Recently, I have finished the 2011 adaptation of Hunter X Hunter. It has become my 2nd favorite show of all time, my favorite being Kamen Rider Build. Boy was it a ride, and the manga isn’t finished yet due to hiatuses caused by the creator’s back pains; which is a shame since it’s so good. For this review, I’ll be giving each arc a score out of 10, and add them all up for a total score out of 60.

Hunter Exam: 8/10

The Hunter Exam is the first arc in HXH, and it serves to introduce the characters, their motives, what they can do, all that jazz. Now that’s not to say that The Hunter Exam is just an introduction arc, it also sets up the following two arcs. However in hindsight, it can be a bit of a drag in some areas, and it pales in comparison to some of the later arcs. 

Heaven’s Arena: 8/10

Now I normally don’t like training arcs, but Heaven’s Arena is an exception, due to how the training is actually handled. The training scenes usually lasts a couple minutes, then the skills are applied in the next fight. The fights are pretty creative, and entertaining, the highlight being Gon vs Hisoka. The arc also introduces the power system used in HXH, which is expanded upon in the next two arcs. The next arc is also set up a little as well.

Yorknew: 10/10

Yorknew is my second favorite arc in HXH, my favorite being Chimera Ant, but we’ll get to that arc later. In Yorknew, I’d say the role of protagonist shifts from Gon, to Kurapika, who is my favorite character in HXH. The arc focuses on Kurapika’s desire to get revenge on The Phantom Troupe, a group of thieves who murdered his entire clan for their eyes, and his desire to get the eyes back. This arc has many good fights, like Zeno and Silva vs Chrollo, and Kurapika vs Uvogin. That last fight I mentioned also shows the important role strategy plays in the fights.

Greed Island: 6/10

Greed Island is the worst arc in HXH. Not only is a good majority of it a training arc, it also drags on for far too long. While there are some good moments, like the dodgeball game and Gon vs Genthru (where the former LETS HIS LEFT ARM GET BLOWN UP JUST TO LAND A MINOR HIT), they are far and few between. The card system was interesting, but it was painfully underutilized.

Chimera Ant: 10/10

CHIMERA ANT RAW KINO CHIMERA ANT RAW KINO

*Clears throat*

Sorry about that, I might have gotten hyped up a bit. Chimera Ant can only be described as the greatest arc in all of shonen. It can be considered the climax of Gon and Killua’s story line in HXH. It has the best action scenes in the series, as well as the most emotional scenes. It also has one of the best villains in shonen anime, however I can’t say anymore without spoiling it. With that said, go watch Hunter X Hunter. Even if I wasn’t concerned with spoilers, I could not put into words how good Chimera Ant is.

Election Arc: 8/10

The Election Arc is odd. It comes after Chimera Ant, so I’m bound to have my view of it clouded. Not only that, but in the Anime Adaptation it serves as a finale arc; whereas in the original manga, it’s just treated as the end of Gon and Killua’s respective arcs; as such there are some loose plot threads that are followed up on in the manga. Regardless, I will attempt to review this objectively as possible. 

The Election Arc spends 45% of it’s time on a political plot, for those not interested in political drama stories, it can seem rather dull. Regardless, the 55% of Killua’s plotline will make up for it. As I mentioned earlier, this Arc serves as a finale to Gon and Killua’s story arc. It is also a  transition to the current arc in the manga. However, one thing I will complain about is the lack of Kurapika. He appears quite prominently in the credits, but he’s only on screen for a couple minutes. While this is explained at the end, I still find it a bit odd that Kurapika wouldn’t be at the hospital while his friend is in critical condition. That being said, I haven’t started the manga yet, so this could be touched upon there.

In total, Hunter x Hunter gets a score of 50/60. I would definitely recommend you give it a watch, you can find it on Netflix. However, it stops after Yorknew on there, so you’ll have to find somewhere else to watch the rest.