Appearance
2011 | 1999 | Manga
Hisoka’s Appearance 2011
Hisoka’s appearance is similar to that of a magician or jester. He is tall and has light skin and a fairly toned stature. His attire is usually adorned with various suit symbols on the front and back torso, and he changes outfits in each story arc. He wears face paint: a maroon star on his right cheek and a spring green teardrop on his left cheek, or alternately, a maroon teardrop on his left cheek and spring green star on his right cheek. During the Greed Island arc, Hisoka wears a Greed Island Ring on his left middle finger. In the 13th Hunter Chairman Election arc, Hisoka is shown wearing two earrings with ornamental hearts.
In his first appearance in Nippon Animation’s anime series, Hisoka’s hair is blue. After a revamp of the show it was replaced with a red, almost neon pink color to be in accordance with the manga. In Madhouse’s adaptation, Hisoka has red hair and light amber eyes. During the Yorknew City arc in the manga, Hisoka dyes his hair light green. These dynamic variations in appearance illustrate the complexity of his character.
Personality
The other side of Hisoka
Hisoka is portrayed as entirely self-serving, self-absorbed, and selfish; he does whatever he likes as long as it pleases him in some way. His insatiable love for spilling the blood of powerful fighters in combat and his enjoyment of extreme pain while doing so fuels his seemingly sadomasochistic desires. In order for them to grow to their full potential (so as to improve the pleasure of killing them later), Hisoka allows the main protagonists to live in situations wherein he is easily able to kill them. Likewise, he grows excited to meet any new people he deems worthy of fighting or anyone with potential to be a good fighter and entertain him in the future.
With his manipulative and self-centered nature, Hisoka is essentially a sociopath. While he does like Gon, Killua, and many others, he has stated that for him what is valuable one day could easily become trash the next, and he will not hesitate to kill anyone should they not meet his standards. He does not care for what has happened in the past, as he is only interested in what could be amusing to him in the future or present. While Hisoka’s nature tends to be malevolent, he isn’t an indiscriminate killer. He has no problems killing anyone regardless of age or sex; however, he only kills people who are in his way or those he deems “worthy.” As such, his character is more simply amoral than flat out evil. He even assists the protagonists if there is “fun” in doing so or if it will make them stronger leading to a more entertaining fight in the future. Above all else, Hisoka cares only about having fun and a good challenge which may or may not involve killing people. He has a nasty habit of skipping out on Spider meetings.
Hisoka could be described as pansexual, but in a very deranged way: he is attracted to powerful fighters, or people who have the potential to become so, and his desire is expressed through barely repressible murderous tendencies.
Hisoka often exhibits androgynous characteristics throughout the series, manifested in his wearing of “women’s” shoes and using an alluring speech style typically reserved for females in Japanese. In the manga, he ends nearly every sentence with a suit symbol.
Background
Bungee Gum, Hisoka’s favorite gum
Hisoka’s past is never explored in Hunter × Hunter. His character is an enigma that speaks little of his past, because he is uninterested in it.[1] It is revealed, however, that Hisoka joined the Phantom Troupe as a false member at some point after the Kurta Massacre, and 2 or 3 years before the YorkNew City arc. Hisoka is also introduced as a second time examinee in the Hunter Exam; he is disqualified for almost killing an examiner during his first attempt.
Hisoka’s favorite stickers
In the 1999 anime adaptation it is stated during his battle with Gon on the 200th floor of Heaven’s Arena that Hisoka chewed “Bungee Gum” a lot as a child, but because his family was poor he often chewed it until it lost all flavor. He later named his signature gum technique after the brand. In the manga and 2011 adaption however, it is only said that he named both of his techniques after a candy brand and a chewing gum brand he liked when he was a kid.[1]
Plot
Hunter Exam arc
Hisoka’s appearance in the Hunter Exams.
“Yes! You pass too. ♥ Become a good Hunter, okay?♣” Hisoka playing examiner with Gon.
Hisoka, applicant #44, is seen as a heavy contender throughout the Hunter exam. He failed the previous year’s exam after nearly killing a proctor he did not approve of. Hisoka is introduced in the series as another applicant bumps into him without apologizing; shortly afterwards the applicant’s arms are removed from his body.[2]During the first phase, out of a desire to satiate his appetite for murder, Hisoka “plays proctor” and kills a number of applicants in the Numere Wetlands.[3] He takes an interest in Gon and his friends after the boy uses his father’s fishing rod to stop Hisoka from killing Leorio.[4] In the third phase, Hisoka is targeted by Togari for having nearly killed the proctor during last year. Hisoka kills Togari with ease and is the first to pass through the Trick Tower.[5]
Gittarackur is revealed to be a comrade of Hisoka
For the fourth phase, the remaining examinees are shipped to Zevil Island in order to take part in a week-long manhunt among themselves to capture their respective target’s number plate.[6] After docking, Hisoka spends his first two days on Zevil Island resting, having been injured by Togari in their match. His wounds attract hemotropic butterflies that feed on blood, leading his “predator”, Gon, to him.[7] Gozu, a fatally injured martial artist, comes across Hisoka and begs the magician to kill him. Hisoka refuses stating he is “uninterested in the dead.” An examinee known as Gittarackur then appears to kill Gozu and is then revealed to be Hisoka’s comrade after giving him another examinee’s number plate.[8]
Hisoka’s blood lust
In the evening of the second day, Hisoka begins to search for his target and comes across Kurapika and Leorio.[8] After a short negotiation he allows them to leave unharmed in exchange for a number plate. However their potential and quick development whet his blood-lust, impelling him to find someone to kill.[9] Hisoka has his badge stolen by Gon, who had been tailing him, while attacking another examineeand stealing his plate. Excited by his feat, Gon is soon after ambushed and temporarily paralyzed by Geretta, who just so happens to be Hisoka’s designed target. Geretta spares Gon’s life but takes his and Hisoka’s plates. Hisoka appears, decapitates Geretta, retrieves all three plates, and gives Gon back his number plate along with his own plate. Gon refuses to accept the favor, but Hisoka blasts him with a right hook and leaves after challenging him to do the same.[10] Having obtained the necessary number of plates, Hisoka qualifies for the Final Phase.[11]
Hisoka whispers something to Kurapika
The final phase of the exam is an elimination tournament in which the winner of a match is removed from the candidate list and receives his very own Hunter License, and the loser is given more chance.[12] His first match is against Kurapika. After fighting for a while, he whispers something to Kurapika then renounces the match.[13]
Hisoka knocks down Bodoro
His next opponent is Bodoro. It was a one-sided match, but Bodoro doesn’t want to surrender. Hisoka knocks him down and whispers something to him. Right after this, Bodoro admits defeat and Hisoka becomes a licensed Hunter.[13] When the exam is already over, he has a short conversation with Illumi about Gon and the Zoldyck Family, and warns Illumi not to touch Gon because the boy is his target only.[14]
Heavens Arena arc
Hisoka’s appearance at the Heavens Arena
Hisoka follows Gon and Killua to the Heavens Arena and prevents the duo from entering the 200th floor unless they have learned how to use Nen.[15] Gon and Killua return after learning Nen from Wing, Hisoka allows both of them to pass and tells Gon if he can win one match on the 200th floor, he might consider fighting him.[16] A fighter at Heavens Arena named Kastro fights Hisoka to avenge his only loss. At the beginning of the fight, Kastro seems to have the upper hand—landing some blows on Hisoka from unimaginable positions and angles.[17][18] As the fight goes on Hisoka’s right arm is even cut off by Kastro’s Tiger Bite Fist, but he discovers Kastro’s trick—a conjured double. Despite having lost 1 arm, Hisoka still appears very confident;[18] he calmly performs a brutal card trick in front of Kastro, and after finishing it, he lets Kastro easily cut off his left arm.[19]
Hisoka meets Machi at the Heavens Arena
Then Hisoka suddenly shows everyone a seemingly undamaged right arm, which greatly confuses Kastro. He goes on to tell Kastro about the weaknesses of his technique: the double never shows any damage, and as an Enhancer Kastro has insufficient memory for such a complex Conjuration technique. As he completes the explanation, he hits Kastro in the chin using his severed left arm then kills Kastro by making the cards on the ground stick into his body at various places.[19] After the fight, it is revealed that Hisoka is a member of the Phantom Troupe.[1]
Hisoka’s fake Spider tattoo
He pays Machi, another member, to stitch his arms back together with her Nen ability. She tells him that everyone in the Phantom Troupe must meet up inYorknew City at noon on August 30. After Machi left, it is revealed that the spider tattoo on Hisoka’s back was a fake and is actually made from a cloth using his texture surprise ability.[1]
Gon punches Hisoka in the face
Later, Hisoka agrees to fight Gon after Gon’s second win on the 200th floor.[20]During the fight, he accepts to take his examination badge back[21] after Gon successfully hits him in the face.[22] As they continue, Hisoka easily defeats him by TKO. He then leaves after telling Gon that the next time they fight, they will be risking their lives.[23]
Yorknew City arc
Hisoka’s appearance in the Yorknew City arc
On 30 August, Hisoka meets the other members of the Phantom Troupe in an abandoned building in Yorknew City, where their leader Chrollo Lucilfer gives the order to rob the Mafia of the auction items.[24] On the night of the 2nd of September, he sends Kurapika a message, telling him to meet as planned at the agreed place. When they meet, Hisoka tells Kurapika what he knows about the Phantom Troupe, that he joined the Troupe only to fight Chrollo, and that they should team up because they share a common interest.[25] Kurapika tells him to meet again on the 3rd of September, at the same time.[26]
Hisoka’s smile while teaming up with Machi
The next day, he has an unexpected meeting with Gon and Killua after the two were captured and brought to the Troupe’s hideout but they pretend not to know each other.[27] Despite his liking for Gon, he can’t do anything to save them and even threatens to slit Killua’s throat with a card if the boy makes any move without permission.[28] In the night of September 3, Hisoka participates in a retaliatory attack of the Troupe on the Mafia[29] to avenge Uvogin‘s death. He’s pairing up with Machi[30] however he doesn’t do any fighting and only stands on the top of a building watching and enjoying the scene.[29] Later, after they have returned to their hideout, he wants to tell Kurapika that the corpses of several Troupe’s members left behind are fake, but can’t contact him.[31]
Hisoka reading his prophecy
On September 4, Chrollo tries the Lovely Ghostwriter ability he stole from Neon on the other members of the Phantom Troupe. According to the predictions for Nobunaga andShizuku, if they are to meet the chain user, 5 of them will die. At the same time, Hisoka sends a message to Kurapika, telling him about the fake corpses.[32] The prediction for Hisoka exposes his betrayal to the Phantom Troupe,[33] but he uses his Texture Surprise to falsify the prediction and manipulate the group into staying in Yorknew City, just to be able to fight Chrollo.[34]
Hisoka excited to fight against Chrollo
In the evening, Killua and Gon were captured again by the Troupe while Chrollo was taken hostage by Kurapika.[35] After both parties have agreed on the conditions of the hostage exchange, Hisoka phones Illumi, hiring him to disguise as himself and act as his double in the Troupe’s hideout so that he can leave and fight Chrollo alone.[36] After arriving at the exchange site,[37] he reveals to Chrollo his fake membership status and challenges him to a duel, but to his great disappointment, Chrollo can no longer use Nen.[38] And so, Hisoka spares his life and leaves, telling Pakunoda that he’s never been attracted to broken toys.[38]
Greed Island arc
Hisoka appearing before the Phantom Troupe
Hisoka appears again on Greed Island in search of an Exorcist for Chrollo. He uses Chrollo’s name to enter the game, which catches Gon’s and Killua’s attention and they, together with Goreinu and Biscuit, use a spell card to get to him while he was bathing inside a lake.
Hisoka tells Gon his goals in Greed Island
Because their team doesn’t have enough strong people for their upcoming dodge ball match against Razor, Biscuit invites him to join them, to which Hisoka agrees, because he has nothing to do. Killua suspects that Hisoka has met other members of the Phantom Troupe on the island and is hiding it from everyone so he asks to check the list of the people he has met, but Hisoka tricks him by using the Texture Surprise to fake a new name list. During the dodge ball game, he was injured by Razor’s powerful shots and throws but in the end their collective effort prevails and it’s Hisoka who helps the team achieve an absolute victory by forcing Razor out of the court, at the cost of 10 broken fingers.
Hisoka teaming up with Gon & Killua
After that, Hisoka leaves to meet some members of the Phantom Troupe to help them negotiate with the Exorcist, Abengane. When they meet, even without using En he still notices that there is someone hiding behind a tree and threatens to kills that person if they don’t show up, which frustrates Nobunaga. Kalluto, Hisoka’s replacement in the gang, walks out and asks if his Zetsu was imperfect, to which Machi replies that it was well done but Hisoka is just a beast.
Hisoka leaving Greed Island with Abengane
Hisoka sizes up Kalluto and praises him for having a lot of potential. He then asks Machi what she will do if he kills Chrollo, to which Machi says she would hunt him down and kill him. As usual, Hisoka only replies in a playful manner that he would like that. He is later seen meeting up with Abengane after the latter has successfully removed the Nen beast on his body.
13th Hunter Chairman Election arc
Hisoka votes
Hisoka is next seen during the 1st round of the election looking for Ging. He secretly rates the Hunters on the scene using a scale of his own and is apparently quite happy with the power of some members of the Zodiacs:Kanzai, Ginta and Piyon. He then casts a blank vote after showing it to them, which annoys Kanzai. After that he sits there scouting out the crowd. While sizing up the pro-Hunters present at the election site, Hisoka is disappointed by their power levels and thinks to himself that if they are this weak, he might consider fighting the Zodiacs next. Suddenly he feels the presence of someone strong, who turns out to be Illumi. Illumi then tells Hisoka about what happened during the Chimera Ant crisis, the death of Chairman Netero, Alluka — his younger brother, and the current situation with Gon and Killua.[39]
Hisoka provokes Illumi
Hisoka and Illumi are next seen talking to each other in an airship bar. Illumi explains the rules related to Alluka’s ability to him and tells him if Killua dies from Alluka’s power while trying to heal Gon, a lot of people, including the Zoldycks, Gon, and even Hisoka, will die as well. Fearing that Killua will do it wrong, Illumi asks Hisoka to help him kill Alluka.[40] Later, as Killua, Alluka and their butlers are on their way to Gon’s hospital, Illumi manipulates some drivers and crashes their vehicles into Killua’s car, causing it to fall into a forest below. Watching from a distance, Illumi tells Hisoka to eliminate the butlers but Hisoka asks if he can kill Killua. Illumi suddenly releases a murderous aura and warns him. Hisoka says he is just kidding. It is then revealed that he provoked Illumi on purpose to let Killua know his location because he too wants Gon to be saved.[41]
Hisoka kills Gotoh
He then confronts Gotoh, Amane and Canary, who are left behind after Killua uses his Kanmuru ability to escape with Alluka. Gotoh tells the other butlers to go ahead and let him deal with Hisoka. At first, his Bungee Gum ability seems to be neutralized by Gotoh’s ability to fire coins with power superior to bullets, but Hisoka manages to adapt quickly and uses his bungee gum to fire the coins back, forcing him to shoot more coins to deflect them, with that distraction Hisoka is able to drop in on him and slit his throat.[42]
Hisoka and Illumi meet up again in an airport where Killua used an airship as transportation and to escape them. Hisoka suggests that they should ambush Killua in the hospital, but Illumi claims the assassination will fail if they do so because Killua’s friends are there. Illumi thinks of asking for help, prompting Hisoka to ask if he has any other acquaintances. Illumi instead reveals an ability to manipulate a person’s actions through a nen-imbued needle. Illumi asks Hisoka if he could hunt the “misses” for him and Hisoka gladly accepts.
Hisoka and Illumi talk over the phone after killing their attackers. Hisoka informs Illumi that he has found a map detailing the aircraft’s paths and destinations. He offers to send Illumi a copy, albeit one that is altered by his Texture Surprise. Unfortunately, Illumi says that he also have a map from one of the attackers and that he already knows which aircraft Killua and Alluka are.
Hisoka kills the Hunters
Although he is shown to be Illumi’s comrade his blood-lust seems to get the better of him, this is shown when Illumi finds Killua, Hisoka is seen hiding in the trees trying to decide who to kill, if to kill Alluka and gain Killua’s hatred or leave Alluka alive save Gon and make Illumi his enemy. He then questions himself by thinking that maybe he should kill Alluka which would make Killua hate him, or kill Killua and have Illumi hate him is the best plan of action. Hisoka is next seen exiting an elevator and going into the room where Teradein Neutral is staying, Hisoka then kills him.
Dark Continent Expedition arc
Chrollo finally accepts to fight Hisoka in a death match at Heavens Arena. As soon as the fight begins, Chrollo activates Shalnark’s ability and takes control of the referee, using him to attack Hisoka while, the latter reckons, preparing to stick the second antenna in him. However, the second antenna was a feint and Chrollo kicks down Hisoka, then proceeds to stomp on him. Hisoka frees himself by hurling the referee at him. Chrollo then commands the referee to attack Hisoka again, but explodes before the two can make contact thanks to a new ability stolen by Chrollo, who is now also capable of using two abilities at the same time or one without needing to touch his book. Hisoka gets more and more excited as the fight progresss, but feels Chrollo is still holding back. The two then briefly discuss the latter’s new abilities, with Hisoka rejoicing due to his opponent’s power.[43]
Heavens Arena Standing
The following are the results for Hisoka in Heavens Arena. Each KO ended up with the opponent dead.
| Opponent | Result | |
|---|---|---|
| Kastro | 10-3 | Win |
| ?? | 10-1 | Win |
| ?? | 10-0 KO | Win |
| ?? | W.O. | Loss |
| ?? | W.O. | Loss |
| ?? | W.O. | Loss |
| ?? | 10-0 KO | Win |
| ?? | 10-0 KO | Win |
| ?? | 10-0 KO | Win |
| ?? | 10-0 KO | Win |
| ?? | 10-0 KO | Win |
| Kastro | 10-4 KO | Win |
| Gon | 11-4 | Win |
Equipment
Playing Cards: Hisoka’s weapon of choice is a set of ordinary French playing cards, which he uses in combat to lethal effects by wielding or throwing them in conjunction with his Shu. The cards have white borders, with a checkered pattern composed by small, light and dark fucsia squares.
Abilities & Powers
Hisoka has all the benefits granted by his status as a Hunter. Notorious for his graceful, cruel, and deceitful fighting ability, Hisoka has proven himself to be a deadly opponent. However, his true abilities have never been shown, as he is willing to fight enemies famous for their terrifying power. For instance, he pondered prompting Illumi (whose strength scored 95 points, even higher than 3 Zodiacs’) into having a death match with him, and even craved to confront Ging Freecss and Isaac Netero. Apparently, he doesn’t fight according to any conventional martial art, combining his tremendous physical attributes with razor-sharp poker cards, an unpredictable mind and an unquenchable thirst for killing.
Prenatural Perception: Hisoka has proven to be able to sense not only the presence, but also the position of people hidden with Zetsu, even Kalluto’s, whose degree of proficiency at it is described by Machi as being perfect. However, in response to Nobunaga’s befuddlement, Hisoka claimed that he had managed due to the lingering stimulation after the competition against Razor. It should be noted that he was unable to notice that Gon was tailing him during the Hunter Exam, though he was in a terrible mental state. Hisoka’s ability to gauge a person’s talent and current power is so refined, he has created a point-based system to quantify them. Partially due to his vast fighting experience, Hisoka is capable of discerning a person’s strength by looking at them; on one occasion, he detected a very strong individual nearby and measured his strength without even seeing or recognizing him beforehand.
Hisoka punches Leorio.
Immense Strength: Hisoka is incredibly strong, ranking third in the Phantom Troupe in terms of physical strength.[44] He can shatter rock and send a block of the Heavens Arena ring flying with a single kick. As shown in the dodgeball game, he is able to catch a Nen-reinforced ball with the destructive capacity of a cannon ball with a single hand, and throw the ball with such power that Razor’s Nen puppets are unable to stop it unless they combine, in spite of them being able to intercept Razor’s lightning quick pasages.
Enhanced Speed and Reflexes: One of the pillars of his distinctive fighting style is his speed, matched with his surgical-like accuracy. He was able to easily grab Togari’s spinning knives, dodge continuous attacks from Gon without moving from the position he was in, and barely avoid a homing ball thrown by Razor, even blocking it when it was redirected. He can wipe out a group of professional Hunters single-handedly, and dodge or catch bullet-fast objects with ease. Combined with his Bungee Gum ability, he can disappear out of sight and move at speeds that even experienced fighter are unable to follow.
Enhanced Agility: Hisoka can attack from any position, as seen when he fought against Gotoh. Due to his coordination, he can adapt to any fighting style he faces (an example is when he caught without problems the spinning knives thrown at him by Togari) and avoid most of the threats he may encounter.
Enhanced Stamina: Hisoka has never been seen tired after any of his fight, even after severe physical effort, mental strain and aura consumption.
Hisoka’s crushed fingers
Immense Endurance: Hisoka appears impervious to pain, which seems to leave him unfazed when minimal and bring him pleasure when very intense. He can take having his arms cut off, one after the other, as if it were nothing. Though blows still damage him, it doesn’t slow him down or incapacitate him. His inhuman resistance, coupled with what looks like a total disregard for his own life and a battle frenzy, makes him unstoppable.
Genius-Level Intellect: Hisoka is arguably one of the smartest characters in the series. He was able to deduce Kastro’s double ability by simply allowing himself to get hit, even though Killua, a highly intelligent fighter himself, could not figure it out. He is able to formulate accurate conclusions based on mere observations. Hisoka even categorized Nen users according to the different attitudes and behaviors they show, which allows him to identify the category of Nen his opponent falls under, like he did with Gon. Although this method of judgement, as he said, is not always correct, it indicates his superiority as a battle analyst. Last but not least, Hisoka is able to retain his cool during fights and rarely allows his emotions to get the best of him, intimidating his opponents even more.
Master Strategist: Hisoka is very observant and able to guess the amount of strength a person possess, their talent and even future heights by simply looking at them. He can often tell what an opponent is thinking and how to react with his moves. He can plan whole battles beforehand and prepare his victory right after the get-go. Furthermore, his deviousness and volatility has prevented many opponents from anticipating his next move, and this has led him to win many battles. He can come up with crafty and unthinkable solutions, like the ones used to trick and kill Kastro and Gotoh, in a matter of seconds. Combining his twisted genius with his prestigiatory skills, Hisoka can set very elaborate and effective traps, often using In to conceal his Nen attacks. His tricks usually don’t get discovered until after they are already in use. Instead of fearing pain, he sometimes seeks it, as a memento of his opponent.
Hisoka knocks out Bodoro
Master Hand to Hand Combatant: Though he doesn’t show it too often, he is very skilled in unarmed combat. Cherry, for whom, according to Tonpa, martial arts have no secrets, ackowledged the indisputable superiority of Hisoka’s technique. Part of his strength is said to derive from the fact he does not hesitate to kill. He defeated a martial arts master like Bodoro during the Hunter Exam with his bare hands. He also effortlessly dodged Kastro’s attacks when the latter was not using his clone, and kept avoiding the clone’s blows while talking casually even after losing both arms, despite Kastro being a martial artist said to be on par with a Floor Master. When fighting Gon, Hisoka was able to counter all of Gon’s punches and kicks without needing to move from his original position, forcing him to resort to strategy to land a single hit.
Master Weapon Specialist: Hisoka is an unrivaled master in the usage of cards as edge weapons. Using Shu, enhanced poker cards as his primary weapon, he throws them with ease and lethal accuracy, or wields them as razor-sharp blades. When he combines these cards with his Nen ability, they become even deadlier weapons. He was also able to quickly master the usage of spinning knives, besting a self-proclaimed expert who trained for one year mere seconds after their battle started.
Nen
Hisoka’s aura.
Hisoka is a Transmuter who also seems to be well versed in Enhancement andConjuration. His two Hatsu are extremely versatile have served him well on numerous occasions, both in and out of combat, and especially compliment his nature. He can use it for direct combat, or to deceive his opponents and render them confused, hesitant, or upset. Generally, when he fights one on one, he limits himself to counterattacking as he lays a lethal trap with his Nen abilities. Well versed in all the basic and at least some of the advanced techniques, Hisoka makes frequent use ofShu to augment the offensive power of his cards and In to conceal his aura when preparing his trap. Although his Ren(bloodlust) can be perceived from far away,[45] he doesn’t seem to activate it every time he starts fighting. While it is unknown if he is able to use En, Hisoka’s sheer sensory ability is enough to allow him to spot a skilled Zetsu user.
Hunter x Hunter 