The Ending Of Netflix's Shaman King Season 1 Explained

Season 1 of Netflix's new anime, "Shaman King," has come to a close, and in the wake of its events, it is clear that the show is heading somewhere exciting. Though we are far from the true ending of the series, the main heroes are moments away from the most important conflict in the manga. The Shaman Fight is about to begin, and whoever wins will become an unstoppable force of nature. Our heroes, Yoh, Ryu, Ren, and Horohoro have a tough fight ahead of them as the rest of the world's most powerful shamans have joined this all-or-nothing tournament for power. Before they can get to busting skulls with their Over Souls, however, they have to find the location of the Patch Tribe — something that might take them a while, and which Netflix has left for Season 2.

In the meantime, it might be prudent to look at "Shaman King" Season 1's final episode to see what it means for the series going forward. The journey is long (39 more episodes to be exact), the road is rough, and Yoh's team is going to have to push their limits if any of them wants to earn the right to call themselves the Shaman King. Thankfully, Yoh's penchant for seeing the silver lining is there to make sure things turn out just as they should.

Like we said before, the protagonists of "Shaman King" have only just entered the Shaman Fight. While they have yet to meet the grand majority of the Shamans they will be fighting against over the course of the next few months, it's already clear that the competition is steep. In particular, the introduction of Hao poses an especially large threat. Hao's backstory and intentions are shrouded in mystery, but the strength of his spirit, the Spirit of Fire, is currently unrivaled by anyone in the cast.

In the end, Hao's inclusion makes things that much harder for Yoh and his friends. Fighting an army of Shamans is bad enough, but fighting a one-man Shaman army on top of that might be too much for the crew. Thankfully, they still have three months to find the Patch Tribe's village. That gives them time to power up before the real fighting really begins. As long as they stick together and stay true to what motivates them, our heroes might emerge victorious.

Regardless of anything else, it's also clear at this point that understanding who Hao is will be the key in allowing Yoh or his friends to become Shaman King. Hao is being built up as the main antagonist at this point, and his identity will play a major part in overcoming his seemingly insurmountable level of power. Luckily, Yoh is already on the right path. Hao has already told him that the two share some connection aside from their similar looks. Furthermore, Yoh's encounter with Lilirara, a Seminoan Shaman who wants to prevent the Shaman Fight, has uncovered some other, very telling details.

To start, this isn't the first Shaman Fight in which Hao has participated. Through a vision of the past, Lilirara shows Yoh and company that a previous incarnation of Hao had fought in the last Shaman Fight 500 years ago, and he almost won. This fails to dissuade Yoh as Lilirara expected, and her faith in Shaman-kind is restored by Yoh's uncompromising optimism.

Unfortunately, her positive outlook is short-lived. Hao soon appears after Yoh leaves, and he reveals to Lilirara that his desire to become Shaman King is motivated by a hatred for humans, with the eventual goal of entirely exterminating them. Then, his Spirit of Fire consumes Lilirara's soul, condemning her to an eternity of nonexistence. Why Hao hates humanity to such a degree is currently unknown, but will surely be explored in Season 2.

Watching the main antagonist, who happens to be the strongest character in the series so far, devour a human soul does anything but bode well for our heroes. Based on Hao's short interaction with Yoh's team earlier in the final episode, it's clear that the same fate could easily befall them if Hao felt like it. Even so, it's best to keep your chin up during these dark times. Hao might seem unstoppable, but so far Yoh's optimism hasn't failed him. In fact, it's one of his defining strengths.

For instance, when the Patch tribe's spirit airplane dematerialized mid-flight on its way to America, it's Yoh's level head and certainty that they will survive the fall that allows them to do just that. So, things might seem grim now, but with Yoh constantly looking at the glass half full, they might just beat Hao and accomplish their goals.

That doesn't mean they can sit idly by, however. Even Yoh isn't strong enough to go toe-to-toe with Hao at the moment, so they need to find a way to actually beat him before they can get cocky. Perhaps this is easier said and done. Regardless, Yoh is determined to see this through to the end with a smile on his face.