Hunter x Hunter (2011)

Synopsis

Setting

In the world of Hunter × Hunter, Hunters (ハンター, Hantā) are licensed, elite members of humanity who are capable of tracking down secret treasures, rare beasts, or even other individuals, and can also access locations that regulars cannot. To obtain a license, one must pass the rigorous annual Hunter Examination run by the Hunter Association, which has a success rate of less than one in a hundred-thousand. A Hunter may be awarded up to three stars: a single star for making "remarkable achievements in a particular field"; they may then be upgraded to two stars for "holding an official position" and mentoring another Hunter up to single star level; and finally upgraded to …

Production

Author Yoshihiro Togashi stated that his hobby of collecting various objects inspired him to create a manga about collecting, initially conceptualized under the title "(something) Hunter". The final title, Hunter × Hunter, was conceived while Togashi watched the television variety show Downtown, where hosts often repeat phrases for comedic effect. The "×" in the title is silent. As with his previous series, YuYu Hakusho, Togashi used drafting ink and Kabura pens for illustrations, but began employing an eMac software for coloring. Togashi typically works with few or no assistants; however, fellow manga artist and future wife Naoko Takeuchi assisted in applying screentone to s…

Manga

Written and illustrated by Yoshihiro Togashi, Hunter × Hunter started its serialization in Shueisha's shōnen manga magazine Weekly Shōnen Jump on March 3, 1998. Shueisha has collected its chapters into individual tankōbon volumes, with the first one released on June 4, 1998. As of September 4, 2024, 38 volumes have been released. The series has also been published in a sōshūhen edition that aims to recreate the manga as it was originally serialized in Weekly Shōnen Jump in the same size and with the color pages. Eleven volumes were released between December 9, 2011, and April 18, 2014, covering up to the Election story arc.

In April 2005, Viz Media began publishing the manga in E…

Anime

1999 series

A 62-episode anime television series adaptation, produced by Nippon Animation and directed by Kazuhiro Furuhashi, was broadcast on Fuji TV from October 16, 1999, to March 31, 2001.

Original video animations

The Nippon Animation series was followed by three original video animations (OVAs) that total 30 episodes. The first OVA series was directed by Satoshi Saga and comprises eight episodes across four volumes, released from January 17 to April 17, 2002. The second OVA series, Hunter × Hunter: Greed Island, was directed by Yukihiro Matsushita and comprises eight episodes across four volumes, released from February 19 to May 21, 2003. The third OVA series, Hunter × Hu…

Films

Before the first anime television series was created, a short film adaptation of Hunter × Hunter was shown as part of the 1998 "Jump Super Anime Tour" alongside similar adaptations of Seikimatsu Leader den Takeshi! and One Piece. Produced by Studio Pierrot and directed by Noriyuki Abe, it depicts the early events of the manga up to Gon's ocean voyage from Whale Island.

A film adaptation produced by Madhouse, titled Hunter × Hunter: Phantom Rouge, featuring an original story, was announced in March 2012. It was released on January 12, 2013, by Toho. It centers around Gon and his friends efforts to retrieve Kurapika's eyes which were stolen by Omokage, Hisoka's predecessor in the P…

Video games

There are ten Japan-exclusive video games based on Hunter × Hunter, many of which were either developed or published by Konami or Bandai. They range from role-playing and strategy games to action and adventure games. These include titles for the WonderSwan, WonderSwan Color, Game Boy Color, Game Boy Advance, PlayStation, and PlayStation 2.

A game based on the second anime adaptation was released on the PlayStation Portable on September 20, 2012. Characters from the franchise have appeared along with other Weekly Shōnen Jump properties in the fighting games Jump Super Stars and Jump Ultimate Stars for the Nintendo DS, J-Stars Victory VS for the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation …

Reception

The series ranked fourth on Takarajimasha's Kono Manga ga Sugoi! list of best manga of 2012. In November 2014, readers of Media Factory's Da Vinci magazine voted Hunter × Hunter as the eleventh greatest Weekly Shōnen Jump manga series of all time. In 2019, the series ranked seventh on Da Vinci's 19th annual "Book of the Year" list. On TV Asahi's Manga Sōsenkyo 2021 poll, in which 150,000 people voted for their top 100 manga series, Hunter × Hunter ranked eleventh.

Sales

The Hunter × Hunter manga has been largely commercially successful; it has sold over 60.6 million collected volumes in Japan by February 2012, making it Shueisha's eighth best-selling manga series. This numbe…