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February 26 Declared City Hunter Day For 40th Anniversary

The official X (formerly Twitter) account for the City Hunter and Cat's Eye series revealed a City Hunter 40th Anniversary illustration on February 26. The post thanked fans for 40 years of support and announced the City Hunter 40th Anniversary website. As if almost a joke, the Japan Anniversary Association declared February 26 City Hunter Day because the series first began serialization in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump magaine on February 26, 1985.

Tsukasa Hōjō, creator of City Hunter, released a comment on the City Hunter 40th Anniversary website regarding his work, joking how he never thought people would still be reading his series after 40 years.

"I'm Ryo-chan, I'm 20!!" was Ryo Saeba's catchphrase when he was trying to pick up girls (lol). City Hunter (what about Ryo?) is celebrating its second coming of age. At the time, I never thought people would be reading it 40 years later, so I was free to draw silly things as if I was throwing away my shame. 40 years from now, I'll be long gone, but I wonder if Ryo is still alive? I hope Ryo will live a long life, along with everyone else.

The official City Hunter website also made several announcements for the anniversary year. Chief among the announcements is the Ueno Royal Museum hosting a City Hunter 40th Anniversary Exhibition from November 12 to December 28. The City Hunter X account is also hosting a “What is your favorite City Hunter moment?” campaign between February 26-March 31. During the campaign, fans can submit and vote on their favorite moments from the manga series. Three fans will also receive a plaque engraved with the scenes they have chosen.

Fans of City Hunter can read the first 100 chapters of the manga series for free through the Manga Hot app. The chapters will be available to read until March 31 JST.

Additionally, the franchise is partnering with apparel maker FILA for a City Hunter-inspired shoe. The collaboration shoe is the FILA FX-2, which debuted in the same year as City Hunter, and will be “filled with elements of City Hunter making for a one-of-a-kind design.” The shoe is currently available for pre-order through the FILA online store.

Hojo began serializing City Hunter in Weekly Shonen Jump on February 26, 1895. The series follows the lecherous Ryo Saeba, a sweeper in the Shinjuku area, and his partner Kaori Makimura in short, hard-boiled stories. Following the conclusion of City Hunter in 1991, Hojo produced a sequel series titled Angel Heart in 2001. Angel Heart was initially published in Weekly Comic Bunch until 2010, then in Monthly Comic Zenon between 2010 to 2017. Hojo currently serves as a board member for Coamix Inc. alongside fellow mangaka Tetsuo Hara and Ryuji Tsugihara and his former editor Nobuhiko Horie.

Sources: City Hunter and Cat's Eye series' X/Twitter account, City Hunter 40th Anniversary's website (link 2, link 3), Japan Anniversary Association, Comic Natalie