Saturday, March 28, 2020

Giri Haji (serial)

Duty and Shame. Kenzo is a Tokyo detective. His brother Yuto is a Yakuza soldier. These brothers are exploring the interplay between identity, integrity, and family. When a London murder turns out to be a sword through the back of a Yakuza boss' nephew, Kenzo is put on the case. Which makes sense because his brother was the last one to be in possession of said sword. So Kenzo goes to London to unofficially bring his brother home for punishment by the bosses. If he fails, the Tokyo gangs will be at war.

Throw into this mix Kenzo's daughter Taki, as she runs away from home Tokyo to join her father in London. Add in Sarah, London cop who finds she has a soft spot for Kenzo. And Yuto's son and unwed mother back in Tokyo. The family dynamic that comes to the front reveals part of Japanese culture and is perhaps a character in itself. Each episode moves the story along, but paces well to allow me to feel like I am knowing the characters And each convincingly foreshadows such that at each step it is clear that a massive trainwreck of decisions is imminent and inevitable. But of course a trainwreck can't happen every episode... can it. Subtle, tragic, fantastic. Duty and Shame.
5 stars (out of 5)

No comments: