Saying Goodbye To Hunter x Hunter

All good things must come to an end. After nearly three years, Toonami wrapped up Hunter x Hunter’s run with its 148th episode.

This was originally published as part of the SixTAY Days of Writing of 2019.

As a fellow aficionado of almost all things shonen, when I first heard that Hunter x Hunter was being added to Toonami back in 2016, I was pretty excited despite knowing next to nothing aside from its global popularity (and the author likes his extended breaks). Like many long running anime, it was on my backlog, but I felt intimated by the episode count and not knowing if it would ever be “finished” (this is technically the second time the series has been adapted).

In retrospect, one of main appeals of Hunter x Hunter is that it almost never sticks to one idea for too long in each arc; always keeping you on your toes and eager to continuously outdo itself. Closer to the series final arcs, I kept asking myself how we went from the hunter license exam at the beginning, all the way up to a full blown war with an advanced species of ants; and that’s before I get into all the other crazy stuff that happens in between all in the search for Gon’s dad.

There is a certain level of detail and dialogue that rivals even some of the most meticulous of anime/manga (I’m talking JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure level), revealing a great passion for the subject material that borders on obsessive.

And he practiced a set of 10,000 punches and prayers daily to show his gratitude.

And all of that detail is best personified by its memorable characters. Between its main cast and some very strange odd balls in between (the above gif doesn’t even scratch the surface!), there was rarely a dull moment. After spending so much time in this world, I can’t help feel a bit sad now that we’ve finally reached the end. Should the manga ever resume (or is it back yet?), I can only hope we one day get to continue Gon’s journey, wherever it ends up taking him.

I just had to post this clip somewhere.

And with that, I’ll just end this with one last farewell from the voice of Gon:

Thank you Hunter x Hunter.

Credits:

Still the show’s best theme. Fight me.

Track: Hunting for Your Dream (Hunter x Hunter ED 2) | Artist: Galneryus | Album: Angel of Salvation

Originally published at https://anitay.kinja.com on June 25, 2019.