Title: City
Hunter
Author/Artist: Hojo Tsukasa
Publisher: Jump Comics
Style: Shonen -- Adventure/Humor
# of Books: 35
Rating: PG-13
Summary written by: Gloria Oliver
Main Characters:
Ryo Saeba
Ryo Saeba is a sweeper -- a man for hire. His specialties lie in investigative and bodyguard work. On the streets of Tokyo he is known by a number of names. His more public, partying name is “The Shinjuku Stallion,” though some who have known him for years refer to him as “Baby Face.” Amidst the rougher, mercenary elements of Japan, he is known as “City Hunter.” There are very few men alive that know who City Hunter really is.
Ryo's skills inlcude some very sharp ears, whose abilities have been compared to those of Astro Boy. He is also gifted with an incredibly flexible voice -- this allows him to mimic almost anyone with ease. Yet the one skill he is a true master at is that of shooting. Saeba is considered a crack shot.
As far as is known, Ryo has but two major weaknesses -- he is a total letch (easily distracted by both beautiful women and lady's underwear) as well as the fact that despite his actions, he has a heart of gold.
Kizana Makimura
Makimura was an ex-cop. He quit the force when he became dissatisfied with the system’s inability to curve certain types of crimes. He joined forces with Ryo and created XYZ in an attempt to more directly help the people of Tokyo, while at the same time pursuing other avenues to stop drug trafficking in Japan.
Makimura screened and dug up information on the job requests that would appear on the blackboard at My City. Ryo would then pursue, after being goaded or appropriately motivated into the job, the more physical aspects of the work.
Makimura was murdered at the age of twenty nine by the Teope Union. He died on March 31, 1985 -- the night of his sister’s twenty first birthday. It was on this night, that he had planned to tell her about her true origins.
Kaori Makimura
Kaori never did approve of her brother’s association with Ryo and made that plain to both of them on numerous occassions. She wasn’t aware that she wasn’t Kizana’s real sister, but that she had been adopted by his father from a jailed criminal. Her brother had been on his way to tell her the truth of her origins when he was killed.
After exacting revenge on the Teope Union for Makimura’s death, Ryo gave Kaori her real mother’s wedding ring, which Kizana had been going to give her with the truth. Ryo, however, didn’t tell her anything of her past, and presented the ring as a memento of her brother.
Kaori’s duties in the XYZ include screening prospective jobs and gathering information on the possible clients before bringing the requests for employment to Ryo’s attention. If the cases involve beautiful women, Kaori has taken on the added task of helping protect the clients from outsiders, but especially from Ryo’s lecherous advances.
To protect their clients, Kaori has become quite proficient in the use of conscience hammers and booby traps. The hammers could be said to be somewhat mystic in nature, since they always appear out of thin air. When provoked enough, any woman can call on them at will to smash Ryo’s lecherousness to the nearest wall or floor. Ordinarily, Kaori’s hammers range anywhere from 1 to 1000 tons depending on the size of Ryo’s offense. Many a client has been saved from Ryo’s advances by her steadfast attention to their virtue.
Against true antagonists, Kaori mainly uses her brother’s Lawman MK III .357 Magnum. This is a sight that fills Ryo with paralyzing fear. Her shooting tends to be wild and not necessarily well aimed. Kaori has also gained a bit of experience using heavy machine guns, grenades, rocket launchers, and bazookas while on the line of duty.
Tomboyish in appearance and manner, Kaori is often confused by others as a bishonen or pretty boy. The confusion angers her tremendously, but she can’t seem to find a way to make it stop. It hasn’t helped, that on numerous occasions, Ryo has introduced her to clients as his younger brother, Kaoru. (Ryo eventually pays dearly for this in every instance.) However, Kaori can be quite fetching when she applies herself, especially when she wears a long haired wig.
Kaori is loyal, thoughtful, stubborn, and quick to anger. She looks out for both XYZ’s clients and Ryo. Over time, she sees there is more to Ryo than she’d always thought, and their relationship solidifies. Neither of them, however, are willing to admit, even to themselves, that they do anything more than tolerate each other. To their clients though, what’s there always seems very clear.
Saeko Nogami
For a police lieutenant, Saeko is strong willed, competent, and thorough. As a woman, she is beautiful, sexy, and dangerous. Though quite adept with them, Saeko normally avoids the use of guns. Instead, she prefers to rely on her sharp skill with throwing knives. She keeps them on her person through the use of a garter type sheath, which is easily accessible through the long slit skirts she prefers to wear.
When the need arises, Saeko will tantalize Ryo with her charms to persuade him to do jobs for her. If her promises and charms don’t prove to be enough, she will resort to blackmail, even if she has to fabricate the materials herself. She has yet to ever deliver to Ryo his favorite type of payment.
Saeko has often accused Ryo of not being able to be serious for longer than three or four minutes at a time.
Umibozu
While in most places Umibozu would be considered a large man, in Japan, he is a veritable giant. Many an unprepared Japanese has run from him in terror when meeting him for the first time. He has a clean shaven head and always wears sunglasses.
Umibozu is a mercenary and is known in the streets as Falcon. A ‘pro’ like Saeba, he specializes in high caliber weapons and explosives. Kaori picked up the idea of using bazookas from him.
Though he is a strong and competent man, Umibozu is very shy where it comes to women, especially those he might have an interest in. He can be very easily embarrassed when others notice his interest on a lady. He is highly disgusted by Ryo’s lustful comments and actions. At times, he has gone to great lengths to discourage Ryo from trying anything with women of his acquaintance. That is except Kaori, whom Ryo feigns to have no interest in and who is quite capable of defending herself from those of his type.
Umibozu has but one weakness, one which Ryo stumbled onto and has gleefully exploited ever since. His weakness is a paralyzing fear of cats, especially cute, cuddly kittens. The cats in turn, seem to fall in love with him on sight. It is his one great shame.
Story Summary
The City Hunter manga follows the exploits of Ryo Saeba. Ryo hires himself out as an avenger, investigator, but most often as a body guard. Requests for his services are left on a blackboard in the lower floors of the My City building in Shinjuku. All his cases, in one way or another, always end up dealing with beautiful women. Ryo always comes through, though the lessons learned by the clients and sometimes himself, are not always what they expect. Ryo's lecherous advances toward his clients and Kaori's protection of same, always leads to some very humorous situations. Throw in the fact that Saeko will occasionally draft him into jobs she can't strictly take care of by following the letter of the law, and then Umi Bozu and the way some of their jobs come up on opposite sides, and you have the makings of a really enjoyable time!
Hojo's art is crisp and extremely realistic. His attention to detail is superb. As the series goes on, his art improves. And though the series starts out somewhat gloomy, as it goes on the humor becomes more and more a part of the story.