Black Leather Notebook

"Kurokawa no techô" revolves around Motoko Haraguchi, a woman that wants to decide her own future and become the number one 'mama' (owner of a kyabakura bar) in Ginza. From moment one the show takes its silly premise with childish glee and develops through eight intense, full of plot twists and surprises episodes to a satisfying ending.

The story, as said, is simple. Motoko Haraguchi is working as a temp in a bank, but she has sights on a better, bigger life. At night she works as a hostess in a bar in Ginza. From between both works she gathers knowledge of some men's shady business and takes her chance to steal some money. With it she opens her own bar in Ginza. But she is not happy with just that.

What follows is a terrific thriller, very entertaining, where Motoko Haraguchi (played perfectly by Emi Takei) has different stand-offs against different powerful and rich men. That they are men is an important point, because there is a clear undercurrent in the show of 'woman against a world dominated by men' theme. Everyone is telling Haraguchi that she should just accept her position in society, in particular, as a woman. But she just won't accept it.

The show overplays its hand more than a couple of times and some actors enjoy munching through their dialogue (Masanobu Takashima being suspect one). But Emi Takei plays her character with so much confidence and sassiness that you will probably forget everyone else sharing the screen with her. Just a little smile or contraction of the eyelids express everything about her character.

The music also helps, with a catchy ending song and an overall great soundtrack. "Kurokawa no techô" is a really good show.