Hunter×Hunter

Hunter × Hunter (ハンターハンター, Hantā Hantā^?) is a manga series written and illustrated by Yoshihiro Togashi. The story stars Gon Freecss, a twelve-year-old boy who wants to find his father at all costs, so he decides to become a "hunter", just like him, and somehow find his whereabouts. As the story progresses, Gon befriends three other would-be hunters: Leorio, Kurapika, and Killua, who will accompany him on his adventures throughout the anime.

The manga began publication in March 1998 by Shūeisha, in its weekly magazine Shūkan Shōnen Jump. Since then, the manga has published 36 volumes in the format tankōbon. The story was adapted into an anime series, produced by Nippon Animation and airing for 62 episodes on Fuji TV between October 1999 and March 2001. Additionally, Nippon Animation produced three separate original animations (for a total of 30 episodes). which were distributed in Japan from 2002 to 2004. A second adaptation, produced by Madhouse, aired on Nippon Television from October 2, 2011 to September 23, 2014, with a total of 148 episodes.

The work has also led to the production of two animated films, both released in 2013, multiple video games for a variety of consoles, musicals, a play and some supplementary books, as well as the marketing of other types of merchandise.

Hunter × Hunter has been a huge critical and financial success, becoming one of Shueisha's best-selling manga, having sold over 78 million copies in Japan alone as of November 2019..^{[citation required]}

Story plot

Twelve years before the start of the story, Ging Freecss left his son Gon in the hands of his aunt. Myth in Isla Ballena. Gon, who always believed that his parents had died, discovers one day thanks to his father's apprentice, Kite, that he is still alive and has become one of the best hunters, elite individuals and accredited for the tracking down secret treasures, exotic beasts, and even other individuals. Motivated by this revelation, Gon decides to leave home and take the hunter exam, a series of challenges that seek to test the skills, survival, and teamwork of his companions. participants. During the exam, Gon meets and befriends three of the other participants: Killua Zoldyck, a young man the same age as the protagonist, who left his former life as a member of one of the most famous family of assassins; Leorio, who seeks to be a hunter to be able to pay for his medical studies; and Kurapika, the last member of the Kurta clan, who wishes to become a hunter in order to avenge his family and recover the scarlet eyes that were stolen from their bodies by a group of mercenaries known as Gen'ei Ryodan..

Aspects of the fictional world

In the world of Hunter x Hunter there are monsters, magical beasts, hidden treasures, cursed places, unexplored places and, in general, mysteries. There is a group of people more attracted to these issues; people who seek to unravel power, secrets and everything that lies hidden. These people are called Hunters (Hunters) and they are part of an Association.

To be a professional Hunter, you must pass two exams conducted by the Selection Committee of the Hunters Association: one official and one secret. The official exam is held periodically at the beginning of January, and to apply you must carry out a registration process before the New Year holidays. The official exams are different because the number of phases and the nature of the tests depend on the judgment of the examiners; and the examiners change every year as they are volunteer professional Hunters. According to the twelfth president of the Hunters Association, Isaac Netero, the three main criteria of the exam are: physical strength (agility, flexibility, endurance, perception), mental strength (will, adaptability, judgment, creativity) and, most importantly, general impression (any other intangible). Anyone who passes the official exam is awarded the title of Hunter and obtains an official license, which is vital according to current commandments. However, you must successfully complete the secret exam: training in the basic principles of Nen.

Nen is the technique that allows the spiritual force to be exploited in the world of Hunter x Hunter, and in this lies the power that the different characters use to fight each other. In principle, it is a human potential; therefore, it is explained, with training everyone can develop Nen. It is even said in the work that there are records of people who develop Nen involuntarily, due to their talent and effort in a specific area: painting, sports, crafts, etc. There are four basic principles to learn Nen: Ten (Barrier), which consists of making the aura remain around the user, in a constant flux; Zetsu (Nullify), which allows the user to block the flow of the aura; Ren (Enhance), who expels aura offensively; and Hatsu (Act), which projects the use of the aura into a specific action, according to the function determined by the user.

The major principles allow the Nen user to apply their own developments to the technique, based on their nature and intentions. There are six categories to classify the use of Nen: Empowerment (increases resistance and strength of the user or objects), Transmutation (transforms the aura into matter), Emission (projects the aura outside itself, in different forms), Conjuration (materializes the aura in the form of objects with special qualities), Manipulation (controls others or other things through the aura), and Specialization (use of the aura outside of the previous categories).

The fictional world of Hunter x Hunter is represented by a map similar to the real world, in an inverted view of the conventional sense. However, in this work it is stated that there is an unexplored part of the world called the "dark continent".

Main characters

Then the main characters will be briefly described and the seiyū of the Japanese versions will be named, as well as the dubbing actors in Latin America and Spain, although the first anime is the only one that has been dubbed:

• Gon Freecss (◊ ¬ ¬ ¬ та та та та та та ти та ста тиста стари стасти сти ста стистистаистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистистисти , Gon Furīkusu^?) He is a 12-year-old boy who wants to become a hunter to find his father, the legendary Ging Freecss hunter. Having spent a lot of time in the woods while he was younger, he is very well treated with animals. It also has extraordinary senses of smell and sight. In Japanese versions their seiyū are Junko Takeuchi for the first anime and Megumi Han for the second; in the Spanish-American fold his voice is given by Leonardo Salas, and in Spanish by Carlos Lladó.[1]
• Killua Zoldyck (патати тати тать сти ти ти ти ти ть сти сти сти сти ти истисть сти стисти стистистисти ти стисти, Kirua Zorudikku^?) He is a 12-year-old and best friend of the protagonist, Gon Freecss. Killua Zoldyck belongs to a famous family of murderers, the Zoldyck family. Avoiding the same future, he decided to participate in the hunter's examination where we are later shown the great friendship that forms with our protagonist. It's very agile and strong in combat. It has a rather cheerful and serene attitude, in moments of danger it is usually cold and calculating. In Japanese versions their seiyū are Kanako Mitsuhashi for the first anime and Mariya Ise for the second; in the Hispanic-American fold his voice is given by Carlos Alberto Gutiérrez, and in Spanish by Carmen Calvell.
• Kurapika (♦ ・, Kurapika^?) is the last member of the Kuruta clan, known for his scarlet eyes ( のの 色 色の 色 色の 色 色の 色 色 色 色の 色 。, Hiiro I'm not^?). Its objective is to pursue and destroy the group responsible for the destruction of its clan, the Gen'ei Ryodan. In Japanese versions their seiyū are Yuki Kaida for the first anime and Miyuki Sawashiro for the second; in the Hispanic-American fold his voice is given by Bernardo Duque, and in Spanish by Jordi Navarro.
• Leorio Paladiknight (Корики талистатититатистистистистистистистистистисти, Paradinaito Reorio^?) he is a teenager who initially comments being involved in the hunter's exam exclusively for money, but later reveals that it is because he wants to become a doctor, and needs the money to pay for his studies. Leorio is a very intelligent person, who is willing to help his friends no matter what happens. In Japanese versions their seiyū are Hozumi Gōda for the first anime and Keiji Fujiwara for the second; in the Hispanic-American fold his voice is given by Orlando Arenas, and in Spanish by Tasio Alonso.

Production

Yoshihiro Togashi, the author of the work, explained that one of his main hobbies was collecting all kinds of objects, so he based himself on this to create a series entitled "Hunter", where collecting was the main theme. After watching Downtown no Gaki no Tsukai ya Arahende!!, a variety show where the hosts would often repeat what they said in order to make the audience laugh, Togashi decided that the final title of the work would be "Hunter × Hunter". As in his previous work, Yū Yū Hakusho, the mangaka used fountain pens and Kabura pencils for the illustrations, but used an eMac to color them. Togashi worked with few or no assistants on the production of the manga; however, some of his mangaka and his future wife, Naoko Takeuchi, collaborated in applying the screentone technique to the single-color pages of the first volume. With the birth of their first child soon At the beginning of the publication of the manga, Togashi considered that this personal aspect of his life could be of great influence for his work, especially in this one, which focuses on a son who searches for his father.

There have been several times when Togashi has apologized to his Shūkan Shōnen Jump readers for the poor quality of the artwork and has promised to redraw some of the chapters for the release of the series. tankōbon. In addition, the publication of the Hunter × Hunter manga has been paused multiple times in recent years, with which the released chapters are separated from each other by long periods. After returning from a long hiatus in early June 2014, Hunter × Hunter resumed its weekly publication, going on hiatus again just two months later. The publication of the manga was resumed, after its longest pause so far, on April 18, 2016, being paused again after two months of publication.

Content of the work

Manga

The Hunter × Hunter manga was first published in March 1998 by Shueisha, in its weekly magazine. Shūkan Shōnen Jump. As of October 2018, Shueisha has compiled 380 chapters into 36 volumes in the tankōbon format. In early December 2011, Shueisha began publishing new editions of the manga in the magazine format. The publisher published one volume per month for a total of six volumes, spanning through the end of the Greed Island arc. In December 2012, Togashi wrote a story titled Kurapika Tsuioku-hen (クラピカ追憶編, 'Kurapika Tsuioku-hen'^? "Kurapika's Memoirs") which was used as a prequel to the first animated film in the series. Sui Ishida, author of Tokyo Ghoul, wrote a 69-page chapter focusing on Hisoka's past. The story was published digitally in the virtual magazine Shonen Jump+ on June 2, 2016.

The Spanish versions of the manga have been published by the Panini publishing house in Spain, and by Grupo Editorial Vid and later by Editorial Panini in Mexico and Colombia.

First adaptation

The Hunter × Hunter anime, directed by Kazuhiro Furuhashi and produced by Nippon Animation studio and Shūeisha, first aired in Japan on October 16, 1999 on Fuji Television, and subsequently at Animax. The series ended on March 31, 2001 with a total of sixty-two episodes. The violence was diminished for young audiences. The Japanese company Marvelous Entertainment released all the episodes of this anime on DVD video format. between September 20, 2000 and September 21, 2001; a total of thirteen DVD volumes were compiled.

The series was licensed for Latin America by Televix Entertainment in August 2001. On October 1, 2003, it premiered in Argentina on Magic Kids, being broadcast until September 2004. It was released pan-regionally by Animax after having had passes on local channels in Argentina and Chile on July 31, 2005. In Spain it was broadcast by Animax Spain and by La Sexta (the complete series was not broadcast on this second channel).

The Spanish dubbing of this first anime was made in two different versions: one in Spain, made by the Cristal Media studio in Barcelona, with a translation under the responsibility of Bárbara Pesquer; and another in Colombia, by the studio Provideo S.A. and directed by Orlando Arenas, made in 2002 under the title Cazador X. This Colombian version was used for the rest of Latin America.

Original animations

Once all the manga chapters published up to March 2001 had been adapted into anime, the studio Nippon Animation decided to end the project. Nippon Animation produced three original animations that continued the story from where it left off until the Greed Island saga. The first of these original animations named Hunter x Hunter OVA was directed by Satoshi Saga, and had eight episodes released on four DVD volumes since the January 17 to April 17, 2002. The second animation, Hunter × Hunter: Greed Island , was directed by Yukihiro Matsushita and also had eight episodes that were released in four volumes of DVD from February 19 to March 21, 2003. Finally, Hunter × Hunter: G.I. Final, ran under the direction of Makoto Sato; this time fourteen episodes were produced and released on seven DVD volumes between March 3 and August 18, 2004. Following the anime's original airing on Animax, these animations were broadcast successively.

The first OVA series were licensed by Televix for Latin America at some point in 2003 and packaged together with the original series for rebroadcasting on local channels. The other two OVA series (Green Island and Green Island Final) in 2008 were licensed for broadcast by Animax, being released on August 27 of that same year respecting the majority of the cast of the TV series.

Second adaptation

In July 2011, a second anime adaptation of Hunter × Hunter was announced. Instead of continuing the story from where it had been animated in the OVAs, it restarted the manga's story from the beginning, in order to more closely adapt it to the manga. Directed by Hiroshi Kōjina and now produced by Madhouse, it has Jun Maekawa as a scriptwriter and Takahiro Yoshimatsu as character designer. This reboot began airing on October 2, 2011 on Nippon Television and ended on September 23, 2014, adapting up to the 339th chapter of the manga, ending with a total of 148 episodes aired. The series was released on BD disc and DVD with 146 episodes (chapters 13 and 26 TV exclusives).

Movies

Prior to the production of the first anime series, Hunter × Hunter was adapted into an original animation by studio Pierrot, under the direction of Noriyuki Abe. Broadcast on the 1998 Jump Super Anime Tour along with original animations from Seikimatsu Leader den Takeshi! and One Piece, it follows the story of the manga until Gon leaves. Whale Island.

In March 2012 it was announced that the series would be adapted into an animated feature film with an original story, Hunter × Hunter: Phantom Rouge (劇場版 HUNTER×HUNTER 緋色の幻影-ファントム・ルージュ-, Gekijō-ban HUNTER×HUNTER Hiiro no Genei -Fantomu Rūju-^?). Produced by the Madhouse studio and distributed by the Japanese company Tōhō. The story focuses on the efforts of Gon and his friends to recover Kurapika's scarlet eyes, which they were stolen by Omokage, a member of the Gen'ei Ryodan.

Following the debut of Hunter × Hunter: Phantom Rouge, a second animated film was announced for production. Titled Hunter × Hunter: The Last Mission (ハンター X ハンター: ザ・ラスト・ミッション, 'Hunter × Hunter: The Last Mission' ^?), was directed by Keiichiro Kawaguchi and wrote Nobuaki Kishima. opened in Japanese theaters on December 27, 2013. The story centers on Netero, the president of the Hunter Association, and how Gon and his friends discover the dark secrets of their past.

Soundtrack

The music for the soundtrack of the first Hunter × Hunter anime, as well as all of its original animations, was composed by Toshihiko Sahashi. These albums were released for sale by the Japanese company Marvelous Entertainment between December 22, 1999 and March 16, 2001. The three albums that belong to the anime contain, in their entirety, one hundred thirty-two tracks, including themes from Opening and closing. The album for the first original animation featured eighteen tracks, while the album for the second animation had thirty. In addition, multiple drama CDs and a radio drama series titled Hunter × Hunter R was released to the public. sale during the anime adaptation.

For its part, the music for the second anime adaptation is composed by Yoshihisa Hirano.

Musicals and plays

Two musicals based on Hunter × Hunter have been produced. The first, Musical Hunter × Hunter (ミュージカル ハンター×ハンター, 'Musical Hunter × Hunter'^?) was first performed during December 2000. This featured an original story that appears to take place between the end of the York Shin saga and the beginning of the Greed Island saga. The second musical, Musical Hunter × Hunter: The Nightmare of Zoldyck ナイトメア・オブ・ゾルディック, 'Musical Hunter × Hunter: The Nightmare of Zoldyck'^? ), took place during August 2002. This is an adaptation of the events that occur just after the end of the Hunter Exam saga, when Kurapika, Leorio, and Gon travel in search of Killua., who has been imprisoned by his family. DVDs and audio CDs of the musicals received both separate and bundle releases from Marvelous Entertainment.

In addition, the series was adapted into a live-action stage play called Real Stage Hunter × Hunter: «A Longing for Phalcnothdk ~ A Spider's Memory ~» (リアルステージ ハンター×ハンター｢A Longing for Phalcnothdk 〜蜘蛛の記憶〜｣, 'Real Stage Hunter × Hunter: «A Longing for Phalcnothdk ~ A Spider's Memory ~»'^?), which was staged sixteen times at the Theater Sun-mall in Shinjuku, Tokyo during August 2004. The play tells of the end of the mercenary group Gen'ei Ryodan in the York Shin saga. Its DVD was released for sale in Japan on December 10, 2004.

Video Games

Like other series, numerous video games have been created based on Hunter × Hunter; however, they have been released exclusively in Japan. Many of these video games were developed or published by the Japanese companies Konami or Bandai, and span genres such as role-playing, strategy, action, and adventure. Likewise, the video consoles in which these video games can be played range from WonderSwan, WonderSwan Color, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance, to PlayStation, and PlayStation 2. A game based on the The second anime adaptation was released for the PlayStation Portable on September 20, 2012.

Several of the Hunter × Hunter characters appear in the Nintendo DS video games Jump Super Stars and its sequel, Jump Ultimate Stars; both are fighting video games where you can fight with a large number of characters from other manga published by the Shūkan Shōnen Jump magazine.

In addition, Gon and some of the characters from the series appear in another crossover video game, J-Stars Victory Vs for PS3, PSVita and PS4, created to celebrate the forty-fifth anniversary of Shonen Jump magazine.

Supplementary Books

The Hunter × Hunter franchise has expanded so much that multiple supplementary books have even been written, all of them released by Shūeisha. For the first anime, writer and screenwriter Nobuaki Kishikan created three books that were published between December 1999 and August 2001. In addition, a guide for this anime, titled Hunter x Hunter Characters Book: World × Character × Blessing (Hunter × Hunter キャラクターズブック World × Character × Blessing, 'Hunter x Hunter Characters Book: World × Character × Blessing'^?), was published in January 2001. Another guide was published for the manga, the Hunter × Hunter: Hunters Association Official World and Character Guide (Hunter × Hunter ハンター協会公式発行ハンターズ・ガイド, 'Hunter × Hunter: Hunters Association Official World and Character Guide&# 39;^?), June 4, 2004.

Reception

Hunter × Hunter is one of Togashi's two most famous titles (the other being Yū Yū Hakusho). As of June 2007, the first twenty volumes of the manga have sold over 36,958,000 copies combined in Japan alone. The manga's twenty-sixth volume release was the manga best-seller within the first two weeks of its on-sale release, and has sold over 900,000 copies as of November 3, 2008. The manga has also been translated into different languages, in many countries around the world.

The manga has sold over 68.8 million copies in Japan alone.^{[citation needed]}