"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)