"Sukeban Deka" season one drama, recap one of 24 episodes

 

Air Dates: April 11 to October 31, 1985 Thursdays at 7:30 pm on Fuji-TV

Based upon the manga by Shinji Wada, there were some differences between the manga and this series such as two new characters but for the most part what took place in the manga was followed... Subs by Mashhamid though a few others have also subbed this series

Ratings: Average for all 24 episodes was 13.04%, the high was 17.0% while 9.6% was the lowest and that happened twice. This episode's rating was 13.3% and it aired on April 11, 1985

 For my first two 'comeback dramas' after taking a four month break picked a pair of ancient ones, good timing for this series as it aired exactly forty years ago! No solid reasons for picking these but thought the pair, the other was "Shoujou Commando Izumi", would be easier to recap as they're both 25 minute shows and though I do enjoy 45+ minute episodes they can take a while to write up. Sure many of you readers may have a basic knowledge of these DEKA series which were very popular back in the 1980's as there two more seasons after this plus some movies. But there were also many films in this genre that were released from about 1970-74 though they weren't nearly as innocent as this show or movies but do recommend those 1970's films which are among my favorites.

 May do a bit of editing to these first few paragraphs though then again may delete them and throw in some other thoughts or info, we'll see how things work out. Did say I was hoping for a pair of easier dramas for my return to recapping but neither one will be as easy as expected. This one especially and have a strong feeling the Bio section will be needing a lot of editing as we go along plus I bet there are going to be many characters who come and go. Will admit I was really confused about many things after viewing the first show which was only so-so until the end and wondered did I make the right decision as this is a long series with 24 episodes. However the second show was so much better and didn't begin writing this up until viewing that one, that does happen often where the first show is working out the kinks. For the previous series did five batches of three recaps as it was a fifteen episode show which worked out well. So was going to continue that with this series and have eight batches of three recaps but now I'm not sure what to do, am leaning on going back to having two at a time and will decide that at the end of the next recap which is the post below this one.

 The heroine in this series was Yuki Saito who was eighteen when the show began in April 1985, she turned nineteen while it was airing. Wouldn't call Yuki a superstar but she's an actress most drama fans should know of as she's been so busy over the last forty years appearing in too many dramas, movies and stage plays to count! Yuki is also a singer who has about ten albums and 25 singles along with doing many other theme songs to dramas, she does the ending song to this show. Yuki is now 58 in age and she was an attractive woman back in her twenties and thirties, not saying she looks bad now but as mentioned is getting up there in age. Enough of an intro as there's always another mini section after the main character bios which are below and will be editing them quite often.

 Most of the action will be taking place at the Takanoha Academy high school but in episode one the setting was St. Annes school which did slightly confuse me. Episode two is when Saki enrolls at Takanoha Academy and we didn't meet most major characters until then or at least the main students. Most of these photos at the top are of Saki holding a Yo-Yo, it's no ordinary one! When it flips open it shows the Police Crest as Saki is an undercover detective and what power it has. The Yo-Yo can smash through steel and if a person gets hit with it they're down for the count, the steel string is very long and can also double as a pair of handcuffs.

 Yuki Saito as Saki Asamiya.... There is so much to say about Saki and not enough space! Saki's mother Natsu is currently on death row for killing her husband Toshiya, that happened when Saki was six in age which was eleven years ago. For the next nine years don't know yet what became of Saki but by the age of twelve she was a delinquent. She did enter high school but was expelled from Takanoha Academy at the age of fifteen and sent to Kanto Kita Juvenile Center but there was something about Saki or perhaps her circumstances which attracted the attention of the two men below this bio, Jin and Shirei. They're the top two executives of the very secret government department Dark Agency, they've recruited Saki to become an undercover detective as being a teen will allow to work much more efficiently at high schools. Of course Saki refused at first but the offer included an apartment, clothes and such plus a huge kicker. Which is that if Saki successfully completed a mission her mother Natsu's death penalty would be voided though would have to finish a prison sentence. To that offer Saki agreed but the Dark Agency did renege on their end of the deal and came up with an excuse for Saki to do another mission which she reluctantly said yes to so think that scenario of Dark Agency using Saki will continue on. Know more changes will be done to Saki's bio but that covers what we learned in the first two episodes. Saki's mother Natsu is in the bottom screenshot, don't think we'll be seeing her too often.

 

Koji Naka as Kyoichiro Jin.... The top agent for Dark Agency and is Saki's 'handler'. Jin was a cool looking man and was very respected by his superior Shirei. Jin is very skilled at martial arts and drives a yellow Porsche 911.

 Hiroyuki Nagato as Kurayami Shirei.... Leader of Dark Agency and the person who recruited  Saki to be an undercover detective at high schools. To me it appears Shirei is the one toying with Saki and saying he'll void her mother's death sentence to keep her doing missions, think Jin does have a soft spot for Saki and doesn't like seeing her used. Shirei had been a judge at one time and was one of the six on the panel for Natsu's murder trial! Perhaps that's why he chose Saki to be a secret detective as he had been keeping tabs on her for about a decade and felt she was finally ready for action! Don't know if it will continue on for the whole series but when Shirei appears in screen we never see him clearly, he is an older man and maybe keeping his face obscured adds to the mystery.

 The remaining characters are all from Takanoha Academy which is a high school, in Tokyo? No characters appeared in the first episode so these bios will definitely need to be edited for future posts, the top characters are the students. Don't think any teachers will be key to the stories but will add a pair in plus the principal. Saki had attended this school when she was fifteen in age but had been expelled in her first year and sent to a detention center, she's now returned to the fury of many who remember her!

Chiaki Watanabe as Miyako Yumekoji.... She too is a delinquent girl but unlike Saki was never sent away to a detention center and is very intelligent though her ego is a bit too large. When Saki had been expelled Miyako took 'control' of the school or in other words has become the leader of the school's undesirables. Who are females and you never see girls have male underlings in these shows or films, of course those henchmen(women?) are Yes People who bully others. None of that group of Miyako's followers will have large roles but we will be seeing them often enough, the names of the main four girls are Tomiko, Hanako, Masayo and Tamami. That's them in the first screenshot below, Miyako is on the left and in the center of the second screenshot. Miyako is a very attractive teen and for now hates Saki with such a passion so a theme for the first half of the series will be of her trying to take Saki down. Of course Miyako doesn't know Saki is an undercover detective and had felt she returned to Takanoha Academy to take control of the female gangs which was not the case.

 Yasuyoshi Masuda as Sanpei Nowaki.... That's an odd name and don't recall ever seeing either of those before. Senpai wasn't at Takanoha Academy when Saki was enrolled there two years ago, when he first saw Saki in present times it was love at first sight for Senpai!!!! Who had no idea of Saki's past but was so enamored with her ultra coolness plus she was attractive. Unsure(doubt) if Saki will ever return Senpai's feelings of love but think he will become a trusted ally.

 Jo Onode as Taro.... Didn't see him in the second episode so have no screenshot for the character but included him for now as this role is supposed to be important. Same goes for Mai Tachihara who plays Kazuko Hasegawa, she too we didn't see in show #2. 

 

 Genji Kawai as Miyagawa.... Principal of Takanoha Academy and he probably won't be an important character but should be in most episodes, he's the older man sitting at the desk.

 Hiraizumi Sei as Numa Juzo.... PE teacher at the academy and also the home room teacher of Saki's. Juzo was strongly opposed to Saki being able to reenroll at the school but like all didn't know she was an undercover detective. He also works in  the guidance department and can be extremely strict.

 There is one woman English teacher who may be added in but that should be it for the cast or for now. There will be some new storylines and characters added into the series as we go along so off course will add in any major characters and keep editing to the existing characters also. Will also use this section for the links to previous recaps though naturally there are none for now. 

 You do see those characters at the end of most of these kinds of dramas, ones where the story is ongoing. Those Hiragana characters spell out Tsudzuku which means To be continued, of course it means the story and that car is Jin's yellow Porsche 911. For each recap will have a video for this series and hopefully there can be a new one for each post and there aren't as many as I thought. For today have a very long one but if you're a fan of these kinds of shows it's worth skimming through. It's from a VHS of the series and that format was so common up until about the year 2000. It features many outtakes and behind the scenes clips of the heroine Saki aka Yuki Saito, wish it was subbed but it's easy enough to follow. Below the video will be a screenshot of what the episode's title was, that happened in the previous drama I reviewed and was having titles much more common in the 80's?

 

 Whew, those intro sections seem to be getting tougher to do but I will admit they do look impressive plus what a huge amount of info is in those sections. It does take a while to first create but after that it just takes a minute or two here and there to update the bios. In a way I was dreading the above for this drama as I was confused at first with some things but they've all been cleared up, not patting myself on the back but the above section is one of the best I've done to date and it's a shame much editing will have to be done though not right away. Did check the drama's Ja.wiki page and many changes will be happening in the second half of the show but not worried yet as there's a way to go until then and who knows if I'll even make it that far?! What makes the above section slightly better than most others is that I did explain more about the plot, story and characters than I usually do, it won't make the recap shorter but it should help you readers out and thanks if you're reading this..... but don't take Saki's suggestion about running quite yet!!!!

 Right above is Saki leaving the St. Annes high school, from here on out she will be attending Takanoha Academy. At first I was confused as I thought the setting would be the second school but going to St. Annes was just a one time deal so we didn't meet any of the students or staff of Takanoha Academy until the next episode. So besides being confused I also didn't think this series got off to a strong start as the first ten minutes were just so-so and had I made a mistake? No, for the action did pick up plus the second episode was so much better so that put me more at ease. **** Am back after taking a day off so am a bit behind on these posts already but seeing how it aired forty years ago am in no hurry! So had mused above about whether to publish two or three recaps at as time, have decided on two which I do about 80% of the time. It probably makes it easier for you viewers to read two instead of three posts plus it's easier for me to just write up a pair at once. So the next post is the recap for episode two, after that will have a pair every 4-5 days and may even begin another series in the meantime. Whew again, long post to date and the recap hasn't even begun(!), let's get to episode one's action.

 All of the students and staff at St. Annes high school were just guest stars so there was zero about them at the drama's wiki page so at first was confused but eventually everything made sense, This first episode opened up with the above girl whose name was Michiko Nakamura, she was mentioned a few times during the show but it was the only time we saw her.... alive! Which was only for five seconds as Michiko fell from the roof of the St. Annes high school to her death, isn't falling from a roof a very common theme in Japanese dramas? The school and police ruled it a suicide but mainly to save face and not to have an investigation, others knew Michiko was pushed and soon after her death a new transfer student enrolled at the school..... our heroine Saki Asamiya! That's Saki introducing herself in the second screenshot, even before she finished her welcome speech she was labelled as a nerd and wasn't well liked at all. That is by the students who matter at St. Annes school which was a group of wealthy students led by the girl in the white shirt and wearing a necklace above, her name is Reiko Nonomiya. Her father Tokutaro is the chairman/director at St. Annes and because of that Reiko wields quite a bit of clout, her father is corrupt to no end but we didn't discover what his evil doings were until later on, Nonomiya wasn't alone with the school's corruption. Day one was anything but pleasant for Saki as Reiko's underlings began to pick on Saki badly at lunch, one girl even tripped her which spewed her lunch everywhere! **** Almost forgot this important piece of info about St. Annes high school. It is extremely elite where the cream of the crop attend but the school makes themselves look honorable as they give out scholarships to smart students in need, at school these girls are call Subsidized Students and looked down on. The murdered Michiko was one of those students and at least one other subsidized student wants revenge for her death.... plus secretly so won't the Japanese government!

 Some of these overly spoilt girls really gave Saki some some cruel verbal abuse and would we see her in Sukeban mode???? No for Saki held her retaliation in check for she knew the mission to find out how Michiko died was more important. In a slight surprise coming to Saki's rescue in the cafeteria was Reiko, not that she cared at all for Saki as she was another subsidized girl but couldn't let her underlings and somewhat peers get out of her control. You can see that small group talking things over after that incident with Saki and who they were talking about was Michiko, one girl said it wasn't a suicide which the group already knew and is there anything else they need to do to cover up the crime.... the girl or group's crime? More on these girls coming up and the bottom screenshot above shows Saki's mother whose name is Natsu Asamiya, the screenshot is a flashback of her being in court eleven years ago when Saki was six in age. Natsu was on trial for killing her husband Toshiya and received a life sentence. As of now don't know what happened with Saki until the age of fifteen but we do have another 22 episodes to go! But actually the sentence for Natsu became much more severe as after eleven years in prison is now scheduled to be executed, was there such a long waiting list or was the execution a ruse by the Dark Agency? They're a very secret government group and to date don't know much about them but while that meeting was going on with Reiko and her cohorts the top spy for Dark Agency was waiting for Saki in her room.

 Don't take this the wrong way but I've always thought that Japanese actors from the 1970's and 80's looked so darn cool. Their hair was slightly longer plus their aura was often mysterious so they did give off some cool vibes and also looked that way, you don't see that too often these days. Bring that subject for the first and only time as the coolish looking man in the first three screenshots above is Kyoichiro Jin, his role wasn't too large in this first episode but think he'll be the second most important character in the series. Jin is the top spy for the Dark Agency which is a very secret government group, as a matter of fact he could be second in command and it is a small group. The leader of Dark Agency is named Kurayamai Shirei, he'll be very important to the story but won't have a lot of screentime. Shirei, with Jun's help, is the person who recruited Saki to be an undercover detective for the group and she's about to go on her first mission. Because Saki is seventeen in age she has such a huge advantage over older male detectives and the case for this episode took place in a high school. Shirei was once a judge and had been on the panel that sentenced Saki's mother Natsu to a life sentence in prison for killing her husband Toshiya. Don't know how Shirei moved on to the Dark Agency nor how Jin did but sure that will be explained as we go along. I also don't know how it happened or if it's a ruse of Shirei's but after eleven years in prison Natsu is scheduled to be executed and to me there's something rotten in Denmark about that.

 But Jun and Shirei have assured Saki that if she can succeed doing the mission at St. Annes high school they can void the execution and Natsu can just finish her sentence. To that Saki agreed and Jin in the first three screenshots above was discussing the case with Saki, it's a two part mission. One is to find out how Michiko died, Jin is positive she was killed but to date there's no evidence. Perhaps solving that can also be a big help to the second part of the mission which was a bit hazy to Jin, Saki... and me to an extent! There is something very fishy going on at the very elite St. Annes school and it's up to our heroine to discover what that is! As mentioned the very snobbish/uppity student Reiko's father is the director at St. Annes, he is so corrupt though his daughter could be worse and above she was telling her father Nonomiya off! We viewers still didn't know what was so corrupt at the school but it had something to do with the subsidized students, the ones from poor families who can get scholarships to St. Annes. But there is an unknown catch as above Nonomiya, along with his evil cohort Kondo, was telling what the subsidized students have to do.... or else! These students are very smart but can't say the same for the girls from very elite and wealthy families, an unknown tradition over the years as been that these subsidized students take the graduation and then college exams for the elites.... and need to get a grade of an A+!!!! That drew the ire of these poor girls who refused to cooperate with Nonomiya and Kondo, what kind of school are they running? A very corrupt and dangerous one for if they don't take those exams and Ace them then they may face the same fate as Michiko! Saki learned about this from the girl in the middle screenshot above whose name is Hiroko, besides refusing to take the exams Michiko had also stolen a secret ledger from Nonomiya's office. That ledger has to contain much about the corruption taking place at St. Annes and the info could bring the school down for Nonomiya had ordered Michiko to be killed because of that theft, that command was carried out by Reiko's underlings.

 Final segment, what took place is right above and the first few screenshots below. So what is on the ledger is unknown and so isn't it's location, Michiko had told Hiroko that it was hidden in a 'dirty place'. That baffled Saki who broke into Nonomiya's office but couldn't find it so hid a listening device, she could hear that conversation he had with the subsidized students and how he wanted them to cheat on the exams! Saki quickly notified her handler Jin about her discoveries, he headed immediately to the St. Annes school. Above you can see that Yo-Yo, it's a brand new one Jin gave Saki to complete the mission and it so powerful as it can cut through steel! With episodes only being a little over 23 minutes in length the time was dwindling in this first show, not sure but think there was only 3-4 minutes left at this point. So there was no time to waste for Saki who after getting the yo-yo weapon tore to Nonomiya's office where she confronted him and Kondo with her discoveries about their corrupt school. However Saki didn't have that ledger and where could it be, she deduced that when Michiko referred to it being in a dirty place she meant Nonomiya's office because of his corruption and with her powerful yo-yo began to destroy everything in the office. Neither Nonomiya nor Kondo knew about the ledger being hidden there and eventually Saki razed the object(statue) hiding it!

 That yo-yo put such fear into the two men and it would to most of us including myself! Right above is the pair whimpering and that yo-yo can also be converted into handcuffs as the men were soon bound and then hauled away by the police. That ledger had all of the sordid details of the corrupt activities that took place at St. Annes school, soon Hiroko and her subsidized mates held a trial where they expelled Reiko and her evil cronies! So kind of  a happy ending as those girls who had been used and abused by such dastardly girls had the last laugh and now the school has become legit again, with that the episode came to it's close. This first show had a sluggish beginning and at the ten minute mark was wondering did I make a mistake in watching this? But after that the pace picked up and everything fell nicely into place so it turned out to be a decent episode, the second show was even better and that recap is the next post.