City Hunter Manga Omnibus Really Establishes Ryo Saeba as a Character

Abrams Books started bringing back classic 1980s mangas in omnibus form, and City Hunter is among them. It’s 40 years old now, but still remains popular due to continuing adaptations like the live-action movie on Netflix. Given this compilation consists of the first three volumes of City Hunter, it’s really best served as an introduction to exactly who Ryo Saeba is and what he’s capable of, as we’re seeing him fully established over multiple cases and situations. 

Editor’s Note: There will be some mild spoilers for the first City Hunter manga omnibus in the article below.

Four things are true about Ryo Saeba in the City Hunter manga and other adaptations, and they are that he is an incredibly skilled marksman, a Sweeper with a strong sense of justice, quite immature, and a something of a pervert. This is a flawed individual who still means well and is willing to investigate and execute missions. And what I love about many of the early missions in the manga is that it takes each of these isolated cases, shows his behaviors in each one, and shows how all of these facets can be true and not take away from what he’s capable of doing to help people in the city who have no one else they can turn to. 

The first few “cases” help exemplify this. The first involves a boxer who was killed by a rival while his doctor girlfriend was nearby. Our introduction to Ryo Saeba in City Hunter is him shouting angrily at a bookie because said boxer, who he bet on, died and his bet got moved to the replacement. It is immature, since he’s wasting money gambling, and selfish, since he’s focused on his own wants and needs. His initial response, when observing the client and hearing about the situation, is to be focused entirely on how hot she is. He even cops a feel when he first meets her. However, he’s then wise enough to trace the new opponent for the offender as part of his investigation. When he does perform the hit and vengeance, he does so with a special shot during the match, to make it seem like the new opponent was strong enough to knock him out in one hit, in public, and refuses the payment from the grieving, dying girlfriend. So right away, we see all the complexities to him.

It carries over into his second assignment. A high school student is victim of a murderer, and her sister hires Ryo Saeba in the second chapter of the first City Hunter omnibus volume to potentially bring him to justice. When he hears about the case, he’s upset because the teenager didn’t get to grow up to become a beautiful woman, he meets the client at a strip club bar, and he again is lewd toward her. He then notes said location is where he gets many tips for cases, due to the nature of it, and gropes her. It’s as they’re talking, however, that he gets a signal that his intervention is needed. A kidnapped teenage runaway and the possible suspect for the case he’s on is there. Ryo manages to kill him, save the girl, and handle the case, even though it means he put himself in danger. But, in so doing, he also saved innocent bystanders outside the bar and made an incredibly astute and skilled calculation. 

I don’t want to get into too many more examples, since it starts getting into spoilers and all, but every case in the first City Hunter omnibus manga really does a fantastic job of showing exactly how complex Ryo Saeba is. He can be a jerk! He can be gross! He’s definitely obnoxious. However, he’s also an incredibly skilled marksman, possesses street smarts, and knows how to approach situations in ways that protect people and prevent dangerous individuals from hurting and killing others. It really highlights all angles of his character.

Volume 1 of the City Hunter omnibus manga is available now, and the second one will appear on January 13, 2026. 

The post City Hunter Manga Omnibus Really Establishes Ryo Saeba as a Character appeared first on Siliconera.