Chuukan Kanriroku Tonegawa Episode 20

A mysterious car drives through dark city streets towards an underground casino. As it turns out, the onrushing vehicle contains our beloved title character while the casino is part of the Teiai conglomerate and in charge of its inner operations is Ichijou, who is also responsible for guarding the casino's major draw card: a pachinko machine named the Bog. It should probably be explained that this episode is a nod to Kaiji season 2, which I couldn't review for personal reasons, although i did watch all the episodes. I'm thinking of doing this again now as this series has an extremely high replay value. Ichijou and his enchanted casino were also in Kaiji season 2 and were a big part of it, with Kaiji having to take both of them on in an epic contest against the Bog. Here it is again, only this time is Tonegawa who is up against it. The odds aren't as stacked up against the Teiai's executive as they were against Kaiji. Tonegawa has a very easy time handling the forest of pins, the paddle flippers and the demonic triple trays (you'd have to know the Bog yourself to know what I mean), effortlessly pushing ball after ball to the desired destination. Ichijou puts up a façade of indignation mixed with frustration, but Tonegawa easily sees through the veneer of pretense. It doesn't matter in the end as Tonegawa predictably wins the mock battle and calmly picks his way out of the caisno with its coveted prize under his belt. At least everyone can safely sleep as no harm was brought upon anyone involved (the casino was a subsidiary of Teiai after all).

Chuukan Kanriroku Tonegawa Episode 19

A huge fateful event has just befallen all of Tonegawa's team and  befuddles the black suits with its distracting properties. With the departure of some of the group members, new slots are open for grabs on the team, and the positions are quickly filled up with Teiai's latest arrivals, one of which happens to be...a woman. The men in black are dazed with their female counterpart, and it just happens that she seems perfect in a number of ways, not the least of which is to provide a feminine touch to the drab work environment. Predictably, she isn't spared the romantic passes that her coworkers were bound to make, but nothing comes of it. She just wants to be left mostly alone and go back to being a young woman with something to prove to the Powers That Be. The plot shifts from her to the men's reactions, as her mobile starts ringing an uncomfortable number of times, strongly hinting at the presence of a male interloper to her affections. They start to come to grips with this distressing reality, until it's revealed that she had been talking to a female friend. This discovery served to rekindle the men's spirits again, giving them a measure of hope for what the future might unfold. When she pops back into the story again, it is to serve beverages for Tonegawa and the Chairman, who has a new admirer who makes no bones about making Tonegawa jealous. It takes some time before Tonegawa picks up on his rival's strategy, but he finally concedes that his post as the second-in-command at Teiai is at stake and the fight is on.

Chuukan Kanriroku Tonegawa Episode 18

My fancy for this episode was piqueted right at the start as Tonegawa gets the result f his physical. It's another of these episodes that deals with Tonegawa's inner troubles and how he goes about solving them, which usually results in hilarity. This time his quest for better health leads to a drastic change in his feeding and physical habits in an attempt to cut back on fatty acids, sugars and other vices common to the modern man. Sometimes it's episodes like this that turn out to have an extremely high replay value, mainly on account of its capacity to take the viewer on grand flights of fancy. It's one of those delightfully relatable episodes, easily one of the best.

Doushita soon learns of Tonegawa's intentions and sets out to support him by clinging to him like an old sibling afraid that his fraternal peer might get hurt. From a minor annoyance it soon developed into an unpleasant undercurrent of uncalled-for interventions, not the least of which is Tonegawa's sneaking into a toilet stall to savour a cutlet dish. Doushita pops by with the sole intention of helping his leader and stop him from going down the slippery road that is giving in to temptation. It eventually works out for the best though, as Tonegawa leaves the doctor's office a much healthier man after his second appointment. But his impressions of Doushita have taken a hit, and unlike his previous health status, the fix for this isn't medical attention.

The second part of the episode takes us back again to Otsuki and his exploits during his next one-day furlough. This time he notices someone he had never met before, but whose culinary tastes strangely align with his. In addition to the coincidental opinions, they also happen to visit the same eateries at the same time. In case you're wondering, that's abnormal. Chance encounters with an acquaintance are rare, but they seem to happen with comedic regularity. After taking one last trip to one of his favourite culinary haunts, Otsuki notices his mysterious friend again. Everything goes as expected except when he orders chilli sauce and quail eggs as topping. Our rotund protagonist is clearly taken aback from this unlikely combination and starts to wonder what sort of folly would drive one man to conduct such an experiment. His curiosity gets the better of him and he decides to add the novel combination to his repertoire. The result blows his mind, causing to him to drift into childlike feelings of whimsical wonder and awe. Back at work, he reflects on this sequence of events and thinks to himself who was his nameless friend might be.

Chuukan Kanriroku Tonegawa Episode 17

This episode takes place almost entirely within the confines of the mighty Teiai office building. That would involve the usual black suits and Tonegawa commanding them as expected. But things aren't going as peachy as usual; the winds of change have started blowing through the usually quiet corporate environment and most of the members down on the lower end of the hierarchy ladder are feeling uneasy about the potential changes. The practical upshot of this shift is that demotion is a  nigh possibility. No one is safe from the dreaded effects of labour reassignment. To be honest, it actually takes a long time into the episode to get wind of why the Teiai work transfers are so feared. Best i could gather is that if you don't fit in well wherever you're assigned, they try to stick you in a new slot so you won't make much of an impact if you screw up. Problem is, you're reassigned to a low-skilled post that no one else would normally want to take. Guess where is the job that no one wants to go? It's on the southernmost island of Japan, roughly on the same latitude as hawaii. that makes it a tropical paradise, and you're being shipped off there to actually earn a living. yes, i wish i could go in their place and bask in all of the wonderfulness that is life by the seaside. Too bad I don't work at Teiai. According to Tonegawa, he at one time caught something strange in his chest back when he was deployed at the same area. His report reveals the offending entity to be a coral sea snake, couched in a brief personal account so as to warn the departing employees of the dangers of being careless in those parts. This still does little to intimidate me. I wish I could be among the individuals chosen to be transferred, even if it meant a half-demotion and risk of coral sea snake bites.

Chuukan Kanriroku Tonegawa Episode 16

Lots of people have hazy memories of a rival who seems on the surface less competent than you, but somehow always manages to effortlessly come off on top. Both Tonegawa and Kurisaki need to prove themselves to the dreaded chairman. Tonegawa plays by the book and wholeheartedly agrees with everything that his superior mouths. That was his recipe for success at the Teiai corporation after all, so it's a guaranteed path to get in the chairman's good graces. But Kurusaki has a different approach which relies on earnest criticism of some of the chairman's actions. Normally this would result in an endless string of punishment and admonishment. But Kurosaki manages to use just the right amount of condescending language to get on the chairman's good side. Whenever Tonegawa tried the same, it always rubbed him the wrong way. So our protagonist decides to play it safe, whether they are eating a steak which doesn't measure up to acceptable standards or the chairman asks for their opinion on his personal trifles. However, Tonegawa notices that Kurosaki is beating him in terms of coolness and decides to go on the offensive. He looks to observe the chairman's reactions and probe for an opening. It takes a while for it to materialise, but when it does, he charges headlong at it. However, it was a little too little when he realised that his timing was bad. Some mayhem ensues when the chairman decides to get a horse to take part at the race track and orders Tonegawa to do the same, but choose a poor-looking specimen. The dutiful middle manager does as told, with the expectation that his boss' thoroughbred equine emerges as the winner against his own, something that doesn't go quite as planned...

Chuukan Kanriroku Tonegawa Episode 15

Otsuki takes another 1-day leave, but when he's about to start enjoying his timed freedom, he notices a black suit standing guard nearby, watching him. Otsuki doesn't take his presence as a nuisance, but rather, he reaches out to him and offers him some of his snacks. The black suit is caught off-guard by Otsuki's friendliness, then reluctantly accepts to jointly engage in his outings. The remaining episode deals with Otsuki's attempts to enjoy life outside to the fullest with his coworker - Numakawa-, and the latter's astonishment at how the foreman can feel at ease even with the ominous countdown to go back to their underground labour camp. Their stroll leads through restaurants, walks in the park and a carnival fair. In the end, they happily return to the dreaded mine where they have to work, with plans to go again on another 1-dat leave.

Chuukan Kanriroku Tonegawa Episode 14

You work nonstop at a labour camp, starting while it's still dawn and only punching the clock again well into the evening. You're not paid a regular wage; rather, you need to work to pay off your debt, and the terms for cancelling said debts are at your employer's discretion. This means years of indentured servitude with little in the way of entertainment. Apart from a 1-day furlough, awarded to those who can afford it.

eating a burger with a friendly leaf.

 To obtain this highly coveted leave, one has to pay 500000 units of the currency used in this underground facility, in addition to being granted permission from the higher-ups. The latter requirement purports to be some form of reward granted to those capable of great efficiency and diligence at work, but it's never made clear. We only know that the one thing standing between another sweaty day slogging away at this mine and freedom basking in the sunshine of our regular world is this required fee. As long as you have the money, you're good to go. Otsuki, the foreman, happens to have loads of it, mostly stashed away thanks to his exploits in Chinchirorin, a game that he happens to win easily thanks to his personal 4-5-6 dice, but don't tell anyone. It's not like they're aware of it.

The dark aura of someone ordering beer while others can't.

Our Honcho starts his journey as a man enjoying his hard-earned temporary freedom visiting a men's clothing store and taking casual strolls about town. Being a fully functional organisation, Teiai always assigns people to keep track of its holiday-makers. They puzzle over the purpose of someone on a one-day furlough getting a business suit and usual office attire. At first they assume that he was heading over to some upscale club or something, but it turns out that his choice of formal garments was to make him look like a salary man fortunate enough to order beer and extravagant food items at a cut-and-dried diner in early afternoon. the purpose of his suit is soon revealed: to make him look majestic while the common crowd, those with regular jobs living regular lives, have to endure the sight of someone doing what none of them can do. The onlookers gasp in astonishment at the singular rotund, albeit fastidiously dressed figure who proceeds to guzzle mug after mug of the elusive barley brew. They reluctantly carry on with their ordinary meals, while Otsuki is ecstatic.

When man and crab jump for joy

Another escapade. This time our hero takes it really easy and does everything without any semblance of haste. He lies down on the grass, falls asleep and proceeds to eat a simple dinner at an average fast food place. Upon realising that his time is up in under a few hours, he sets out to make the most of it. Being something of an expert in fine cuisine (his size should cue you in on that), he decides that a trip to his former favourite haunt is in order. This is actually the place he used to go to as a young student. There's even someone playing a guitar on the pavement, singing the lyrics from the ending credits of the first season of Kaiji! These nods to other Fukumoto works are always a fine touch, making this series all the more appealing. At one point you find yourself watching it just to spot any reference that you might have overlooked the first time around.

That's a rather telling avatar

Anyway, our heroic honcho is caught in two minds as he has to choose which dish to order. He's stuck between his long time favourite 'crab rice' and the mysterious-looking omellete rice. After long deliberation and inner reflections, he opts for the latter. At first he starts to regret his choice as this dish doesn't seem to have anything special to it. But he's soon caught up in the marvellous whirl of the delicacy's taste, and proceeds to wolf it down with gusto. He was already pleased enough when the cook comes personally to greet him, rekindling an old acquaintance with the former student who used to order crab rice on the regular. He presents the former college student with a generous order of crab rice, reminding him that there's no need to pay as it's on the house. The foreman is delighted at eating his comfort food once more. And it feels exactly like that. Memories of a fulfilled youth come flooding back, engulfing him in thoughts and recollections of his younger self enjoying his favourite form of art: the culinary sort.

Transceding experiences

In short, this is one of the best episodes of this series. The viewer can easily relate to any aspect of Otsuki's routine, whether it be compulsory work or his penchant for making the most of his short leisure time. I don't think that Chuukan Kanriroku Tonegawa gets any better than this, but I'd be glad to be proven wrong.