City Hunter is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Tsukasa Hojo. It was serialized in Shueisha's Weekly Shōnen Jump magazine from 1985 to 1991, spanning 35 collected volumes. The story follows Ryo Saeba, a private detective and "sweeper" operating in Tokyo, who is contacted by clients through the code "XYZ" written on a message board at Shinjuku Station. Ryo is a peerless marksman with a strict personal code, but he is also an incorrigible womanizer whose antics often land him in trouble.
After the murder of his partner Hideyuki Makimura, Ryo is joined by Hideyuki's tomboyish sister Kaori, who becomes his new partner and the emotional anchor of the series. The manga blends hard-boiled action, slapstick comedy, and romantic tension, with most chapters following an episodic case structure where Ryo protects a beautiful female client. Hojo's clean, dynamic art style and the series' mix of gritty crime drama and lighthearted humor made it a standout in the shōnen genre.
City Hunter became a massive commercial success and a cultural phenomenon, spawning a vast media franchise that includes multiple anime series, films, video games, and live-action adaptations across several countries. It also inspired a spin-off manga, Angel Heart, set in an alternate continuity. The series was particularly influential in shaping the modern action-comedy template in manga and anime, and it remains beloved by fans worldwide.
