You’d think the start date of one of the world’s most famous manga would be a settled fact. It isn’t. If you Google "when did hunter x hunter manga start," you’ll see March 16, 1998, plastered across a dozen wikis. But if you talk to a collector who was actually in Tokyo that spring, they’ll tell you something different.
Basically, there’s a massive gap between the "cover date" and the day the magazine actually hit the shelves.
The Actual Birthday of Hunter x Hunter
The truth is that Hunter x Hunter made its debut in Weekly Shonen Jump Issue #14 of 1998. While the cover of that magazine is famously dated March 16, the issue actually went on sale in Japanese bookstores on March 3, 1998.
Why the confusion? Japanese magazines are notorious for "post-dating" their issues. It’s an old publishing trick to keep the magazine looking "fresh" on the stands for longer. So, while the official record says the sixteenth, Gon Freecss actually took his first step off Whale Island nearly two weeks earlier.
Honestly, 1998 was a wild year for manga. One Piece was barely a year old. Naruto hadn't even started yet. Yoshihiro Togashi, the creator, was already a superstar because of YuYu Hakusho, so expectations were sky-high. He didn't just meet them; he blew them apart.
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The Landscape of 1998
To understand why the Hunter x Hunter manga start was such a big deal, you have to look at what Togashi was doing before. He had just finished Level E, a weird, experimental sci-fi series. He was tired. He had already dealt with the crushing burnout of the YuYu Hakusho finale.
Fans weren't sure what to expect. Would it be a standard battle story? A comedy?
What they got was a 12-year-old kid with a fishing pole and a heart of gold. But, because this is Togashi we're talking about, the "shonen" vibes didn't stay simple for long. By the time the first volume hit shelves on June 4, 1998, people realized this wasn't just another adventure story. It was something more cerebral.
A Legacy of Breaks and Brilliance
You can't talk about when the manga started without talking about how it... well, stops. Frequently.
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The first major "hiatus" didn't happen until 2006, nearly eight years after the launch. Since then, the publication history of Hunter x Hunter has become a meme. Fans call it "Hiatus x Hiatus."
But there’s a human side to this that people often ignore. Togashi suffers from debilitating back pain. We're talking "can't sit in a chair to draw" levels of pain. It’s why the schedule became so erratic.
- 1998-2006: Mostly consistent weekly releases.
- 2006-Present: Short bursts of 10 chapters followed by years of silence.
- 2024-2026: We’ve seen some of the most recent activity, with Togashi posting updates on X (formerly Twitter) about his progress.
People get frustrated, sure. But the quality of the "Succession Contest" arc and the "Dark Continent" lore is so dense and complex that most fans would rather wait three years for ten perfect chapters than have a rushed, mediocre weekly release.
Why the Start Date Still Matters
Knowing when Hunter x Hunter started helps you appreciate how ahead of its time it was. In 1998, the idea of a "power system" as complex as Nen was unheard of. Most characters just yelled louder to get stronger. Togashi introduced math, logic, and psychological warfare into a genre that was previously about who could punch a hole through a mountain.
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If you’re just starting the manga now, you’re looking at over 25 years of history. That’s a quarter-century of storytelling.
It's also worth noting the English release. Viz Media didn't bring the manga to North America until April 2005. That’s a seven-year lag! For a long time, Western fans were living in a completely different era of the story than Japanese readers.
Actionable Steps for New Readers
If you're diving into the manga for the first time because you're curious about its origins, don't just rush through.
- Check the Art Evolution. Compare the clean, simple lines of Chapter 1 (1998) to the incredibly detailed, text-heavy pages of the current arc. It’s a complete transformation.
- Read the Volume Versions. Togashi often redraws panels for the "tankobon" (collected volumes) because the magazine versions sometimes look like rough sketches due to his health struggles.
- Follow the Official Source. Use the Shonen Jump app or Manga Plus. It’s the best way to support the author and ensures you're getting the best translation.
The Hunter x Hunter manga start wasn't just the beginning of a comic; it was the start of a paradigm shift in how stories for young men are told. Even if the updates are slow, the foundation laid back in March of '98 is still as rock-solid as it gets.