(CR) Hunter X Hunter Anime (2011)

[Clarste]

Originally Posted by Guardian Enzo

I haven't even read the manga, and even I've heard that Togashi has said Neferpitou is male (could be false, I suppose). It certainly wouldn't be the first time in H x H he's introduced a male character people mistook for a female (I never thought so with Kurapika, but he got me with Kalluta).

The anime character design is emphasizing her breasts, and she's very feminine in the first place, and she's a freaking insect, so I don't think there's any harm in calling her "she". Frankly, "it" would be more appropriate than "he" anyway. I'm not sure it matters to us if she's haploid or diploid (which is how gender works for Hymenoptera).

[frubam]

Originally Posted by Guardian Enzo

I haven't even read the manga, and even I've heard that Togashi has said Neferpitou is male (could be false, I suppose). It certainly wouldn't be the first time in H x H he's introduced a male character people mistook for a female (I never thought so with Kurapika, but he got me with Kalluta).

Well, I'd say that the ants are in actuality gender-neutral, but take on the characteristics of whatever the queen ate. I see some B-cup mounds on Neferpitou's chest and has other feminine features and personality. Given other feminine chimera ants, I'm guessing a she, until proven otherwise. Perhaps if Shinobi-03 does his comparison thing, it might shed a bit of light on the matter.

[Funkatron]

Ahh, so its a mystery Catgirlbug! And nyow I know (sorry, had to say it)

[Dagger]

Yeah, "she" feels like an easier fit in this case, since gender pronouns are so hard to circumvent in English (although I noticed that the official subs have done a great job so far of not using any gender pronouns at all in reference to him/her/it). I figure we can all agree that Pitou is definitely not fe/male in the same way as the human women in the show.

[FlareKnight]

Originally Posted by Guardian Enzo

I haven't even read the manga, and even I've heard that Togashi has said Neferpitou is male (could be false, I suppose). It certainly wouldn't be the first time in H x H he's introduced a male character people mistook for a female (I never thought so with Kurapika, but he got me with Kalluta).

Will certainly admit I spent the first arc wondering when they were going to reveal that Kurapika was a girl. Every now and then I'm still thinking "really?" when Kurapika shows up.

As to Neferpitou I don't think there's any harm in just using the she pronoun. If we get into the discussion with Chimera Ants they could probably just be considered gender neutral. But agree with others that it's just easier to work with Neferpitou being assumed to be female.

[HandofFate]

doujins have Nefer as a female, so I just go with that lol.

Also, what is that girl that hangs around the tiger suppose to be?

[zeniselv]

well togashi has expressed interest in making a manga about transvestites, and he always has androgynous characters in his works, also the HxH databook where people take info on certain things,has already been proven wrong with the manga itself, so i dont think we can't be sure about anything untill stated in the manga.

[Toto y Moi]

The problem with Pitou--two databooks do indeed clarify him to be "male." What's more is that Pitou uses a gender specific pronoun to refer to himself..."boku." Though to be fair, historically, "boku" was initially a humble pronoun used in deference to authority. Considering that Pitou serves the queen, it wouldn't be out of place. Also, it is a term that recently has been used by some tomboyish girls in Japan, though it is very rare.

The official word is that Pitou is male. With breasts. Sometimes, Togashi does not draw Pitou with breasts:

Spoiler for Not a spoiler, but an image of Pitou from a future manga chapter w/o breasts:

[Guardian Enzo]

If people want to call Pitou a female despite Togashi saying otherwise because it's more comfortable for them, that's their business. But I don't quite understand this notion of couching it in the fact that the Chimera Ants are gender-neutral. Not only are they not gender-neutral, there's no reason they would be gender-neutral - real ants aren't, nor are any of the beasts these ants are feeding the Queen.

[Dagger]

Well, the Word of God is good enough for me! I'm happy to go with whatever the consensus is...

I miss Biscuit, though. Wonder how she'd fare against the ants, compared to Kite.

[FlareKnight]

Originally Posted by Dagger

Well, the Word of God is good enough for me! I'm happy to go with whatever the consensus is...

I miss Biscuit, though. Wonder how she'd fare against the ants, compared to Kite.

To be fair I'm kind of relieved she's not here. This situation is looking rather bleak and survival seems questionable for anyone who isn't Gon and Killua.

I think she'd do alright, though would probably have to revert more than she'd be comfortable with. Think she'd be tough enough to beat the snot out of plenty of the Chimera Ants. Though who knows against what is coming next.

[zeniselv]

the databooks had some retcons, if i remember correctly, to the point character nen classification had been changed, the zoldyck family tree had been modificated, and not tho mention killua's brothers names, also togashi is known to lie in the afterwords and interviews when talking about future events or character traits/characteristic(tough this is something a lot of mangakas tend to do).

[evil_kenshin]

Originally Posted by HandofFate

Also, what is that girl that hangs around the tiger suppose to be?

I Think Hina is meant to be some sort of chipmunk (and its a lion not a tiger) but thats stretching it, she looks pretty much human.

[Dengar]

Originally Posted by Guardian Enzo

there's no reason they would be gender-neutral - real ants aren't

Indeed, real ants aren't gender-neutral, they're gender-LESS.

With the exception of the queens and males.


Either way, this is one thing I about which I won't cede to Word of God. Referring to her as a her is just better for me.

[Guardian Enzo]

Actually no, they're not genderless. Workers (and soldiers, depending on the species) are all female.

[Dengar]

Hm? I thought they weren't capable of reproduction.

[Obelisk ze Tormentor]

Originally Posted by Guardian Enzo

Actually no, they're not genderless. Workers (and soldiers, depending on the species) are all female.

Yeah, contrary to what we often see in movies and cartoons, workers and soldiers are fems. So, there’s no “brothers-in-arms” among ants, only “sisters-in-arms” .

That said, I think this arc is such a missed opportunity. If Togashi really knew his things, we can get plenty of hot and cute ant-ladies for Gon & co to fight . A full army (or in this case, colony) of hot female enemies who are smart, fierce, relentless and can’t be taken lightly would've been a unique element for a shounen manga. One Piece already tried that with Hancock’s female tribe, but they end-up being a joke (including Hancock, the tribe’s very leader).

Originally Posted by Dengar

Hm? I thought they weren't capable of reproduction.

Reproduction incapability doesn't negate them being females.

[Arkeus]

Originally Posted by Obelisk ze Tormentor

That said, I think this arc is such a missed opportunity. If Togashi really knew his things, we can get plenty of hot and cute ant-ladies for Gon & co to fight . A full army (or in this case, colony) of hot female enemies who are smart, fierce, relentless and can’t be taken lightly would've been a unique element for a shounen manga. One Piece already tried that with Hancock’s female tribe, but they end-up being a joke (including Hancock, the tribe’s very leader).

You talk about missed opportunities, all i see is Togashi not using dumb cliches.

[ookamigirl]

That annoying rabbit Rammot can use Nen.
The fight with chimera ants was hard enough before.
Now that they know how to use Nen it's gonna get harder.
In any case this should make things much more interesting.
It not good the royal guards are awake.

[Obelisk ze Tormentor]

Originally Posted by Arkeus

You talk about missed opportunities, all i see is Togashi not using dumb cliches.

A colony of ants consisting of mixed-gender of worker & soldier class (whichever it is) is the cliched one.

Also, not many shounen series has enemy in the form of a large group of competent women before. Usually, it’s only a small group of 2-6 girls or (like my previous One Piece example) dumbed-down large group of women.