Hunter x Hunter is a beloved shounen series that follows the four main characters accomplishing their respective goals by becoming Hunters and focuses on the passionate friendship they’ve cultivated along the way. It’s a movie that balances lighter and more playful moments with dark and emotionally heavy concepts. As with many series, each character struggles with their own challenges that have shaped who they are today.
Audiences looking for anime series similar to Hunter x Hunter will find a wide variety to choose from. Hunter x Hunter fans will likely love this other shounen series for a variety of reasons, including the common themes and unique cast of characters who have come together to forge meaningful friendships.
10 Yu Yu Hakusho
Yu Yu Hakusho is clearly a good candidate for Hunter x Hunter fans for several reasons, including the fact that they both feature the same creator, Yoshihiro Togashi. Both series follow a group of four main characters who fight together and form friendships while ultimately working out their own personal goals. In addition, these characters have many similarities with their identifiable characters in each series. For example, Gon and Yusuke have a similar visual aesthetic with their design and primary color palette, which makes sense since they were both created by the same artist. Likewise, both Gon and Yusuke tend to build more friendships with the people they fight with.
There are comparable components to the world in which each series takes place. Viewers may notice some similarities between the use of life force in the form of Nen in Hunter x Hunter and its counterpart in the form of Mental Energy in Yu Yu Hakusho. Both of these energies serve the user in different ways and manifest in different forms specific to the individual using them.
9 One Piece
Like Hunter x Hunter, One Piece finds a balance between the playful and humorous moments between the main characters with the more serious and darker effects of the world around them. While One Piece is more about this comedy, Hunter x Hunter is not without its lighter moments, especially at the beginning of the series when the entire cast is together.
Both anime focus on action and adventure, resulting in the main characters meeting and battling a host of unique characters with memorable abilities. However, while the crew in One Piece tend to stick together throughout much of the series, Gon, Kurapika, Leorio, and Killua are often divided for the sake of achieving their own goals.
Like Hunter x Hunter, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood isn’t afraid to explore dark themes throughout its series, either through the dire circumstances the character goes through or the deaths of characters it’s connected to. closely with the main cast. Family is a big theme in both series.
Gon has a father and mother who are not related to him but played a huge role in his upbringing. However, he is determined to learn more about his father and one day meet him. Both Ed and Alphonse knew their father from a young age, but were orphaned when their father left and their mother died. While Edward doesn’t seem to want to forgive his father leaving for whatever reason, Gon is more interested in learning more about what means to his father than staying on – his Hunter career. grandfather.
7 Naruto
There’s a clear connection made between one of the first major installments of both Naruto and Hunter x Hunter. Both shows see the main characters trying to complete an extremely dangerous test to get them some sort of license: as Hunters or, in Naruto’s case , to raise your rank as a ninja. Both tests require the character to go through a lot of fights before succeeding, they pass and are allowed to take on a larger role in that ‘career’.
Masashi Kishimoto, the creator of Naruto, has previously talked about how Togashi’s works like Hunter x Hunter and Yu Yu Hakusho have inspired aspects of his series. Both creators know each other well and have appeared together in numerous interviews, talking about their inspiration for topics like world-building in a comic book series.
6 Jujutsu Kaisen
Like in Hunter x Hunter, Itadori’s initial motivation to follow the path he chose stems from their relationship with a parent-like figure in their lives. For Itadori, it was his conversation with his grandfather before his death that inspired him to do what he could as a jujutsu wizard and help others.
For Gon, his goal is to learn more about his father and to meet him one day. Both Itadori and Gon are kind-hearted individuals who seem to possess incredible and unusual powers which they then hone to their advantage as the series goes on. In addition to the two main characters of the film, viewers can also find similarities in the circumstances of Fushiguro and Kurapika. Both have complicated backstories related to the clan they were born into.
My Hero Academy
My Hero Academia and Hunter x Hunter have similar storylines, at least in the beginning. Previously, Midoriya and his friends tried to study and do well at UA High School and even though he didn’t go to school, Gon and his friends are finding a way to overcome the challenges. the difficulty and death of the Hunter Exam. Both of these are clearly major strides for the main characters that they must overcome in order to achieve their ultimate goal, whether it’s becoming the number one hero or finally meeting their elusive father. his catch.
Each character also has their own reasons for struggling to pass these exams. Regardless of whether the character wants to be a Hunter or a hero, there are some similar motivations among attendees, including the chance to earn more money, following in someone’s footsteps, or as a lifelong dream. Both Hero and Hunter are well known occupations in their respective fictional worlds and have specialized organizations that oversee them.
4 green exorcists
The huge similarity between Blue Exorcist and Hunter x Hunter lies in the main characters’ motives. Gon is looking forward to becoming a Certified Hunter to learn more about the profession his father loves and with the hope that he will one day meet that father. Rin wants to become an exorcist strong enough to have the power to defeat Satan, who is responsible for the death of his father, Fujimoto.
Both characters are motivated by their connection to the elusive father figure in their lives. Both series also have a bit of an otherworldly element to their stories, although Blue Exorcist’s focus is on the supernatural in demon form and Hunter x Hunter takes place in a fictional world that feels both modern and fantasy, with unique and unknown creatures and beasts. .
3 D.Gray-Man
One of the core themes in D.Gray-Man is grief and tragedy, themes that can also be found in Hunter x Hunter. Just like many characters who have experienced tragic fates in D.Gray-Man, the four main characters in Hunter x Hunter must also face devastating events in the past or present and face their grief. theirs in different ways. Kurapika is forced to become a Hunter after the murder of the clan he was born into and in his grief seeks revenge.
Leorio lost his best friend as a child to illness because they were both too poor to pay for medical care and wanted to become a doctor so no one would have to go through it again. Killua has spent his life isolating from making meaningful connections with others for the sake of his family and only seems to truly enjoy life when his relationship with Gon begins. Gon witnesses the death of an important mentor and ends up sacrificing years of his life for revenge. Both series also frequently deal with the concept of gray morality.
2 demon slayers
To become a member of the Demon Slayer Corps, potential candidates must pass an exam, much like the Hunter in Hunter x Hunter. However, the parts regarding Tanjiro being accepted to join the Demon Slayer Corps in Demon Slayer and Gon being certified as a Hunter change largely with the time they are in the series.
In the 1999 version of Hunter x Hunter, the competition spanned approximately 31 episodes. This was shortened to 21 episodes in the 2011 remake, which is still a bit longer than the few episodes Tanjiro practiced and entered in the Final Selection Round.
1 Cowboy Bebop
Like Hunter x Hunter, Cowboy Bebop follows a group of four main characters, each with their own unique skills and powers. One of the biggest themes in Cowboy Bebop is something viewers can also find common in Hunter x Hunter: the notion that a character can’t escape their past. When we look at the tragedies experienced by the main cast of Hunter x Hunter, this one especially becomes apparent.
Gon, Killua, Kurapika, and Leorio are all driven by difficult experiences they’ve gone through in the past. Some of it is to their detriment, which we see in cases like Kurapika’s quest for revenge and how his gift is consumed. In both series, however, the friendship forged within their group seems to have eased the burden of past hardships and led to more playful and lighthearted moments between the characters. Their relationship helps make their world a little less lonely.
Whether Hunter x Hunter fans are looking for more anime with a similar theme, an equally vast and engaging world, or multi-faceted characters with distinctive motives, there’s a lot to explore. As with many movies, there is no movie quite like Hunter x Hunter. However, viewers are sure to enjoy the similarities these other series pose and how they succeed in executing their unique stories.