Review of Hunter x Hunter

Hunter x Hunter is a show that I was able to enjoy mostly throughout the series, but I have been led to write this review in order to dissect each aspect of the show in order to provide my opinions on this series. Story (6): Hunter x Hunter is a show where the protagonist, "Gon" is interested in becoming a Hunter like his father, "Ging". Hunters are people who travel the world accomplishing dangerous feats as well as other unique aspects. Gon never Ging, who ended up leaving his family to continue being a hunter. The main storyline is Gon trying to find his long lost father,and there is constant emphasis on this throughout the show. While this aspect motivates Gon to go through rigorous tasks in the arcs of the show. This main story provides no clarity or importance to the show. While each arcs have their moments to shine, I struggle to understand why the overall story is so valuable or important.

Aesthetic (10):
Hunter x Hunter takes place in a utopia of diverse wildlife, fighting capabilities, enemies, and countless other aspects. This is where I believe is where the series truly shines. It seems that the creator "Yoshihiro Togashi" analyzed many theories to truly put this anime to life. The setting is constantly different, where some moments are bright and exploding with color, while other moments is dark and creepy. Two of my favorite arcs in the series consists of the Hunter Exam and Greed Island. In the Hunter Exam, the setting is changing quite often as the characters continue through the exam. Moments where the applicants are running through the fog help truly show the horror they are facing during this exam. As people are disappearing in the thick fog. In Greed Island Gon and Killua simply spawn in an open field, and need to quickly adapt to their surroundings. In this arc, there is so much detail in the later events that take place in order to get the cards they need to win. It seems like all of the cards in the game weren't forgotten about with the various uses and implications in the arc.

Characters (9):
There are many characters in the anime that come-and-go, but each character is unique in their own way. Characters emotions change further and further (as they should), but certain backstories about characters truly help you learn about them. A backstory that really stuck with me was Leorio's, as when you meet him for the first time he constantly claims that he is becoming a Hunter "Because he wants to be filthy rich". Which can be a typical factor for many people aiming to be a Hunter, but soon after, Kurapika reads right through his act. We learn about the hardship he faced watching his friend die right in front of him, when there was nothing he could do. We got to see his true motivation, as he wants to become a doctor, and needed to get the money in order to pay for the training. It was something that I found to be a massive curveball as Leorio didn't appear to be too emotional, and was always a jokester (don't get me wrong he still is). As well as Killua's backstory, when you saw him befriend Gon in the exam at first glance he looked like to be a happy kid just like Gon. But we later find out that he is a part of the most notorious assassin families. We can see his ruthless actions when he tears the heart out of the convict in the Hunter exam. In that moment, it looks like Killua is going to die, but he shows his true colors and rips on the guy.

Enjoyment (9):
The fighting in Hunter x Hunter starts kinda straightforward in the Hunter Exam arc, as people are really quick and strong. But in the Heavens Arena arc we learn about nen, and the fighting gets more intricate and unique. We see Gon progress in the show in different aspects, and the fights get more intense. The series trends to be very quickly paced, except for the chimera ant arc which is unbearably slow. While this arc consists of the best fight in the show (IMO), there are constant moments where it is unnecessarily dragged out. To inform you, this arc is over one third of the entire show and it really doesn't need to. While the fights in this arc are intense, it gets boring watching an entire fight stretch out to be so long. While the other arcs have good pacing, through telling a story and delivery action.

Overall 8

I conclude this show as an 8, as the story doesn't include an intricate plot like other animes. But it truly excels in other aspects with character dynamics, and overall enjoyment the viewer can get. Overall I would recommend this to anyone who is starting to get into anime, and wants to watch a straightforward show. Even though the show may not have the best plot, the excitement from their unique world, and fighting in the show will convince anyone to keep watching this anime.