This blog will be posting Every Illumi Panel from the Hunter x Hunter
manga by Yoshahiro Togashi. If you feel I have missed one, please let me know! If you have suggested tags for organization purposes, also let me know. I will be using the Viz Media translation.
Queue is currently loaded through July 22 - which is the last appearance of Illumi as of 04/28!
This blog is run by @basilvalentine. You can find me both on Tumblr and on AO3.
Hey all! Apologies for making an announcement about the future of this blog and then immediately Not Doing That.
I will actually be keeping this blog as manga-only, and thus it will be on hiatus until more manga Illumis appear (hopefully soon!).
There is a series of unfortunate events to which I could point (a few dozen gifs made, computer broken, gifs lost, motivation also lost) but the bigger factor is that my job has moved from a "lots of standing and creative thinking" job to a "categorizing things at a computer" job (a good change, to be clear), and my hobbies have changed to accommodate that. This project was filling a hole that no longer exists, so I'm not as fixated upon it.
Once again, it's been a pleasure, and I do plan to remain active in fan spaces and to keep up with new Illumis appearing! Much love to you all.
Illumi's poker face gets a lot of love, as it rightly deserves, but he's not always so deadpan! Let's take a look at some of his finest smiles, and discover what it takes to make this assassin grin.
#7. Ch. 6, "Just Too Creepy!" Reason to smile: being Gittarackur
We simply must start this off with Gittarackur, the king of genuine and approachable smiles. This is our second Illumi panel, and he spends it with a smile creepy enough to dissuade our resident rookie-crusher. We'll see Gittarackur's entire face change soon, with his jaw filling out and his drool disappearing, but this smile sets the tone for Gittarackur. Why would Illumi choose such a smiley disguise? There's no wrong answers here. (It's a shame he didn't get to try the poisoned juice, though.)
#6. Ch. 326, Hisoka's Toybox. Reason to smile: being imagined as a toy
I've docked a couple of points here because this is an imaginary Illumi, but I've added a couple of points for being phenomenally cute, so it still comes out very well. In a sea of toys unhappy to be in Hisoka's toybox, Illumi stands out as the happiest and most lively toy around.
#5. Ch. 326, "Ready, Set, Go!" Reason to smile: driving a truck into his little brother
Do I understand what this panel is doing? Yes. We've got Illumi fading into the dark background, flattening him out and also making him look like Nanika. It's also a clever way to communicate the scene while minimizing drawing time, given Togashi's health issues. Do I like this panel? No, I think it's jarring and its style gets in the way of its point. BUT! Do I like this smile? I do. He looks so genuinely delighted to be on this mission against Killua. He just loves to be hunting down his family members. It's the most fun he's had in years. Remember: if you have an unusually deadpan assassin, he might just be lacking in sibling-hunting enrichment.
#4. Ch. 36, "No need for us to fight, eh?" Reason to smile: getting his way
The only thing better than fighting with your brother is not fighting with your brother. This is his smallest smile, but one of his most expressive. Look at those eyebrows! He's so happy! Killua's obeying him, he's about to get his Hunter license, and all is right in the world!
#3. Ch. 336, "That's my theory." Reason to smile: theorizing
Illumi treats us to some long theorizing and exposition about Nanika, then turns to Killua and absolutely beams at him (and the audience) while asking if he's right. How much of this did Illumi actually say to Killua? No idea. How much of it is correct? No idea. But Hunter x Hunter characters love nothing as much as they love exposition, and Illumi is a master of the craft. I'm glad he's proud of himself, especially since he's about to get teleported away.
#2. Ch. 333, "Nanika... is MINE!!" Reason to smile: feeling possessive of his incredibly powerful sister
Illumi has a tendency to count his eggs before they've hatched. He's absolutely thrilled at Nanika's power. Last panel, he said "I want this power... above all else!" Now, he's saying that this power is his. Not quite, Illumi, but I'm glad you're excited. Also, check out that smile. He looks like a cat just absolutely drowning in catnip.
#1. Ch. 336, "I could turn Killua into a complete puppet!" Reason to smile: could turn Killua into a complete puppet
WHAT a self-image Illumi has. His body is completely irrelevant; both Alluka and Killua get clothes and proportioned bodies, but not so for Illumi. What he has, though, are enormous eyes and an even bigger smile. In his fantasies, he's an elated string cheese. And, of course, this glee comes from the idea of completely and utterly controlling two of his wildly powerful siblings. You can't say he's not ambitious.
Every Illumi is wonderful, but some of them are significantly more so. The top 7 posts (there's 5 posts with >100 notes, but there's 2 with exactly 99 as of today, so they get to sneak in) showcase him at his prettiest, worst, and weirdest. Let's see them!
#6 (tie): Ch. 36, "Assassins have no use for friends." 99 notes.
Several people called this one "THE Illumi panel," and I have to agree. If you needed to extrapolate his entire character out from a single panel, this is the one I'd choose. He's aloof, he's violent, he's a hypocrite, he's a floating pair of eyes in a blank void. What more could we want from a panel?
#6 (tie): Ch. 323, "And people say I'm crazy." 99 notes.
And, on the other hand, we've got the panel that shows off a very different aspect of his character. He's also clueless! He's just explained that Killua loves Illumi more than anyone else in the world, and Hisoka, along with the audience, reacts to that with disbelief. How could Illumi possibly believe that after all of their terrible interactions? It's simple: Illumi is deeply sheltered, has a deeply unhealthy understanding of love and mentorship, and is also kinda stupid. What a treat, to have this all expressed so efficiently in this panel. Plus, it's great when Illumi smiles!
#5. Ch. 36, "Heard you stabbed Mom and Milluki." 108 notes.
You just can't go wrong with playing Zoldyck family violence for laughs. This solidifies the tone Zoldycks are going to get throughout the series, but also sells Illumi as not just a weirdo (affectionately) but also an annoying older brother, poking at Killua's teen rebellion the same way my sister used to with me. Fewer parental stabbings on my end, though. Illumi also just looks great here - love his big ears and tiny mouth!
#4. Ch. 36, "You're just not qualified to make friends." 109 notes.
And, in the same scene, we get the other classic Zoldyck tone - horrifically controlling behavior and a terrified Killua. Again, this panel is a powerhouse in terms of establishing Illumi's character and his relationship with Killua. Despite its extremely clear meaning - Killua is under Illumi's thumb, and has been taught he doesn't need or deserve friendship - there's also some lovely ambiguities here. What does "qualification" mean in this context? Why exactly does Illumi object to Killua's friendships, and is it the same reason that Kikyo and Silva do? It's a great panel.
#3. Ch. 115, First Popularity Contest. 114 notes.
I'm honestly surprised this one made the cut! Clearly, there's a feeling of fellowship between current fans and the fans of this original popularity contest. 8th place isn't bad, after all. My personal favorite thing is that one of the explanations for voting is just "He's Killua's Brother!!" He sure is. Based on the notes, though, many people are also delighted by how prominent his ears are here. And they're right to be!
#2. Ch. 323, "Two more couples to confirm the rules." 116 notes.
FLAME PANTS FLAME PANTS FLAME PANTS. Sure, it's neat exploring Illumi's interpretation of Alluka's powers and the family's responses. It's neat seeing Hisoka engaging with this exposition. But the flame pants really steal the show here.
#1. Ch. 210, Extremely Pretty Illumi. 152 notes.
Our #1 most popular post makes absolute sense. This is simply a very, very pretty Illumi. What does it mean for him to be so beautiful during a discussion of his abuse of Killua? What does it mean for this to be Bisky's - or maybe Killua's - view of him, when we rarely see him quite this beautiful ever again? Why does he so thoroughly haunt Killua during CAA despite not showing up once? These are all valuable questions that I can't answer right now because I'm busy looking at Illumi. Can you blame me?
Hello everyone. We have reached... The Last Illumi (for now). We will leave him here, doing what he loves most (being tiny in the background).
So! To celebrate, I'd like to do a brief Illumi Awards Ceremony, to commemorate the best/strangest/most compelling/funniest panels. I've got a couple planned already, but feel free to submit ideas or suggestions!
After that, we're going to start posting Illumis In Motion! I've starting giffing every Illumi from the '99 anime (there's some real treats for Gittarackur enjoyers coming up). I hope you'll enjoy!
And, seriously, thanks for being involved with this blog, whether you're quietly lurking or frequently commenting and reblogging. I started this project for my personal reference (and because I found the screenshotting to be really soothing), and didn't really expect anyone else to be engaged with it. It's been so much fun interacting with people, and I'm grateful to all of you!
