"Sukeban Deka" season one drama, recap twenty 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 14.1% which was about the same as the previous show and this aired on September 19, 1985.

 

 

 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 though we haven't seen him in a physical fight through eight episodes and drives a yellow Porsche 911. In episode fifteen we learned that Jin was born in 1956 so that would make his age 29, he had attended a university in America and graduated in 1982. That meant he was 26 at the time and after returning to Japan Jin began to work for the National Police Agency, the Dark Agency must be an offshoot department. After beginning with the police none of Jin's records or activities are in their database so it's like Jin has been erased from the Earth, discovering that was the very devious older Mizuchi sister Reimi.

 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 one 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. By the third episode Sanpei has become friends with Saki, not best friends yet but he is her only one.

  

 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 though usually is fair to all except not at first towards Saki.

 The Mizuchi family.... just added these four characters in as they will be so very important for at least the next eight episodes. Least the three sisters will, doubt if we'll see much of the father but just in case we do added his name in here. We first met Ayumi in episode eleven, then Kumi in the thirteenth and the elder Mizichi sister Reimi in episode fifteen.

Yasuko Endo as Ayumi Mizuchi.... Though just seventeen in age when this was filmed in the show she was at least a year older than Saki. Ayumi comes from a very wealthy family and is the president of the Kanto Region Student Council Union among other things. Ayumi used that position to try and take control Saki's high school Takanoha Academy but that failed, she's Saki's most bitter enemy and also her toughest opponent. **** Checked up on the actress and read a very sad story, six months after this show ended Yasuko committed suicide and was just seventeen in age. Besides acting she was also about to begin a singing career at the time of her death which was from jumping out of a seventh story window. That death was very suspicious at the time and so many rumors began to spread about why the tragedy occurred but no one knew the real answer.

Natsumi Asano as Kumi Mizuchi.... I seventeen in age which is the same as Saki and is another sister who needs to be avoided! Though such a low life person Kumi is a very talented pianist and the competition she was in was the focus of episodes thirteen and fourteen. At the end of the 14th show she got into a scrap with Saki, Kumi's right hand and arm was injured so she'll be unable to play the ivories for a while.

 Hitomi Takahashi as Reimi Mizuchi.... We finally met the oldest sister in the fifteenth episode, she's just returned to Japan after attending college in America. Reimi is quite an attractive woman but also one you don't want to tangle with as she is so ruthless. And devious as she's vowed to take down Saki for hurting her two younger sisters and to me it's not Ayumi who is Saki's most dangerous opponent but Reimi! She has quite the setup at her father's office which is the top screenshot below, considering this drama took place in 1985 Reimi had some tech gadgets which are common today but were very rare back then.

Shigeru Kamiyama as Gouzo Mizuchi.... Don't think we'll be seeing much of him but his fortune is so key to the sisters enacting their revenge on Saki! Gouzo owns the Mizuchi Corporation and is supposedly the sixth richest man in Japan, his family never loses and often have to resort to such underhanded and violent measures to achieve that!

Previous recaps

 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. Have said in other dramas how in a way it could be easier to wait until the entire series has been finished or pick a certain show to wait until, say the midway point. Then you could go into one post and click on the links for each episode as doing it that way makes it so much easier to read plus this is the only was you can read them in order quickly as searching could take a while. You do see the characters in the first screenshot 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 and of course it means the story. After that screenshot is also the title of this current episode, in episode fifteen decided to no longer have videos for this series.

Episode one .... Episode two .... Episode three .... Episode four

Episode five .... Episode six ... Episode seven .... Episode eight

Episode nine .... Episode ten .... Episode eleven .... Episode twelve

Episode thirteen .... Episode fourteen .... Episode fifteen .... Episode sixteen

Episode seventeen .... Episode eighteen

             

 The two pics above are of Koji Naka who played Saki's Dark Agency handler Kyoichiro Jin in this series, after her Jin's role may have been the second largest and important. I've seen Koji in a few other things such as the 2003/04 series "Kamen Rider 555" which may be my top one of that very long running series. Not sure what will be up next for dramas, do have the second and third seasons of this show but need a break from it and will discuss what's on tap soon. I've enjoyed watching Koji in this show so a possibility for my next watch is the 1993/94 Sentai series " Gosei Sentai Dairanger". Those kinds of shows I like immensely but haven't recapped one in a while so let me think it over for a few days. In that show Koji has a huge role playing Master Kaku who was the person that formed the Dairanger team. It's a fifty episode series and never once have I finished recaps for such an entire show of that length as I usually stop after 15-20 episodes. Koji was never a major star but was in so many dramas and films, most were action or superhero ones. When this drama was filmed in 1985 he was 37 in age, thirty years later Koji died at the age of 67 of rectal cancer. He did most of his stunts for he was quite adept at sword fighting and Karate.

 Sure you read the above recap which will help as I don't need to explain as much, just four more of these to go and then sadly this series will be ending! As mentioned right above will be recapping the second and third seasons which aired right after this ended but the star Yuki Saito as Saki Asamiya wasn't in those seasons but another actress stepped into her role. While I haven't seen either of those seasons yet have seen both spin off movies and may talk about them in one of these next four recaps. Will also have a brief talk about some of the other characters, have already done so for Yuki but will talk about her more as she is an actress and singer who I do like a lot. The dozen episodes from eleven to 22 all feature the beyond evil Mizuchi family and what a nemesis they've become to Saki and Dark Agency, the opposite is also true! While there's an underlying theme going on there's also been five two part stories in the last ten episodes, this concludes what began in the above post. 

 Those three screenshots above were from this show's first fifty seconds which had a quick recap of where we stand in the story and those screenshots were from the last episode's action. Saki's mission is to guard the above woman Amy Horner who is an American, her father is a respected Biological Engineer/Professor named Dr. Horner who is hiding out in Japan but where? He's developed an advanced Cybernetic program which could be such a benefit to mankind, however if it falls into the wrong hands it could be such a massive disaster! Leading the charge to obtain the doctor's research is Gouzo Mizuchi who is head of the Mizuchi Group, sometimes in screenshots you see Concern used but I stick with Group. He's tried blackmailing Saki to find and bring Dr. Horner to him but of course in the end that didn't work. When the last episode concluded the doctor still hadn't been found but there could be a possible clue. Saki had been held at bay by the two younger Mizuchi sisters Ayumi and Kumi who easily could have killed Saki but were ordered in advance not to by their father Gouzo. The major plan of his Mizuchi Group is to take control of the Japanese schooling system and brainwash the students into living their lives the Mizuchi Way! If you've been reading these recaps you know most of what I just said but it's good to be refreshed now and again on where we stand, now finally on to the action!!!!

 The most stunning news that ended off the last show was that Saki had found out she was.... the daughter of Gouzo Mizuchi!!!! Which of course means Reimi, Ayumi and Kumi are her sisters and still don't think Saki fully believed that by the end of this episode. What I'm not sure about is how Saki is free as when the last episode ended she was had been roughed up by her 'sister' Ayumi, her other potential sibling Kumi had a gun aimed at her! Perhaps that was an order from Gouzo Mizuchi not to hurt Saki until Dr. Horner has been found and that will be happening shortly. Only one person knew the location of the esteemed doctor/scientist/professor Dr. Horner and the man's name was Yamamoto, say was for at the end of the previous show he had been killed by a knife thrown by Kumi. But before the man died with his last gasps he told Dr. Horner's daughter Amy two words, Madrid Dhalia. Amy had no clue what the words meant and during that melee Amy got separated from Saki. Before we get to their reunion Saki had visited the prison her mother is incarcerated at, what was a life sentence is now one where she's on Death Row! That change in sentence happened many months ago, since then the mother Natsu has refused to meet her daughter and once again Saki was rebuffed in this attempted visit. There's no doubt she wanted to know if Gouzo Mizuchi was her true father and the man claims to be. The cruel and devious man had told Saki if she can bring Dr. Horner to him then Gouzo will pull some strings and get the mother Natsu released but it is hard to believe his words. Outside the prison waiting for a dejected Saki was her step-sister Reimi and that's right above, she said how nice it was for Saki to be her sister though in a very sarcastic way and did threaten to end Saki's life if she doesn't back off the hunt for Dr. Horner!

 He's right below and we'll be meeting him shortly. After that melee where his daughter Amy was almost kidnapped by the two Mizuchi sisters Ayumi and Kumi Amy got separated from Saki. She was roaming the Tokyo streets looking for her which was proving to be futile as Amy doesn't speak Japanese. But Lady Luck shone on Amy as appearing out of nowhere was Miyako who has had much more screentime the last four episodes. At one time Saki was her dreaded enemy plus Miyako was a wanna-be gang leader but has cleaned her act up a bit and while not the best of friends her and Saki are now getting along somewhat well. Miyako had previously tried helping Saki out with communicating with Amy as the young woman can't understand Japanese and Amy did recall that Miyako tried to help her, Amy did refer to her here as a Sukeban! So Miyako knew enough about Amy and how there were thugs from the Mizuchi family out to get her, Miyako quickly hid Amy out at an abandoned building and soon arriving on the scene was Saki along with Sanpei. Amy told Saki of Yamamoto's dying words which were Madrid Dhalia but had no idea what the man meant. Neither did Saki or Miyako but Sanpei recalled reading a recent newspaper article that featured the word which refers to a plant, the one in the bottom screenshot above. The reason for the article was that the flower is extremely rare in Japan but many had been seen growing in a remote section of Okutama which is 35 miles NW of Tokyo. That flower and the fact that Yamamoto mentioned it with his dying breath probably meant that's where Amy's father Dr. Horner must be hiding out and it's off to the western area of Tokyo prefecture.

 The doctor was shocked yet overjoyed to see Amy there, he presumed she was still in America with her mother and how did she ever deduce the man was in Japan? No answer was given and this respected doctor/professor/bio-engineer had fled to Japan to hide out as many evil groups would be attempting to steal his research on Cybernetics, he's come close to devising a way to get many people at once to think a certain way via some sort of rays transmitted to a person's brain or in other words a more efficient way to brainwash people. Which Dr. Horner created to be used in a positive way, mainly to help those with mental issues but of course when an evil organization such as the Mizuchi Group hears about such a project they want it for their own treacherous acts! Dr. Horner had attended college in Japan and does speak the language, he didn't contact any of his previous mates about his return as not to endanger them Until he could devise a plan to keep his family save and deliver his Cybernetics research to the government he was prepared to remain in this remote section of Okutama. In that last recap did mention that the evilest Mizuchi sister Reimi had a guard slip a homing device into Amy's purse when she arrived at the airport, Reimi knows where the young woman is now and odds are high she's with her father! Sent to nab the professor were Reimi's two younger sisters Ayumi and Kumi who quickly had this lodge in the middle of the woods surrounded, of course Saki wondered how did they find us so quickly?

 However she and the four others were able to elude the pair of Mizuchi sisters as Sanpei, along with Miyako's help, ran through the woods hoping to be seen which they were. Along with some henchmen Kumi chased after the pair but it was a ruse to get Kumi away from the lodge, when she began the chase Saki, Amy and her father leapt into Kumi's car! Dr. Horner took the wheel and were able to pick up Sanpei and Miyako, off they went to safety or at least at first we presumed they did. For Ayumi couldn't give chase in her own car as the tires were slashed, think deep down Ayumi may have been impressed with the devious ways her step-sister Saki thinks! When I mentioned presumed escaped safely is because a few miles down the road the car was stopped by the police, it had been reported stolen by Kumi and in a way it was! But it was more than just a stop for driving a stolen car as these officers were also under the control of the Mizuchi Group, their reach is growing by leaps and bounds with each passing day! Of course Dr. Horner was their main target but so wasn't Saki as their boss and her possible father Gouzo Mizuchi wants another meeting with her. At that short encounter Gouzo once again brought up the offer of working for him, if Saki agrees he can pull some strings and get her mother Natsu released from prison. Besides being Gouzo's personal secretary many years ago he told Saki she was also his mistress and the result of that union was her! Hearing that again made Saki become a bit out of control and who could blame her, she snatched a rifle off the wall to end Gouzo's life but she couldn't pull the trigger. Saki is close to an unbeatable 17 year old undercover detective but she's never killed a person and does have solid morals about her, even though Gouzo is such a devil she couldn't end his life.

 Third and final segment for this exciting episode, what took place in the final six minutes is right above the first five screenshots below. An uncooperative Saki was sent to a cell, we didn't know at the time her father(?) Gouzo had given Saki an ultimatum about her mother. Meanwhile in another room at the Mizuchi mansion being held captive was Dr. Horner and his daughter Amy. Of course the esteemed scientist wouldn't give Gouzo any of his research on Cybernetics and would rather die than see his work fall into the hands of EVIL. But not wanting to die was Amy and would do anything to save her father but of course we all know that Gouzo wouldn't go through with his end of the bargain for any deals. Gouzo's offer was if Amy could kill Saki in a one on one duel he would release both her and her father but why as it would mean Gouzo still wouldn't have Dr. Horner's Cybernetic research? Soon arriving in Saki's cell with a knife was Amy, this mini duel is above. Saki had also been proposed a reward from Gouzo, kill Amy and your mother Natsu will be released from prison... though there  was probably zero chance Gouzo would have kept his end of the deal! Despite not being a skilled fighter Amy did give Saki all she could handle for a while but our heroine of course got the upper hand and there was no way Saki would have killed this young woman. There was a camera in the cell which allowed Gouzo and his three daughters to view the action, once Saki had subdued Amy she smashed the camera with her trusty Yo-Yo and she hasn't used it that often in the last half dozen shows but it soon saved her life!!!!

 Gouzo knew Saki wouldn't kill Amy so had a Plan B all set up, leading to the cell were pipes that contained poison gas and the man hit the ON switch! Gouzo and his daughters were all relishing this moment as it would finally be the end of their dreaded nemesis Saki but it would also mean Gouzo's fourth daughter would no longer be among the living but never, ever count Saki out! For she used that powerful Yo-Yo to smash the door handle but that was a very enhanced one and she couldn't break it. However the Yo-Yo did create a crack where the handle met the door, using her Yo-Yo as a lever Saki was able to pry the door open and grabbed Amy to flee. Which would not have been an easy task as five guards were ready to eliminate the two girls. But for the first and only time this episode we saw Saki's Dark Agency handler Jin who appeared out of nowhere and held back the guards which allowed Saki and Amy to escape. Outside the Mizuchi mansion Sanpei and Miyako had secretly arrived, they had found Dr. Horner and the five escaped the mansion grounds in a vehicle to the fury of the entire Mizuchi family! By now there was only thirty seconds to go in this episode, it ended with Dr. Horner and his daughter Amy ready to board a ship back to America and were seen off by the trio of Saki, Sanpei and Miyako so it was a somewhat happy finale. But of course the Mizuchi family has not been defeated yet but that may happen in the next pair of recaps which should be in about four days. Bit of a rushed ending as Saki wasn't involved in a major melee at the end and for about the fifth time it was Jin who ended up saving her life.