Yoshihiro Togashi’s Hunter x Hunter began serialization in Weekly Shonen Jump in 1998. The ongoing manga has received multiple anime adaptations, films, video games and more. Togashi’s series is one of the most popular manga of all time with over 84 million copies in circulation. The series’ lovable characters and incredible plot have led to a growing number of fans all around the world.
Two of the most popular Hunter x Hunter characters are Leorio Paladiknight and Kurapika. Leorio and Kurapika play a key role throughout the series. They are some of the first friends that the protagonist, Gon Freecss, makes during his adventures to take the Hunter Exam. While Leorio and Kurapika’s relationship begins rocky, they soon become friends. Interactions between Leorio and Kurapika have led them to become one of the most popular ships within the Hunter x Hunter fandom.
Are Kurapika and Leorio Actually a Couple?
According to Archive of Our Own (AO3) — a website that is home to fan works — Leorio and Kurapika are the second most written-about couple in Hunter x Hunter. AO3 alone has over 2,000 fan-written pieces about the pair. The ship name ‘Leopika’ has trended on Tumblr and Twitter multiple times as fans share text posts, video edits and art dedicated to the pair. The 1999 animated series has provided fans with the iconic nickname ‘Sunshine’ for Kurapika, which was granted to him by Leorio. However, despite the popularity of Leopika, the relationship has not been canonically established.
While Leorio and Kurapika aren’t a canon couple, there was a time when fans of the manga were unsure. Sometime after the release of Chapter 261 on Oct. 6th, 2007, an unofficial English translation was released. A scanlation team named NexGear released a version of the chapter that was far from what was truly happening in the story. There are plenty of things within the chapter that aren’t canon to Togashi’s story, including a panel describing why Kurapika and Leorio weren’t active in the current plot at the time of the chapter. This unofficial panel shows Leorio and Kurapika getting married and also shares that they have a baby on the way. Fans who read scanlations were confused by this work until it was revealed that it was an April Fools’ Day prank.
The Impact of Leopika on the Hunter x Hunter Fandom
Along with the confusing NexGear chapter, there is an official translation that leans into the marriage concept between the two. A radio CD series from 1999 has officially translated lines from Leorio calling Kurapika and himself ‘newlyweds.’ Leorio is also heard referring to Gon Freecss as their child. There are many interactions between the two in the adapted anime series, but there are further arcs within the manga that have yet to be adapted that excite fans for the anime’s future. While Leorio and Kurapika have not been revealed as a canonical couple, there is enough official content and fan content to fuel the hearts of shippers all around the world. As the manga is on hiatus and there is no news on the return of the anime, fans and occasional official art releases are what keep the ship so popular.
Leorio and Kurapika follow many couple tropes that fans love. The two bicker like a married couple and are complete opposites in some regards, which makes the possibility of a relationship even more exciting for fans. While the two aren’t married canonically, fans aren’t left with just scraps to defend their ship.
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