Story: This is an epic story of a boy who wants to become a Hunter like his dad and search for his dad. It's an incredible journey where he makes awesome friends after growing stronger together and overcoming adversities, on the path to becoming a Hunter. This is also where this show distinguishes and elevates itself above all other shounen. Unlike other shounen, the main characters doesn't go on endless winning streaks one after the other. The main character doesn't simply learn a new ability or develop a new power to overcome the next tougher enemy. Losses, failure, frustration, these are all important stepping stones to becoming stronger, and the main characters don't have an easy path laid out in front of them, they have to earn it. The main protagonist is instantly likeable because he doesn't have any selfish motives, he just wants to become a hunter in order to find his dad. We find ourselves instantly empathizing with the kid and cheering him on through his arduous adventures. Far from being a happy-go-lucky adventure, the show often takes the viewer to gruesome places to emphasize the brutal nature of the world that they live in.
Choices: A recurring theme in this show is choices and their corresponding outcomes. Just like an interactive visual novel presents choices and multiple paths, the characters are presented with choices and diverging paths that would lead to significant outcomes that maintain their impact throughout the story. A great level of detail is given to the characters' thought process and their decision to select the various choices. The show is highly unpredictable, which is one of it's best qualities. Unlike most shounen, where we are just waiting for a particular outcome to occur, in this show, the outcome is unclear until the very last moment. Just like a game of rock, paper, scissors is simple, not complicated, and yet it's complex, even the unpredictability of the show is unpredictable. You never know where the journey leads until you arrive.
Pacing: The show takes it's time to fully develop the traits and motivations of the main characters, and antagonists. The world building is on another level. It shows the interactions between the main characters, and how their personalities clash against each other, and how they eventually become friends. There's always some downtime between heavy/hard-hitting/emotional/action-packed/information-packed episodes to cool the viewer down and just digest and process everything. The perfect blend of humor, action, suspense, world building, and emotions is just irresistible.
Music: Building a sense of awe and wonder at the adventure that lies ahead, pumping your blood all the way up in an action scene, tugging your heart strings just right in emotional scenes, making you forget to breathe for a moment during suspenseful scenes, the musical score is just extraordinary, and seamlessly guides the story.
Characters: The characters of this show are very realistic and Togashi's mastery of human psychology really shines through in them. Almost all characters have an individuality of character, motivations, and often clash against each other. The villains in the show are very interesting and their motivations are clear and believable. The vastly differing personalities have a serious impact on the trajectory of the entire story, and are not just there for cheap laughs as is seen in most generic shounens nowadays. Each character is multi-dimensional and remain true to their characters in every scene. This show also boasts incredible character development not just for the main characters but also most of the side characters, and villains.
Morality: There is no absolute good or evil in the show excepting a few truly sadistic characters. The characters are as real they get in terms of being shades of grey, including the main characters. The villains are portrayed as greedy, petty, sadistic, apathetic, psychopathic, etc but at the same time they aren't entirely devoid of values as many of them also show virtues of loyalty for their comrades, and concern for their well-being. The main characters struggle with their own morality and question their own actions and motivations from a moralistic stand point.
All-in-all, a great show, a must-watch, and a masterpiece for all anime fans.
