Review of Hunter x Hunter

There is nothing quite like HxH when it comes to story-telling. The anime is divided into around 6 arcs, each with their own unique narrative structure and cast of relevant characters. Yet while these arcs might seem disjoint and vastly different in terms of tone and atmosphere, they all connect into one amazing adventure through which characters grow, develop and learn more about the world around them. While the show finds its strength in the diversity and versatility of its world, it also focused entirely on its characters and the interactions between them; there were many times in the show where an antagonist or side characterwould feel just as, if not even more, compelling as Gon or Killua. I, and many others, would go so far as to say the show shines through its stellar antagonists. From Hisoka to Chrollo to Meruem himself, each antagonist is something never quite seen before--both within the show itself and among fictional works.

Granted, the show is a shounen and will rely on some shounen tropes. Gon and Killua are exceptionally strong main characters with vast potential; Hisoka enjoys the thrill of fighting and loves fighting strong opponents; certain character developments (no specifics to avoid spoilers) can be attributed to many other similar developments in other works as well.

However, HxH shines in its execution of these tropes and its subversion of expectations. Gon and Killua might be strong, but they lose more often than they win; the show does an exceptional job in organically having them grow as fighters, but also making sure they don't get the special 'OP protagonist' treatment many other shounen suffer from. Hisoka might just be a guy who likes to fight, but he is portrayed more so as a hedonist and even a parallel to Gon in terms of self-indulgence and selfishess.

And the developments I made mention of might be some that have already been done, but the execution of these developments in HxH distinguishes the series as a gold standard of character development and personification. In the CAA, for example, two characters go through major development that not only fit thematically into the arc, but also juxtapose each other; more over, one of these characters' overall development flows naturally with his character progression throughout the entire series itself.

We've talked about the superb story and characters, but if that's not enough to get you watching this riveting tale then I hope the well-fleshed out power system and amazing production value will. Going off the former point, Nen is perhaps the most consistent, nuanced power system to date. It models aspects of real life, such as:

- jack of all trades, master of none
- risk vs returns (high risk for high returns)
- people being fundamentally different and excelling in different areas

One thing I thought would be a problem is that Nen seems TOO diverse and versatile. Powerups could possibly come up as random, making fights seem contrived because how can two people engage in combat when they have such different skills?

Well, HxH fixes that problem fairly quickly. While characters have certain special abilities, those aren't the only abilities they have. Nen can be used in a myriad of ways, and there are techniques to enhance the body or senses using Nen; as such, someone with a disadvantage in terms of ability can still win if they use Nen effectively and efficiently. Because of this, Nen battles don't resort to randomness for an outcome; it's all about planning, experience and strategy.

Another thing I feel HxH does well is its focus primarily on story with fights serving as a catalyst for development. It doesn't feel like a linear battle shounen where a fight takes up 10-20 episodes; fights come up when necessary and offer the needed stimulation, but the show holds its own by being a story and character driven tale taking place in dynamic environments. This works wonders because the pace, for the most part, is snappy and allows a viewer to feel engaged.

Finally, the production value of HxH is hands-down the best of any long-running shounen. For a 148 episode series released weekly, Madhouse surpassed all expectations. The quality only goes UP throughout the years, and really never dropped in any single episode. The studio focused more on good direction, choreography and shots instead of just throwing money at the screen. There of course are clear differences between fight quality with, say, the end fights of certain arcs vs more trivial battles within arcs, but even then the latter sorts of fights are still well done and engaging nonetheless.

All in all, I'd have to rate HxH a 10/10 no questions. The story is phenomenal, offering a wide take on themes while presenting everchanging scenarios and environments while still maintaining the core of the story: an adventure tale through which our characters meet other equally-motivated people and have their motivations intertwine and then diverge as both sides change in palpable ways. The characters are incredible and probably the strongest aspect of this show. And the art, sound, animation, basically the entire production value is stellar and still holds a candle to anime coming out in 2018, despite having aired in 2011 onwards.

Despite being a 10/10 though, there are some nitpicks and issues I had with the show, but they aren't necessarily anything that should hamper you from watching it:

- I liked the first arc but it can be a drag to get through
- The narrator in the CAA can get egregiously invasive, luckily this only happened during a short bout of episodes. And given the CAA is most likely the best anime arc I've seen, tied with the Golden Age in Berserk, I didn't find this a fatal flaw.
- Greed Island's villain is noticeably lacking in quality compared to the antagonists of the other arcs. He's not bad, but for a Hunter villain he's really disappointing.
- The story ends on a somewhat conclusive note but there are obvious plot-lines hanging in the air. Togashi is still writing the manga but due to the hiatus it'll take a decade or two for all these threads to resolve.

Once again, none of these flaws are show-breaking and I think no show is flawless. This is definitely something you should see in your lifetime.