Two of Three Worth Watching
The Black Swindler (2006)
Kurosagi: The Movie (2008)
Kurosagi (2022)
This Kurosagi series is about a young man (Kurosaki) whose father got swindled or conned pushing him to kill his family and himself. The son survived and thereafter dedicated himself to revenge on all such swindlers. A straight forward vigilante themed story.
Con men who swindle the innocent financially are called white swindlers (Shirosagi). Con artists who swindle romantically for money are called red swindlers (Akasagi). Our main character only cons white (Shiro) and red (Aka) swindlers (Sagi) so we have a strong Robin Hood theme in order to ensure sympathy with the lead who is after all breaking the law.
All three were written by the same screenwriter and one of a few directors is common to all three.
The cast of both The Black Swindler (2006) and the Movie (2008) are the same. The 2022 version is a reboot with all new cast.
I first watched Kurosagi (2022). Generally Japanese productions can be problematic with exaggerated acting styles and seriously obnoxious background music. However, this 2022 version is very watchable and the music not too distracting.
The 2006 TV Show was at first off-putting due to the acting and background music but I was curious how it compares to the 2022 reboot. It’s very similar following main plot twists - mostly - but has several significant changes in subplots. The result is a nicely done resonation between the two. You’ll get more from watching both than either alone.
The screenwriter loves symbolism. Conning someone is called ‘eating’. A main support character, a mentor to Kurosaki in all three, is shown having difficulty at times eating some thing or other. He is of course the master swindler who is guiding Kurosaki after his survival as a young teen.
The Movie (2008) is a clumsy return to first series (2006) and is essentially a long single episode. It doesn’t work so well and is forgettable. It could be the persistent references to the assassination of Julius Caesar and his betrayal by Brutus (whose mother was Servilia Caesar’s love interest over decades so possibly Caesar was real father of Brutus) or the frequent exposition.
Two out of three are worth the time. The third is for curiosity.
Kurosagi: The Movie (2008)
Kurosagi (2022)
This Kurosagi series is about a young man (Kurosaki) whose father got swindled or conned pushing him to kill his family and himself. The son survived and thereafter dedicated himself to revenge on all such swindlers. A straight forward vigilante themed story.
Con men who swindle the innocent financially are called white swindlers (Shirosagi). Con artists who swindle romantically for money are called red swindlers (Akasagi). Our main character only cons white (Shiro) and red (Aka) swindlers (Sagi) so we have a strong Robin Hood theme in order to ensure sympathy with the lead who is after all breaking the law.
All three were written by the same screenwriter and one of a few directors is common to all three.
The cast of both The Black Swindler (2006) and the Movie (2008) are the same. The 2022 version is a reboot with all new cast.
I first watched Kurosagi (2022). Generally Japanese productions can be problematic with exaggerated acting styles and seriously obnoxious background music. However, this 2022 version is very watchable and the music not too distracting.
The 2006 TV Show was at first off-putting due to the acting and background music but I was curious how it compares to the 2022 reboot. It’s very similar following main plot twists - mostly - but has several significant changes in subplots. The result is a nicely done resonation between the two. You’ll get more from watching both than either alone.
The screenwriter loves symbolism. Conning someone is called ‘eating’. A main support character, a mentor to Kurosaki in all three, is shown having difficulty at times eating some thing or other. He is of course the master swindler who is guiding Kurosaki after his survival as a young teen.
The Movie (2008) is a clumsy return to first series (2006) and is essentially a long single episode. It doesn’t work so well and is forgettable. It could be the persistent references to the assassination of Julius Caesar and his betrayal by Brutus (whose mother was Servilia Caesar’s love interest over decades so possibly Caesar was real father of Brutus) or the frequent exposition.
Two out of three are worth the time. The third is for curiosity.
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