Angel Heart

[Glass Heart 34]

Angel Heart is an on-going manga by author Tsukasa Hojo (City Hunter, Cat's Eye, Family Compo) which runs since 2001.

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_RNSSa0aexEM/Sr_cH7jWj2I/AAAAAAAAAdM/WZnFSbkusQE/s400/AngelHeart.JPG

Tired of a life of murders, a young chinese assassin named Glass Heart kills herself. The criminal organisation she's involved with can't let her die and gives her a stolen heart from a recent deceased person.

It turns out that the original owner of the heart, Kaori Makimura, was the wife and partner of the legendary City Hunter Ryo Saeba, the most feared sweeper of the world and protector of Shinjuku district.

Saeba, devastated and now in his 40's, has since ceased his activities and tries to act as if nothing has happened, acting like the same old pervert, silently destroying himself deep down.

Still in coma, Glass Heart sees Kaori and her memories of happiness with Saeba in her dreams. Haunted by these memories and suffocating because of the strong emotions when neither are truly hers, Glass Heart awakes, evades from the organisation and go to Japan to meet this Ryo Saeba and to give him back the stolen heart.

Soon, Glass Heart enters in contact with some friends of Ryo who recognize her as Kaori, troubling her and also troubling the poor Ryo-chan who has no clue on what's happening.

At the same time, the boss of the organisation is murdered and the suspect is Glass Heart who becomes the main target.

Finally, Glass Heart meet the man of his dreams, Ryo Saeba, who vows to protect her and to inspire her the will of love again.

Will the return of the angel Kaori save those two killers in a desperate need of love in a cruel world ?

Will Saeba and Glass Heart be able to rebuild themselves as a normal family in a father-daughter relationship ?

And will Ryo finally be able to realise his long-lasting dream to make mokkori with all the women of the world now that Kaori is no longer here ? (Not a chance ! lol !)

This excellent manga is some kind of sequel of City Hunter but doesn't follow his predecessor's storyline, taking place in a parallel universe more dark, more serious and more social-oriented.

The pasts of the characters are different but the major events still have happened (just differently from City Hunter).

The manga gave birth to a 50 episodes animated series adapting most of the plots of volumes 1 to 18. Unlike Cat's Eye and City Hunter, this series follows very closely the stories of the manga, making it the most faithful adaptation of a Tsukasa Hojo's work and clearly the most violent of all.

http://www.watchanimeon.com/images/188.jpg

[Glass Heart 34]

Two of the three openings of the Angel Heart animated series (which lasted only for 50 episodes).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mSsY8_H2feo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JHyCEu3VB-w&feature=related

Like the ambiance of the series, the style of music for the openings and endings of Angel Heart is very different from City Hunter's.

[kirite 23]

I love Angel Heart (and city hunter too)!

Angel Heart really shows the maturity of the mangaka I think. The whole relationship between father and daughter is just very sweet. The living after your love one passed away thing was done well too.

[Glass Heart 34]

Have you read the manga or have you watched the anime series (which ends around volume 18), or both ?

Great manga ! As a huge fan of City Hunter, I was really sad when Tsukasa Hojo decided to kill Kaori Makimura but, in the end, it's a whole different story (it's not really City Hunter 2) and, as you say, the father/daughter relationship is very well written.

And I LOVE the Chameleon, the most hilarious and dangerous enemy the City Hunter has ever met.

If you don't know that character yet, it's a killer who is a master of deguisement and who is also sexually crazy, regularly changing its sex and falling in love with Ryo as much as he wants to kill him. But, if he is completely crazy, he's also the one of the very few killers who actually surpasses Ryo in his methods, leading to one of the most memorable fights of the entire manga (where Ryo confronts...

Kaori).