Forum - View topicWhich of these 3 shounen titles should I watch?
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SSJ6 Sneaky Beast
Posts: 8 |
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Hi everyone,
I'm new to the site and I wanted to get everyone's opinion on something. I want to start watching anime again and I was wondering which of these three I should watch. I've narrowed it down to these. Rurouni Kenshin Yuu Yuu Hakusho Hunter X Hunter Keep in mind that I've been a die hard Dragonball/Z fan since I was 3. I enjoy the light shows. xD. Also I was watching both Yuu Yuu and Rurouni on Cartoon Network until Toonami was canceled. I appreciate all feedback and sorry for being such a noob. 
[EDIT: Changed your thread title to remove the traffic of names. -TK] Last edited by SSJ6 Sneaky Beast on Fri Sep 12, 2008 3:46 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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sj21
Posts: 312 |
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I haven't seen Rurouni Kenshin yet but i am going to order the box sets and i haven't seen Hunter x Hunter but i will tell you that the first season of Yuu Yuu Hakusho was very good.
I also heard it dosen't have much fillers. |
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SSJ6 Sneaky Beast
Posts: 8 |
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Thnx for the feedback dude. 
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Aikoh
Posts: 96 Location: United States |
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I would advise you to avoid Rurōni Kenshin after the first season if you are serious about preferring "light shows" because the story becomes rather dark once Himura goes to Kyōto (and it continues to be darker in the manga after this season, as well). But if you don't mind the drastic change of atmosphere, don't be afraid to continue watching the rest of the series because it's really a fantastic, deep, and classic shōnen series.
I haven't watched enough of Yuu Yuu Hakusho and I haven't watched any of Hunter x Hunter, though, so someone else will have to help you out with those. |
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Tony K.
 SubscriberModerator  Posts: 11509 Location: Frisco, TX |
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Of the 3 titles listed, I've seen Rurouni Kenshin and Hunter X Hunter, which ironically are both from the same director and both contain a tremendously enjoyable amount of 62 episodes (the third season of Kenshin is all filler, so I don't even acknowledge it, really) + OVAs. If you like DBZ, I hear YYH is closest in terms of atmosphere (magic, martial arts, the supernatural), though I've yet to see any of it aside from 1 or 2 episodes I caught on Cartoon Network.
But if you want an honest opinion on Kenshin or HXH, I'd be more than happy to recommend them. Rurouni Kenshin - The story of a wandering swordsman, Himura Kenshin, but formerly known as Hitokiri Battousai back during Bakumatsu (the Japanese civil war, basically), who travels through Tokyo befriending a young girl, Kamiya Kaoru, at a rundown dōjō, who together later befriend a young hoodlum boy, Myoujin Yahiko, and finally a mercenary by the name of Sagara Sanosuke. The first season (episodes 1-28) covers their friendship, development, and adventures with various villains all while hinting at Kenshin's past. Death, suicide, man's search for meaning, repentance, among other things are some of the issues tackled, but not with a whole lot of intricate detail. Season 2, however (29-62) is where the meat of the story is. I will not ruin the surprise, but the Kyoto arc is THE finest piece of shounen writing I've ever experienced to this day. Not a single second of this storyline is wasted, and the end result is nothing short of a spectacular story of what it means to live, have values, and other things. Season 3 = filler. All crap, all made up story to kill time for the eventual animation of the next story, but it sucked so much that the TV series got cancelled. And then... Rurouni Kenshin: Tsuioku-hen - A prequel to the TV series but originally presented after the fact in order to tell us how it all happened. Easily the finest anime ever made. Production values are high, and the music is amongst the most epic of soundtracks I've ever had a chance to here. If you watch this directly after the end of Kyoto, I guarantee it will ALL make sense and I will even present you with a xx-paged essay on why the characters and story elements are that enjoyable. Warning, though. It's VERY violent. 2nd OVA = bigger crap than Season 3 of the TV series. Read the manga. Read.. the.. manga! I implore you not watch this until you've at least read volumes 19-28 of the manga to get the full story of Tsuioku-hen and the Jinchuu arc. The 2nd OVA essentially crams 8 volumes of manga into 60 minutes, removing much of the drama, key plot points, and overall continuity for a shit heap piece of rubbish that does absolutely no justice for the true meaning of such an epic story. I saw it once, hated it, will never watch it again. But do so at your own self-destruction if you really want. Hunter X Hunter - It's actually been a while since I've watched it. Basic premise of the plot is about a young boy named Gon Freaks who is looking for his father, befriends a doctor named Leorio and a young man, Kurapica, who is seeking revenge for his tribe destroyed by The Spider group. It's a lot more adventure/fantasy, but later turns into a martial arts/tournament format in the second half. The themes are also not as serious or deep as what I've implied Kenshin to be. However, the characters are extremely enjoyable and incredibly charismatic. The directing and pacing of the series is never dull and you eventually find yourself feeling very good about them (at least till the end of the TV series where it gets very dark and dramatic). The OVAs get a little MMORPG on you after the first one (first one ends where TV series cuts off). And personally, I didn't like them too much. The story does, indeed, progress in terms of canon, but it felt a bit tacked on for my tastes. The art is too clean, the animation is too digital, and some of the characters' designs felt real stupid to me. You may feel differently about it than I, but it's watchable material the first time through. ---------------------------------- These aforementioned titles and Hajime no Ippo are the only shounen anime I've ever given a Masterpiece rating to. I highly recommend them all and hope you enjoy your viewing. |
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Clodus
 Posts: 497 Location: Kansas |
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I've seen all 3. They are all pretty long series spanning at least 3 full seasons per series. Hunter X Hunter and YuYu Hakusho are based off the same manga artist Togashi.
YYH- This series has practically nothing but action excluding the first several episodes which introduces characters. Alot of backtalk and jokes about enemies but it really gets the mood of badass going. DBZ is most similar to this show so If your looking for just straight up adrenaline pumping action, then your gonna want to watch this first. Season 1 was pretty slightly above your average shounen but has a very slow start. Things start to get better once you get to the Genkai tournament. Season 2 is what made the series famous similar to Rurouni Kenshin although my personal opinion isn't quite as good. Season 3 has a bit more character development going and the world twists in turns of rules and physics but has a nice amount of fighting. Season 4 felt kinda rushed in my opinion, so many things happened in a short amount of time and excludes the characters from the real world including Kuwabara. Currently ranked #406 on ANN. RK- TK summed it up pretty well. I'd read his post carefully if you were interested in Rurouni Kenshin since he's probably the biggest fan in these parts. It starts out pretty light but once season 2 starts, you will be hooked watching every episode nonstop. strongly recommend skipping season 3. Currently ranked #115 on ANN. HXH- My favorite show out of the 3. It does start out a tad slow but the characters have distinguished personalities with quite unique backgrounds. It has lighthearted characters with a sinister past. Theme of the show is friendship through adversities. The antagonist is one of the most badass characters in the shounen universe. While the action isn't quite as deep as the others until later on in the series(episode 30+), they manage to create situations, problems and solutions that will entertain you thoroughly and will make you say, dam thats clever! I consider the story to be by far superior to the other series. Currently ranked #58 on ANN. viewing recommendation YYH RR HXH |
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SSJ6 Sneaky Beast
Posts: 8 |
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thanks for the guidance. Since you and Tony K. both gave Kenshin so much praise that's the one I'm gonna be watching. I'm gonna watch the full series. When I said I like "light shows", I meant auras, ki blasts, and pretty much just blowin' sh*t up.  I actually am looking forward to the Blood movie coming out next year. From what I have seen it looks pretty good. But yeah, thanks for the advice.
I think I'm gonna save the (personal preference) best for last then, thought that will probably change after I finish watching all three. As for viewing, I'm gonna go along with your list just gonna drop YYH to the bottom.
thanks for the feedback.
Thank you for your detailed information. After the others, I will have to take a look at Hajime no Ippo [EDIT: Please use the Edit button to edit your posts instead of just double posting. It cuts back on traffic and stuff. Thanks. -TK] |
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FLMikeATT
 Posts: 58 |
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All three are really good series.
Out of those, Hunter x Hunter is definitely my favorite. Hunter x Hunter is on my top 5 favorite anime list in fact. I think everyone should at least watch the first season. It has a slow start, but the second half of the first season is some of the best anime has to offer. The suspense, drama, action, character development, moral dilemmas, and intrigue are off the charts. When I first watched HxH, I was so hooked that I ran an 18 or so hour marathon. The second and third seasons aren't quite as good as the first, but they are still better than 90% of other shows. And YYH is a classic. A little bit closer to DBZ with the non stop action and tournament style, but it has surprising depth, way more in fact than DBZ. When we get past the Black Tournament arc, we really see some great character development, and the Sensui and Makai arcs are amazing. Easily just as good as the first arc, if not better. Rurouni Kenshin is great, but it has a lot of filler in the later episodes, and I kind of lost interest after the Kyoto arc. Still a very good series, but not on the level of HxH and YYH. |
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rtyall
Posts: 4 |
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That would explain why it suddenly changed from an intriguing show to a fairly dull and lucklustre one. |
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xia83
 Posts: 137 |
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I'm kind of a Hunter x Hunter fanbrat so there's no way I could not recommend this show.
As numerous other people have said, it does start off a tad slow. When the story started to kick in, I was marathoning those episodes like there was no tomorrow. One of the characters- Hisoka- because one of my favorite characters in an anime. He's enjoyable to watch. Rurouni Kenshin would be my second choice
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SSJ6 Sneaky Beast
Posts: 8 |
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I've just finished watching the first two seasons. I'm about to watch the first OVA. I pretty much fully understand the entire thing, so the OVA will just be reinforcement on what I have retained already? But as far as what you said about the first OVA being extremely graphic, I must say that during the entire second season I was yearning for Kenshin to turn into the Battousai, so the OVA will be enjoyable. The thing is you mentioned that to watch the second OVA I should first read the manga. Where can I read/purchase the manga? Thnx for the help. Even with out excessive bloodshed the story is a great one. And undoubtedly, in my eyes, episode 30 is the most epic fight I have experienced in an anime in a while.
I just got finished watching the second season of Rurouni Kenshin. spoiler[Though I would have liked to see more bloodshed, I think it's great that he kept his word.] As for you suggestions, I am going to have to take you word for hxh since I am yet to see it but from what I can remember, yyh was pretty good. So thank you for your help and I am sure to watch hxh whenever I get the chance (after the first Samurai X OVA  )
One of my friends told me that it was the best anime he had ever seen. Can't wait to get started watching it.
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Tony K.
Subscriber Moderator Posts: 11509 Location: Frisco, TX |
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The OVA is a flashback of who he used to be. So yeah, he'll be Hitokiri Battousai, and yes, you'll get plenty of blood. In the manga, this was originally shown to set up the third and final arc, Jinchuu. You saw a little bit of his childhood when he was training with Hiko Seijuurou. In the OVA, you'll see him as a kid, when Hiko found him, his training, his service for the Imperialists, how he got the scar on his cheek, and why he made his vow to never kill again. You will be thoroughly shocked at the transition from such a light-hearted series to the dark and brooding OVA. And I'm sure you'll like it based on your comments so far. |
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Dark Elf Warrior
 Posts: 228 |
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I totally recommend Rurouni Kenshin and Yu Yu Hakusho. They are two of the best anime and manga around. I suggest watching the entire series of each, even though I have been told that the third Rurouni kenshin season is no good, this will have to be something you judge.
Both series are excellant, and may even be better than some of the new anime that have come out, (although personally, I really love Bleach )
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konkonsn
 Posts: 172 Location: Illinois |
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I've seen Yu Yu and Kenshin, but I've only watched a few episodes of Hunter x Hunter.
Yu Yu Hakusho is my favourite anime of all time. It's a fun series that has very traditional shounen elements but also has some really good depth and character development considering what you would expect from a show with its themes. I like it because it never gets so serious that you can't pop in an episode or two on a bad day and watch it for fun, and at the same time, I can really analyze the characters on a day I feel like being more thoughtful. I'm actually not a huge Kenshin fan. Kenshin, himself, is a great character, but I never really got into his supporting cast. Also, I had trouble with the rote pacing of the first season episodes. I didn't feel the story really took off until the second season. |
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SSJ6 Sneaky Beast
Posts: 8 |
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I finally saw the OVA. I thought that it was an extraordinary work of art. spoiler[The one part I think I understand, but am not quite sure about is why did his wife stand in front of him as he was attacking? and the other being why did she cut his cheek?] I have a pretty good idea towards both situtations, but I'd like to see things from your side of the fence before I make an ass out of myself.
On another note, I was going to watch Hunter × Hunter next, but I think I'm just going to try and save up for the box set that's being released in December. I also recently found out that YuYu Hakusho is written by the same writer of H×H, Yoshihiro Togashi. So in a way all three of the shonen I listed are related. Small world. |
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