A Review of Mid x Mid

You clicked on this because you thought the title was serious, huh?

Plot (9/10)

The basic premise is simple - 12-year-old boy Gon Freecss leaves home to become a pro hunter and find the father who abandoned him, Ging Freecss. Funnily enough, the story shines brightest when his old man isn't relevant to an arc's plot. Standout arcs have been marked with asterisks, but they're all solid.

• Hunter Exam - introduces us to our mast cast of Gon, Killua Zoldyck, Kurapika, and Leorio Paradiknight, as well as two major antagonists: Illumi Zoldyck and pedo Joker Hisoka Morrow. Pretty generic and shonen-y to start off with a tournament arc, but it's well-executed and establishes the motives & personalities of the characters I mentioned quite well.
• Zoldyck Family - probably the weakest arc, largely because it's very short and there's not much conflict. Killua's dad Silva lets him leave without much protest. I have to give it props though, for doing a great job of establishing the Zoldyck family and their character dynamics.
• Heavens Arena - tournament arc #2, and this one is better. It's extremely well-paced, introduces Nen to us (best power system btw), and the fights were quite entertaining. This is where the series truly begins to take off.
• Yorknew City * - okay, now we're talking. A thrill from start to finish. The focus shifts to Kurapika and the Phantom Troupe, an infamous group of villains that murdered the Kurta clan to sell their famed eyes on the black market. There was a constant air of tension from the moment they showed up, and that did not go away. The climax moments of Kurapika v Uvogin and the final exchange did not disappoint.
• Greed Island - a standard training arc. The best parts of this arc were the dodgeball game and the focus on fleshing out Nen. Other than that, it's pretty average, but I didn't mind. At this point, I was invested enough in the series to enjoy less interesting plotlines like this one.
• Chimera Ant * - peak shonen, for two big reasons: 1) the themes regarding humanity and evolution were amazing and 2) the character writing (more on that later). CA arc brings a level of depth to this series that I did not see coming; a genuine masterpiece of perfectly constructed buildup followed by three of the best moments of the series: Netero vs Meruem, Gon's transformation, and that final shogi game between Meruem & Komugi.
• 13th Hunter Chairman Election - Pariston and Ging kept this arc lively from start to finish, with world-class trolling from the former and witty dialogue from the latter. It was obviously a huge arc for Gon as well, as he recovered from his prior fight and later reunited with his dad.
• Dark Continent Expedition * - functions as a great set-up arc, seamlessly transitioning between the aftermath of the election, Ging's introduction of the Dark Continent to the reader, and new revelations regarding Netero & the Kakin Empire. The Dark Continent has opened up a whole new plethora of possibilities for this story,
• Succession Contest * - please finish. Please. It's already great, but the potential of this arc is ridiculous. Given that new characters and plotlines are STILL being set in motion, we haven't even scratched the surface after 40-ish chapters. Also, gotta hand it to the Chrollo v Hisoka fight for living up to the hype.

Characters (9.5/10)

The cast of HxH is phenomenal and there are so many great characters to go over. But for the sake of length, I'll narrow it down to the top 3, who are the best showcases of Togashi's character writing abilities.

• Meruem: possibly the best shonen antagonist out there. There are a variety of reasons for this, especially his character development as well as the dynamics he has with other characters like his guards or Netero. Rarely does a character elevate so many of the characters around him the way Meruem did.
• Chrollo: the enigmatic leader of the Phantom Troupe. Excellent symbolism, in regards to religion, his nen ability, and the spider. Indeed, what makes Chrollo so great is how he views himself, and by extension, the Troupe. He thrives on limited screentime, and so little is known about his backstory and motives for killing.
• Shaiapouf: the guard who protected the image of the king, and had arguably the best death of the series. His status as a static, unchanging character is hinted at by his butterfly form - a final form of sorts, so to speak. Unlike Meruem or Pitou, there is no room for him to change or evolve, and thus his worldview stays the same. He dies right after Meruem remembers Komugi, in despair as he realizes that his goal has been shattered for good.

Clearly, Togashi has mastered writing antagonists unless their name rhymes with "Benthru." Other standout characters include Netero, Gon, Kurapika, Killua, and Pitou.

Art (5/10)

Due to Togashi's back issues, the art quality is very poor at times.

But he's a damn good artist when he isn't in pain.

To be honest, I don't pay much attention to manga art unless it looks insanely good. If I can understand what's going on, that's good enough for me.

Enjoyment (9.5/10)

The most important part, of course. Not much else to say here. Again, the big drawback of the art really doesn't affect my enjoyment at all. The story, characters, and world entertained me from the start, simple as that, and there aren't many dry spots. It's even more impressive given that this is a fairly long series and has shown no signs of quality decline. Additionally, my enthusiasm for HxH hasn't waned at all during this hiatus, which is now 15 months long.

Here's hoping for a return.