H×H stars Gon, a gifted young boy living on Whale Island. Gon was left on Whale Island by his father, Ging, to live with his Aunt Mito. This is because Ging is what is known as a Hunter, a special rank that allows him to travel the world and use the resources of the Hunter Organization to aid his “hunt.” There are many different kinds of Hunters which you’ll see throughout the show, and the first part of the series focuses on Gon’s quest to become a Hunter himself. To do this, he must obtain a Hunter’s License, but doing so won’t be easy. Early on, he’s joined by a few friends. Leorio, a tall young man who is always seen in a business suit and wishes to become a Hunter for monetary gain. Kurapika, a young man from the Kurta tribe who wishes to avenge his people. And finally Killua, a boy the same age as Gon who also seems to be incredibly gifted. All four of them are trying to become Hunters for their own reasons, and the focus on each of them shifts throughout the entire 148 episodes. Side characters also occasionally get a piece of the limelight, but this is always a temporary situation that changes from arc to arc. The series also has somewhat of a main antagonist that is present in almost every arc, but this character isn't purely evil and his role isn't even entirely antagonizing Gon and his friends. All of the characters are enjoyable for the most part, although some of the side characters can be a bit bland, notably the main villain in an arc during the middle of the series. This is an uncommon problem though, and for the most part you’ll enjoy the characters populating the screen whether they be good or bad.
The music and animation in H×H is excellent as well. The soundtrack is composed mostly of orchestral music, and it has a very exciting and fun feeling to it. During the more serious scenes, it also manages to set the mood right, although many pieces end up being used quite a bit due to the long length of the show. This extends to the opening which only features changes in animation and occasionally the lyrics of the song being different. It’s still the same song throughout, however, so you may end up getting sick of it by the end and wish to skip it. The animation amazingly manages to stay consistent over all 148 episodes. For a series of this length, it looks surprisingly good, and Madhouse should be lauded for managing to keep the animation and art quality so high over such a long run. The actions scenes in the show are blazing fast and look fantastic, and the slower parts look equally as good with little motion going on. Although I found there are very few points where the animation manages to overly impress, the standard set through the entire run is impressive and should be very pleasing for the viewers watching.
However, there are a few areas where H×H falters. My biggest gripe with the series was the inconsistent tone between the first and second half. The first 70 or so episodes are all fairly light-hearted, barring the occasional violent moment, but the second half pulls out all the stops and becomes brutal both with its themes and the violence depicted. The change in tone is very sudden and will either be a breath of fresh air from the previous arcs, or a huge disappointment if you really enjoyed everything from before and didn't want it to change. I personally enjoyed the mature shift in tone, but I also wasn't the biggest fan of the first 70 episodes. They were enjoyable for me, but not to the point that I really loved the series. The last half really did it for me, but your mileage may vary. Unfortunately, the final arc also has some pacing issues. There is an all-out battle where several characters are fighting separately towards a common goal, and during this portion, the pacing is very grating. Certain minor characters end up overstaying their welcome, which really dampened my enjoyment of these episodes. The events that happen are still interesting, I just wish they could have condensed this part so it didn't go on for as long, but I was otherwise pleased with how everything else went. Another thing that may hamper your enjoyment is that the manga H×H is still ongoing, and as such this anime adaption does not cover the entire story. Luckily though, Madhouse still managed to end things on a satisfying note, so even if you never see more H×H after this, you will still get a sense of finality, albeit with a few loose ends not tied up. Another point that may turn you off to H×H is the various plot holes and bizarre story elements. The story for H×H is unfortunately a bit of a weak point, and at times the author employs narrative devices that feel cheap and don’t really make sense in the context of what’s going on. I found this to be a relatively minor problem until the final arc where a certain character is introduced that is completely broken in terms of what they are capable of. Again, it’s a pretty minor problem, but not one I can ignore.
In the end, H×H is an enjoyable experience marred by a few problems. It’s definitely worth watching if it interests you, but the experience is not perfect. A show of this quality definitely deserves attention, so give it a shot if it seem up your alley.
