Yakuza Weigh in on…Yakuza

One of the most popular video games on the market is called Yakuza, now in its third iteration. It covers…yep, you guessed it: Japan’s seemy underworld! Yakuza 3 is a “simulation” game in which players delve into the role of a real-life yakuza clan.

And who better to review the game than actual yakuza members? Such was the keen idea of Jake Adelstein, author of Tokyo Vice and the foremost American authority on the yakuza. He met up with some actual “yaks” (as he calls them) to test drive the game.

Turns out the folks at Sega are spot on in their rendering. Take, for example, their comments about the depiction of a red-light district: “You got your salaryman in there, the delinquent school girl and her sugar daddy, Chinese people, and even those Nigerian touts.”

The review goes on to cover what you’d expect—the authenticity of street fights—and what you wouldn’t—gangsters’ clothes, culinary preferences, and whether or not shabu (crystal meth) should be one of the game’s “power up” features.

Should you desire to learn more about this Japanese mafia milieu but aren’t a gamer, check out the short excerpt below of my book, Tokyo Lives, which describes the very neighborhood—kabuki-cho—that the yakuza commented on in the game review:

“Shinjuku pulses with radiant activity night and day. It is Japan’s neighborhood that never sleeps. There’s something for everyone: shopping, hotels, bars, restaurants, movie theaters, parks, galleries, shrines.

And sex. Lots of sex. Wind through the restaurants and department stores, past the giant screen above Studio Alta, cross Yasukuni Dori, and enter Kabuki-cho. By day, the neighborhood is tame and welcoming, the alleyways empty and uncluttered. But as day fades to night the neon flickers on and the neighborhood transforms itself. The signs glow red and pink. Fleshy images preside over each door front. Salarymen with loosened ties roam the alleys, with scantily-clad women interspersed to lure them to their lairs. Elicit desires are indulged in all forms: strip clubs, porn theaters, hostess bars, massage parlors, brothels, S&M studios. No fantasy goes unfulfilled. And the Chinese rule the neighborhood with an iron fist.

Simple economics drive neighborhood trade: a glut of women and gangsters willing to work harder for less. There is no planning; there is no tomorrow. The next customer is the only concern. Where the yakuza focus on reputation and survival, the Chinese have only three priorities: The first thing is money, the second thing is money, and the third thing is money."

You Meet the Nicest People on a Honda

If you have any interest in Japanese culture and business history, then I hope you caught Sunday’s episode of Mad Men. In the episode the boys at Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce have an opportunity to bid on the account for Honda motorcycles. To get everybody in the right frame of mind, all agency staffers are given a copy of The Chrysanthemum and the Sword, Ruth Benedict’s seminal book describing Japanese culture that was the authority on Japan for many, many years. Creative director Don Draper also takes in a meal at Benihana to further explore the mysteries of the Orient. The episode ends with the agency instead being awarded the account for Honda’s forthcoming car, which the gang ridicules as a “motorcycle with windows.” Well, I hope SCDP held on to the Honda car account because, in reality, it probably made a lot of people a lot of money!

And now it’s time to separate the “reel” story from the real story. As the end of the episode intimates, Honda was never serious about leaving Grey Advertising. And why would it be? By 1964, Honda had become the world leader in motorcycle sales.

On the creative side, Grey churned out the iconic campaign “You Meet the Nicest People on a Honda.” The campaign not only introduced Honda to American consumers, it started to re-brand the entire motorcycle industry, which had been taken over by leather-clad biker gangs and virtually ignored by respectable, suburban, middle class consumers. The “You Meet the Nicest People on a Honda Campaign” brought motorcycles back into the mainstream.

To wit, in 1964 the Beach Boys released “Little Honda,” and, with two short lyrics, did as well as any ad campaign in explaining the essence of Honda:

“It’s not a big motorcycle,
Just a groovy little motorbike.”

Only in Japan: Slashing Pounds With Samurai Swords

No—you don’t literally cut out the fat, but you do incorporate traditional samurai swords into an aerobic workout. There’s not much more explaining to do….just watch the video!

Translation Fascination

The publishing industry is nothing if not unoriginal. From the “Chick Lit Craze” to the “Why [Insert Nationality] Women Don’t Get Fat” to a virtual vampire invasion, editors and publishers can’t help themselves when it comes to latching onto a hot idea and milking it for all it’s worth. In typical cases the craze virtually plays out the genre and kills it off via over-saturation.

The next wave, though, just might last—and benefit readers (a rare outcome of the copy-cat nature of publishing). Based on the stunning success currently being realized by the late Swedish author Stieg Larsson (he of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo fame), publishers are scouring the globe for the next irresistible import ingénue. “A lot of publishers are looking at this because they don't want to miss the next Stieg Larsson,” an editorial director confessed to The Wall Street Journal. Intriguingly, Japanese authors are at the top of the list.

It makes sense, as Western readers have already embraced translated works from Haruki Murakami, Banana Yoshimoto, and other J-authors. Japan hosts a vibrant literary culture and I can’t wait to see what turns up on shelves next!

And of course, if you want a taste of Japanese crime fiction without waiting, I would humbly suggest my book, Tokyo Lives!

We Can Make a Better List Than CNN Travel!

CNN Travel recently published its list of “5 Tokyo experiences you won’t forget,” which are:

5. Tsukiji fish market

4. Karaoke in Roppongi

3. Sumo

2. Bullet trains

1. Food

It’s not a particularly inventive list, and it’s hard not to do “bullet trains” and “food”—just out of necessity. Plus, as I mentioned in a previous post, the sumo scene isn’t so hot these days in the wake of a major scandal (involving the yakuza, among others).

So, if you’ve made the trip, feel free to use the comments section to fill in your own top five list. Don’t hold anything back!

Sumo Wrestlers Would Bow in Shame (If They Could)

Due to their size, there are presumably many things a full-grown sumo wrestler can’t do effectively: drive a Mini Cooper, partake in a roller coaster ride, and clean certain body parts. Add a humble bow—the traditional Japanese act of contrition—to the list. Such repentant genuflections are in high demand these days as the sport of sumo has been rocked by one scandal after another.

And our friends in the yakuza are right in the middle of it! Would you expect anything less? There have always been whispers of a cushy relationship between sumo and the underworld, but verification emerged as many top fighters were alleged to have bet on other sports with yakuza as go betweens. News reports also indicate that the yakuza sponsor wrestlers who aren’t quite good enough to attract major corporate benefactors.

My favorite anecdote, however, is that 55 members of the Yamaguchi-gumi clan—the mob family in Japan—sat front row at a tournament last year. They did so as an act of solidarity with their imprisoned brethren. The gangsters knew they would be on T.V., and they knew the jail birds would be eagerly watching one of the few T.V. broadcasts they are allowed to see.

Noted yakuza chronicler Jake Adelstein told the A.P.: “Sumo is involved in organized crime because they've had a symbiotic relationship for years. The wrestlers and the yakuza have a macho admiration for each other. The yakuza by being seen with the sumo wrestlers, acquire `status' and the sumo wrestlers get money, booze, food, and women.” In the wake of the myriad scandals—which you can read about here—NHK has dropped coverage, arenas are half full, prizes are being withheld, and competitions are adorned with signs reading “Gangsters Keep Out.”

Based on the research I conducted for my book, Tokyo Lives, it’s no surprise to me that the yakuza are waist-deep in sumo. It’s only a surprise that it took so long to be exposed.

Blue Samurai Left Kicking Themselves

Who would have thought that Japan, master of the set piece and tamer of the Jabulani ball, would be done in by penalty kicks? So it transpired Tuesday after 2 hours of scoreless soccer as Japan exited the 2010 World Cup at the hands of Paraguay.

It wasn’t much of a match. Both defenses were just good enough, and both offenses were just bad enough. Neither team felt it was quite good enough to win it, so they played not to lose and were content to hand over their fate to penalty kicks, which (for everyone but the English) is a no different than a coin flip. To its credit, Paraguay made all five penalty kicks and thus advanced.

The Blue Samurai will receive a warm welcome when they arrive back home. Of course, it’s easy to exceed expectations when you have none going in. This was a team that performed so poorly over the past few months that it was booed off the pitch once and was best known for breaking Didier Drogba’s arm. Yet this side with no major international stars used just enough wit, guile, and style to win two games and come with a whisker of advancing to the final eight.

The secret lies in wa, or harmony. The Japanese used teamwork and unity to make up for a skill deficiency, and perhaps provided a lesson to some fractious, star-laden European sides.