I’m now really starting to see the purpose of the fillers of the first series, and especially the boat arc: they gave character to the other contestants. At this point, the difference is really starting to show, even when I’m ignoring the fact that I can see all of the plot twists coming. Back when I watched the first series, I actually cared about the other contestants. This new version though, only gave them a few lines here and there. It’s a shame, because this bonding with everyone was one of the things that made the Hunter Exam arc so great there.
While watching this series, I’ve also gotten a bit of understanding of why why people keep going on about faithfulness in an adaptation. I’m starting to notice myself that because I already know what’s going to happen, I end up focusing much more on the details. Even small flaws stands out now. You have this image of how this series should be, and when it deviates from this, it feels more annoying than anything. Because I’m so focused on this, I’m not really enjoying this series like I used to in the first season. This is really a dilemma, because really: this remains the best shounen plot we’ve had in years. How come there weren’t any more series like this that showed up in Shounen Jump? Did the manga have no influence whatsoever on other authors or something?
This is also why I hate recap movies, and I can only watch these series when they actually try to stand on their own, instead of trying to tell the same story with only slight differences. I think that the bare minimum of changes was the Nanoha Movie: the story might have been the same, but the creators there successfully brought it down to an hour length and made it watchable for the people who didn’t watch the series. These two series however… they’re just way too similar. Right now my advice is just to watch the Hunter Exam arc of the Hunter Exam arc. After that you can just swap back to the new series for the next arc, because that will likely be done better. They’re completely interchangeable right now.
This is also why I fail to understand why people would want to watch the anime version of a manga they’ve read, when it’s just going to be the same anyway, save for some minor details that stand out.
For example, I’m not sure if this was in the first season or not (my memory of it isn’t THAT good), but it really bugged me that that monkey guy did such a terrible job at hiding himself. He went into a completely different direction, and yet they easily caught up with him. I do think however that I would have brushed this aside as a minor detail when watching the story for the first time. And I really fear that I’m going to have the same reactions when we get to my favorite part of this series, the Yorkshin Arc.
Rating: * (Good)
You seem to want this series to BE the first series. It is not and never will be. Let is be itself and stop comparing the two because god knows it’s becoming boring reading your write ups now.
We know you have nostalgia of the previous series. That is great but just because this series has differences to the previous series doesn’t make those differences flaws, it makes them DIFFERENCES.
Either review this new series maturely or do not review it at all. Stop comparing it the first series PLEASE… It’s not fair to compare two completely DIFFERENT takes on the original source material. Anyone agree?
Oh and you really banned me from the shoutbox again? Bloody hell psgels.
But anyways back to the matter at hand. Take off your nostalgia goggles, because this series is fucking amazing at what it is trying to do and that is accurately depict the manga source material.
The older series changed too much and altered the spirit of Hunter x Hunter. It seems you like that version better, which is far from the manga’s original intent.
So for the love of god, accept that this is not the first series and should be accepted for what it is: a more accurate representation of Togashi’s manga.
You’re unbanned and you immediately start making bad masturbatiton jokes. Come on, you had that coming.
In any case, aren’t you doing the same thing that I’m doing with the first season? To me, it seems like you were watching the first series with the same nostalgia glasses that you accuse me of, and that’s my point here: because we’ve already seen the story before, anything that doesn’t match it stands out as more annoying than what it should have been.
I don’t agree completely. It’s a remake, so obviously comparisons are inevitable. Besides, why would I want to watch a remake if the first show is better? But I think psgels gets a bit off-track sometimes when reviewing Hunter x Hunter’s episodes, such as now. There was very little analysis on the episode itself.
Also, I’m a little interested in checking the original anime myself, having only read the manga. Nice to know there is some worthwhile filler material to make it even better. Indeed, Hunter x Hunter could be a massive hit and inspiration if it’s publication wasn’t so irregular.
15 weeks of non stop comparisons though? Surely he has realised that they are going to be different by now.
I have two questions for that:
– How are they different? I mean, there are differences in the minor details, but apart from that?
– How can I enjoy a story that I already watched before?
Too easy:
– First one changed the entire tone and mood of the manga, cut practically all humour and decided for overbearing darkness instead of a balance between each. The new series captures that balance just like it was in the manga. I know you haven’t read the manga so it is difficult for you to see this.
The original series added filler that gave characters who were nothing but fodder more personality only to have them return to assuming their intended roles as 1 line Hisoka fodder.
Not only that but the filler added in the original series was jarring and killed a lot of Togashi’s masterful flow. He really is a manga genius and the first series did not understand his characters or pacing at all. The new series is practically a panel for panel recreation of the manga.
– Now as to how you can enjoy a story you’ve seen before. Is it not possible to enjoy a film on multiple viewings even if it’s not at all changed? This is not the same as the previous version so you can’t use the excuse of it being the same. It is a new take on the original source, enjoy it for what it is not for the series it is not.
I personally have read the entire manga up to date many times and watched the first series multiple times as well, the reason I enjoy this series so much is that it is the first time I feel that Togashi’s characters, universe and spirit have been properly portrayed in animated form. It is a wonder to see a manga I have loved as a child and grown up with recreated with stunning visuals in the way it was originally intended.
The differences in the details are actually fairly significant. The first series made changes to the plot, storyline, and characters that would have made it impossible to proceed into new territory.
Also, do you watch the RAWs? Listen to the Japanese tracks. The script is significantly more naturalistic than the 1999 series because it’s closer to the manga dialog. Gon and Killua are more “lost boys” instead of generically Japanese.
The reason you feel like you don’t know the characters yet is because you really don’t. The first series developed the protagonists early, but their growth goes into completely different directions from the manga.
Gon is notably different. He’s a more observational (http://imgur.com/8GfIs), mysterious (http://i.imgur.com/cdJ4w.jpg) protagonist. Look at how little he says in contrast to his actions. This is a good thing, because he is as such in the manga. If you paid attention, you would have noticed that Gon utilized a technique he had no business knowing in this episode (look at the way his eyes lose their light when he enters the bushes). This is in the manga as well, but the first series chose not to include the scene.
The first series is often dramatic for the sake of being dramatic. It alters the source material with cliched direction, but there is little of that here. And the monkey guy (Sommy) didn’t hide in the 1999 series either. He kept running until his monkey is caught and then Leorio tags him.
@Question “Why would you read/watch manga/anime when you have already read/watched manga/anime of the series?”:
Well, there could be multiple reasons like wanting to see what adaption/original is like or wanting to see how faithful adaption is so you know that people who have only watched the adaption have also gotten the same experience and won’t think worse of the series or just be interested in what it is like. That or just to see fight scenes in motion.
Did the manga have no influence whatsoever on other authors or something?
Ohohoho, he had a lot of influence on the first few arcs of Naruto, that’s for sure!
I think a lot of what the manga was intended to be is lost when you base comparisons on the first series alone. I’ve read the manga lots of times, watching the remake actually gives me a better understanding of the themes and symbolism Togashi likes to use. Sometimes it gets so engraved to you that a shounen is– well a shounen so you don’t really think about it as much as say– Un-Go or Penguindrum. But after watching the 2011 anime series it’s become easier to connect these themes all together and makes me in awe of how capable the author is.
While the same things happen in both adaptations, I believe the 2011 one has a better grasp of the characterization. Because a lot of what happens in HxH is based on decision making, it’s important to understand the individual behind the decision. This is why although it progresses the same way, the 1999 and 2011 characters are vastly different. If someone watched the 1999 series and OVAs and them jumped into the manga where the anime left off, it’d be difficult to understand why Gon did this or that, or why Killua said this…they may seem minor but once these differences pile up a jarring gap appears. This is coming from my own personal experience, I had to go back and re-read the manga from the start because my initial understanding of the characters were very different from what was portrayed in the manga.
I feel the exact same way. I mentioned this on a previous episodes post and got slammed by psgels and a bunch of others…
Kevin everytime you pop up i have to get another tub of popcorn. I’m almost out, damn you.
On topic: Whats wrong with comparison? If you going to have 2 series. It makes sense to compare the 2 as nostalgia or just pure comparison.
Also if you keep coming here just to bash Psgels blogs, why come here at all.
He has been comparing for 15 fucking weeks… Surely it is time to move on by now.
I come here because believe it or not I actually like psgels and his reviews. There are times when I see it fit to raise my voice if I disagree, but I certainly like the guy.
For Leorio and Kurapica catching up to the monkey guy, I saw it as they beat the information out of Tompa where the “usual place” was and then chased him from there.
First off – long time reader, first time posted … at least i think this is my first post.
While i don’t like how he said it, I actually kind of agree with Kevin’s sentiment. Its a comparison of source material, the previous series and the latest incarnation which is different to an episode review. the physical bulk of the above text tells me nothing about the actual episode, such as what was good about it or what the animation was like which is what you do for most other series (its why i read the blog). If it was a one off then fine but its becoming an increasingly large part of the HxH episode reviews to the point where you are barely talking about the episode you have just watched.
The reason this is an issue for me is because i’m one of the few that have not read the original manga or seen the original source material.
ohh apparently not my first post… i even have an avatar 🙂
I like Hunter X Hunter but I think you overrate it Psgels. What bothers me is how you make it out to be the only good Shounen Jump series. And I guess that is fine if that is your opinion, except you aren’t that familiar with all other Shounen Jump series.
As for why people like watching an anime adaption that sticks close to the manga well because manga & anime are two different mediums and you are experiencing the story in two different ways. Some people like to see their favorite manga story brought to life with animation, voice acting, and music. Sometimes changes to the source material can improve the story but other times it just feels like needless filler or makes characters appear OOC.
I feel the original was more loved by their creators. The 1999 team brought the series to life through the way they cleverly worked with the angles, the shadows and music to generate the mood and atmosphere. They weren’t imprisoned by the manga and instead they liberated it and gave it a different form. On the other hand, the remake is loveless and they managed to turn it into a big experimental mess because the people working on the anime do not understand the characters enough, do not appreciate the depth and flow of the manga, and worse yet, they simply did not know what actually works. As a result of this, they sacrificed the beauty of hunter x hunter in order to generate cheap appeal. This includes hisoka’s amazing new ability that turns blood into flowers, something impossible via hisoka’s nen, then turning a tiny fishing village into Europe and ripped off one of the pirate of the Caribbean OSTs. They may have gotten more audience by turning the first 10 odd episodes into pacing fodders and they may have made hunter x hunter easier to understand to a 7 years old by making Gon say out everything loud, but at what expense? Personally, i prefer the show and not tell method, I like depth.
Now I’m going to be a bit cruel. From what i can see the 2011 team their best trying to deviate away from the original but in the end they stilled managed to become prisoners to both the original and the manga. Did this happen because they were overshadowed by Hiroshi Kōjina’s masterpiece? Is that why they decided to run and hid behind Yoshiro togashi’s manga, frame by frame? But haven’t they showed us that they can also be capable people? They’ve had their fun for more than 10 episodes already they need to move out of the experimental phase and give hunter x hunter more love.
P>s episode 15 is one step heading towards the right direction. Love the addition of the meaty bone.
I actually disagree with this post 100%. The 1999 series largely deviated from Togashi’s direction. It tampered with his idea of how the series should be, and it was a major problem. That’s why fans of the manga did not warmly receive the anime adaptation of it when it first aired on TV.
Keep in mind that the show had been running 21 weeks at this point. Viewers had been fed up with the slow pacing, generic sentimentality, and differences from the manga. The different direction was largely discussed and fans stopped watching the show as a result. When the 1999 series ended, it attempted to rectify this problem by shifting its direction to be more in line with Togashi. It also tried to make it up to fans by making the violence more explicit like it is in the manga, to the behest of sponsors. The last two episodes of the series were violent enough to make sure that the sponsors of the show had their names removed from the production.
However, the direction isn’t the only thing that’s improved. The voice acting is significantly better. Psgels, I know you liked the original, but as someone who speaks Japanese it is a welcome change. In fact, have you heard the English dub? To a native speaker of English, it comes across as grating and poor. But it was dubbed as a period piece: the nuance and sub-par vocal inflection is done as a stylistic choice because that’s how this series was voiced in Japanese.
The lacking BGM stuck out like a sore thumb in this episode. For me it fails to create or enhance the mood in almost any of the scenes. Instead I’, drawn out of the experience and think how I wish the new series had a better OST. While I look favorably upon the new series, at this point, I’d recommend to new people to stick to the old series, because the “whole package” feels better to me. Just imagine the York Shin ark with the BGM we’ve had here so far. I really hope they’ll introduce new tracks soon, as the current batch simply doesn’t cut it for me.
I think it’s pretty clear the OST will shift up for York New Arc. This current BGM doesn’t suit York New clearly, but it sure as hell suits the Hunter Exam.
>>This current BGM doesn’t suit York New clearly, but it sure as hell suits the Hunter Exam.
I disagree with that. Just how many times can you use the drums and trumpets main theme before it becomes tiresome or how about the “Hey look guys, this is is funny stuff happening right now! laugh! LAUGH, DAMNIT!” piece? The sound director of HxH2011 sure wants to find out. The current batch is, IMO, more often than not a pretty poor fit for whatever is going on on-screen, even for the adventure parts we currently have.
The OST simply needs better tracks or at least a greater variety, so we don’t get to hear the same 2-3 tunes every other scene.
I’m tired of argueing so I will say this:
You’re wrong.
Your opinion is obviously different, but dismissing mine categorically is a pretty bold statement.
But I agree with you that discussing this with you is useless.
To me it doesn’t really matter if this new series follows the source material of the manga more accurately, which I’m btw not so sure it does. Considering this is a dumbed down show for a younger audience, when the manga in fact was kind of dark and gory, it hollows out characters such as Killua and hisoka.
That aside, mostly everything about the production values are worse. Most noteably the lacking BGM which fails to create any suspense or portray the innocent moments, but also the voice acting is considerably worse. It’s also more poorly directed (most notably the choreography). I don’t find the pacing better or faster, only more “jerky”.
My heart went out for the protagonists in the first series and unfortunately I can’t say the same for this secound run. Or, it’d be more accurate to say that it’s because of the first series that I find the characters likeable even in this one.
It isn’t dumbed down at all. If anything, the old version is. I dare you to rewatch episode 21 of the 1999 series and report your findings. Look at the exposition in the 1999 series. The number of extra lines and pointless additions to the source material. It spells everything out for the audience, and the filler is dreadful.
Hunter x Hunter is a series about Hunters. Listen to the way the drums rumble in the soundtrack. The orchestrated tracks are great as well. The African musical influence is perfectly in line with the series’ intent.
And as far as voice acting goes, I’ve already posted about it a few posts up. Watch the English dub and tell me how it sounds to you. That was exactly how the series sounded to Japanese viewers–wordy, cliche, and somewhat bad.
The 1999 series was unabashedly made into a bishonen show. You may have felt closer to the characters, but you aren’t supposed to know them yet in the manga. Togashi did this on purpose. But the 1999 series made up personality traits for the protagonists that end up contradicting their later actions. This doesn’t happen in the manga; Togashi is very consistent.
It is dumbed down by the fact a lot of the violence has been excluded, to fit a younger audience. Best example is when Killua rips the dismantler’s heart out, and gives it back… in a paper bag? Or when Hisoka removes the other participant’s arms, perhaps I’m dead wrong, but I thought they were supposedly cut off? Instead they vanish into thin air.
During the fighting scenes, a lot of the violence is excluded (specifically that which contains blood). The choreography is also changed by quite a lot (Hisoka “teleporting”), so this whole “this adaptation is closer to the source material” becomes a moot point to me. It may be true in terms of script and a faster pacing due to no filler content, but otherwise it’s not.
I am not normally one to promote fillers but I think the boat filler was exceptionally well made. It served to flesh out some of the other contestants and did you listen to the sound track? It was majestic and to my knowledge, it isn’t played anywhere else in the series. If you’re going to make fillers, that’s how you do it.
Speaking of sound track, go back to EP8 from the 99 series and tell me it doesn’t fit your description. The point isn’t that the new sound track is inherently bad, it’s just that it becomes bland when it doesn’t contain as much variety as the old one did.
Do you have any examples of how the characters contradict themselves?
Okay first off, the heart ripping is still fucking heart ripping. The guy still has his heart ripped out. Of course they could not show Killua actually holding the heart due to network restrictions but he still ripped the guys fucking heart out. The fact that he gave it back is actually more in tune with his character later on actually so I enjoyed that.
AS for the Hisoka and the guys arms. In both the first series and manga, Hisoka disappears his arms, not cuts them off. Check the manga yourself if you don’t believe me. It is never said that he cut them off. In this version they instead decided to stylise this disappearance and play up Hisoka’s magician side.
Hisoka isn’t teleporting he is moving super fast. Read that bit in the manga, happens the same way.
Also a lot of the scenes containing blood are retained. If you have been watching the past 8 or so episodes you’d see that it is in fact still got as much blood as the first series (which had very little). See Killua’s slaughter on the air ship. That scene was so perfect and shocking in this new adaptation. It was silent and blood splattered everywhere in an instant.
They are honestly doing an amazing job with this adaptation and have done the best job they can while sticking with their networks imposed restrictions. The fact that Killua does not crush the heart of Jones does not lessen the fact that he ripped the guys heart out at all.
As for contestants needing to be fleshed out. Togashi only fleshes out the ones that need to be fleshed out. There is no point fleshing out a character that is only fodder or not important to the story at all and Togashi understands that.
As for the soundtrack here, it is far from bland and has much more variety than the old series. I do not understand how you could think differently it doesn’t make sense to me.
One contradiction with characters is Gon’s entire personality change. He is too talkative in the old series to the point that instead of being a young boy filled with curiosity, he becomes more of an older personality that will later contradict scenes in which his childish naievty is his downfall. As for Killua his personality in the older series contradicts his childish nature seen later on in the series and also causes makes his friendship with Gon nowhere near as authentic as the original mangas intent.
I’m so tired of people like you with nostalgia goggles on who simply can not accept that this series is just plain better than the old series… Sure there is censorship but the older series had far worse censorship (look at Hisoka vs. Tazaru in Trick Tower on old series compared to new series)
You claim the new series is better because it’s more in line with the manga, Ok, I’m fine with that. Apples and oranges, really.
However, you then go ahead and justify things that aren’t done in correlation to the manga (in this case killua giving the heart back) with “it fits his later personality”…
You are right that it’s never mentioned that Hisoka cut that guy’s arms off, however, it’d be the most logical conclussion because nowhere in the manga is this “vanishing technique” something that has been followed up upon or explained. And quite a lot is known about Hisoka’s fighting capabilities and techniques. Besides, it didn’t even happen in the first anime adaptation so I’m not sure what you’re on about.
So, either 1) We are yet to see an explanation for this technique which has never been seen or used ever since the first book of the manga more than 10 years ago or 2) Togashi is inconsistent with his work (which may very well be the case, just by looking at how the Ant arc developed and concluded rofl) or 3) this in fact never happened the way it was shown in the second adaptation.
As for him “teleporting”, yeah I put it in quotes because obviously he isn’t teleporting. The manga gives the impression that he’s an incredibly quick and agile character, whereas in this anime adaption he’s percieved as someone utilizing magic tricks -> example of changed coreography.
The manga is considerably more “gory” than either of the anime series.. Just look at the Hisoka fight in the swamp.. He nearly beheads people, cutting their throats and slashes their eyes with his nen-imbued cards. None of which is portrayed in this adaptation. In fact, it resembles the first adaptation in the sense that there is no blood at all.
//
Some of the actions don’t even make any sense by themselves (Leorio suddenly catching up to Sommy despite him running the opposite direction, just to give one example), which is more a testament of sloppy directing/scene selection than anything else, making for an indeed faster pacing, but also a more jerky story telling.
Personally I dislike most of the voice actors also, especially those starring the minor/side characters. Seriously, Mito sounds like she’s 60 years old.
“I’m so tired of people like you with nostalgia goggles on who simply can not accept that this series is just plain better than the old series…”
What a lot of people have issue here is, and personally what I am very tired of with you – both with this series and others I’ve overlapped in viewing with you – is the definitiveness of your statement as if it were the only right one.
I’ve already pointed this out for you last time but there is no complete basis for you or I or anyone for that matter to conclude that this series or the previous one is better when clearly the show is not over. We don’t have a solid basis.
Secondly, OPINIONS are not logical facts and frankly I’m not seeing much facts here other than “X scene is more faithful to the manga”. That does not necessarily equal better for a fact, and again its hard to say anything at this point since we’re really quite early on this series.
Third, it is absolutely pointless to compare the censorship that both adaptations have done. Clearly the censors who are reviewing the series now would be different from the sensibilities of the old one. True the old series did abstain more from scenes that involved a lot of gore, e.g. battle tower, but really it is easy in retrospect and from a spectators vantage point to go out and nitpick how you could have handled the censorship of the show. What is more relevant in actually comparing or appreciating what they did with censorship is to compare and contrast it with similar shows and adaptations during that era and I’m sure you’d see HXH was still a cut above the rest in that regard.
Sides another thing to consider here is the material itself. Nippon Animation had to deal with a very erratic series in terms of release, especially once it reached the Yorkshin arc. Further to that there was not as much released chapters to work with as this new series has the advantage of. Simply put there is clearly the difference in adaptation as the director of both series have very different ends or plotting in mind with what is available to them.
Furthermore, considering how many of the adaptation during the 90’s were I’d easily say the original was again one of the luckier ones to not get butchered to the degree other series did, Houshin Engi being the biggest casualty of them all IMO.
One thing I do have a qualm with this adaptation so far is that I’m just not seeing much value added in the animation department. While its nice and all to be faithful I’m not really too fond of adaptations where the director doesn’t really try to infuse their own style into the material. A good comparison would be Sayonara Zetsubo Sensei 1st season VS Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood, both are good but I’d easily pick out Sayonara Zetsubo Sensei 1st season over FMA:Brotherhood for the reason that I do like how the director still managed to put himself into the material rather than the other one where I really don’t see the director at all but a very solid yet safe adaptation of the work. I think that as both a viewer and reader that this is one factor to consider, so far I’m seeing this as a pretty safe adaptation for both good and bad.
Glossa Bingo: The thing I can’t see yet is how the new series is doing it much better. In fact, especially Leorio seems much more like a stereotypical bishie in the 2011 series than what he was in the 1999 series. Killua also may be a bit more playful in the 2011 series, but that too is typical of a bishounen.
Also, what also plagued the final OVAs of the TV-series was that suddenly completely different people were behind it. Every installment of had a different director for example, and the Greed Island specifially felt like its directors wanted to go into a different and more childish direction than before.
Kevin, my big problem with your arguments is that you accuse people of having nostalgia goggles, but seem to be wearing them yourself as well. You might be right about the gore, but half of your arguments simply boil down to things being different from how Togashi envisioned them. The first series changed these characters and turned them into different people. Is that a bad thing? I don’t think so. Apparently you do, though.
Actually no, as I have said multiple times: I like the original series.
However I like this new series better simply because I like Togashi’s manga better than the originals deviations. This series is about as accurate as anime adaptations can get (yes there are differences but all anime adaptations have differences, I don’t know a single one that doesn’t).
“The first series changed these characters and turned them into different people. Is that a bad thing? I don’t think so. Apparently you do, though.”
@psgels
I think the problem lies in how these characters were done. If you really pay attention, you’ll notice that Hunter x Hunter in 1999 was adapted into a bishonen show. Look at these:
(http://download.minitokyo.net/Hunter.X.Hunter.456991.jpg)
(http://i40.tinypic.com/15meiog.jpg)
(http://cdn.myanimelist.net/images/anime/8/19473.jpg)
These are the Japanese DVD covers. If you look at the promotional material for the 1999 series, much of the art is just like this. Gon, Killua, Kurapika, Leorio, and Hisoka have all been assigned a bishonen archetype and their personalities are based upon these. You could take a character from Ouran HS Host Club and literally assign his traits to one of the five main characters and still have it be accurate.
This is the reason as to why fans of the manga dislike the first part of the 1999 anime series–it changes the characters too much. And because of these personality changes, the motivations and actions of the characters start making less and less sense as the series goes on. Did Gon and Killua seem plastic in the first adaptation of Greed Island? This is because the directors were still trying to match the groundwork they had laid down before, despite it already being a mess.
I think that the issue kevin has with your posts, psgels, is that you spend your posts comparing the two episodes but often don’t go back to the original 1999 series or the manga to get concrete ideas about what’s different.
Although I personally prefer the darker, more liberal late 90’s adaptation of Hunter X Hunter on the whole (particularly in regards to how they handled Hisoka), I do admit that the 2011 adaptation’s pacing is better and benefits in some ways that will become more apparent as we get past the Hunter Exam arc.
All that being said, bashing the 1999 series because it wasn’t an “accurate” portrayal of Togashi’s vision betrays the ignorance of people who stand behind that particular judgement. The darker atmosphere and an emphasis on a more mercenary aesthetic benefited the source material immensely, giving a lot of side characters depth and making the world of the Hunters seem like a pretty dog-eat-dog-world kind of place without having to stand on a pulpit.
Unfortunately, because so much time was spent fleshing out the world of Hunter X Hunter in an admittedly rather compelling manner, we got dealt quite a few other problems (including nearly 20 some episodes of annoying filler) that ended up with nothing resolved story wise and a lot of annoyed fans.
Coupled with infrequent publication and a unconventional story structure, Hunter X Hunter was never going to get completed ideally in any form of animated media in the first place, but it’s a shame that 1999’s dark embellishing could never be fully explored and given resolution as far as overarching plot goes.
Togashi is not a God ladies and gents, and I think Hunter X Hunter was more interesting on the whole adaptation-wise when it wasn’t so concerned about appealing to a younger demographic in the first place. Filler aside, there’s a clear gap in immersiveness between 1999 and 2011’s sense of direction…and its obvious which one has more panache.
What about the characterization? This is one of my main issues with the old series. All of the characters frequently do and say things inconsistent with who they are in the manga. As someone who read the manga before seeing the anime, I’m extremely glad to see their personalities having been preserved in the 2011 series.
Are you blind? Just because the colour pallette doesn’t consist only of brown, gray and black doesn’t mean the 99 series was ‘darker’. It means it was more ‘uglier’. The violence is actually more extreme in this series.GO and compare the violent scenes of this series the those of the past series. You will be surprised by which is more ‘darker’ buddy.
The 2011 series takes the violence to another level, it stylises the violence exactly like Togashi did. It’s violence aestheticism and its a hallmark of Togashi’s work. The perfect example of that is Hisoka’s shadow play with Tazaru in the Trick Tower. That was amazing direction that made the violence virge on beauty. Go on go compare them and tell what is better.
– “This is also why I fail to understand why people would want to watch the anime version of a manga they’ve read, when it’s just going to be the same anyway, save for some minor details that stand out.”
I’ve read Mirai Nikki before the anime’s out. I watch the anime now just for the sake of watching it animated. Why? Because I like Mirai Nikki. That’s why I find Murmur’s skits of nonsense fun.
If you ask me, I like the 2011 anime more than the 1999 one. Because as much as I enjoyed the 1999 series, I still enjoy the latest episode of the 2011 series even though I already knew what’s going to happen. That alone is enough for me to like the 2011 series.
Psgels: Think of it as FMA -> FMA:Brotherhood.
Rushing alittle over seen material, wait for news stuff and things will get better and deviate from the old one.
lol @ kevin claiming this new ‘adaptation’ is a completely faithful adaptation. It’s not. Even this new ‘adaptation’ has made several changes from the manga, many of which were for the worse.
Keep it up psgels and don’t let peoples whining get to you.
The only episode that made it for the worse was the cooking exam. But I understand the reasoning behind that change (to prevent it from becoming a two part episode and destroying flow and pace they had already developed). I never said completely faithful by the way Koby, I’d appreciate you not exaggerate my words in the future.
However the overall spirit of Togashi is retained in this series, the older series it was not. You are a fool if you think any different.
So psgels, I implore you to review this series without comparing, because it’s beyond the point of being a point of discussion as it’s been discussed to death. Let’s let that topic die and discuss the actual episodes please.
I’m hoping that like Nurarihyon no Mago, it’ll get a new staff to adapt the York Shinn arc. Because at this point, I could care less about this adaptation, imo, the 1999 version was a masterpiece and this new one has proven to be a piece of shit.
Tell me why it is a piece of shit.
I also would like to know how it is a piece of shit.
I’ll also respectfully disagree on this being a ‘piece of shit’.
“This is also why I fail to understand why people would want to watch the anime version of a manga they’ve read, when it’s just going to be the same anyway, save for some minor details that stand out.”
My issue with this statement is that it implies I would really only read material once or watch a TV series/movie once as what I would aim for is the ‘surprise’ factor or novelty behind it. Indeed, there is a factor of surprise but that is something you’d only experience once however in understanding the QUALITY of the surprise or twists presented as we see things a second, third, or even fourth time so as to start understanding how certain events or details we may have missed out the first time or downplayed actually serves a crucial detail to the build up.
Moreover, an adaptation is clearly not the same thing as the manga, even the most faithful ones still have decisive differences inherent with the medium that provides its own pleasure/displeasure (e.g. Mushishi). How well they use this as well as giving you a second chance to engage in the quality of the twists or elements – assuming they did a good job keeping it in tact or finding an equivalent or even rarer far surpassing the original – is why I would rewatch an anime. I think you may not have noticed this but certainly engage in it as you begin to make out what your favorite parts are and why, meaning its not the surprise of the scene, e.g. Gon acquiring Hisoka’s number, but everything was crafted to create such a tense and exciting scene meaning you appreciate it in a sense with more objectivity.
‘Piece of shit’ this, ‘piece of shit that’, blah blah blah, dear lord this show really brings out the best in people.
good one.
It seems as if everyone’s attention spans are down way low these days, just how I see it though..
I thought the pacing was fine in the 1999 version, and personally didn’t have a problem at all with the fillers, maybe one or two nitpicks character wise, that’s really about it. I currently have up to Volume 26 of the Manga, re-read them yearly and re-watch the 1999 series yearly. I personally find the 1999 version to capture the best of the Manga, despite the differences and the ”over exaggerated” amount of fillers. The soundtracks and aesthetics presented in the series has been unmatched for any series I’ve watched so far, and that really came as a surprise to me when I first watched it.
The nostalgia goggles argument can’t really apply to me either, I discovered the 1999 series in late 2009 or early 2010, or maybe I’m wrong and theirs not a specific time frame..for the amount of times I’ve watched the first adaption and OVA’s though, it feels like a decade.
The new remake of the series I DO NOT HATE, but I do have quite the frustration and dislike of it, mainly because of the countless ad hominem attacks I’ve seen fans and fans just learning of the series, dishing out to the fans of the old adaptation. It just seems overall plastic and dull to me,the soundtrack I do not like as well, though that’s not to say it’s ”terribly” produced. I just don’t think the 1999 series can be topped and won’t be, and continue to watch the 2011 series weekly..I’m trying to remain neutral between the two but it’s hard, as Hunter x Hunter I have an immense passion for both the 1999 Anime and the Manga series.
Whenever I read the Manga, I have the 1999 series soundtrack playing in my head by default as I read, it just stuck with me that well. Whenever I read the Manga and go back to watch the old series, theirs something they did with the character developments..something rather deep..can’t quite explain it, but I see them as far more ”alive” creations from the Manga, than this current modernized remake.
You see the thing is, no one is saying the 99 version is bad by any means. If anything it is the 99 fans saying the new series is shit without providing even a hint of a proper reasoning.
The new series is more accurate to source, aesthetically appealing, true to the characters and features a damn good soundtrack (despite what fans of the previous soundtrack claim).
The problem lies with the old fans who just can’t accept that there can be more than 1 version of something and that sometimes the second version is intended to be better than the first (which is the case with this version). You don’t have to like it, but don’t go telling us it’s shit because its not the same as the old series. Just because the old series was good doesnt mean that by extention this can’t be good because it isnt the old series.
That is the fulcrum of this arguement and all blame lies with the people who just cant shut the fuck up and accept that there is a new version of Hunter x Hunter that people are liking more than the old version. Just because people like this version doesnt mean the old is bad, get it through your heads!
I won’t deny a lot have called the newer series ”shit”, but I sure haven’t.
I’m aware the 2011 adaptation has been more accurate as far as script goes, and most other things, that doesn’t make it an absolute truth though that the soundtrack and aesthetics are better done, since we each have our own unique perceptions of aesthetics and tone of sound. If artists could force that an adaptation is better than the first that was produced, despite that the fans that grew up/know of it enjoyed it immensely, into the mindset of every fan, there wouldn’t be a split in fan-base of the series like there is now. That’s really the only issue eating at me with remakes, I accept your view, and I hope you tolerate mine.
I really just don’t want newer fans to dismiss the old series entirely, and for it to be entirely forgotten, that’s really the catalyst of my insecurities with all this.
I’ve accepted the 2011 series, I just don’t like it so far (15 episodes in) and keep tuning in because it’s still very early in. I’ve liked some parts of it, and a lot of parts I didn’t. I don’t think this adaptation is intending to be ”better” than the first, but more ”accurate” for sure.
Who are you to say we’re the problem? I didn’t see a problem in the first place, I was just giving my opinion of my base appreciation and passion of 1999 HxH, the Manga, and of the 2011 remake.
@kevin: But just as there a lot of ppl attacking this version, the same is going with ppl attacking the 1999 Nippon Animation version.
To be fair, the reason I personally am not a fan of this Madhouse adaptation is this: while the pacing is more ‘faithful’ to the manga than the liberal Nippon Animation series was, it also has its pitfalls in that the characters act more like puppets with programmed emotions than characters with any round of development. At least IMO the characters in the NA series had a bit more depth to them, whereas I see none in this version. Megumi Han in particular as Gon does pull me in at all.
Plus the pacing seems more show-and-tell a la Naruto and the recent Jump series like Blue Exorcist. Considering it’s Madhouse animating it, I gotta admit I’m rather disappointed here. Still, it’s too early to judge completely, and I’m gonna give the benefit of the doubt.
I’m not gonna go into too great detail why I feel that you are completely wrong but I want to say this:
The old series changed the characters. The new series captures them to perfection. The problem the older series had with the characterisation was that they made the characters simply talk TOO much.
In the new series there are quiet moments of Gon observing his surroundings, captivated by the beauty of this new world opening up before him. That child-like wonder is key to his characterisation.
The other character of interest is Hisoka. This adaptation provides a much more refined Hisoka,one that is in control of himself mostly but has a darkness within him that needs to be fed (if you compare the episodes in which Gon gets Hisoka’s badge you will get what I mean). The mistake the old series makes with Hisoka is that it only pushed his crazy side, not any other portion of his personality.
I could make a case for just about every other character but I feel like I’ve had this discussion a million times now…
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