Hunter X Hunter (2011) Review

Hunter X Hunter’s plot is driven by a young boy, Gon, who’s lived on Whale Tail island for 12 years. Though he has been taken care of by his Aunt, Mito-san, his father Ging has left Gon to live his dream as a Hunter, an exceptional human being who hunts rare monsters. Intrigued, Gon is curious as to why his father would rather give up being a dad and becoming a full time Hunter. Our main character Gon ends up growing just like his father and is recognized by the islanders of Whale Tail Island. His craving desire to take the Hunter exam finally convinces the worried Mito-san leading him into a destined adventure of hard work and danger.

One of the most important and fun to watch arcs is in the beginning of the series and it unfolds the story of the dynamic squad of Gon, Killua, Leorio and Kurapika. These four characters undergo a series of trials and tribulations proving themselves worthy as a pro hunter. All goes well until they start the main Hunter exam and are faced with other strong characters. Some excel in intelligence and others excel in teamwork. However, two notable characters are a deadly magician, Hisoka, and a Needle user who can manipulate people and objects, Gittarackur. These two characters are undoubtedly some of the more fan favorite characters as we move on throughout the plot. What makes me enjoy Gittarackur the most is the fact that his true identity is hidden through the entire time of the Hunter exam. It isn’t until he is faced against Killua, his younger brother, when he is introduced to the storyline. Killua’s older brother Illumi is revealed and uses hurtful words to make Killua surrender. Exposing Killua’s nature as an assassin since birth, he gets told that it is only a matter of time until Killua’s desire to kill Gon takes over.

One of the first people brought up into the show, Leorio, was most definitely a popular character in terms of humor and relatability. Coming from a poor background, he was destined to become a doctor since childhood because a simple disease that was curable still managed to take away his young friend’s life. Now he plans to take action in the Hunter exam to pay off all of the debts coming from medical school. Even though his backstory may be sad don’t let this deceive you. Leorio’s presence let alone is already amusing.

An additional favorite in mind is Ging Freecs (Gon's long lost father). Even though his thoughts for parental guidance have faded away, from what we see and know of him he’s proven himself to be worthy as one of the strongest Hunters out there. Even the head chairman for the Hunter Corporation, Netero, believes that he is one of the top 5 Nen (magic) users in the world. Regardless of his lack of responsibility towards Gon, they still manage to catch up with each other towards the last episode after the Chimera Ants arc. From what I believe, I think that Ging actually feels guilty for the absence of Gon but turns to not acknowledging him knowing that he has messed up. Even though he doesn’t care for Gon a lot, he knows that after being his son, he’s capable of becoming a hunter and even finding him.

Although many of the earlier plots are good, there are also other, less interesting arcs in the series such as Kurapika’s vengeance against the Phantom Troupe and the power of using Nen. Yet somewhat boring, it is still important to the storyline and creates more opportunities for the series to grow.

Sadly, I don’t think that this anime will continue. It remained in publication until 2016, when Togashi (the creator) stated that he’s on hiatus due to overwhelming stress in creating the series. Additionally the voice actor of my favorite character, Leorio, recently passed away on 2020, April 12.

Despite the sad ending to the series, there is much joy to be found in this long and intricate manga.