Hunter x Hunter

Hunter x Hunter is probably one of my very favorite stories of all time. Excellently written, it's a deconstruction of typical shonen tropes. Every arc and character has a purpose in the overall story, and it is one of the few stories where the protagonists and antagonists are equally compelling. The main narrative six characters (Gon, Killua, Kurapika, Hisoka, Illumi, and Chrollo) all foil each other in very interesting ways, and the story can veer from lighthearted adventure to dark ponderings on the evil humanity is capable of without even feeling uneven. The framing is excellent and the story's themes are powerful.

It has great female characters (my only complaint about HxH is that there were no female characters until Yorknew Arc, but after that, they're there and they're awesome and thematically relevant with powerful arcs--especially Palm, Neon, Oito, Komugi, and Alluka). Speaking of Alluka, she is great trans representation. In general, the side characters are highly compelling.

HxH is a fantastic series. It starts off as deceptively innocent and generic but by the end of the first volume, all of that is proven to be just an illusion.

The series has incredible morally grey antagonists that have their own motivations and existence outside of the plot and they always stay very relevant in the story after their subsequent arc (bar one exception).

The main characters are very unique and each have their own goals and personalities that distinguish them and follow their own journeys. Gon and Killua's chemistry and friendship are also very well written.

The story also has a very considerable amount of depth and realism that mirrors our world and doesn't just limit itself to handing generic "life lessons" to its readers like "don't give up" or "hardwork beats talent" but instead creates very nuanced and realistic situations and explores mature themes, even taboo ones pretty openly and deeply.

The creativity in designs is also astonishing and the art style is very unique.

The fights are very strategic and the power system is brilliant and results in infinite possibilities without leading to escalation.

All in all, Togashi has crafted arguably the best possible shonen series.

Hunter x Hunter has incredible character development. It can be divided into roughly 5 arcs, all which span several volumes and are carefully crafted so as to not leave any holes in the plot. You will rarely be wondering how something is possible, as the author covers every possible ground to make what is happening on the pages coherent. Battles are won through cunning over strength, and many great characters will either die or be left by the wayside when their time comes, giving you the sense of impermeability with the characters one has grown fond of. Hunter x Hunter has the action of a Shonen but has the plot and text on par with a great psychological Sienen. The story only receives an 8 from me because the last arc, which is on hiatus i believe, is sloppily drawn, and honestly would be hard to top considering the magnitude of the arc before it. The art is loose at times but is more than made up for by the fabulous text. The character development is so strong that one will know what the characters are feeling before they even feel it, and it gives the reader a strong sense of attachment. If there is one manga I come back to over and over, it this one. The plot is so well done that one could pick a any volume in the series and immediately be taken in.

This is one of the most underrated manga i ever read. The characters are really well develop,you are gonna love some of the characters good or evil. Most people see this story has an shonen battle manga but yet it is not like that at some points at the story, some part of the story will use challenges for the main or secondary characters in were the need to use the intellectual to beat the enemy. Every arc has is own unique style with different objectives that will not make you bored of the story. This is a great manga one may said that is a legendary one, but it has is down falls, some of parts of the story made drag for many chapters leaving a long speeches and some cases with no drawing, this may turn off the casual reader if they are looking for a fast pace manga, yet the author rewards the reader with some awesome moments at the end of every arc. This story has some moments with gore parts so be ware of those parts if you are not in that kind of stuff. I highly recommend for the casual reader that go watch the anime 2011 version first, by far it the best adaptation of the manga, but if your are a hardcore manga reader like myself and had not read this manga i highly recommenced to read this manga because it one of the greatest you ever read. I warn you this story has not ended and may never be finish so beware if you don't like that kind of manga.

"Monstrous Animals, Rare Species...Buried Riches, Hidden Treasures...Worlds of Demons, Unexplored Lands...The Word 'UNKNOWN' Seems Magic...And Some Men Are Attracted By This Force...They Are Called 'HUNTERS'!"

This is the introductory that meets the reader in the very 1st chapter of the 1st volume of the Hunter X Hunter manga. Having had already watched the anime, I am aware of what Hunter X Hunter is about so the introduction wasn't anything new. Someone who hasn't ever encountered Hunter X Hunter, however, will probably feel disappointed to eventually find out that the manga isn't really about a treasure-hunt or a great adventure into some unique, hidden world.

The manga is, in the beginning, about a boy named Gon who joins a Hunter test (a test composed of various practical examinations on anything that the judge wants for the examinees to prove that they deserve the title "HUNTER") in order to find his father, who seems like a popular Hunter who has done a lot of great things. It is during this examination that Gon meets and befriends three other examinees.

At this point in the manga, it seems that the four of them - each with distinct abilities, personality, and reason for taking the Hunter Exam - are the main protagonists in the story. The story itself is interesting because the goals of the protagonists and the challenges they have to go to achieve these goals are quite interesting.

My problem with the manga is that as the story progressed, the plot was solely focused on two of the four protagonists so that the story evolved around them for more than 10 volumes (TEN! TEN! ARGH!!). And I mean FOCUS in a way that as if there has never been the four of them when the story started. Although Gon and Killua's goal (to find Gon's father) isn't boring, the biggest problem I have with it is that the same thing happens every time they find a new clue about where Gon's father could be: clue->new place->new enemies->realize they're not strong enough->meet a master who says the same thing: "they have a lot of potential!" or "who are these kids??"->train->become stronger->defeat enemy who will eventually say the same thing: "these kids are strong, blah, blah"->find a new clue->and it goes on and on and on...

After some time, this becomes really annoying because the story just keeeeeeeeeeeeps dragging on. This is also the same reason I stopped watching Bleach so yeah X)

English Version

-I had done a review of the anime a while ago .. I'll put it back here since it's practically the same with the exception that the manga has a horrible inconsistency with the drawing, as it does not have the animation, the music and the direction of the anime that it improves it in every aspect of the work, therefore I can call it bad and with all the errors that are loaded-

I will talk only about the errors of the series .. Arc by Arc

1)Hunter Exam.
Although the beginning paints well and forms the friendship relations of which the main cast will be everything that consists of the examination itself is badly planned, to start all the characters do not seem to have empathic emotions with respect to everything that is happening in the same exam, nobody is unfazed or feels some fear corresponding to death, if I compare it with the whole cast that was raised and the situations in the Chunnin exam in Naruto this part HxH is too short, I could also talk about the end of the exam the hunter is hypocritical in the sense that they had raised this idea "No matter what happens we will continue with the exam until the end" but when they reach the tournament part in the end they complement it with "You can not kill the opponent" here everything goes relatively "Good" but when Killua kills the opponent they send everything to take for ass and approve the others in such a simple way, all the effort of the people who died to love complete the exam they sent him to take for ass for that detail.

2) Tower of Heaven
A whole arc where Killua and Gon go in search of skills, their premise is their problem, because it is basically that, a focused arc only to start making "Complex" the fights and make the show "Deep", the arc entirely dense, not passable or entertaining, simply dense and tedious, the fights of that arc are worth nothing because Gon and Killua are entirely protected by the plot armor of the moment so you know that they will not lose or die, therefore there is NO RISK, that means "boring". The arc is entirely bad

3)York City
Decerebrate action with a protagonist Gary stu to summarize things ... Kurapika skips the rules of the Nen that were established a back arc, you can increase the powers as he wants, He has unlimited access to the whole bar of powers of Nen, does not have any reflection after killing Uvogin because he had previously established that from his point of view everything he does is correct, Togashi fills Kurapika with unlimited weapons and powers after taking all one to create such a complex system of powers ... Shit

4) Greed Island
The tower of heaven made worse; This arc is basically canon filler, you can skip it and it will not change anything, just take care to know that "Gon and Killua train their powers in a world of video games" because from then on the villain is the worst of the series in general , the bomber is forced into this arc only to create "drama and tension" .. All this arc is the worst shit

5) Quimera ants
Very good the arc entirely, the whole series was prepared for this moment and it is excellent, it has its criticable things as the Asspull of the nuclear bomb of Netero or that eliminated all the development of Meruem giving it "Amnesia" only to lengthen the arc still more in a more insufferable way ..

6)The elections
The arc totally shits the consequences of the chimera ants (Revive Gon), the idea of ​​Alukka was not so bad since it had rules but AGAIN togashi loves to fuck his own rules and makes Killua know the only way to get the wishes WITHOUT CONSEQUENCES ... To end the arc with Gon looking for his father in the world tree, Gin tells him the message of the work in general "That what matters is the trip, not the final destination" the message would have meaning if Gon had learned something in his trip through the whole series, but you know what? GON NEVER LEARNS ANYTHING, IS THE SAME START TO THE END ... With this proposed you can imply that everything that happened the series is a nonsense that even in its last moments can unite its history with coherence to the message of the work


In conclusion..
The work is anticlimactic, it breaks all its proposed ideas, the protagonist never learns anything, the work is worth only in a single arch of 6 principals,
the direction and the music make the anime mediocre even when the script entirely becomes bad.

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Version en Español

-Habia hecho una review del anime hace tiempo.. La volvere a poner aqui ya que es practicamente lo mismo con la excepcion de que el manga tiene una horrible inconsistencia con el dibujo, al no tener la animacion, la musica y la direccion del anime que lo mejora en todo aspecto a la obra, por lo tanto puedo tacharla de mala ya con todos los errores que se carga-

Hablare únicamente de los errores de la serie.. Arco por arco

1) Arco del examen del cazador.
Si bien el inicio pinta bien y se forman las relaciones de amistad del que será el cast principal todo lo que consiste al examen mismo está mal planteado, para empezar todos los personajes ni parecen tener emociones empáticas con respecto a todo lo que está pasando en el mismo examen, nadie se inmuta o siente algún miedo correspondiente a la muerte, si lo comparo con el cast entero que se planteó y las situaciones en el examen Chunnin en Naruto se queda muy corto esta parte HxH, tambien podría hablar que el final del examen del cazador es hipócrita en el sentido de que ellos habían planteado esta idea “No importa lo que pase seguiremos con el examen hasta el final” pero cuando llegan a la parte del torneo en el final lo complementan con “No se puede matar al oponente” aquí va todo relativamente “Bien” pero cuando Killua mata al oponente mandan todo a tomar por culo y aprueban a los demás de forma tan sencilla, todo el esfuerzo de la gente que murió para querer a completar el examen lo mandaron a tomar por culo por ese detalle.

2) Torre del Cielo
Todo un arco donde Killua y Gon van en busca de conseguir habilidades, su premisa es su problema, porque es básicamente eso, un arco únicamente enfocado solo para empezar hacer “Complejas” las peleas y hacer que el show sea “Profundo”, el arco enteramente es denso, no es pasable ni entretenido, simplemente denso y tedioso, las peleas de ese arco no valen nada la pena por que Gon y Killua están enteramente protegidos por el plot armor del momento asi que sabes que ni van a perder o morir, por lo tanto NO HAY RIESGO, eso significa que “Aburrido”. El arco enteramente es malo

3) York City
Accion descerebrada con un protagonista Gary stu para resumir las cosas… Kurapika se salta las reglas del Nen que se establecieron un arco atrás, se puede aumentar los poderes como él quiera, Tiene acceso ilimitado a toda la barra de poderes de Nen, no tiene alguna reflexión luego de matar a Uvogin porque desde antes se había establecido que desde su punto de vista todo lo que hace es correcto, Togashi llena a Kurapika de armas y poderes ilimitados luego de tardar todo un para crear un sistema tan complejo de poderes... Mierda

4) Greed Island
La torre del cielo hecho peor; Este arco es básicamente relleno canon, te lo puedes saltar y no va a cambiar nada, solo ocupas saber que “Gon y Killua entrenan sus poderes en un mundo de videojuegos” porque de ahí en mas el villano es lo peor de la serie en general, el bombardero esta metido forzadamente en este arco solo para crear “drama y tension”.. Todo este arco es mierda de la peor

5) Hormigas Quimera
Muy bueno el arco enteramente, toda la serie se preparo para este momento y quedo excelente, tiene sus cosas criticable como el Asspull de la bomba nuclear de Netero o de que eliminaron todo el desarrollo de Meruem dándole “Amnesia” solo para alargar el arco aun mas de forma mas insufrible..

6) Las elecciones
El arco caga totalmente las consecuencias de las hormigas quimera (Revivir a Gon), la idea de Alukka no estaba tan mal ya que tenia reglas pero OTRA VEZ togashi le encanta mandar a la mierda sus propias reglas y hace que Killua conozca la única forma de conseguir los deseos SIN CONSECUENCIAS... Para finalizar el arco con Gon buscando a su padre en el árbol mundial, Gin le comenta el mensaje de la obra en general “Que lo que importa es el viaje, no el destino final” el mensaje tendría sentido si Gon hubiera aprendido algo en su viaje por toda la serie ¿Pero saben que? GON NUNCA APRENDE NADA, ES EL MISMO DE INICIO HASTA EL FINAL…Con esto propuesto puedes dar a entender que todo lo que paso la serie es un sin sentido que ni siquiera en sus últimos momentos puede unir su historia con coherencia para el mensaje de la obra

En conclusión..
La obra es anticlimática, rompe todas sus ideas propuestas, el protagonista jamas aprende nada, la obra solo vale la pena en un único arco de 6 principales, la dirección y la música hacen al anime mediocre aun cuando el guion enteramente llega a ser mala..

This review DO NOT contain spoilers.

First of all, i need to say: hunter x hunter is not a flawless mangá. The art style in some chapters are avarege, since the author has many health issues and can´t draw properly, and some moments has too many exposition dialogues that doens´t need to be too long.
However, despite these problems, hunter x hunter is one of the most unique and inteligent battle shounen that exist, followed by one piece and jojo.
Here are some of the most compelling things that make me love this mangá:

The narrative structure: Hunter x hunter has 4 main characters, and we follow the journey of each one of them to search their own individual goals. However, they never are the center of attention: the villains and many other characters has their own lives and doens´t care about the main characters goals. In a normal battle shounen, the villains are always in the main character way and the whole arc will be focused in the fight between the main cast and the villains. In hunter x hunter, however, the main cast has zero relevance in the villains plans, and are is more focused in each character goal than on the fight itself.

The transition of arc: There are many shounens (cof,cof, fairy tail cof, cof) in which the arcs are repetitive and predictable. In hunter x hunter, however, each arc is completly different from each other, both in narrative and style. Think in hunter x Hunter as many different anime troopes in one anime: Do you have a máfia investigation arc, a card game isekai arc, a psychological horror arc, a political arc, a battle royale arc, etc.

The magic system: Holy shit, what an amazing and creative magic system. Hunter x hunter always has some creative battles and use of powers that lacks to many battle shounens.

I hope you find this review useful.

this is just the best
perfect story with every kind of feelings inside, based on friendship like all other animes but this is just best of them
the thing that seperates this anime/manga from others is, hxh is so intense has no useless stuff in it and has great 1v1 battles, not just based on 2 kids, there are so many great characters and they all have their own great stories
and most of all the best thing is the improvement of people, for example they dont just get evolved in no time, they need to train so hard and get their result.
and probably the only bad thing is togashi's illness :(

This manga is an absolute masterpiece, and I'll never stop recommending it.

Character development is incredible and the story is engaging. Pacing is pretty much perfect. While I was reading the manga, it really felt like I was on a journey with the protagonists, which I think is a sign of great writing.

There are hardly any instances of plot armor or plot holes in this manga. In all 380 chapters, there are only 2 events that can be referred to as asspull. The power system feels balanced and contained, without skyrocketing in later chapters, instead opting for more creative powers.

This is my all time favorite manga AND anime so I will give it a perfect score. But because I love it so much it pains me that I have to wait so long for new chapters to come out. But I will wait because I believe in quality over quantity.

Honestly I have nothing bad to say about this series; it has everything you could ever ask for in a shonen manga. A lovable main character, great friendships, interesting abilities, nice balance between fights and problem solving, no over powered main characters, a huge world to explore, and the list goes on. One most amazing things about this series is the author's sense of space. He puts in as much effort into creating the environment as he does developing the characters. Story arcs take us on a true adventure around the world from a small village to a wild forest then a huge metropolis.

If you haven't read this READ AT YOUR OWN RISK! Because once you start you won't be able to stop and then you will be sad because there are no more chapters being released right now.