Kochikame
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Kochikame (こち亀) is a manga by Osamu Akimoto, serialized in Weekly Shonen Jump. The full title is "Kochira Katsushika-ku Kameari Kōen Mae Hashutsujo" (こちら葛飾区亀有公園前派出所), which translates as "This is the police station in front of Kameari Park in Katsushika ward". In continuous publication since 1976 with over 1200 episodes, Kochikame is the longest-running manga series in history (only Golgo 13 has been around longer, having been made since 1968).
Kochikame takes place in the present day, in and around a neighborhood police station (koban) in the old part of Tokyo, and revolves around the misadventures of a middle-aged cop, Kankichi Ryotsu. The main characters are as follows:
Characters
Kankichi Ryotsu (両津勘吉 Ryōtsu Kankichi)- "Ryo-san" is a thirty-six year old policeman with the personality of a twelve-year old. His laziness when it comes to work is matched only by his zeal and cleverness in hatching money-making schemes, the fruits of which are invariably squandered on toys, gadgets, and cheap entertainment. He is the stereotypical street-smart "shitamachi" type, sporting a crew-cut and stomping about in ratty sandals (even in uniform), and parochial towards the outside world, as he makes his rounds on a creaky old bicycle. At the same time, he is a super-otaku, up on all the latest fads in popular culture and consumer technology. While most of his interests are of the juvenile sort (such as videogames and collectibles), he also indulges in more typically salaryman-type pastimes such as drinking, pachinko, and gambling (especially horse-racing). Despite his undisciplined lifestyle, he possesses superhuman strength and stamina, which he is forced to depend on at times.
Ryotsu is a bachelor and seems relatively uninterested in women, yet occasionally attracts the attention of naïve young female acquaintances, though never with any eventual success.
Kei-ichi Nakagawa (中川圭一 Nakagawa Kei'ichi) - A young, handsome cop who serves as Ryo-san's comic foil. While holding down a day job in the police station, Nakagawa is the son of a wealthy industrial magnate, and often has to zip off to board meetings in his exotic sports cars and private helicopters. His policeman's uniform is an expensive yellow pinstripe suit. Though constantly surrounded by beautiful women throughout his duties, Nakagawa appears indifferent, and his tendencies are somewhat ambiguous.
Reiko Akimoto (秋本麗子 Akimoto Reiko) - A female counterpart to Nakagawa, Reiko's wealth is inherited from European nobility, and she juggles her commitments to the police job with those of high society. Reiko is half French, raised in the U.S., and is fluent in numerous languages. With her flowing blonde hair and stunningly large breasts, Reiko is often courted by the rich and famous, but has never found the right man.
Several secondary characters appear in most episodes:
Daijiro Ohara (大原 大次郎 Ōhara Daijirō), usually called "Bucho" or "Division Head" (部長) - Ryotsu's boss, a typical grizzled middle manager senior cop. Sporting a small trimmed mustache, Bucho is often out of touch or exasperated with his younger staff, but always ready to mete out punishment to Ryo-san for his laziness.
Honda (本田) - The station's motorcycle policeman, and Ryotsu's underling, often reluctantly dragged into his schemes. A shy young man who still sports a pompadour from his teenage motorcycle gang days, Honda's father runs a garage specializing in Kawasaki cycles. His brother-in-law Kawasaki rides only Honda cycles.
Saotome (早乙女) - One of the many young policewomen of the district, and Ryotsu's arch-enemy. Saotome thinks Ryotsu is a disgusting boorish lout, Ryotsu thinks Saotome and her colleagues are pampered weaklings and a waste of the force's budget. Saotome and her fellow bachelorettes live in a luxury dormitory resembling a French chateau.
Maria – Reiko’s occasional partner on the force. Like Reiko, Maria is tall, sexy, and buxom. Unlike Reiko, Maria is a) a brunette, and b) a man. He is in love with Ryotsu and becomes jealous whenever another girl comes near him.
Other recurring characters include transvestite cops from other districts, martial-arts masters, and Ryo-san's various shady business acquaintances.
Plot
The typical Kochikame plot involves Ryo-san coming up with a money-making scheme by inventing a new gadget or capitalizing on a fad, achieving great success, calling on Nakagawa's help as thing turn sour, and finally losing it all as the fad runs out of steam or out of control. While the plots are gag-driven, much of the humor comes from the juxtaposition of mundane characters with the bizarrely incongruous (Nakagawa's wealth, Maria's sex, everyone's lack of actual police work), most of which is never explained or rationalized in the slightest.
Kochikame has a broad audience, ranging from adolescent boys to middle-aged salarymen. Much like Homer Simpson, Ryo-san’s antics appeal to children who can laugh at an old buffoon and to men fearing that they are becoming old buffoons themselves. The stories are generally innocent in content, and what little violence appears is comical, while the occasional risqué subjects are included strictly for laughs rather than to titillate. In another parallel to the Simpsons, Kochikame’s immense popularity has lead to guest appearances in the strip by Japanese celebrities such as Tetsuya Komuro.
For creator Osamu Akimoto, Kochikame is an ongoing homage to the working-class people and districts of old Tokyo, and most episodes open with an elaborate full-page illustration of a shitamachi street scene, typically with old wooden buildings and boys playing in the streets.
The manga has spawned an animated television series, two animated movies, a live-action movie, and several stage adaptations. In addition, various toys and collectibles have been created, including some items that first appeared in the manga as creations of Ryo-san.
Kameari Koen is an actual park in Tokyo's Katsushika ward; the police box is fictional but modeled after a real one located on the north side of Kameari railway station. The manga has brought considerable fame to the neighborhood, and draws sightseers from all over Japan to a (usually vacant) police box in a nondescript residential neighborhood.
External links
- Japanese Kochikame website (http://www.j-kochikame.com/)
- Shueisha Kochikame website (http://jump.shueisha.co.jp/kame/)
- Fuji TV Kochikame website (http://www.fujitv.co.jp/b_hp/kotikame/index.html)
- Kochikame Movie website (http://www.kochikame-movie.com/)