is a hardboiled

Hardboiled

Hardboiled crime fiction is a literary style, most commonly associated with detective stories, distinguished by the unsentimental portrayal of violence and sex. The style was pioneered by Carroll John Daly in the mid-1920s, popularized by Dashiell Hammett over the course of the decade, and refined...

 manga

Manga

Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...

 series written and illustrated by Tsukasa Hojo

Tsukasa Hojo

is a Japanese manga artist. He studied technical design while still at Kyushu Sangyo University, where he began to draw manga. He worked on several one-shot stories before releasing his serialized works: Cat's Eye, City Hunter and Angel Heart....

, published by Shueisha

Shueisha

is a major publisher in Japan. The company was founded in 1925 as the entertainment-related publishing division of Japanese publisher Shogakukan. The following year, Shueisha became a separate, independent company. Magazines published by Shueisha include Weekly Shōnen Jump, Weekly Young Jump,...

 in the Weekly Shōnen Jump

Weekly Shonen Jump

is a weekly shōnen manga anthology published in Japan by Shueisha under the Jump line of magazines. The first issue was released with a cover date of July 2, 1968, and it is still circulating. One of the longest-running manga magazines in Japan, it has a circulation of 2.8 million copies...

 from 1985 to 1991. The manga was adapted into an animated

Anime

is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....

 television series by Sunrise Studios

Sunrise (company)

is a Japanese animation studio and production enterprise. It is a subsidiary of Namco Bandai Holdings. Its former name was Nippon Sunrise, and prior to that, Sunrise Studios...

 in 1987. The City Hunter franchise spans four animated television series, three television special

Television special

A television special is a television program which interrupts or temporarily replaces programming normally scheduled for a given time slot. Sometimes, however, the term is given to a telecast of a theatrical film, such as The Wizard of Oz or The Ten Commandments, which is not part of a regular...

s, two original video animation

Original video animation

, abbreviated as media , are animated films and series made specially for release in home-video formats. The term originated in relation to Japanese animation...

s, an animated feature film, a live-action Hong Kong film

Cinema of Hong Kong

The cinema of Hong Kong is one of the three major threads in the history of Chinese language cinema, alongside the cinema of China, and the cinema of Taiwan...

 starring Jackie Chan

Jackie Chan

Jackie Chan, SBS, MBE is a Hong Kong actor, action choreographer, comedian, director, producer, martial artist, screenwriter, entrepreneur, singer and stunt performer. In his movies, he is known for his acrobatic fighting style, comic timing, use of improvised weapons, and innovative stunts...

 and a Korean live action TV drama.

In 2001, Tsukasa Hojo started a new manga series Angel Heart. The author mentioned in the first tankoubon volume that Angel Heart shares the same characters with City Hunter but not its continuity, and therefore takes place in a parallel universe

Multiverse

The multiverse is the hypothetical set of multiple possible universes that together comprise all of reality.Multiverse may also refer to:-In fiction:* Multiverse , the fictional multiverse used by DC Comics...

.

Plot

The series follows the exploits of Ryo Saeba, a "sweeper" or private detective who works to rid Tokyo of crime, and Kaori Makimura, a tomboyish girl who manages Ryo's business affairs. Their "City Hunter" business is an underground jack-of-all-trades operation, contacted by writing the letters "XYZ" on a blackboard at Shinjuku Station.
One day, his associate, Hideyuki Makimura, is murdered. Ryô has to take care of Hideyuki's sister, Kaori, who becomes his new partner. However, Kaori is much more jealous and often hits him with a giant hammer.

Characters

The protagonist of City Hunter. He was brought up from infancy in a civil war-torn Central America

Central America

Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...

n village. As a result, he has little information regarding his true identity. After the war, Ryo made his way to the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, before moving to Tokyo

Tokyo

, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...

. In Japan, he forms the "City Hunter" team with Hideyuki Makimura.

A highly skilled gunman, Ryo is shown to have the shooting precision which enables him to execute the "one-hole shot"; a modernized version of the Robin Hood

Robin Hood

Robin Hood was a heroic outlaw in English folklore. A highly skilled archer and swordsman, he is known for "robbing from the rich and giving to the poor", assisted by a group of fellow outlaws known as his "Merry Men". Traditionally, Robin Hood and his men are depicted wearing Lincoln green clothes....

 legend of splitting an arrow. He fires a series of shots that land in the exact same spot of the target repeatedly. His preferred weapon is the Colt Python

Colt Python

The Colt Python is a .357 Magnum caliber revolver formerly manufactured by Colt's Manufacturing Company of Hartford, Connecticut. It is sometimes referred to as a "Combat Magnum". It was first introduced in 1955, the same year as Smith & Wesson's M29 .44 Magnum. The now discontinued Colt Python...

.357 Magnum

.357 Magnum

The .357 S&W Magnum , or simply .357 Magnum, is a revolver cartridge created by Elmer Keith, Phillip B. Sharpe, Colonel D. B. Wesson of firearms manufacturer Smith & Wesson, and Winchester. It is based upon Smith & Wesson's earlier .38 Special cartridge. The .357 Magnum cartridge was introduced in...

.

The most frequent running gag about Ryo's character is that he is extremely lecherous. His clients are almost exclusively beautiful young women, with whom he constantly seeks "mokkori chance

Mokkori

is a Japanese sound symbol word that essentially represents the "sound" of something sticking out in a flat surface, or the sound of something rising very quickly. A popular term with fans of 1980s Japanese animation, it was popularized in the manga and anime City Hunter by Tsukasa Hojo...

". When not working he can often be found hitting on random young women on the streets of Tokyo. His constant womanizing often leads to violent repercussions from his partner Kaori.

Ryo Saeba's tomboyish partner. She is primarily responsible for arranging clients, and other managerial tasks. She is in love with Ryo, although in the beginning it seems that he has no feelings towards her, as the anime progresses there are multiple hints about Ryo having feelings for Kaori. Ryo's skirt-chasing rouses her ire more than once. Her favorite weapon is a bazooka

Bazooka

Bazooka is the common name for a man-portable recoilless rocket antitank weapon, widely fielded by the U.S. Army. Also referred to as the "Stovepipe", the innovative bazooka was amongst the first-generation of rocket propelled anti-tank weapons used in infantry combat...

 (or a hammer to punish Ryo after his womanizing escapades). A running gag is that she is frequently mistaken for a bishōnen

Bishonen

is a Japanese term literally meaning "beautiful youth ". The equivalent English concept is a "pretty boy".The term describes an aesthetic that can be found in disparate areas in East Asia: a young man whose beauty transcends the boundary of gender or sexual orientation...

-looking man or a transsexual. In the end of the manga it is hinted they got married.

:

Kaori's older brother and Ryo's partner at the start of the series. He's a former police detective with a strong sense of justice. Kaori takes over his role as Ryo's partner after he is murdered by gangsters. His dying request was that Ryo take care of his sister.

:

"Umibōzu

Umibozu

is a spirit in Japanese folklore. The Umibōzu is said to live in the ocean and capsize the ship of anyone who dares speak to it. This spirit's name, which combines the character for "sea" with the character of "Buddhist monk," is possibly related to the fact that the Umibōzu is said to have a...

"' is another "sweeper". He and Ryo have a history dating back to the civil war in Central America. He goes by the professional name Falcon and his real name is Hayato Ijuin (伊集院隼人). Despite his fearsome appearance he has a phobia of kittens.

She is a Tokyo police detective who often uses the City Hunter team to do her job for her. Saeko is the daughter of the chief of police. She was once closely related to Kaori's brother, Hideyuki. Ryo keeps a long detailed list where Saeko owes him for the various favours he's done for her, which she always manages to get out of because Ryo demands a mokkori chance with her for each item.

She is a younger sister of Saeko, and is introduced halfway through the manga, and appears sporadically thereafter. She runs the "RN Detective Agency" (RN being her initials), right next to Ryo's apartment. It is hinted a few times that she has a little crush on Ryo but she realises that Kaori loves him too and so she will not stand in her way.

Miki

An Ex-Mercenary female commando, she was raised as an orphan by Umibozu in the battlefield and falls in love with him. She runs a Coffee shop named "Cat's Eye" (homage to Tsukasa's previous manga) along with Umibozu. She is battle hardened and also is a master of hypnosis.

Professor/Doc

Ex-medic at the Mercenary camp that Ryo was stationed in during the Civil war, he is the source of much of Ryo's underground information. He's just as much of a pervert as Ryo is. Does not appear in the Anime.

Kazue Nattori

A former scientist who's unintended acquaintance with Ryo resulted in her falling in love with him. She eventually becomes an assistant to the Professor in his lab, hoping she will have the opportunity to win his heart.

Kasumi Asou

A member of a proud clan of noble Robin Hood-like thieves, she initially meets with Ryo early on in the manga before returning to him halfway through the manga. She eventually falls in love with Ryo and makes brief appearances thereafter as a part-time employee at Cat's Eye.

Mick Angel

A former partner of Ryo during his stay in the United States, he is an equal to Ryo in terms of both skills and his womanizing nature. Introduced 3/4 of the way throughout the manga, he plays a big role in major story arcs thereafter. Does not appear in the Anime.

Manga

In Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

, the City Hunter manga ran for six years in Shueisha

Shueisha

is a major publisher in Japan. The company was founded in 1925 as the entertainment-related publishing division of Japanese publisher Shogakukan. The following year, Shueisha became a separate, independent company. Magazines published by Shueisha include Weekly Shōnen Jump, Weekly Young Jump,...

's Weekly Shōnen Jump

Weekly Shonen Jump

is a weekly shōnen manga anthology published in Japan by Shueisha under the Jump line of magazines. The first issue was released with a cover date of July 2, 1968, and it is still circulating. One of the longest-running manga magazines in Japan, it has a circulation of 2.8 million copies...

 magazine from Issue 13 of 1985 to Issue 50 of 1991. The first compiled City Hunter collections were published under the Jump Comics imprint from 1985 to 1992, and totaled 35 volumes. The second edition was from Shueisha Editions, who published an 18 book version between 1996 and 1997. Bunch World published a 39 volume edition between 2001 and 2002. Most recently, Tokuma Comics published a "Complete Edition" of 32 books, each with bonus material between 2004 and early 2005.

The North America

North America

North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...

n version of the manga, published by Gutsoon! Entertainment

Gutsoon! Entertainment

Gutsoon! Entertainment, Inc. is a now defunct publisher of English translated manga. The company, headquartered in Encino, Los Angeles, served as the US subsidiary of Coamix, which was founded by Nobuhiko Horie and manga artist Tsukasa Hojo. The company published the English manga anthology Raijin...

 and serialized in Raijin Comics

Raijin Comics

Raijin Comics was a manga anthology published in North America by the now-defunct Gutsoon! Entertainment and largely backed by the Sega Corporation at its inception. The collected volumes of Raijin Comics titles were published under the Raijin Graphic Novels imprint.The comics were aimed at an...

, is only available up to volume 5. The series has also been translated into Chinese

Chinese language

The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...

, French

French language

French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...

, German

German language

German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....

, Italian

Italian language

Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...

, Vietnamese

Vietnamese language

Vietnamese is the national and official language of Vietnam. It is the mother tongue of 86% of Vietnam's population, and of about three million overseas Vietnamese. It is also spoken as a second language by many ethnic minorities of Vietnam...

, Spanish

Spanish language

Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...

, and Indonesian

Indonesian language

Indonesian is the official language of Indonesia. Indonesian is a normative form of the Riau Islands dialect of Malay, an Austronesian language which has been used as a lingua franca in the Indonesian archipelago for centuries....

.

Spin-off

In 2001, Hojo started a follow-up series titled Angel Heart manga. The series takes place in a universe parallel

Parallel universe (fiction)

A parallel universe or alternative reality is a hypothetical self-contained separate reality coexisting with one's own. A specific group of parallel universes is called a "multiverse", although this term can also be used to describe the possible parallel universes that constitute reality...

 to City Hunter, where the character of Kaori Makimura is killed and her heart transplanted into Li Xiang Ying, Angel Hearts protagonist.

Anime

The manga was adapted into an animated

Anime

is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....

 television series by Sunrise Studios

Sunrise (company)

is a Japanese animation studio and production enterprise. It is a subsidiary of Namco Bandai Holdings. Its former name was Nippon Sunrise, and prior to that, Sunrise Studios...

 in 1987. The first series lasted for 51 episodes, followed by three further series; City Hunter 2 (63 episodes); City Hunter 3 (13 episodes); and City Hunter '91 (13 episodes).

Along with the four television series, the City Hunter animated franchise spans three television special

Television special

A television special is a television program which interrupts or temporarily replaces programming normally scheduled for a given time slot. Sometimes, however, the term is given to a telecast of a theatrical film, such as The Wizard of Oz or The Ten Commandments, which is not part of a regular...

s, two original video animation

Original video animation

, abbreviated as media , are animated films and series made specially for release in home-video formats. The term originated in relation to Japanese animation...

s and one feature film

Feature film

In the film industry, a feature film is a film production made for initial distribution in theaters and being the main attraction of the screening, rather than a short film screened before it; a full length movie...

.

1 Film:

• 357 Magnum a.k.a. A Magnum of Love's Destination is about Ryo and Kaori being hired to protect Nina Shutenburg, a beautiful pianist, from mercenaries and diplomats.

2 OVAs:

• Bay City Wars is about Ryo and Umibozu fighting against an evil dictator and his league of terrorists hijacking the Bay City hotel

• Million Dollar Conspiracy a.k.a. Plot of a $1,000,000.

3 specials:

• Secret Service.
• The Motion Picture a.k.a. Goodbye, My Sweetheart.
• Death of the Vicious Criminal Ryo Saeba a.k.a. Death of Evil Ryo Saeba.

ADV initially had the rights to most of the series, with the exception of the last film. However, it went out of print quickly, and, possibly due to a lack of popularity, has not yet been re-released.

Live action

In 1993, Golden Harvest

Golden Harvest

Golden Harvest is a film production, distribution, and exhibition company based in Hong Kong. It played a major role in becoming the first Chinese film company to successfully enter the western market for an extended period of time, especially with the films of Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan...

 produced a live action City Hunter (城市獵人) film directed by Wong Jing

Wong Jing

Wong Jing is a Hong Kong film director, producer, actor, presenter, and screenwriter. A prolific filmmaker possessed of strong instincts for crowd-pleasing and publicity, he is often cited as the most consistently successful filmmaker , in commercial terms, in the Hong Kong cinema of the last...

 and starring Jackie Chan

Jackie Chan

Jackie Chan, SBS, MBE is a Hong Kong actor, action choreographer, comedian, director, producer, martial artist, screenwriter, entrepreneur, singer and stunt performer. In his movies, he is known for his acrobatic fighting style, comic timing, use of improvised weapons, and innovative stunts...

. Fortune Star and 20th Century Fox

20th Century Fox

Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation — also known as 20th Century Fox, or simply 20th or Fox — is one of the six major American film studios...

 later released it on R1 DVD along with other budget classic HK films. Jackie was not fond of the work, and allegedly criticized it in one of his books.

Mr. Mumble (孟波 Meng bo) is another live action version of City Hunter. Despite the fact the names have been changed, this 1996 movie is considered to be a bit more faithful to the original material than the earlier film. Michael Chow

Michael Chow Man-Kin

Michael Chow Man-Kin is a Canada-born Hong Kong-based actor.-Filmography:* Son of the Dragon - Bo* Forever Yours - Lou Jao* Love Trilogy - Li Caishun* Fate Fighter * Kung Phooey! - Art Chew...

 plays Maang Boh (Mr. Mumble, the Cantonese version of Ryo) who takes on a job to guard Sharon (Pauline Suen), the daughter of a mafioso. The film also stars Francoise Yip

Françoise Yip

Françoise Fong-Wa Yip is a Canadian actress.Yip was born in North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, and was raised in Toronto. Her father is Chinese, and her mother is Québécoise. At an early age Yip began studying both piano and dance, but it was piano that she would excel at...

 as Yachi (Saeko), Jessica Hester Hsuan as Lao Tang (Kaori) and Eric Kei as Chi (Umibozu).

Saviour of the Soul (九一神鵰俠侶 Gauyat sandiu haplui) is a Hong Kong film from 1991 that takes elements from City Hunter. Although the plot has little in common with City Hunter, the characters of Ryo, Saeko, Makimura, Kaori, and Silver Fox appear.

A new live-action version of City Hunter has recently been announced, to be produced and distributed by Fox Television Studios and South Korean media company SSD. Jung Woo-sung

Jung Woo-sung

- Career :Jung Woo-sung was born in Seoul on March 20, 1973. After first finding work as a model, he made his film debut in the 1994 movie The Fox with Nine Tails, together with Ko So-young...

 has been cast as Ryo, and that other Hollywood-based stars will be cast alongside, with filming being done in Seoul and Tokyo.

In 2011, the series was adapted into a Korean television series of the same name

City Hunter (TV series)

City Hunter is a South Korean television drama series starring Lee Min Ho, Park Min Young, Lee Joon Hyuk, Hwang Sun Hee, Goo Hara and Lee Kwang Soo. It premiered on May 25, 2011 on SBS and finished broadcasting on July 28, 2011. The show reached number one in its time slot in Korea, reaching 18%...

 by SBS, starring Lee Min Ho

Lee Min Ho

Lee Min Ho is a South Korean actor who is best known for his leading role in 2009 as 'Gu Jun Pyo', the leader of the group of students known as F4, in the South Korean television series Boys Over Flowers. He started his career in small drama roles in 2006, but he came to prominence with his acting...

, Park Min-Young, and Lee Joon Hyuk.

Novels

• City Hunter. Novel. Published by Shueisha in 1993.
• City Hunter Special: The Secret Service. Novel. Published by Shueisha in 1995
• City Hunter 2. Novel. Published by Shueisha in 1997.
• City Hunter Special: Live on Stage. Novel. Published by Shueisha in 1999.

Reception

In a 2005 poll held by TV Asahi

TV Asahi

, also known as EX and , is a Japanese television network headquartered in Roppongi, Minato, Tokyo, Japan. The company writes its name in lower-case letters, tv asahi, in its logo and public-image materials. The company also owns All-Nippon News Network....

, City Hunter was voted #66 out of the 100 most popular animated TV series, as voted by TV viewers. A TV Asahi web-poll put City Hunter at #65.

External links

• Official Website for City Hunter Complete DVD box set
• J-pop.com review of City Hunter: The Motion Picture