"Crisis: Special Security Squad" Proves More J-Dramas Need To Make It Out Big Into The Global Market

J-Drama or K-Drama? There was a time I actually preferred Japanese entertainment over Korean entertainment. However, 2013 started to change my tide when Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger was just plain obnoxious IMHO. Sure, there's been newer Super Sentai series that have been good and I'm enjoying Avatar Sentai Donbrothers. I've been watching a couple of Korean crime dramas. Most of the police K-Dramas I preferred were realistic fiction. Though, some of them were obviously sci-fi like Awaken and Tunnel. I did watch some Tokusatsu cop-themed shows such as Winspector, Solbrain, Exceedraft, Janperson, and Kamen Rider Drive. I felt watching some realistic crime drama from Japan might do a bit of a change. 

I decided to pick up Crisis: Social Security Squad. Yes, we've got Shun Oguri who played Arsene Lupin III from the Lupin III movie. He was also the main protagonist of Border where he gained the ability of a necromancer. In this one, nothing supernatural. Here, we have a special security squad dealing with crimes that spiral out of control. No special suits like the Rescue Police Trilogy. Oguri's character as Akira Inami must rely on purely human wits and realistic technology to solve the cases.

Granted, J-Drama has shorter episodes making binging easier to do. K-Dramas tend to exceed an hour for some reason. Crisis has the problem dealing with corruption, the Heisei Restoration Cult, a culprit named Yuuki, some wayward children of cabinet members, and the loss of trust that Akira has because of some spoilers. Every bit of detail has mysteries and has writer Kazuki Kenshiro involved. Kenshiro was also the writer of Border. I guess previous experience had Kenshiro do it. Though, there are times I wonder how this realistic cop drama would've been handled if either Toshiki Inoue, Yasuko Kobayashi, Naruhisa Arakawa, or Junichi Miyashita handled this kind of show. 

What would be interesting are some Kamen Rider easter eggs. Hiroe Igeta made a guest appearance before she got her police role in Kamen Rider EX-AID two years later. Later, we have Keisuke Iida as a guest star. Yes, Iida from Kamen Rider Drive murdered Shinnosuke Tomari's father in cold blood. Here, Iida plays a part in the police force but is not an antagonist. I think it was nice for Iida to be part of the script because I first recognized him as that obnoxious Mitshude Nira who got written off halfway. I guess Iida is such a good actor that he had to leave Drive to pursue other projects. 

So far, I've watched a couple of Korean crime drama. This show really shows that Japanese entertainment shouldn't just be "left in Japan". Instead, more Japanese companies need to be aggressive and get shows like this OUT INTO THE WORLD. Japanese entertainment shouldn't just be for Japan. I want to see more healthy competition between Japanese entertainment and Korean entertainment. Crisis: Social Security Squad is still a must-watch and may rekindle my passion for Japan.