BUZZmod City Hunter Ryo Saeba
The most feared sweeper and legendary crime fighter in Shinjuku, Ryo Saeba operates as the “City Hunter”. Working as a sweeper (a term for a private detective or mercenary in the world of City Hunter, depending on the situation), Ryo is a master of hand-to-hand combat and an expert marksman capable of impossible shots.
As the series progresses, Ryo’s backstory is eventually revealed to be that of an orphaned child soldier raised by mercenaries. Due to the long years of war, Ryo is not sure of his actual age, or even his real name. But thanks to his harsh upbringing, his mind and body have been trained to their upmost peak, making him almost unstoppable.
Typical of BuzzMod figures, the set comes with cloth materials (in this case, a jacket for Ryo). Admittedly, the jacket is too big and the effect is a bit of a letdown.
Of course, Ryo comes with his iconic Colt Python revolver.
After years of being in a war-torn battlefield day in day out, Ryo’s sharpshooting skills are second to none. He can perform impossible shots that no one else can do (firing twice in the exact same line of fire, for one).
Ryo’s tactical acumen is so well honed, he’s also an expert at escaping traps and ambushes set up by his enemies. He can even dodge incoming enemy bullet fire with the slightest movement of his body.
The set comes with some optional hands so Ryo can put his hands into his pockets and recreate some really cool poses from the show.
Cloth jacket issues aside, the head sculpt on this figure is really, really good.
Of course, City Hunter wouldn’t be the big hit it is without the goofy comedy Ryo does whenever pretty women are around (thanks to the terrific range of voice acting by the great Akira Kamiya). The set executes this perfectly with all the extra facial expressions.
Lol!! That lecherous facial expression is just priceless! Right on the mark, BuzzMod!
Lastly, Ryo comes with this his hair piece with hearts that are meant to cover his eyes. Haha. “Mokkori!” (Ryo’s expression when hoping to score with the babes).
“Wow!”
Lol… using a Third Party stand to get Ryo into this proper “Mokkori Chance” pose.
I guess one of the best reasons of having a cloth jacket for this figure is so you can take if off and do this pose.
It’s a shame BuzzMod didn’t include Ryo’s shoulder holster for his Colt Python. That would’ve been a nice detail to have when his jacket’s off.
One of my favorite poses to recreate for Buzzmod Ryo has got to be from the City Hunter 2 closing credits, “Super Girl” by Yasuyuki Okamura (my first exposure to the City Hunter Anime waaaay back in high school).
Overall, I love it! However, I do wish the jacket was executed better. I think it could’ve been better if it wasn’t meant to be removed and instead be plastic, rather than cloth, so it’d fit better. That issue aside, the really good head sculpts on this thing are just too good to pass up!
Funfact: Ryo is a playable character in the 2019 fighting game “Jump Force”, featuring several series from the Weekly Shonen Jump Manga, such as Dragon Ball, Rurounin Kenshin, My Hero Academia, Saint Seiya, Naruto and One Piece. Lol… You can actually have Ryo go up against the likes of Frieza and Cell from Dragon Ball Z… and win!
Gold
