Are you tired of shounen anime that insult your intelligence by reiterating and dumbing down even the simplest to grasp concepts? Are you tired of anime that want to shove the MC's worldview down your throat as the only and most righteous one? Do you want to watch something that lets you choose what to think instead of making that choice for you? Something that shows both sides of the argument, as well as their respective strengths and weaknesses? Do you dislike the way shounen anime use the 'good/evil' dichotomy to separate the main characters from the villains? Do you want to see well-thought-out fights
...
instead of characters shooting laser beams and defeating their opponents solely due to raw power advantage?
If you answered 'yes' to those questions then Hunter x Hunter 2011 is for you.
Anyway, it was about time I did a review for HxH 2011, as I watched this anime for the first time 6 years ago and then I rewatched it numerous times ever since.
Let's start with the story (10/10):
It starts off very simple yet compelling, with 'Gon', the main character, setting off on a journey to find his father whom, in order to become a Hunter, abandoned him. What is a hunter? Why did his father choose that path instead of raising him? Who even is his father? Those are all questions that kickstart Gon's journey. Simple enough, right? Well, as the story progresses and characters are introduced, the story becomes more and more complex, intertwined with other story arcs that relate to the grander story which is Gon looking for his father.
This brings me to the next point: The arcs in HxH. In this anime, there are no recycled ideas for characters or concepts. Every arc has its own concept, tone and execution, making each arc vastly different yet very well-connected to the previous ones. Another aspect of HxH that you will appreciate if you are tired of the way in which typical shounen are structured is the way in which HxH doesn't shy away from dedicating entire arcs to other characters that are not the protagonist. Indeed, in HxH the world does not revolve around the MC's motivations and each character has their own agenda. Characters that are not Gon are the MCs of their own stories, and we get to see that. More on this in the 'Character' section.
That is not to say that there are no shounen tropes in HxH. For sure, there are, but most of them have their own twists to them. I do not like to use the term 'subversion of expectations' as it has mostly become a meme with negative connotations due to some terrible executions of it (I'm looking at you Game of Thrones S8), but many elements of HxH's story would fit that term rather nicely.
Another important aspect which I couldn't help to include in this 'story' section is the power system of HxH as it is an integral part of the story. I do not want to go into much detail about it since much of it might be considered spoilers, but in this anime the power system is not your typical 'rock-paper-scissors' type of system. For example, there is not going to be an element that defeats another ones, such as 'water>fire'. Instead, this system fleshes out the fights to an extent that makes it so strategy, adaptability and planning are all more important than raw power or 'type advantage'.
Art (10/10):
In this section I will also include animation. Both the art and animation are outstanding in this show given the length of 148 episodes. There is not a single episode, at least that I can remember off the top of my head, that you can say 'that was badly animated/looked terrible'. In fact, the animation and art style seemed to actually improve as the story progressed. This, in my opinion, is quite impressive, given how many seasonal anime can't even achieve a consistent level of animation and direction being 12 to 26 episodes long.
Sound (9/10):
The sound effects are also incredibly well done in HxH. For example, when a character punches another one you can feel it viscerally. As for the music, the OST is memorable and fitting. It has tracks that fit every facet of the anime very nicely. When the scene requires fast-paced, action music, it is provided. When it requires more somber and serious music, it is provided. When adventurous music would fit the scene better, it is provided. When it is deemed that silence will give a more tense atmosphere, silence is provided. All in all, HxH is an anime that knows when and how to use its tracks. The OST is also very varied. Depending on the track, you have choir, guitar, piano, violin and other instruments being used. There are also a number of tracks that are used only once or twice throughout the whole anime in very specific/impactful moments in order to give those scenes more impact and a sense of uniqueness.
Then we have the OPs and EDs. Unfortunately, HxH has only one OP, 'Departure', which changes visuals several times throughout the anime but the song remains the same (except for when they use another part/version of the song). I say unfortunately because, although I love Departure and I think it fits the first arc, I do believe that other arcs could have benefitted from different OPs given their vastly different tones. However, contrary to the OPs, there are 6 EDs and they are all different (except for 5 and 6 which are both different parts of the same song, but with very different visuals) and are also among my favorite EDs of all time, which kind of makes up for the fact that the OPs are all the same song.
Character (10/10):
This, in my opinion, is where Hunter x Hunter truly shines. This anime will take its time developing and showing you many sides of a character, delving into their minds and thought processes, fleshing them out incredibily well. This applies to secondary characters too, not only our main cast.
HxH is also not an anime that relies on shock value very often. If a character is going to get killed off then it is after you have gotten to sympathize with the character. It rarely is the case that a character will be introduded in an episode merely to be killed off at the end of it. If such a scenario happens, then it is for a reason other than pure shock value.
In HxH there is also no wasted dialogue. Pretty much every single line in the anime serves a purpose, be it to build the world, to characterize and develop a character in a meaningful way, to foreshadow or to progress the story in some way. Characters that may seem inconsequential, that you may ask 'What role do they have in this story? Why are we focusing so much on them?' will end up having a great impact in the the story, at times even more so than our main characters.
Another very important aspect of all the characters in HxH is how they all have their own motivations, ideals and goals, as well as obstacles. You will not see the protagonist convincing other characters to follow him, effectively converting them into drones that only serve the purpose of pushing the protagonist's story forward. Instead, when their interests differ from Gon's, they will often go their own way, because they have a life of their own that goes beyond what the protagonist wants.
It is also important to mention that in HxH the characters do not exist to promote fights. Characters will often resort to other more logical ways in order to resolve conflicts of interest. They are not brutes that can only resolve a conflict through fighting when other means would be more suitable. Thus, fighting in HxH is not the be-all-and-end-all. The focus is first and foremost on the characters and their interactions. However, when fights do happen it is always for a reason, be it because the environment demands it or because all the other more logical options were exhausted.
As for the villains in HxH, they are nothing short of great, from the more simplistic ones that are just fun to watch to the more complex ones. Essentially, all that I said about the secondary characters applies to the villains but, of course, to a much deeper degree. You get to see their motivations, growth, emotions and conflicts on a very personal level. They grow through introspection and interactions with other characters and their surroundings. Their goals are often much more personally-driven than just 'world domination' or 'power', making some of them more relatable. Be it to understand their purpose in life or just to have fun, they all are very intriguing.
Enjoyment (10/10):
As I enjoy anime that take their time to build up characters and story elements while at the same time keeping matters interesting and well paced, the enjoyment I derived from HxH 2011 is definitely a lot. The sheer amount of variety that HxH provides in terms of characters and story, as well as the exciting, clever and well-choreographed fight scenes involving characters we care about will give you a lot to enjoy.
Even if HxH does not have the quantity of fights that other shounen anime have, it definitely more than makes up for it with the quality of the fights whenever they do happen.
Overall (10/10):
For all the reasons I mentioned and much more, HxH 2011 is truly an anime that I consider to be one of a kind, and I do not hand out 10/10s lightly. If you are a shounen fan then you absolutely must watch this anime. If you are not a shounen fan I would still say give it a try, as it might surprise you! I myself am not particularly the biggest shounen fan yet to me HxH 2011 is up there with some of the best stories ever, and not only within the realm of anime.
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Oct 20, 2021
Hunter x Hunter (2011)
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Are you tired of shounen anime that insult your intelligence by reiterating and dumbing down even the simplest to grasp concepts? Are you tired of anime that want to shove the MC's worldview down your throat as the only and most righteous one? Do you want to watch something that lets you choose what to think instead of making that choice for you? Something that shows both sides of the argument, as well as their respective strengths and weaknesses? Do you dislike the way shounen anime use the 'good/evil' dichotomy to separate the main characters from the villains? Do you want to see well-thought-out fights
...
May 10, 2018
First, let me clarify that this review is from the point of view of someone who has already played the Visual Novel and is a big fan of it. If I hadn't played the VN beforehand and just watched F/SN 2006 (Deen) and UBW I would have probably given a higher score to HF Presage Flower.
Now, before you watch this movie you absolutely must wach Fate/Stay Night:UBW as this movie already asssumes that you know some of the things that happen in the UBW route, otherwise you'll feel pretty confused since the movie skips the introduction of the Servant system and how it works plus ... |
