In the season finale of Tokyo Vice, Samantha continues in search of Polina with some help from Jake, while Tozawa makes some major moves to strengthen his grip on the Yakuza in Tokyo.
Recap
Samantha wakes up in Jake’s room with a message from Jake stating that he’s gone to work in search of some leads behind Polina. Katagiri is in good spirits and is shown spending a bright morning with his loving family.
Ishida and Sato are discussing their plans to improve revenue when Ishida suddenly gets up and goes to the back where all the other grunts are chilling. He wants to know who made his soup, and when it turns out to be the new kid, he berates him and tells Sato to straighten him out.
Miyamoto goes to Katagiri and asks him what he plans to do now that he has him on film digging around. Katagiri says that it’s not damning evidence but it’s a start. Miyamoto agrees to spill the beans but at a different location.
Samantha tells Jake about Yoshino and how Polina was caught up in debt with a host club that is tied to Tozawa. He says that he knows someone who may have information but they would need to give him something in return.
Miyamoto tells Katagiri all about how he got in with Tozawa in the first place. He does express regret and Katagiri says that they can use his situation to their advantage and they devise a plan.
Jake and Samantha go to see the writer who wrote the profiles on Tozawa. They offer him some crystal meth in exchange for information and he agrees on the condition that they smoke it with them at that very moment.
They go along with it and Jake ends up taking a little more. The writer tells Samantha that ‘Yoshino’ is Tozawa’s private boat where he hosts high profile guests and offers them escorts. As soon as they get the information they need they get out of there.
Jake heads back to work where Emi realizes he’s high and tells him to go back home and sleep it off. Samantha is almost home when Akira, Polina’s old boyfriend runs up to her. He tells her that someone called him and said that Polina will be freed only when her debt is paid.
Miyamoto meets with Tozawa and tells him that Katagiri is working with Ishida to take him down. He insists on continuing their partnership because it’s been beneficial to them so far. He goes back and meets with Katagiri to share the latest.
He acquired information on the warehouse where Tozawa is storing his shipments, and he’s been asked to go there later that day to check the place out. He tells Katagiri to stake the place out in advance so that they can have the upper hand.
Samantha collects all of the money she had saved up for her club and meets with Akira for the exchange. It turns out to be a scam, with Akira and his friends overpowering her and stealing all of her money.
Jake gets back home to find two thugs waiting for him. He puts up a fight but is ultimately overwhelmed, as they tell him to back off from his investigations into Tozawa.
Samantha is left with no choice and goes to Ishida and the Yakuza for help funding her club. Sato tries to convince Ishida that the business deal will not go as planned and isn’t lucrative but Ishida says that he has made up his mind and that Sato will be the one overlooking the operations.
Miyamoto thinks he’s being taken to the warehouse but they change course without telling him. Katagiri waits outside the warehouse for hours before going in armed because he starts to worry.
Inside, he meets Tozawa, who tells him that he saw right through their deception. He tells him to back from his clan or else he will have Katagiri’s family executed. His scare tactics appear to affect Katagiri.
Sato meets Samantha and tells her that she will get the money that she has asked for and that he will be there to ensure they get a proper return on their investment. As he is headed back to his car, one of the other members of his clan sneaks up on him and stabs him multiple times in the stomach.
Tozawa is getting ready to go for a small trip and is seen getting on a private jet. He says that he’s going for a short time but he’ll be back soon.
Jake finds a tape with the name ‘Yoshino’ outside his door. It turns out to be a video of Polina in the rumoured boat arguing with a client before a guard gets physical and ends up killing her. Jake takes the tape to Katagiri, asking for a second chance to prove himself after his past mistakes.
Katagiri invites him in, telling him to make sure he wasn’t followed so that the two can get to work.
Review
- The episode did not have a season finale feel to it. There were very few stakes or significant moments throughout the episode.
- There were certain allusions to how things might be for the second season, like Samantha’s new club and her relationship with the Yakuza as well as Jake and Katagiri’s renewed commitment to taking down Tozawa
- The mystery surrounding Tozawa’s dealings wasn’t explored sufficiently, leaving too much to the imagination of the viewers.
- Even the attack on Sato felt like a shocking moment which came at the wrong time and without enough basis.
Rating: 2.5/5
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