Hunter x Hunter is the kind of works that appear from time to time. Somebody below stated that this manga is one for the ages. He’s right.
The plot seems rather simplistic: a boy looking for his father. In order to reach this goal he becomes a hunter, and this title is what connects him with the other characters. From this you would expect a fantastic adventure. And this adventure happens, just with a dark spin.
Togashi is a man that understood that the quality of a story doesn’t rely only in which or what tropes are used, but in how they are used. The term for the technique that Togashi uses is deconstruction. This is what allows Hunter x Hunter to give some astonishing twists and ideas. A pretty memorable example of this is how a character actually is disturbed after killing somebody. How many times have you seen that in a shonen?
In this story we have a varied main cast that can easily grip you into the story. Our main character, Gon, who is energetic boy looking for his father; Killua, a boy that comes from a family of assassins; Kurapika, a young man looking revenge; and Leorio who wants to become a doctor.
In fact, Hunter x Hunter has some of the strongest beginnings in shonen manga. But the development of the story is stronger. Hunter x Hunter follows an arc structure for the story. But every arc contribute to the plot and yet more. The most amazing thing is how these arcs aren’t repetitive. Even the storytelling varies from arc to arc.
Another amazing feature of this manga is the battles. They are all around well-crafted and breathtaking. The concept of Nen is perhaps the most creative, sophisticated, original and complex power source until this day in action manga.
The only notable flaw I have seen so far is the inconsistency of the art. Sometimes is well or sometimes is awful. Yet, Hunter x Hunter is, along with FMA, the most well written shonen so far. There’s no doubt about why Shonen Jump haven’t rejected Togashi despite all the pauses he takes.
Other thing that has bothered me is that sometimes the situations are a little bit tedious (Greed Island and certain parts of the Chimera Ant). But, the interesting situations and the amazing character development is what kept me going.
I really like what Togashi is attempting to do in shonen manga. And I will love if his work has influence in future works of future authors.
I would recommend this manga to anyone that is looking for an excellent story. If you can’t handle the art, you can watch both animes. But the 2011 version is the anime I would recommend the most since it is faithful to the source material.