Board Thread:Fun and Games/@comment-48285-20161205164344/@comment-26871067-20170621171721

Jaadowgg wrote: Have you seen the cover for volume 34, yet? Yep, and the extras! I'm more focused on the fact that Shalnark's last name is apparently literally meteor (presumably the standard romanization would be Ryusei, since it's spelled as Ryuseih by Togashi) and the implications that either he was someone important in Meteor City or Meteor City has a Game Of Thrones-esque bastard surname system where any bastard born there is given that surname. The latter means that in my heart, I can still believe... The "Kurta Shalnark" dream is not dead... Even though Shalnark is, rest in pieces.

Admittedly that theory was always a reach, but I thought it would have been really great. As a really tricksy writer myself I'd been hoping the fact that Kurapika and Shalnark had never actually met face-to-face (the closest they come is when Kurapika abducts Uvogin, he's not there when the Troupe busts Uvogin out again) would be significant. Guess not, but it was cool while it lasted.

I have no idea how Kortopi and Machi's surnames are supposed to be pronounced/romanized beyond Togashi-style, incidentally. Shalnark's is just blatantly intuitive given the Japanese name of Meteor City.