, the world is black and white. Something is either good or bad, no gray area in-between. If Gon gains something from you (although not in a manipulative way), you are good. If you hurt him, you are bad.
You could be a genuinely good person and Gon could still see you as bad (Komugi), or you could be a mass murderer and be considered good (Killua). His moral compass is skewed, because he is a child.
I just want to clarify that Gon is in no way a "monster." He is 14. The way he reacted is extremely realistic considering the circumstances. But I'll dive into that another time.
So if Gon only sees things as “right” or “wrong”, what way do you think he would see meeting his dad that way as? Knowing that the only reason why he was able to meet him was through the worst mistake of his life, knowing that his lifelong goal was finally achieved
in the hospital, with Gon not even being conscious to witness it? Knowing that the sole reason he got to meet Ging was because he was dying, with no say in the manner? He’d view that as wrong, right?
This ties into Gon not willing to achieve anything in a half assed way, because any victory handed to him or from outside interference is viewed as cheating and “wrong.”
Ging understands that Gon wouldn’t be able to accept this victory, and so he didn’t go to visit him. Instead of him finding Gon, he let Gon find him.
Personally, I believe that he did go to see Gon, but that’s up to your own interpretation. When confronted about it, he never outright denies that he didn’t visit Gon, but didn’t agree with it, either. Entirely up to your own interpretation, though.
That’s why he said what he the things he did to Leorio during the QNA. “Did Gon himself say he wanted to see me?” is such an important line, and it’s almost universally misunderstood.
Ging didn’t say that to be cruel, he said that because he cares about Gon’s feelings. Ging realized that Gon wouldn’t be able to accept it if that was their first meeting.
It’s all about the wording, honestly. If Ging had said, “I don’t want to see Gon,” or something pertaining to how he himself feels about the situation, he would be an asshole. However, he asks how Gon would feel.
If Gon woke up from his Nen-induced coma and asked for Ging, he would’ve gone. In his own messed up way, this is him being a "good" father to Gon.
There’s also a good chance he said that to make Leorio angry. The only reason Ging was there in the first place was to have fun, and we know that he thought that Leorio was interesting.
This is just speculation, but he could’ve said that to get him all riled up and do something “interesting” (like punching Ging).
I just want to say in no way am I saying that he is a good father. The whole point of Hunter x Hunter is there is no one character who is "good" or "bad," which is why it played out the way it did in the Chimera Ant arc.
Yes, he's an asshole. But I think people should stop demonizing him, and try to look at his character from a different lens.
Just want to clarify, Ging is a bad dad. No ifs, ands, or buts. If you dislike him, that is 100% valid and I completely understand why. People like to bring this scene up as damming evidence that he doesn't care about Gon, though, and I just wanted to share my piece on it.
Here's something I want to bring up to support my claim. You see this? Ging understands Gon's moral compass, the way he sees things in black or white. Instead of there being a grey area, Gon is wrong.
Not really winning any "Father of the Year" awards, but that was never my point. Take this as you will.
