Raoh

Raoh
	; Raoh, as depicted in the manga
Name in Kanji	ラオウ
Name in Romaji	Raō
Alternate spelling(s)	Laoh, Rao, Raou, Lao, Laou
Fighting Style	Hokuto Shin Ken (Gō no Ken) and other styles
Family	Ryuou (ancestor) ; Hahaja (unnamed mother); Kaioh (older brother); Toki (younger brother); Sayaka (younger sister); Jagi (adoptive younger brother); Kenshiro (adoptive younger brother); Ryuken (adoptive father/sifu); Ryu (son)
Position(s)	The Conqueror of Century's End (世紀末覇者 Seikimatsu Hasha)
Appearances	Manga (ch. 42-onward), Anime (32-onward), Legends of the True Savior series, Ten no Haoh, and various other works.
Voice actor(s)	Kenji Utsumi; Takashi Ukaji (Shin Kyūseishu Densetsu, Ten no Haoh); Tesshō Genda (Legend of Heroes, J-Stars Victory VS); Fumihiko Tachiki (Hokuto Musou); John Snyder (TV dub); Wally Burr (movie dub); Andrew Love (Ten no Haoh dub); Dave B. Mitchell (Hokuto Musou dub); Patrick Seitz (Fist of the North Star: Lost Paradise dub); G. Larry Butler (William Winckler dub)

"Even the gods quake in fear before the power of my fists"

— Raoh in episode 32

Raoh (ラオウ, Raō) was the eldest of Ryuken's four adopted sons, Raoh is actually the older brother of Toki and Sayaka and the younger brother of Kaioh. His name became synonymous with the star Bōkyōsei (暴凶星, Violent Evil Star).

Childhood

Raoh was originally a native from the island of Shura. After the death of his mother, Raoh was orphaned and sent to the mainland by Jukei, along with his little brother, Toki, and the baby Kenshiro to train with Ryuken, the master of Hokuto Shinken. When they met Ryuken, he left Raoh and Toki at the bottom of a canyon and promised he would only adopt the one who made it to the top first. Raoh clawed himself to the summit but carried Toki with him and ordered Ryuken to adopt both of them. Ryuken was moved by this act and agreed, taking Raoh as his apprentice. Raoh trained hard under Ryuken, driven by the desire to become the strongest. He made a promise with Toki that, should he fall victim to his own ambition, his little brother would stop him at any cost.

The King of Fist

As Raoh developed a fierce and terrifying fighting style, Ryuken came to fear his power and chose Kenshiro as his successor to Hokuto Shinken. Subsequently, Raoh broke the 1800 year law of Hokuto by refusing to give up his power. Ryuken tried to stop him from misusing the Hokuto style, but Raoh killed him and left the temple to further his ambition. He assumed the title of Ken-Oh (拳王 King of Fists) and amassed an army to conquer the wasteland. Among those to join under his banner were Jagi, Amiba, Yuda and Ryuga.

Raoh established the mighty stronghold of Cassandra as a prison for martial artists, whose secret scrolls he had stolen to perfect the ultimate fighting style. He also kept Toki imprisoned there to prevent him joining forces with Kenshiro. However, Cassandra was liberated by Kenshiro, and Toki was rescued. Raoh launched a counterattack on Mamiya's village, where he fought with Rei of the Nanto Suicho Ken style and defeated him with a fatal blow. Kenshiro challenged Raoh for revenge and the two battled to a bloody standstill after Toki intervened to stop them killing each other. Raoh would finally duel with Toki to settle their childhood promise. Toki, weakened by his disease, was defeated but Raoh spared his brother's life in a rare act of mercy.

Raoh later fought against the Nanto Goshasei - guardians of the mysterious Last Nanto General, who had risen up to challenge Raoh's conquest. When Raoh discovered the General's real identity was Yuria, his unrequited love and Kenshiro's fiancée, he marched onward to claim her for himself. However, he was met by Kenshiro, who by now had learned the ultimate Hokuto Shinken technique - Musou Tensei - which overwhelmed him with fear. Raoh managed to escape with Yuria in his clutches and retreated to his fortress.

Haunted by his fear of Kenshiro, Raoh abandoned the title of 'Ken-Oh' and swore to become a ferocious demon. His first act was to confront Fudou, a ghost from his past and the first man to teach him fear. Fudou was now a reformed character, adopting orphans of the wasteland, but he was forced to fight when Raoh threatened to slaughter his children. Despite withstanding Fudou's relentless charge, Raoh was terrified of the vision of Kenshiro reflected in Fudou's eyes and left the battlefield in disgrace.

On the brink of despair, Raoh decided that only killing Yuria would bring him the sorrow needed to learn Musou Tensei and defeat Kenshiro. However, as he prepared to strike, he discovered Yuria was hiding a terminal illness the whole time. Her courage in the face of her impending death moved Raoh to tears and stopped him from killing her. Instead, he placed her in a temporary coma, slowing the spread of her disease. As fate would have it, this moment bestowed Raoh with Musou Tensei and he took Yuria's body to the Hokuto Renkitōza, faking her murder in order to provoke Kenshiro into their final showdown. After a grueling battle, Raoh realized he could not overcome his opponent, whose soul was strengthened by the blood and tears shed against his great rivals. Conceding defeat to his younger brother, Raoh revealed that he had transferred some of his life force to Yuria to extend her life and proclaimed to have no regrets and sent his remaining life-force into the sky, restoring light to the world as he died standing proudly. His body was buried beside Toki's grave.

Hokuto no Ken (1986 movie)

In the 1986 movie, Raoh watches alongside Jagi as Shin defeats Kenshiro and kidnaps Yuria. After which, he orders Jagi to dispose of Kenshiro by throwing him into an abyss to perish in darkness. He also gives Jagi the title of successor, which was now worthless to him. Raoh visits Ryuken at the Hokuto dojo, confirming Kenshiro's "death" and his own goal to conquer the heavens. Ryuken is left with no choice but to seal his eldest son's power but Raoh murders his master and leaves the dojo to fulfill his ambitions.

During the follow year, Raoh begins his path of conquest by eliminating rival warlords, such as the Fang Clan, before marching to Southern Cross to challenge Shin. Upon his arrival he captures Yuria (who was in the midst of escaping) and defeats Shin, leaving him alive long enough to warn Kenshiro.

Raoh returns to his stronghold of Cassandra in anticipation of the final battle, using Yuria as his bait. However, Kenshiro arrives too late to save Rei, who himself challenges Raoh to save Yuria. The two Hokuto brothers engage in a bloody clash which is brought to a halt when Lin intervenes. Realizing the role Lin will play in the future, Raoh leaves the battlefield and postpones his war with Kenshiro for another day.

Whereas in the original Japanese theatrical release and English dub, Raoh is the victor only for Kenshiro to be saved by Lin, this was changed in the Japanese home video version where the fight ends in a stalemate.

Fighting Style

As a master of Hokuto Shinken, Raoh boasts extraordinary fighting power. He uses the hidden vital points to inflict a slow and agonizing death on those who oppose him - as was the case with Rei. Raoh further added martial arts stolen from Cassandra into his fighting style and displayed techniques from both Nanto Seiken and Rakan Niō Ken in the TV series.

His Gō no Ken (Strong Fist) style overpowers enemies with immense force and enhances his own strength depending on his opponent.

Appearance

Raoh has seen several incarnations of himself in the various Hokuto no Ken media. In the original manga color illustrations, Raoh is depicted with white skin and blonde hair. However, like much of the cast, his palette was altered for Toei Animation's TV series, which opted for a swarthier complexion and jet-black hair. Depending on the animators, Raoh also appears older and more rugged than his manga counterpart in some episodes. Modern installments, such as the True Savior Legend series and Ten no Haoh are closer to the manga, depicting Raoh with silver and blonde hair respectively and lighter skin tones.

Character Rating

From Hokuto no Ken: Kyūkyoku Kaisetsusho: Seikimatsu Haō Retsuden.

Level: AAA
Power: 5
Speed: 4
Skills: 5
Looks: 3
Charisma: 5

Stats

Height: 210cm (6'11")
Weight: 145kg (320 lbs)
Bust: 160cm (63 in)
Waist: 115cm (45 in)
Hip: 130cm (51 in)
Neck Circumference: 65cm (26 in)
VOICE: Kenji Utsumi (TV series, 1986 movie), Norio Wakamoto (ep 32), Keiichi Nanba (young; TV series), Nobuo Tobita (young; Hokuto no Ken 2), Takashi Ukaji (Legends of the True Savior movie series, Ten no Haoh TV series)