Hunter x Hunter

Nov 17, 2018

keragamming

Not Recommended

Preliminary (389/? chp)

Before beginning this review, I will like to point out that the intention of this review is not to trigger Hunter X Hunter (HxH for short)fans or let them feel like I'm attacking them or their intelligence since that is basically the trend in most reviews these days. Most reviews are made with the intention to 'trigger' a reaction out of fans by criticizing a series to the point that you are telling fans that they are basically dumb for liking a particular series.

This review is simply showing you guys another perspective since HxH fans aren't used to seeing much criticism when it comes to ... this series. Now, shall we begin?

Hxh is a series that I once loved, the anime that is, now after finishing the anime I went into the manga and quickly realise a problem this series has had in the anime, but now, it was more apparent in the manga. The problem is the absurd amount of dialogue and monologue within it that makes it ridiculous, the author of HxH decided that every single character is going to have long monologue and dialogue, but it's even worse when the characters are just redshirts.

The latest arc is especially guilty of this, basically, we as the reader are forced to see the point of view of literally every single character in this arc; the guards of the Prince's, the Prince's, guards of a Prince stalking another Prince, people associated to a Prince, people keeping an eye on another Prince, the Mafia Bosses, Hunters, the guards of the Mafia Bosses, the people from branch families, all of the underlings of the people from branch families as well, and we can go on and on — I wouldn't be surprised if we start getting the point of view from the trees, cats, dogs and basically everything else. You get the point. This is not interesting at all and it's just a chore to read. Sure you can say that he is amazing for giving redshirts their moments and making them feel important, but, truth be told, redshirts will always be redshirts! You can give them a few dialogues or give them a purpose later on without watering down the series quality by having them talk about stuff, we as the readers, are already aware of. I also saw the Viz translation, and it's a bit better, but still, its too dialogue heavy and unnecessary — just pointing that out before someone says it is Mangastream's fault, btw this is wall x text the manga.

Togashi is like a student that is writing an essay that should be 800 words in length and thinks that writing a 2000 word essay instead will impress the teacher. That is basically how a lot of the fans are behaving as well, I've seen HxH fans praising the series because it has so many dialogues and saying how long it took them to read a single chapter, like it was some type of accomplishment, while other HxH fans are saying they feel dumb because they are not understanding the plot. The truth is, the reason why some people are having difficulty in understanding the plot is because Togashi, as a writer, is failing to express his work to his readers properly, because all he is doing is throwing dialogue and monologue at his fans and telling them that they should figure out his mess, I'm not sure how the editor even approve these chapters. If this was a monthly manga then that could be an excuse to why some fans are forgetting vital points, but it's a weekly series which means it should be easier to follow and remember. Togashi is also lacking in the "show but not tell" type of storytelling, he would rather lazily tell the audience every tiny detail, even the irrelevant ones.

I'm sure Togashi has planned out everything in this arc and that he knows what he is doing, but he is not executing it properly if half of his fans feel like it is a chore to read his manga, it just means he is not writing this arc in a creative way. At the end of the day, its the author's story, but he is writing his story to his fans, and if his fans are not liking it, something is clearly wrong. Togashi may have a brilliant idea, but if he is not executing it properly then it is all a waste.

This manga overall is a chore to read and it is boring for me personally, the characters for HxH has always been decent for me, I never had a problem with the characters, I don't think they are anything special but at the same time, I don't think they are bad. I don't like the art style because it is drawn in a generic style that I, personally don't like, but its even worst when it is not drawn properly by Togashi. In saying that, the art really doesn't affect my enjoyment that much, since there isn't much art, to begin with.

Overall, this manga is a 4/10, and I don't feel like Togashi is taking advantage of his imagination. I know he can do way better than this, and perhaps this series will be a bit more bearable to watch when it's animated, whenever that is.

To people that are still enjoying this series, more power to you, but at least try to understand why some peoples are not enjoying it, without talking down on them or challenging their intelligence, because I've seen that a lot.

As a university student, reading HxH feels like reading a school textbook, the only purpose is for you to temporarily memorize information just to pass a test. HxH is at the borderline of a school textbook than a fictional book, which basically sums up how I currently feel for this series, and I'm having a lot of doubt that my opinion will ever change.

Thanks for reading if you were able to reach this far.