Copyright © Hojo Tsukasa / Shueisha · YTV · SUNRISE

I'm a CITY HUNTER fan, but that doesn't automatically give this animation special a good review. In fact I've probably got higher standards than the average viewer because I know the characters in detail. Maybe too much detail. Plus, I have always had a higher degree of affection for the manga series than the anime.
When the brown package arrived at my house I admit that I was having second thoughts. On one hand, it was what I had been hoping for for over 8 years. CITY HUNTER in English. On the other hand, I don't think I would have taken it well if they had done a hack job on the translations. And once you hear a bad translation you'll hear it every time you watch the segment no matter what language.
I watched the English dubbed version first. I was very impressed. The voices were realistic. The speech wasn't stilted. And best of all, they had actually found people with the versatility to keep up with Ryo and Kaori's dynamic voice changes! The transition between serious and fun Ryo was very well done. And Kaori had decent lines to match her temper. I actually found myself looking forward to what Kaori would say. I was also impressed by the translation of Ryo's famous "mokkori" lines. Because "mokkori" isn't a real word except in the world of City Hunter, I was curious as to how they would deal with the translation.
The one thing that I found puzzling was why they had decided to change Ryo and Saeko's first names to Joe and Sandra, although I could see how those names would be slightly difficult to pronounce in English. I quickly got used to the names and was immersed back into the storyline. It was also nice that the translator and voice actors seemed to be aware of the relationship tension between Kaori and Ryo... er... Joe. Finally, they had went through the trouble of dubbing the ending short. I really was impressed by the English dub.
Now, for the subtitled version. Ryo and Saeko get to keep their names. The subtitles were well timed and crisp. They even subtitled the songs. Some of the music lines were a bit fast, but I suppose that's to be expected. I think there was only one typo that I could notice during the song translations.
As for the movie itself, in my opinion it's the best CITY HUNTER special so far. It's got all of the classic elements of CITY HUNTER, and more interaction between characters than previous OVAs. It's a great stand alone piece and I can see why ADV decided to launch their release with this particular story. However, long-time fans of CITY HUNTER will get more out of this Show than a new fan. After watching the translated versions, I can see the subtle lines that tie this special back to previous OVAs and the CITY HUNTER MOVIE: MAGNUM OF LOVE'S DESTINATION. I liked that a lot. That just feels like Hojo's style—that constant thread and history that weaves into the story that is CITY HUNTER. Now that I think about it though, they didn't explain why everyone was so worried about Falcon (Umibozu) firing that rifle at the train tracks. If you follow the TV series or the manga, you would know what the characters know. And that is that Falcon is blind. There are other special scenes in there that only the true CITY HUNTER fans will get, but it's still entertaining even if you don't have a Ph.D. in XYZ.
I would also rate the translations very highly. I could hardly find fault in them and I was trying. In short, this is a great adaptation of a great anime. If the rest of ADV's CITY HUNTER releases are anything like this one, I've got to start saving for DVDs.

Released (in North America) by ADV Films, Inc.
English subtitled / VHSCH/001S / $29.98
English dubbed / VHSCH/001D/ $19.98
90 minutes
Available 22 June 1999
Where to buy