'Hunter x Hunter' Manga Shares Before-And-After Drafts

Hunter x Hunter is just weeks away from a comeback, and Japan is honoring the shonen classic in a [...]

Hunter x Hunter is just weeks away from a comeback, and Japan is honoring the shonen classic in a big way. Recently, the franchise hosted a special exhibit that let fans get an inside-look at the manga, and a slew of rough drafts were shown. Now, you can check out a few of the before-and-after shots online.

Over on Twitter, fans have started posting pictures taken from the Hunter x Hunter exhibit. As you can see below, two of the rough drafts show just how Yoshihiro Togashi turns his concepts into full-fledged pages.

When Togashi gets started, he uses blank notebook paper to sketch out how a paneled page may look. The first image collected below shows a slew of blob-like characters in a top panel while a pair of eyes are shown in-focus behind it. The bottom-half of the page then shows a character with their back to the readers as they face down even more undefined characters.

The rough draft is hard for any outsider to take in, but Togashi got what he needed from the sketch. The artist's final draft of the drawing clearly defines several dozen fighters rushing down a staircase, and the eyes are shown details. It is revealed that Hisoka was the person Togashi had in mind, and the former Phantom Troupe member is seen facing against all the faceless newcomers.

The second rough draft works in a similar way. Togashi doesn't put much if any focus on facial details or proportions. The artist focuses on positioning the characters, adjusting his focus, laying out his panels, and insert dialogue boxes. All of the page's basics are laid out well before Togashi gets busy with the particulars, and fans can now get a closer look at how the artist brings Hunter x Hunter to life.

For those unfamiliar with Hunter x Hunter, the series was originally created by Yoshihiro Togashi. The story follows a young boy named Gon Freecss, who discovers that his previously thought to be dead father is in fact alive. Not only is he alive, he is a famous Hunter, a professional traveler who specializes in finding rare treasures, exploring unidentified lands, and hunting down dangerous individuals. Gon then decides that in order to meet his father he has to become a licensed Hunter, but in that journey gets wrapped up in way more strangeness than he ever could have anticipated.

The series first ran in Shuiesha's Weekly Shonen Jump in March 1998. Unforunately, the series has gone on a number of hiatuses ever since 2006 which were most likely incurred by bouts of illness Togashi experienced when publishing his last work, Yu Yu Hakusho. The series has run for 360 chapters, and been collected into 47 volumes as of 2017. It's one of Shueisha's most successful selling series with over 66 million copies sold in Japan.

Are you impressed by Togashi's planning skills? Hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB to let me know and talk all things comics, k-pop, and anime!

0comments