The young man who serves as the main character of Hunter X Hunter for the majority of the series is as loyal as they come. Still, his loyalty is often short-sighted and self-contained. Despite recruiting a number of powerful allies to his side, Gon fails to support his allies unless their decisions align with his own definition of justice.
The way Gon treats Killua is a perfect example of the selfish loyalty that makes him easy to relate to, but difficult to love at times. It even seems as if the more screen time Gon is given, the more unlikable he becomes.
10 Gon Abandoned His Foster Mother To Chase After A Man Who Abandoned Him
The entire purpose behind Gon's adventures throughout the first few arcs of Hunter X Hunter is to pass the Hunter's Exam and find his father. In order to commit to this life, Gon first had to say goodbye to his former life.
Fan may not have questioned Gon's actions when he first left Whale Island to pursue his dreams, but after watching Gon's selfish behavior in the Chimera Ant Arc, each of the young man's actions should be reevaluated. The decision to leave his foster mother for a man who had abandoned him at birth is a decision that is rooted in selfishness, but it still only serves as a subtle display of Gon's problematic behavior.
9 Gon Never Changes His Clothes
The green and orange outfit that Gon wears throughout the entirety of Hunter X Hunter is iconic, but it also serves as an example of the young man's inflexible nature. On the other hand, Gon's friend Killua is regularly changing outfits in order to keep his character design interesting and show off his fashion sense.
Fashion is not the main reason that viewers come to shonen anime, but Killua's cool wardrobe changes do earn him some extra likability points. The moment viewers begin comparing Gon to Killua, the green clad protagonist begins to fall off quite a bit in terms of likability.
8 Gon Refuses To Let Killua Risk His Life, Despite Regularly Putting His Own Life On The Line
There is nothing inherently unlikable about Gon refusing to let Killua put his life on the line to escape the prison created by Nobunaga and the Phantom Troupe. In fact, when Gon stops Killua, it appears almost as if he is fighting for the sake of Killua's life.
Still, it's hypocritical for Gon to lecture his friend over the dangers of self-sacrifice, considering how often Gon lays his life down for his friends. This is especially difficult to forgive when fans consider the fact that Gon uses these moments of self-sacrifice to learn new skills and evolve as a combatant in the world of HxH. Gon further condemns himself when he explains to Killua that he is the only one who is allowed to put his life on the line, functionally monopolizing the moral high ground.
7 Gon Forgave & Even Thanked A Serial Murderer Simply Because He Helped Him Train
Gon's ability to forgive the people around him is likable and even a bit admirable. Some fans even credit Gon's ability to forgive as the reason Killua was able to grow into the kind young man fans love today despite being raised as a heartless assassin. This theory discredits Killua's ability to grow on his own though, and therefore must be put under the microscope for further analysis.
When analyzing Gon's ability to forgive, it becomes clear that he is only able to forgive those who benefit his selfish desires. In Killua's case, Gon earned a friend and a peer. In another case, Gon forgives a serial murderer and cannibal simply because he helped him train.
6 Gon Completely Threw Aside Killua's Plan To Play With Genthru
While Gon trained with Bisky to enhance his Nen abilities at the end of the Greed Island Arc, Killua worked tirelessly to devise a plan that the trio could use to take out the bombers who had been terrorizing the game for years. The plan was flawless and could have resulted in the three members walking away from the fight unscathed.
However, Gon's selfish desire to overpower and embarrass the leader of the bombers threw a wrench in Killua's plan. Gon's victory over Genthru was cool, but his behavior had the potential to ruin Killua's plan and lose it all.
5 Gon Shattered Killua's Hands During Their Game Of Dodgeball
A Nen-enhanced game of dodgeball is an incredibly entertaining sport to watch. The game that Gon, Killua, and Hisoka played on Greed Island was especially entertaining due to the unique Nen abilities that each combatant brought to the table.
Between Hisoka's Bungee Gum, Gon's Jajanken, and Razer's puppeteering, a simple game of dodgeball became a strategic Nen battle. Unfortunately, for Gon to truly shine during the game of dodgeball, Killua had to put his own well-being on the line. While Gon never even asked Killua to sacrifice his hands, he did accept the assist despite the fact that he knew it would cripple his best friend.
4 The Young Hunter Refused To Accept That Killua Could Show Remorse
After Kite's death, Gon falls into a dark mental state that puts some distance between him and his friend Killua. Despite the fact that Gon and Killua were both with Kite when he was murdered by Neferpitou, Gon monopolizes the mourning ritual by claiming that Killua cannot feel the same remorse that he does.
By monopolizing the mourning ritual, Gon creates a rift between himself and Killua while also creating a rift between himself and the audience. Throughout HxH, Killua carries the responsibilities of a protagonist almost as much as Gon does, yet the green clad hunter still fails to see him as a human being with feelings and emotions like his own.
3 Gon Discredits Killua's Relationship With Kite
In the very same moment that Gon claimed that Killua was unable to feel remorse after Kite's death, he insults the young Zoldyck's ability to make friends. Though the manga and original anime series show that Gon and Kite's relationship began well before the Chimera Ant Arc, the 2011 anime shows Gon and Killua meeting Kite at the exact same time. If this were the case, there is no reason that Killua couldn't have developed the same sort of relationship with Kite that Gon had prior to the silver-haired hunter's death. For Gon to claim that Killua felt nothing after Kite's death is an insult to Killua's ability to feel emotions and his ability to make friends.
2 Gon Utterly Destroyed Nerferpitou In Combat
Gon's transformation prior to taking out one of the most powerful members of the Chimera Ant's Royal Guard may have seemed necessary, but by the end of the battle, it was clear that this transformation was overkill.
Transformation in shonen anime is often celebrated for the sake of offering fans a new power scale and a new character design to fawn over. Still, for Gon to break the power scale, he had to break himself and Neferpitou. While these two characters aren't the most likable ones in Hunter X Hunter, it was still a shame that this battle ended with Gon laying in a hospital bed and Pitou choking on her own teeth.
1 Gon Traded His Access To Nen For Nothing But Revenge
After Gon transformed into a taller and stronger version of himself to take out Pitou, his body was left in a lifeless state that only one of the five calamities brought back from the Dark Continent could cure. If Gon's sacrifice were necessary to ensure the safety of his world, maybe fans could look at it as admirable, but by the time Gon faced down Neferpitou, the threat of the Chimera Ants was almost entirely dealt with.
If Gon had simply added another Nen ability to his arsenal of tricks and recruited the help of a few friends, he could have easily defeated Neferpitou. Instead, he chose to take the Chimera Ant down on his own for the sake of revenge, forcing his closest friend to put his own life on the line to heal Gon's wounds.