Raoh
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Raoh (ラオウ?), or Ken-Ō (拳王 Ken-Ō, lit.King of the Fists?) —as he dubbed himself— is the central antagonist of the Fist of the North Star manga, anime, and other related works. He is also the protagonist of Youkow Osada's manga, Ten no Haō - Hokuto no Ken: Raō Gaiden.
He is the oldest of Kenshiro's brothers who were trained in Hokuto Shin Ken, though they are not related by blood. As a young child , he dreamed of being of the strongest , and Hokuto Shinken provided the means. Ryuken, the 63rd successor of Hokuto Shinken, took Raoh under his wing.
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[edit] Voice actors
Raoh was portrayed by seiyu Kenji Utsumi in the original 1980s anime series, as well in the 1986's film adaptation. He later got to reprised the role in a few video games based on the series as well. Before the character was formally introduced though, Norio Wakamoto provided his voice in a flashback scene in episode 32 of the series. Nobuo Tobita provided Raoh's voice as a young boy in flashback scenes during certain episodes. In Streamline Pictures' English dub of the film, he was played by by Wally Burr.
Takashi Ukaji is currently providing Raoh's voice in the Shin Kyuseishu Densetsu (New Legend of the Savior) series of theatrical films and OVAs. Shigeru Shibuya provides Raoh's voice as a young boy in this series.
[edit] Youth
Raoh and his younger brother Toki were robbed of their parents at an early age. They decided to focus on training in martial arts in hopes of becoming the "strongest brothers". One day while Raoh and Toki were talking in a cave they stored their training equipment, Ryuuken of the Hokuto Shinken school approached them asking where he could find Raoh. Ryuuken informed them he would only take one brother to train as a successor. As a test, Ryuuken traps both boys on the bottom of a ravine and says he'll take the first boy who makes it up the cliff. Toki is injured in the fall and unable to climb. Raoh defies the odds and hauls Toki up the cliff with his other hand, yelling he'll only go if Ryuuken takes them both. Ryuuken catches them both as they pass out from the exhausting climb, thinking that Raoh will surpass his wildest imaginations.
[edit] Training
Raoh completely devoted himself to the perfection of his fighting technique. He spared his younger brother no quarter in sparring, and later claimed he would never cry again, for tears were useless. Instead they should be transformed into ambition and strength.
[edit] Legend of the "Ken-Oh"
Physically massive, Raoh is seen as a brutal and, most of the time, cruel man who cares for nothing but world domination in the wasteland as "Ken-Oh" (拳王) (Emperor of the Fist), as Kenshiro described his personality to Rei "After the fall of civilization his ambition dream is finally fulfilled". He even personally murdered his adoptive father and mentor Ryuuken (through pure luck as Ryuuken had a heart attack just before he was going to 'seal Raoh's fist').
Although Raoh shows no mercy in the battlefield, he does respect strong or brave enemies that he fights. He requested an honorable burial to Juuza after their battle. Also, most of the atrocities that were committed under his name towards civilians can be attributed to his low ranking thuggish soldiers acting on their own. Raoh does order the executions of these soldiers who commit atrocities towards civilians.
No matter how brutal and cruel he may be, Raoh is set to conquer but not to destroy, unlike other self serving warlords in the wasteland. There are numerous towns and peoples who praise Raoh as their saviour or as a benevolent dictator figure. However, he did personally commit murder toward defenseless civilians. An example of this is in one incident where he killed a peaceful village chief because the chief believed that using forced smiles and good will instead of armed resistance will lead to fewer causaulties.
His horse Koku-Oh (black king) only allows Raoh to ride him.
It is unknown who gave birth to Ryu, however, it shows that Raoh was married before or had a serious relationship with a woman in the past.
[edit] Personality
A firm believer in power and strength, Roah will do whatever it takes to be the strongest warrior of all. Determined to surpass his own limits, Roah would let no one stand in the way of his goals, not even the gods themselves. He admires similar striving in other martial artists, particularly from his fellow Hokuto Shinken practitioners Toki and Kenshiro. Raoh has little tolerance for what he perceives as weaknesses, such as cowardice, compassion, or even friendship (since Raoh also believed in self-sufficiency).
While not completely selfish, Raoh has endangered the lives of many for his ambitions, including his brother Toki. As the "Ken-Oh", he encourages order through discipline and fear - qualities reflected in his own personality. People admired him for his ability to instill order in a time when the world was in chaos.
Raoh is one among many who loved Yuria, whose heart belonged to Kenshiro. Initially seeing Yuria as an object of conquest, Raoh refused to believe that he actually loved Yuria, since he believed that love was a useless emotion. Later on, Raoh grew to admire the strength of Yuria's compassion, which endured despite the hardships she suffered. Realizing that he truly loved Yuria, Raoh learned how to feel love for the first time in his life.
By the end of his final fight with Kenshiro, Raoh finally begins to understand that power is not the only admirable quality in the world. He takes his own life and declares that he holds no regret in his heart, reflecting the strength of his convictions.
[edit] Known Styles of Combat
Raoh started the Prison of Cassandra with the intention of learning the martial arts secrets of every school in the world. He would force the fighters to give up their "scroll" which would contain techniques he would use to become undefeatable. Here are the martial arts that he has personally demonstrated.
-Hokuto Shinken (北斗神拳) (God's Fist of the North Star) (Raoh specialized in the fighting technique, Fist of Strength)
-Sūzan Tsūhi Ken (崇山通臂拳) (Songshan Passing Elbow Fist)
-Nanto Kōkaku Ken (南斗紅鶴拳)(South Dipper Crimson Crane Fist)
