Ikebukuro West Gate Park (TV series)
Encyclopedia
was a wildly popular, highly influential Japanese television drama by screenwriter Kankuro Kudo
, based on a novel by Ira Ishida
, that initially aired on the Tokyo Broadcasting System
during the summer of 2000, and directed by Yukihiko Tsutsumi
. The success of the television series would launch a manga
adaptation the following year. In a break from traditional Japanese programming, the series used edgy graphics and scene breaks to highlight a story involving themes drawn from the underbelly of modern Japanese society: hip-hop youth gang warfare, juvenile delinquency
, prostitution
, drug abuse
, the Yakuza
, rape and murder.
Notable among the cast are Tokio
lead singer Tomoya Nagase
, film star Ken Watanabe
, and future stars Koyuki
, Satoshi Tsumabuki
, and Tomohisa Yamashita
of Johnny's Jimusho idol group NEWS
. The series is also credited for bringing up the profile of actor Yosuke Kubozuka.
in his high school years, hangs out at the bowling alley and in the eponymous park of the series with best friend Masa on a repetitive nightly basis. Their world starts to change as Shun, Rika, and Hikaru enter their lives after chance meetings in the park. Soon after, Rika is found raped and murdered in a love hotel
, bringing unwanted police attention and a new detective to Ikebukuro
on the trail of a serial rapist. After being suspected, arrested, and detained by the police in classic Japanese style (beatings, coerced confessions), Makoto is released and vows to find justice for Rika. Enlisting the help of Takashi, an old school friend, and his gang, the G-Boys, Makoto starts his search and gains a reputation for getting problems solved in the underworld of Ikebukuro - much to the consternation of Yokoyama and the police. Things then begin to spiral out of control in Ikebukuro, as not everything is what it seems to be...
Kankuro Kudo
Kankurō Kudō is a Japanese screenwriter, dramatist, director, actor and member of the theater company Otona Keikaku...
, based on a novel by Ira Ishida
Ira Ishida
is a Japanese novelist, actor, and TV commentator.After graduating from Seikei University, he worked for a number of different advertising production companies and as a freelance copywriter....
, that initially aired on the Tokyo Broadcasting System
Tokyo Broadcasting System
, TBS Holdings, Inc. or TBSHD, is a stockholding company in Tokyo, Japan. It is a parent company of a television network named and radio network named ....
during the summer of 2000, and directed by Yukihiko Tsutsumi
Yukihiko Tsutsumi
is a Japanese television and film director. He began directing commercials and music promotion videos as an employee of Nihon Television. After spending time abroad, he returned and started his own production company, Crescendo, from which he works independently...
. The success of the television series would launch a manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
adaptation the following year. In a break from traditional Japanese programming, the series used edgy graphics and scene breaks to highlight a story involving themes drawn from the underbelly of modern Japanese society: hip-hop youth gang warfare, juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency
Juvenile delinquency is participation in illegal behavior by minors who fall under a statutory age limit. Most legal systems prescribe specific procedures for dealing with juveniles, such as juvenile detention centers. There are a multitude of different theories on the causes of crime, most if not...
, prostitution
Prostitution
Prostitution is the act or practice of providing sexual services to another person in return for payment. The person who receives payment for sexual services is called a prostitute and the person who receives such services is known by a multitude of terms, including a "john". Prostitution is one of...
, drug abuse
Drug abuse
Substance abuse, also known as drug abuse, refers to a maladaptive pattern of use of a substance that is not considered dependent. The term "drug abuse" does not exclude dependency, but is otherwise used in a similar manner in nonmedical contexts...
, the Yakuza
Yakuza
, also known as , are members of traditional organized crime syndicates in Japan. The Japanese police, and media by request of the police, call them bōryokudan , literally "violence group", while the yakuza call themselves "ninkyō dantai" , "chivalrous organizations". The yakuza are notoriously...
, rape and murder.
Notable among the cast are Tokio
Tokio (band)
Tokio is a Japanese rock/pop band formed by Johnny & Associates that debuted in 1994. It is made up of five men who were signed with Sony Music Entertainment from 1994 to 2001, with Universal Music Japan from 2001 to 2008, and are now signed under J Storm, a label owned by Johnny & Associates...
lead singer Tomoya Nagase
Tomoya Nagase
is a Japanese singer and actor. He is a member of Tokio, a Johnny & Associates musical group. He is the primary vocalist, in addition to playing the guitar alongside Tokio's leader, Shigeru Joshima.- As an artist :...
, film star Ken Watanabe
Ken Watanabe
is a Japanese stage, film, and television actor. To English-speaking audiences he is known for playing tragic hero characters, such as General Tadamichi Kuribayashi in Letters from Iwo Jima and Lord Katsumoto Moritsugu in The Last Samurai, for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best...
, and future stars Koyuki
Koyuki
, better known as , is a Japanese model and actress.Koyuki was born in Zama. She started her modeling career in 1995 and has since starred in various Japanese dramas, TV and magazine ad campaigns and films. She frequently appears in Japanese print and television campaigns for the electronics...
, Satoshi Tsumabuki
Satoshi Tsumabuki
is a Japanese actor. His breakthrough film was Waterboys for which he was nominated for the 'Best Actor' award at the Japanese Academy Awards, and won the 'Newcomer of the Year' prize...
, and Tomohisa Yamashita
Tomohisa Yamashita
, also widely known as Yamapi, is a Japanese idol, actor, and singer.Yamashita joined the Japanese talent agency Johnny & Associates in 1996 at the age of 11 and made his official CD debut with NEWS in 2004. He debuted as a solo artist in 2006 with the hit single "Daite Senorita". His first solo...
of Johnny's Jimusho idol group NEWS
NeWS
NeWS was a windowing system developed by Sun Microsystems in the mid 1980s. Originally known as "SunDew", its primary authors were James Gosling and David S. H. Rosenthal...
. The series is also credited for bringing up the profile of actor Yosuke Kubozuka.
Main cast
- Tomoya NagaseTomoya Nagaseis a Japanese singer and actor. He is a member of Tokio, a Johnny & Associates musical group. He is the primary vocalist, in addition to playing the guitar alongside Tokio's leader, Shigeru Joshima.- As an artist :...
- Makoto Majima - Ai KatoAi KatoAi Kato is a Japanese actress and model.Around 2003, a video of her bathing at an onsen surfaced on the internet...
- Hikaru Shibusawa - Yosuke Kubozuka - Takashi, G-Boys King
- Tomohisa YamashitaTomohisa Yamashita, also widely known as Yamapi, is a Japanese idol, actor, and singer.Yamashita joined the Japanese talent agency Johnny & Associates in 1996 at the age of 11 and made his official CD debut with NEWS in 2004. He debuted as a solo artist in 2006 with the hit single "Daite Senorita". His first solo...
- Shun Mizuno - Ryuta Sato - Masa
- KoyukiKoyuki, better known as , is a Japanese model and actress.Koyuki was born in Zama. She started her modeling career in 1995 and has since starred in various Japanese dramas, TV and magazine ad campaigns and films. She frequently appears in Japanese print and television campaigns for the electronics...
- Kana Matsui - Satoshi TsumabukiSatoshi Tsumabukiis a Japanese actor. His breakthrough film was Waterboys for which he was nominated for the 'Best Actor' award at the Japanese Academy Awards, and won the 'Newcomer of the Year' prize...
- Fujio Saitou - Aiko Morishita - Ritsuko Majima
- Ken WatanabeKen Watanabeis a Japanese stage, film, and television actor. To English-speaking audiences he is known for playing tragic hero characters, such as General Tadamichi Kuribayashi in Letters from Iwo Jima and Lord Katsumoto Moritsugu in The Last Samurai, for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best...
- Detective Yokoyama - Sadayo Abe - Hamaguchi
- Kazuhiro Nishijima - Kyoichi Ozaki
- Kenji Sakaguchi - Yamai (Doberman)
- KitaroKitaro, better known as , is an award winning Japanese musician, composer and multi-instrumentalist who is regarded as one of the pioneers of new age music.-Early life:...
- Yoshioka - Shin Yazawa - Chiaki
Summary
21 year old Makoto, the former #1 waru of IkebukuroIkebukuro
is a commercial and entertainment district in Toshima, Tokyo, Japan. Toshima ward offices, Ikebukuro station, and several shops, restaurants, and enormous department stores are located within city limits....
in his high school years, hangs out at the bowling alley and in the eponymous park of the series with best friend Masa on a repetitive nightly basis. Their world starts to change as Shun, Rika, and Hikaru enter their lives after chance meetings in the park. Soon after, Rika is found raped and murdered in a love hotel
Love hotel
A love hotel is a type of short-stay hotel found around the world operated primarily for the purpose of allowing couples privacy for sexual activities...
, bringing unwanted police attention and a new detective to Ikebukuro
Ikebukuro
is a commercial and entertainment district in Toshima, Tokyo, Japan. Toshima ward offices, Ikebukuro station, and several shops, restaurants, and enormous department stores are located within city limits....
on the trail of a serial rapist. After being suspected, arrested, and detained by the police in classic Japanese style (beatings, coerced confessions), Makoto is released and vows to find justice for Rika. Enlisting the help of Takashi, an old school friend, and his gang, the G-Boys, Makoto starts his search and gains a reputation for getting problems solved in the underworld of Ikebukuro - much to the consternation of Yokoyama and the police. Things then begin to spiral out of control in Ikebukuro, as not everything is what it seems to be...
Characters
- Makoto Majima
- Main character and primary protagonist of I.W.G.P., Makoto is a 20 year old former waru without an obvious direction in his life at the start of the series. He commonly complains that things are "mendokusai" (bothersome). He earns spending money through petty theft and by hustling people at the bowling alley where he, Masa, and later the G-Boys hang out; he wins a BMW from Yokoyama in this fashion. During the day, he helps out at his mother's fruit shop; at night, he hangs out on the streets of Ikebukuro. After Rika is found murdered, Makoto's actions earn him a reputation as the "mover and shaker of Ikebukuro" by both the police and the underworld. Running gags involving his character include: his love of yakisoba covered in mayonnaise, bowling, and his uncooperative erection during his interactions with the women of the series.
- Masa
- Makoto's best friend. Masa works at the bowling alley with Kaoru. Unlike Makoto, Masa eventually joins the G-Boys in order to retaliate against the Black Angels for their apparent murder of Shun.
- Rika Nakamura
- Makoto's girlfriend. Rika typically dressed in ganguro style. She and Hikaru first meets Makoto and crew when the girls notice Shun drawing in the park, then join them for a night on the town. After meeting Makoto, Rika breaks things off with her sugar daddySugar Daddy"Sugar Daddy" is a hit single for Motown quintet The Jackson 5 in late 1971.The song, which peaked at #3 on the R&B singles chart and #10 on the pop singles chart in the beginning of 1972, was one of the Jackson 5 hits produced by The Corporation: Berry Gordy, Freddie Perren, Alphonzo Mizell, and...
. During one of their nightly adventures, Rika and Makoto sneak off to a love hotel. Soon after, Rika is called out by the serial rapist, and later found murdered.
- Hikaru Shibusawa
- Rika's best friend. Her psychological issues underlie the dramatic action of the series, and form the critical plot that brings the series to its climax.
- Takashi Ando
- Eccentric schoolmate of Makoto and "King" of the G-Boys, an "Oriental-style Asian Gang" (per their business cardBusiness cardBusiness cards are cards bearing business information about a company or individual. They are shared during formal introductions as a convenience and a memory aid. A business card typically includes the giver's name, company affiliation and contact information such as street addresses, telephone...
) based out of a van-conversion who identify with the color yellow. Son of a senile sentōSentois a type of Japanese communal bath house where customers pay for entrance. Traditionally these bath houses have been quite utilitarian, with one large room separating the sexes by a tall barrier, and on both sides, usually a minimum of lined up faucets and a single large bath for the already...
owner, he dates an older woman named "Jessie" who is fluent in Russian. While highly violent and skilled in close quarters combat, he does not allow drug use or sales within his gang. He constantly pesters Makoto to join the G-Boys, but continues to support Makoto's missions despite his rejection.
- Black Angels
- Rival gang, identified with the color black, started by the ballet-dancing Kyoichi Ozaki.
- Shun Mizuno
- A quiet artistic loner with a penchant for drawing disturbing images, he is initially approached by Makoto and Masa after they catch him shoplifting from a local bookstore. He later asks to join their group, offering Ikefukurō-zōIkebukurois a commercial and entertainment district in Toshima, Tokyo, Japan. Toshima ward offices, Ikebukuro station, and several shops, restaurants, and enormous department stores are located within city limits....
, the symbol of Ikebukuro that he had just lifted and becomes a critical member of their ingroup. Shun dates Kaoru, the girl who works at the bowling alley, during the latter part of the series. In the buildup to the final climax of the series, Shun is murdered by Yamai and the Black Angels as part of a wider plot.
- Yamai
- Nicknamed "Doberman" for his beating of a chained dog, Yamai was a schoolmate of Makoto and serves as a constant foil to Makoto and Takashi. He is easily beaten in a showdown with Takashi, after which he attempts revenge by trying to implicate Takashi in drug dealing. Yamai later joins the Black Angels, is critical to the plot that brings the series to its climax, and is responsible for the death of Shun.
- Fujio Saitou
- Nicknamed "Saru" (monkeyMonkeyA monkey is a primate, either an Old World monkey or a New World monkey. There are about 260 known living species of monkey. Many are arboreal, although there are species that live primarily on the ground, such as baboons. Monkeys are generally considered to be intelligent. Unlike apes, monkeys...
), Fujio is a former schoolmate of Makoto who joined the local Yakuza family because he was tired of being "weak". He was assigned to look over and protect the daughter of the Boss; his mistakes bring the Yakuza to ask for Makoto's help, but the results cost Saitou his pinky. He appears as an ally and contact for Makoto throughout the series.
- Yokoyama
- A hard-nosed, no-nonsense detective brought into Ikebukuro in response to the presence of a serial rapist and the growing presence of youth gangs in the ward. He orders the initial beating and questioning of Makoto after Rika is found dead, which ends only when locals are brought in to testify for Makoto's character.
- Ritsuko Majima
- Makoto's mother. A former snack bar hostess who raised Makoto as a single mother, she now runs a small fruit shop and tends to get involved in get rich quick schemes. Often lying about her age, she dresses and acts younger than her 42 years. She is the love interest of the local detective.
- Chiaki
- Prostitute and former classmate of Makoto who works at Last Chance, the "soaplandSoaplandA ' is a Japanglish and indicates a paradise for men in Japanese. It is said, since in Japan prostitution is officially prohibited by the government, that it is a type of brothel in Japan where male clients can engage in sexual activity with female prostitutes, although officially the clubs do...
" across the street from the Majima's fruit shop - which she frequents to gossip. After Makoto gains a reputation for getting things done, she asked him to help out her client/boyfriend Ali, who found himself in trouble after attacking her drug dealer in an attempt to help her clean up. Ali reveals her real name is Emi.
- Kana Matsui
- A girl hired by Ritsuko to help out around the shop, she becomes a love interest for Makoto. After leaving the shop, he discovers her working as a nursery school teacher, and later as a prostitute for the local Yakuza boss. She ends up stabbed as part of the elaborate plot that works to the climax of the series.
Trivia
- Tomohisa YamashitaTomohisa Yamashita, also widely known as Yamapi, is a Japanese idol, actor, and singer.Yamashita joined the Japanese talent agency Johnny & Associates in 1996 at the age of 11 and made his official CD debut with NEWS in 2004. He debuted as a solo artist in 2006 with the hit single "Daite Senorita". His first solo...
earned the "Best Supporting Actor" award in 2000 for his performance in IWGP - The name "I.W.G.P." comes from a poster created by Kaoru in the bowling alley at which Makoto, Masa, and the G-Boys hang out.
- Each episode is characterized by a different object in the title sequence that also ends up being a play on words (e.g. Episode 1 (Ichi) - the Strawberry (Ichigo) episode, Episode 2 (Ni) - the Carrot (Ninjin) episode, Episode 3 (San/Mi) - the Mandarin (Mikan) episode)
- In episode 4 (shi) - the shiitake mushroomShiitakeThe Shiitake is an edible mushroom native to East Asia, which is cultivated and consumed in many Asian countries, as well as being dried and exported to many countries around the world. It is a feature of many Asian cuisines including Vietnamese, Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Thai...
episode, Hikaru uses "Shiitake" as a nickname. - Morning MusumeMorning Musume, sometimes referred to as is a Japanese idol girl group, whose act generally revolves around singing and dancing to upbeat melodies. They are the lead group of Hello! Project, which is managed and produced by Tsunku, who composes nearly all the lyrics and melodies of their songs...
references seem to come up inordinately in the series - Makoto et al. sing "Love MachineLove Machine (Morning Musume song)is the seventh single of the J-pop idol group Morning Musume, released on September 9, 1999 as an 8 cm CD. It sold a total of 1,760,000 copies, making it a massive hit and their highest selling single. In 2004, it was re-released as part of the Early Single Box and again in 2005 as a 12 cm CD...
," the breakout Megahit by Morning Musume, in the first episode while in his newly won BMW. - When Makoto visits Chiaki at the soapland, "Koi no Dance Site" is playing in the background.
- Plans for a sequel were scrapped due to the proliferation of copycat "color" gangs in Japan as a result of the series.
- Despite the claims of the official TBS summary, Makoto never joins the G-boys, preferring "not to complicate his life."
- In one of the episodes, a familiar ringtone can be heard. Canon Rock by JerryC.
External links
See also
- Ikebukuro West Gate Park (manga)Ikebukuro West Gate Park, usually referred to by its initials IWGP, is a series of urban mystery novels by Ira Ishida. It was adapted into a very successful TV series directed by Tsutsumi Yukihiko, and then a manga, released by Digital Manga Publishing in English....
- Japanese television programs