Reviews

Aug 25, 2015
Many people take a look at the childish exterior of this show and without second thought don't even give HxH a chance, but a show that managed to climb in the top lists of many sites and become the favorite anime of many users, certainly does something right that it deserves your minimum attention if nothing more.Every review more or less is a subjective experience of a series, so give me the chance to tell you why I loved this show as much as I did, and what I consider as pros, and what may be seem as cons.

First of all I love battle shounen as a genre, Dragon Ball was my first cartoon (at least that's what I thought it was) at the age of 13. I've seen a lot of battle shounen and I loved almost all of them back then, but as I grew older and more experienced in anime I inevitably outgrew this genre as the writing seemed "childish", repetitive and too predictable so the result was that my enjoyment collapsed. What I was craving for was an anime that would entertain my intellect but at the same time would retain the charm a battle shounen can have, something that would resonate with my "adult child"(if that makes sense). That's when HxH 1999 was discovered and consequently HxH 2011.

Story/Characters

Not only this show is the charming coming of age story of Gon who embarks on an adventure to find his dad, which retains all those elements that you loved as a child, it is also a well written, structured and thought out, intelligent story that will satisfy your adult mind and feed your intellect exactly what you may be looking for. Wonderful world building, charming and unique characters with depth and development throughout the series that have their own motivations and as the show progresses prove to you that they are more than just some generic archetypes, good characterization which brings interesting and realistic interactions and dynamics between them, unpredictable storyline with jaw dropping moments, superb dialog that reflects realism and maturity, proper build up for any major event that makes you care about what happens, profound and powerful emotional moments, great comedy that isn't silly or too "childish" which blends well with tension,drama and action; a creative well thought out battle system which allows for strategic fights that will keep you glued to your seat, and last but not least lots and lots of fun. All that right here combined with perfect pacing makes for an entertaining and engaging story that will make marathoning HxH the easiest thing in the world, and soon enough you will be wishing it was more than just 148 episodes,even episodes with no action are engaging and have some sort of plot or character development. Of course this doesn't mean that as a battle shounen HxH is void of cliches and tropes but even if there are, how they are used in the story and executed is what makes it differ, everything makes sense and every little detail is explained explicitly or not, paying attention is required as the show is dialog heavy and many things are implied,as a result many conclusions can be drawn by association.

The writer seems to have general knowledge of the world; like human psyche, political and social structures, religion, world economy, history and etc... Combined with his imagination and the nature of the show the result was seven (one is a mini arc) different arcs in their genre, tone, atmosphere, length, themes and at points pacing as well. I know I said “perfect pacing” but that depends on the viewer if he likes the slow down pacing in some arcs. The transition between them feels smooth and logical except maybe for the Chimera Ants arc, but for the rest of them there is subtle at points and at others not so subtle foreshadowing. You will encounter some cheerful and lighthearted arcs, and some that are really dark and grim. Some may view the fact that there is no thematic continuity between arcs, or that some arcs end in an anti climatic manner as a negative aspect or as a "flaw", but ultimately it boils down to personal preference and nothing more, personally I like those aspects of the show because an adventure of this type and life itself isn't predictable, and you never know where the next turn might throw you and what challenges you might encounter, I prefer those realistic aspects because it reminds me a simple valuable truth, that today we are alive and tomorrow we are not, so it's all about living life at its fullest no matter where you are at.

Obviously nothing is flawless and even if for me this is the nearest thing to perfection, I'll try to point some things that might be perceived as flaws. I already mentioned the transition between arcs, so I won’t expand on that. Although this adaptation is very faithful to the manga, the first chapter and the introduction of an important character to Gon and plot was cut out from the first episodes and introduced in episode 75, which made some motivations and actions "clouded". First episodes seem a little childish and it might take a while for the show to reel you in. The 6th arc (Chimera Ants arc) is the longest in the series and has questionably a few pacing issues and some viewers might lose interest, combined with heavy narration in the second half of the arc and different expectations from the viewers, frustration might arise and enjoyment may collapse, but for an arc that was the most ambitious arc in any shounen I've seen, a story that was far from ordinary, full of reflective ideals that were penetrating and influential, controversial opinions is the least that you should expect. So although the arc might be powerful it doesn't mean everyone will enjoy it, this again depends on your preferences. The last thing that comes to mind as a "negative" is the ending, it leaves some sub plots unresolved and a few questions unanswered, although it does have a satisfying ending for a manga that is on hiatus, and ultimately it works really well with the overall theme of the anime.

Animation

For a long running show the animation is very consistent, this doesn't mean that every episode is greatly animated, it just means that the budget is distributed intelligently and the episodes that needed the boost got it. The fights are really well animated and detailed, with great choreography, and the action scenes are impressive. One of the most astonishing features are the distinct facial expressions, rarely an anime captures so many raw emotions just by the expressions of the face. The colors are vibrant and generally adjust to the tone of the scene and the atmosphere of the arc really well. Character designs are unique, interesting and at some cases really weird, which makes almost all of the chars distinct and memorable.

Sound

This part here gets progressively better as the arcs get progressively more interesting and shift in themes, genre and tone. At the beginning arcs you might notice a misuse of sound that doesn't fit its respective scene in tone but generally the soundtrack is impressive. There are some really remarkable and memorable moments mostly in the Chimera Ant arc. OP song is the same from start to finish and the only songs that change are the ED songs. Voice actors are incredible and fit very well almost to every character except maybe for Kurapika. Jaw dropping performances can be expected from Megumi Han(Gon), Ise Mariya(Killua), Daisuke Namikawa (Hisoka), Ginga Banjou and Nagai Ichiro (as Netero).

Enjoyment

Rarely I rewatch an anime and I've seen this 4 times already. This show has easily the most impactful moments that I'll remember forever from any anime and any media in general. Marathoning this show was as easy as breathing and when it ended I felt sick and wanted more, it was like an addiction but a very fun addiction.

Overall

"The world is like a ride at an amusement park, and when you choose to go on it, you think it's real, cause that's how powerful our minds are. And the ride goes up and down and round and round; it has thrills and chills and it's very brightly colored and it's very loud and it's fun... for a while. Some people have been on the ride for a long time, and they begin to question: "Is this real, or is this just a ride?" And other people have remembered, and they come back to us, and they say, "Hey - don't worry, don't be afraid - EVER - because... this is just a ride." Bill Hicks

This anime is just a ride, a fun and powerful ride that will lead to many roads and detours, a battle shounen that will satisfy a casual viewer and a more experienced one, so give this show a chance and you might discover a detour of your life that will take you to new entertainment heights.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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