A new piece of YuYu Hakusho and Hunter x Hunter art has been revealed.
The new illustration was created to promote "Puzzle," an upcoming art exhibition that will celebrate the 35-year long career of manga artist Yoshihiro Togashi. The art sees the heroes of Togashi's most popular creations, Yusuke Urameshi of YuYu Hakusho and Gon Freecss of Hunter X Hunter, surrounded by the many other iconic characters that Togashi has created. In addition to highlighting his biggest successes, the exhibition will also feature art from the artist's more obscure creations, including the sci-fi comedy Level E and 1988's Horror Angel. The exhibition will be held in Japan from Oct. 28, 2022 until Jan. 9, 2023.
Togashi made headlines in May when, after a years-long hiatus, he announced on Twitter that he was resuming production on the Hunter x Hunter manga. According to his tweets, he is currently working on at least 4 new chapters of the series, which was last published in 2018. While the current hiatus is the longest in the series' history, the manga had already previously built up a reputation for only being published sporadically. Togashi is said to produce the series entirely on his own, without the help of assistants, though he has admitted to receiving some help from Sailor Moon creator Naoko Takeuchi, whom he is married to. The series' frequent delays and hiatuses are said to be the result of Togashi's delibating back problems, which he recently revealed are so severe that it has even affected his ability to go to use the bathroom comfortably. A release date for the new manga chapters has yet to be announced.
Hunter x Hunter debuted in 1998 and has become a huge critical hit and commercial success, selling over 84 million copies worldwide. The series is set in a world where elite trackers, known as Hunters, are tasked with tracking down rare treasures, hunting down dangerous beasts, and other extraordinary tasks that are beyond the abilities of the average human being. A young boy named Gon Freecss sets out to become a hunter after he learns that his father, who was a hunter himself and was previously presumed to be dead, may still be alive somewhere.
While Togashi is now best known for Gon's adventures, he was already well-known previously for being the creator of another one of Shonen Jump's most iconic franchises, YuYu Hakusho. That manga premiered in 1990 and has achieved a circulation of over 50 million copies worldwide, and is widely considered one of the most influential shonen series of all time, alongside Akira Toriyama's Dragon Ball. Netflix is currently producing a live-action adaptation of the series.
YuYu Hakusho and Hunter x Hunter are both available in English from VIZ Media.
Source: Twitter