English Dub Review: Hakata Tonkotsu Ramens “Brawl”

The past has caught up with Ling, and now he needs to make a life changing choice.

Overview (Spoilers Below)

Hakata Tonkotstu Ramens comes in hot this week, as Feilang and Shunsuke face off in a battle to the death. Their fighting is fierce, a vicious blend of agility and cunning, but soon Shunsuke has Feilang on the ropes. That is until a surprise gunshot from one of Feilang’s agents knocks the ninja assassin off a cliff into the river below. Shunsuke doesn’t how to swim, but it’s not long before Banba, who was watching the whole thing, fishes him up with a snarky grin on his face.

We then go back to Enokida and Ling. Enokida, having heard Ling’s tragic upbringing, offers his sympathies, and expresses his concern for his troubled friend. Meanwhile, we see Feilang torture his two prisoners by forcing them to fight each other to the death, and also find Shunsuke meeting up with his manager. His client’s agent soon arrives, explaining the situation to the Kakyu Association. Feilang has been viciously murdering the agents of Shunsuke’s mafia employer. This convinces the mafia boss to back down from the Kakyu Association, fooled by Feilang’s clever presentation of the bodies to make them think the Kakyu are aligned with a strong mafia family in Shanghai.

Shunsuke reveals this information to Banba, who heads back home only to find Lin’s farewell message. He calls Enokida, who pretends to have not seen Ling, and relays the message to Ling that Banba doesn’t understand why Ling left. After this, the Kakyu association and the mafia come to a peace, on the stipulation that Shunsuke be turned over to be punished for his murders.

Ling runs into his and Banba’s doctor friend, who gifts him a nice skincare product. Then, by some happenstance, he runs into Yamato, who starts to schmooze Ling for a bit, offering him some discount coupons. Then, when Ling is in his cafe cubicle, Jose, Jirou, and Misaki show up to offer their companionship to Ling as well, along with a bag of sweet buns. Ling is frustrated by their insistence on them trying to get him to stay in town but is secretly touched by their efforts deep down. Turns out Enokida didn’t mind spreading the news that Ling was getting out of town.

Soon, Ling gets a call from his police contact, who clues Ling into a couple of suspicious murders that might be connected to Ling because of their strange names which are similar to Ling’s. Ling pretends he doesn’t know but has surely realized that Feilang is in town and trying to get his attention. Meanwhile, Banba tries to get into contact with Ling, but is also bugging the headquarters of the Kakyu Association, whose top brass are congratulating him for a job well done. Despite their niceties, Feilang realizes that the sake they’re drinking is poisoned and that his employers are trying to betray him. Armed with this knowledge, Feilang soon turns the tables and infects their leader with a deadly virus that only he has the cure for. In exchange for this antidote, however, he takes the seat of power in the Kakyu Association, holding their leader’s life hostage.

Meanwhile, Shunsuke has dinner with his manager, who surprisingly drugs him into falling asleep, and receives a mysterious phone call. Enokida and Ling are also staying busy, using Enokida’s hacking skills to track down Feilang. The next morning, Shunsuke awakes in the captivity of his former employers and his manager, who has agreed to turn Shunsuke over to the Kakyu Association. The mafia agents decide to execute Shunsuke instead, in exchange for a little extra money for his agent. But then, the manager’s duplicity reveals his true aim; just as the agents are about to shoot Shunsuke, he reveals his own gun and shoots the agents instead. Turnabout is fair play, and it turns out Shunsuke’s manager isn’t such a bad guy after all. His double-cross turns the tables, much to Shunsuke’s dismay at being left out of the loop.

Ling continues his hunt for Feilang, eventually tracking him down to an apartment he’s broken into and murdered the owners of. Their fated confrontation is set, as Feilang tells Ling what he’s been up to all these years and how he’s still alive. Surprisingly, he doesn’t want to kill Ling, and actually offers to be his partner; two assassins working together to take on the world. But Ling refuses, and at that moment realizes how much this city means to him, and thinks of all the friends he’s made since his arrival here. Feilang finds this curious but responds with a sinister ultimatum: Ling will accept his offer, or he’ll kill all of Ling’s friends.

Our Take:

This was a rich, heart-stirring episode that felt like a genuine and natural extension of these characters’ development so far. Though somewhat sparse, this episode did a good job of imparting to the viewer a sincere sense of companionship Ling holds for his friends, and that Shunsuke and his manager have for each other. That and Feilang’s quality villains create a strong conflict that holds the tension of the episode right through the end. It’s always good to see some pieces fall into place.