Hunter X Hunter 1999

**Hunter X Hunter** is an action, adventure, drama, comedy, fantasy, shonen battle anime series.  It was based on a

   manga series written by Yoshihiro Togashi and published by Shueisha.  The manga started on March 3, 1998, and is still ongoing today, with 35 volumes in total so far.  The anime adaptation originally aired from October 16, 1999 to March 31, 2001, with 62 episodes in total.  It was later succeeded by Hunter X Hunter 2011, a re-adaptation of the manga, which not only had improved production values, but also two additional story arcs.

## Plot

The story follows a young boy named Gon Freecss, who was told all his life that both his parents were dead. But when he learns from Kite, an apprentice of his father Ging Freecss, that he is still alive and has since become an accomplished Hunter, Gon leaves his home on Whale Island (くじら島 *Kujira Tō*) to take the Hunter Examination (ハンター試験 *Hantā Shiken*) in order to become a Hunter like him.[8][9][10] During the exam, Gon meets and soon befriends three of the other applicants: Kurapika, the last remaining member of the Kurta clan who wishes to become a Hunter in order to avenge his clan and recover their scarlet-glowing eyes that were plucked from their corpses by a band of thieves known as the Phantom Troupe; Leorio, a prospective physician who, in order to pay for medical school, desires the financial benefits that Hunters receive; and Killua Zoldyck, another twelve-year-old boy who has left his former life as a member of the world's most notorious assassin family.[9][10][2] Among many other examinees, Gon continuously encounters Hisoka, a mysterious and deadly transmuter who takes an interest in him. After passing by many trials together, Gon and his friends end up passing the exam except for Killua, who fails after killing another applicant due to being controlled by his brother, Illumi, and runs away to his family's estate in shame.

After Gon and the others convince Killua to rejoin their side, Leorio and Kurapika depart temporarily for their own personal reasons, while Gon and Killua set for the Heavens Arena (天空闘技場 *Tenkū Tōgijō*), a skyscraper where thousands of martial artists compete daily in fighting tournaments, seeking to improve themselves, and gain monetary rewards.[11] There they meet a kung fu master named Wing, who trains them in utilizing Nen, a Qi-like life energy used by its practicers to manifest parapsychological abilities, and is also considered to be the final requirement to pass the Hunter Exam. Sometime later, Gon and his friends reunite again in Yorknew City (ヨークシンシティ *Yōkushin Shiti*) where they have a clash with the Phantom Troupe. In the occasion, some of the members of the band of thieves are killed by Kurapika and he is forced to give up the chance of hunting down the rest. In order to rescue Gon and Killua, who were captured by them, but not without succeeding in sealing the powers of their leader Chrollo Lucilfer.

A few days later, Gon and Killua achieve their objective and begin playing *Greed Island*, an extremely rare and expensive video game with Nen-like properties following some clues about Ging's whereabouts.[12] While exploring the game, it is revealed that its scenario is actually set somewhere in the real world, created with Nen by none other than Ging himself. Outclassed by the difficulty of the challenges in the game at first, they are soon joined and trained by Biscuit Krueger, an experienced teacher of Nen and kung fu master. During their stay on Greed Island, Killua takes a short break to apply for the Hunter Examination again, this time passes with success. The trio then complete the game together against all odds and Gon obtains the right to choose the artifacts from the game necessary to reunite with his father.

## Why It Rocks

1. Great animation, especially during the fight scenes.
2. Very appealing art style and character designs.
3. Good voice acting in both sub and dub.
4. Excellent soundtrack.
5. Four great story arcs.  They are the Hunter's Exam Arc, the Zoldyck Family Arc, the Heaven's Arena Arc, and the Phantom Troupe Arc.
6. The Phantom Troupe are incredible villains.
7. KURAPIKA KURTA!
8. KILLUA ZOLDYCK!
9. The Zoldyck Family are incredibly interesting.

## Bad Qualities

1. The series has some filler episodes, although it isn't nearly as bad as some major Shonens such as Naruto, Bleach, One Piece, or Dragonball Z.

## Reception

The first *Hunter × Hunter* anime series has enjoyed much more modest popularity than its manga source. *Newtype* listed it as having a Japanese television rating of 10.5 for the fourth quarter of 2000.[130] The show's viewership was ranked number six among the top ten anime television series in Japan for February 2001.[131] The series was voted as the 16th best anime of 2000 in the *Animage* Anime Grand Prix, but rose to fourth place the following year.[132][133] In 2001, the staff of the magazine listed *Hunter × Hunter* as the 94th most important anime of all time.[134] In a 2006 web poll conducted in Japan by the network TV Asahi, the *Hunter × Hunter* television series was voted 28th best anime of all time.[135] In 2010, Mania.com's Briana Lawrence listed *Hunter × Hunter* at number nine of the website's "10 Anime Series That Need a Reboot".[136]

Critical reception for the first *Hunter × Hunter* television adaptation has been generally favorable. Miyako Matsuda of *Protoculture Addicts*, Carl Kimlinger of the Anime News Network (ANN), and Derrick L. Tucker of THEM Anime Reviews all expressed positive views of the series' narrative and characters.[2][44][137] Matsuda admired the adventure-filled world of *Hunter × Hunter* and the practical character qualities of friendship, effort, and victory inserted by Togashi.[2] Beginning with the second Viz DVD volume, Kimlinger summarized, "Togashi's plotting is canny and occasionally insightful and Furuhashi's visuals inventive yet attuned to the measured pacing of the series. Together they create a *shonen* action series that is both fun to watch and curiously respectful of its audience's intelligence. A strange combination indeed."[44] Tucker admitted to being "bewitched" by the series mainly due to the remarkable and original characters, especially the interplay between the vastly different personalities of the Phantom Troupe members.[137] Kimlinger gave particular praise to the characteristics of the complex villain Hisoka and the deep, emotional transformation of Kurapika in the latter half of the series.[11][12][44] Theron Martin, also of ANN, contrastingly found the plot of the earliest episodes to be cliché, called the protagonist Gon "an obvious Son Goku derivative", and stated that many of the story's aspects have already been covered by other *shōnen* series such as *Dragon Ball Z* a decade earlier. Martin was also displeased by an alleged lack of character development on the main protagonists' parts in the initial episodes.[10]

The art and animation of the *Hunter × Hunter* anime have also been commended by the press. Kimlinger and Tucker were impressed by the art direction of *Hunter × Hunter*, the former of whom critiquing the adaptation of Togashi's work by Furuhashi as having "understated energy and flair, making the most of the era's (1999) mix of traditional and CG animation to bring Gon and friends' physical feats to fluid, exhilarating life."[44][137] Martin faulted both the artwork and the subtle differences in character design. "The artistry not only shows its age but, in fact, looks older than it actually is," the reviewer commented, "hearkening back to a day when digital coloring and CG enhancements were not ubiquitous and allowances for a rougher look were greater." Opinions of the series' sound and music have been somewhat mixed. Martin positively noted the soundtrack as the strongest production point of *Hunter × Hunter*, and was satisfied with both the English translation of the script and Ocean's voice overs.[10] Tucker found the music satisfactory and improved as the series progressed, but did not think it lived up to its potential.[137] Kimlinger agreeably felt the musical score to be appropriate in most instances, but criticized the English dub as "a letdown since day one".[11][12]