Why Hunter Had to Die | The Owl House

The fact that Hunter had to do a trial by water is symbolic not only to the fact it was common when Philip and Caleb were young, but the Boiling Isles is NOTORIOUS for the boiling water oceans and bodies of water. The way we meet Hunter, masked as the golden guard, is by him rising from the ocean in a steaming fist.

I never questioned how quickly Hunter was sinking. Now that I look back on it, the theory that he swallowed water to make sure belos couldn't escape is BONE-CHILLING and you're probably right!

It always felt like hunter likes wolves because wolves are the natural preditors of deers and deers remind him of belos because of the antlers

in my opinion the most impactful moment of his sacrifice is the fact that the first words out of his mouth when he opened his eyes was "hey guys. is everyone else ok?"

I think that "I'd like" means "I want to but I can't". He really wants to live free of belos, but the only way to defeat him is to sacrifice himself. Maybe that was said in the video and I didn't notice it, but just thought that I'd put that out there :).

the boiling isles is 100% based on whale falls, which is an ecosystem that is created on the carcass of a whale that falls to the sea floor. the titan still being alive is symbolic of how even after a whale dies, it still allows for life to bloom in the earth’s abyssal plane, an ecological biome which covers like 70% of the ocean floor, located in the midnight zone. the theming of this show runs so deep, and the setting is no exception.

I think we shouldn't forget Hunter's body was literally rotting by Belos' possession. I would've discuss instances of clinical and biological death(possibility to revive Hunter by... Brutally forcing CPR in the magical story which feels... Wrong), but! A lake and fewer minutes would've enough for poor kid. Flapjack not only revived him, but also restored his body. R. E. S. T. O. R. E. D. It feels like Hunter knew that(detioration aspect) which for me actually adds to the that crushing feeling. He knew. He decided. He grieved. P. S. Oh my good, the lore, the explanation, the perspective, the love for the character oozing~! And cute bat squeaks.

Once you pointed out the "I'd like" lines, I realize that I had interpreted it as Hunter telling Belos these things via Belos' own language. Belos had a habit of using 'gentle' wording to manipulate others, but especially with Hunter (probably to maintain the illusion of familial/blood bonds).

One thing that really got me in this video is that Hunter was trained to take beating from ANYONE. Idk why but that is just so heart breaking to me, he's been trained his whole life to just follow orders. if not from Belos then literally anyone else. Really takes the lack of freedom to the next level. No wonder he lowered his head to Camila, it's what he's been trained to do the moment he was created.

>child dies in s3e1 dana: "and i'd do it again"

I grew up in a cult and was able to leave now as an adult. the only reason I was able to because I finally found someone who trully loves me, and who was able to give me a family that was kind and caring. and was able to help me fully and competently leave. I absolutely relate to Hunter, the fear you feel right after leaving is really strong. I would have nightmares every single night of them finding me and taking me back. I remember at one point breaking down for the first time in front of my now husband because he simply told me "no one will ever control you again. I love you, you are family" I cries so hard. because that idea of being free, and control of my own life was so far away from me. I do bear a lot of mental scars still which has made me unable to work. But I absolutely love hunter, I related to him from the start and could see myself in him so much. You hit the nail in the coffin when it comes to being views as an extension of your abuser and only able to look and act like them, and going from that to being a bit lost with looks and style and yourself, until finding yourself fully. thank you for this amazing video

19:50: If you look closely though, that "jumble of lost and found rags" is actually an important transitional look. It's a recreation of his Golden Guard uniform but one that is made up of clothes he got while making those first emotional connections: the gray bandana from his time with Luz, his flyer derby jersey from when he met Willow and Gus. The patch where his should guard would normally be is Flapjack red and right where Flapjack first perched on him, and I think you could even make an argument for his yellow bag as a stand-in for Amity's abomination goo jar. Even the next "non-descript bland outfit" is made up of his signature yellow layered on top of Luz's signature purple. The important context is this is the first time Hunter has seen Luz since they connected in Hollow Mind and he's been specifically sent to look out for her by Darius (coincidentally another purple palette who cares about Hunter). The outfit is basic and blank-slate in design, yes, yet still telling of how Hunter is slowly making decisions for himself about who he is and which connections have become precious and valued to him. It's also extremely identical to what he's wearing when he first teams up with Luz -- makes that first real connection -- in Hunting Palismen. He spends most of that episode in a purple shirt underneath a yellow top. ("Everything's come full circle, baby!") Between the non-descript outfit, followed by his yellow sweatshirt, and then finally his yellow Halloween costume, his outfits start in muted colors and get progressively deeper and deeper color saturations as he discovers who he is through S3. He started this story in an outfit he was forced to wear that copied the gold/white colors of his abuser, and ends (minus the epilogue) in an outfit containing ONLY HIS COLORS and his "part of the pack" wolf shirt, that he made entirely himself.

I want you to know that this BROKE me, I was crying for half of it and actually still am. I have a friend who is so like hunter in every way it’s almost painful, and he was all I could think about while I listened. I thought hunters ‘death’ was a perfect rounding to his arc and thank you for explaining it so beautifully!

flapjack to me meant a lot. my family believes in cardinals being whispers of dead relatives, we always have. whenever i see a cardinal i think to myself 'hi wannie/pops' depending on the cardinal. so when i first saw flapjack i felt so many things all at once

I put off watching this video for a bit, but it suddenly hit me: The Reason Camilla cries in doll form (why the main crew all stop) when the Luz Lights begin to fall in the final special, is because they know what it means. I had forgotten that was exactly how things went with Flapjack, and it just clicked. I need another rewatch suddenly.

I didn’t even think about something before this video, but in the scene where he jumps into the water you made me think of it! Hunter sank, he was a grimwalker and a witch and he passed the “test of innocence,” whereas when Belos left his body he rose into the air like guilty witches are supposed to. He was out of the water at that time but I am certain that if Hunter was left in the water for a little longer, Belos would have risen out of the water like a guilty witch. I don’t know if I’m just reading into things, but I just find the idea of Hunter the witch willingly subjecting himself to a trial by water and passing as innocent, and Belos the witch hunter failing is really interesting. Also just the visuals of Hunter sinking and then Belos rising from his body after he “passed”the test really symbolic. Anyway, thank you for the video! I’ve been binging your videos after I found one that I really liked, and your ideas and analysis are really fantastic! Thank you for talking about trauma and abuse in such a realistic and honorable way, a lot of people don’t understand that shit and talk about it in a really disrespectful way, but you’re very eloquent and I really appreciate your viewpoints!

Jesus, that part when you were list off "who exactly is Hunter?" at 20:28 hit me real hard Being an autistic, adhd person with a history of self-loathing problems who is just dipping her toes into transitioning, and having failed college, TWICE What I would give for someone to just go through my head and list MY traits off like that would be so appreciated. I've always felt like the ignored one, so much so that I don't even know who I am MYSELF, so if someone listed my traits out like that I would feel so seen! It's funny, intrinsically, if I were to relate to anyone in the show I always thought it would be a combination of Luz' ostracization and Williows lack of self confidence, but after this there's a surprising amount of Hunters story I relate to too, that being the struggle for self identification and thankfully not the abuse that caused it. This is all to say, I loved this video! I remember watching you Unmasking video and instantly subbed, but youtube didn't notify me of any other videos untill this one so needless to say, I binged them all. So yeah, keep doing you and adding your wonderful thoughts and insight into this community!

25:16 "I'd like vs. I want" 32:13 "flapjack left him his eyes, and his wings" • I love this. Because flapjack basically gave him a new perspective to life. To see the world in a much brighter perspective. And the wings indicating that his free. • I think the I'd like can also mean he would want to but can't. Because he was already ready to sacrifice himself. Basically "I'm going to end myself so I know I wouldn't be able to do this". Or it can also be him wanting to do something but because he was so caught up not being able to do what he wants. He doesn't know the word "Want" because he was never given what he *want*.

one thing that I also noticed about Belos' posession of Hunter is something that I haven't really seen anyone else discuss. You mentioned Belos undoing a lot of the things that Hunter altered to make himself look different from Caleb. I noticed something else. Hunter has two distinct scars, one on his right cheek and one on his left ear. When Belos possessed him, where on his head does the 'rot', so to speak, show up most prominently? His cheeks, particularly the right one, and his left ear. Belos covered up Hunter's scars.

I’m a disabled person… I find hope in my scars because while yes, I was hurt, I got back up and kept fighting…. Hunter, and by extension Flapjack, did the same thing… that’s what brought them together in the end of “Thanks to Them”