Everyone likes Leorio. If you were to ask any random Hunter x Hunter
fan what they thought of the man, the chances are extremely good that they would speak very
highly of him, and it really isn’t too hard to understand why. He’s expressive, he’s funny, he’s admirable
as hell and he’s the type of friend that anyone would be honoured to have. But this fact in itself is given extra weight
and dimensions because of the type of story that Hunter x Hunter is, and the simple design
of his character is ingeniously integrated with the rest of the story. Leorio is so important primarily because his
characterization operates in concrete contrast to a ton of elements in the narrative. In a world full of selfish people with pragmatic
methods and self-interested intentions, Leorio is one of the only in this setting who just
wants to help others. And that is absolutely vital in multiple ways. As I’ve described in the past, Togashi has
always been one to incorporate narrative, tonal and thematic balance, and this is true
with regards to his cast of characters as well. This story is chock full of nuanced, subtle
individuals with profound progression and characterization, but what is important is
that it is equally contrasted by a beautiful simplicity to allow both sides of the coin
to stand out as much as possible (Spider coin toss). And as a result, such a breadth of ideas and
concepts are able to be explored. For every societal critique, there’s an
MMORPG simulator. For every complicated and beautifully realized
nihilist, there is a horny clown man. The complexity in the cast is indeed notable,
but it is only as impactful as it is because it’s gorgeously balanced out with the simplicity
of characters like Bisky, Knuckle, Hisoka.. and arguably most simple of all, a certain
bespectacled pervert. In all seriousness, Leorio is probably one
of the closest things to a hero in this story. Togashi uses perspectivism and avoids moralizing
to ensure that no one character really has an archetypal label in his stories, at least
from a moral standpoint, but in a world full of extraordinary people doing tons of good
and bad and gray things, Leorio finds himself to be an unorthodox role model of sorts, one
that grounds the story in kindness and compassion. He brings this unique element of optimistic
spirit, and I’ve always thought that a lot of Togashi’s understanding of the human
psyche is evident through Leorio’s role. For what he means in-universe, and for the
audience. The way in which he’s such a blunt personification
of relative inferiority in comparison to his peers, and his golden personality make him
one of the most relatable characters in the series. But he’s far more than your classic audience
surrogate, and this, combined with the aforementioned spirit and simplicity, make Leorio deceptively
important and profound for what he represents throughout the story. The few episodes and chapters that illustrate
the introduction of Leorio encapsulate what can only be described as a subversion of expectations
with regards to him. Having described his one prevailing motive
for becoming a Hunter as money, he seems to be purely greedy, selfish and materialistic. He’s not portrayed as a bad guy at all,
and his actions early on show him to be pretty decent, but there’s not much to his character
apart from that. Yet when it comes to the first phase of the
hunter exam, Kurapika is able to break through the hard outer shells and discover who this
man really is. In the past, Leorio’s friend was struck
with a life-threatening disease. This disease was totally operable and his
friend could have been cured, but the procedure was simply too expensive for them to afford
and his friend ended up dying as a result. And this is what formed Leorio’s philosophy. He wants to become a Hunter to be able to
get the money to pay for an education to become a doctor, and when he is a doctor, he wants
to heal as many people as he can, regardless of whether or not they can afford it - partly
as a tribute to his friend’s memory, partly because he doesn’t want others to suffer
as he did, and partly because it’s just what he believes is right. It isn’t complex or layered or overly convoluted
- it tells you everything you need to know about this character and this information
alone provides context and justifications for so many of the things he does throughout
the series. He simply wants to help people, and in order
to do that, he needs to traverse the avenues that this corrupt world operates in. It is uncomfortable to think about, but this
is reality. In an element that hints at the bold critiques
of the structure and state of the setting that will become more relevant in Chimera
Ant and Election, Leorio more or less encapsulates one of Togashi’s big bones to pick with
society. He sees the backwards, amoral way that the
world operates. He is very blunt in communicating that, and
he has learned that this is the way things are. But that doesn’t mean he’s going to accept
it passively. He knows how things work, and so he realizes
that he needs to game that system to strive to change things in his own way. And he wants to do this to make little positive
changes and help people, so that they won’t succumb the same way his friend did. In this regard, he’s like a more intelligent,
pragmatic and kind version of Suzaku from Code Geass. He knows he can’t overthrow the way the
world works on his own, but that doesn’t mean he’s going to give up. His goal is simple: Find a way to adhere to
the system, use it to your advantage, and make changes. The key with Leorio is that he isn’t naively
idealistic and empowering in the way Gon can be: he’s optimistic and empathetic, and
this sets him apart. Leorio doesn’t have any sort of existential
crisis. He isn’t internally conflicted between a
self-directed revenge and what his heart pleads for in life. He isn’t naive and immature and working
based on some sort of animalistic, instinctual morality to achieve his goals. I wouldn’t say that any of the main four
characters are lacking in empathy for the most part, but in my opinion, Leorio is the
one who is the most truly, wholly empathetic from the start and even when the chips are
down and the stakes are high. He’s just a simple dude who wants to make
the world a better place for him and those he loves. His experiences have truly molded his perspective
and world view, and being someone that experienced true loss, he knows the value of people that
he can be honored to call friends, never losing sight of how special these relationships are. He really isn’t great in battle, but when
things are serious, there’s no one who you’d be more confident in that they’d have your
back. It’s no coincidence that Leorio has worked
tooth and nail to try and save each of his three best friends on separate occasions,
and he may yet prove to be key in helping Kurapika come back into the light. He may be the least important of the four
in terms of plot significance, but this element of humble normalcy of his plays a key role
in balancing and supporting the crew. It’s often been posited that Leorio hella
lucked out in the Hunter Exam because he more or less rode the coattails of Gon, Killua
and Kurapika until the end and then got lucky that Killua broke the rules, thereby allowing
him to pass. And while that really can’t be denied, the
part that no one seems to ever acknowledge is the following: how did he get there in
the first place? What made those three happy to work with him? The simple fact is that Leorio exudes this
aura of positivity, loyalty, and as we’ll explore in a minute, honesty. But all of this does not extrapolate into
a detrimental sort of altruism due to his resolve. He is full of conviction to a fault, so I
should stress that he is not kind to everyone if they get in his way and he can be reckless
- after all, he did try to attack an old woman and he did say that he’d do literally anything
it took to be one of the three advancing in trick tower, which could have lead to some
unhappy consequences. But this is ironically a display of how caring
he is, because he knows that at heart, his mission to help others is more important than
literally anything. This commitment to his cause is endearing,
and a tiny bit of time spent with Leorio makes it clear that he’s a terrific person. And this is shown through tons and tons of
little interactions and behaviours that are integrated into his arc from the beginning
up til now. What’s notable and not entirely obvious
about Leorio is that he spends a good deal of time showing concern and care for others. This isn’t a unique observation, but the
way in which it is communicated is not always as bold as one would expect, as it tends to
be after, prior to, or in between big moments which tends to cause them to leave less of
an impression in the audience’s mind. For instance, when Killua resolves to fight
against Johness, Leorio is the one most concerned for his well being given how notorious Johness’
reputation is. And in recounting the final phase of the exam
to Gon, Satotz explains that Leorio requested that his match with Bodoro be postponed due
to Bodoro’s injuries from fighting Hisoka, despite the fact that victory would mean that
he would be given his license. And in a more impactful scene, he chastised
Illumi for trying to stifle and control his brothers, and absolutely lays into Killua
for not realizing that he’s already Gon’s friend. After all, who would know better than him? Leorio’s most famous contribution to the
Election arc is undeniably the punch he lands on Ging, but I think the most telling demonstrations
of Leorio’s character are actually the elements surrounding that. He is incredibly hard on himself for not being
there to support Gon during his trials in the Chimera Ant arc. He feels guilty and sort of like he missed
the forest for the trees. Because in being absent to try and become
a doctor to help people, he wasn’t able to be there to help the ones who mattered
most. He is very unfair on himself here, but that’s
the type of guy he is. So when he finds himself as an unlikely candidate
in the election, he continues doing what he had been doing all along: using the avenues
from which the world operates to display his sincerity. In diametric contrast to Pariston, Leorio
offers no plans and even says that he won’t do anything to benefit the association. He speaks the truth and does not try to play
the crowd. He does not want the power. All he does is emphasize that his friend is
in grave danger and needs help. It is an unconventional simplicity that cuts
through the dishonesty and political maneuvering of the arc, and it is very refreshing and
endearing. Screw politics, screw the election. Leorio just wears his heart on his sleeve,
pours his soul out about how much he feels he’s screwed up, and talks about masturbating
for a little bit. He just wants to do what’s right, and he
doesn’t dress up a single thing he says. And despite the fact that Pariston played
the public like a flute, Leorio begins garnering huge support as well. And while it seems to be a bit of a joke,
it is actually quite profound that this happens. It is inevitable that people gravitate towards
honesty. Humans really aren’t that complicated. We subconsciously yearn for truth - we just
don’t know where to find it, so we find ourselves running into dead ends or playing
into the hands of people like Pariston. So when someone like Leorio is in the spotlight,
someone whose intentions are absolutely clear, who isn’t manipulative or canniving or anything,
we can’t help but be enticed and drawn in. And in a way, Ging sensed this too and showed
his sincere respect for Leorio by thanking him for being Gon’s friend, and allowing
him to punch him. Because, let’s face it, there’s no way
in hell that Ging couldn’t have dodged that. His intuition told him that Leorio was a good
man, and not many can say that they’ve been shown wholehearted respect from Ging. Sure, the way the election played out made
it clear that Togashi was saying that politics are a farce, but the crux of Leorio’s character
helps to keep the arc from being totally bleak, and maintains a very shonen spirit. In the end, Pariston won, but only primarily
because Gon was revived, which resulted in one of the best moments in the series and
also meant that Leorio had no reason to continue. He nearly defeated the master troll, and turned
down the chance of monumental power simply because he wanted to help people his way - a
more intimate and personal way. This all says something about the man himself
and how people can be drawn in by truth, and offers a counterweight and a small ray of
light to balance and contrast the cynicism of the Election arc. And as revealed in the currently Succession/Dark
Continent arc, Leorio’s Nen power is likely not primarily for combat. His punch was just a cool bit of improvisation,
but Ging hypothesizes that his true intent with that power is characteristically medical. In theory, through palpating a person, he
can send his aura out in pulses in a way similar to ultrasound to try and identify harmful
elements within the body. Tumors, blood clots, cysts and more can be
identified without any expensive equipment and maybe even operated on for free and without
the classic risks, if Leorio is able to perfect it. And through this, he is very much on the path
to achieving his dream of overcoming the injustices of the world by simply living his life through
helping others. And since it’s been well established that
Nen abilities reflect the personality of the user.. what exactly does this say about him? Well, the most succinct summary of the type
of person Leorio is is given in the Yorknew arc, where Melody describes his heartbeat
as gentle and warm - one of the most pleasant sounds she’s ever heard. Leorio is the everyman, the one most like
you or me in terms of talent, skill, and power. But that is why he is so important. Because in spite of that, he is arguably the
best person in the story. Unremarkable, down on his luck, working against
unjust systems to right the wrongs of the world - and he still finds a way to be a genuinely
good guy. His heart and steely resolve is what makes
him special, and helps him to stand apart in potential from so many others. In a cynical world full of others who dwarf
Leorio in terms of power and influence, he works as hard as anybody to do what he believes
is right and positively impact the world. And doesn’t that mean that we can all do
our part as well? Hunter x Hunter is far from a wholly light
story. It ponders and criticizes mankind, it laments
the human condition and critiques politics and society in an innumerable number of ways. But it always grounds itself in hope and optimism
- and that spirit is encapsulated through Leorio. At the end of the day, there’s a reason
that simple storytelling is so effective - because it’s gratifying to root for a man like Leorio,
someone just trying to do his best to do the right thing in a world that encourages you
to do the opposite. As much as this story stresses how horrible
we can be and how much we can do better, it offers the flip side of that through this
man to show how honesty and truth still have their place. And because of that, I believe that the conclusion
of Leorio’s story will lend some insight about Togashi’s conclusive messages about
humanity overall. He’s a character whose understated role
is absolutely vital, the type of individual that any given story would love to have for
how he helps enable all of the off-the-wall concepts and characters through his mundane
normalcy. He provides an organic perspective, a humanized
touch, and most importantly, a kind and optimistic spirit that is infectious as all hell. Many thanks for watching.
