English Dub Review: The Yakuza’s Guide to Babysitting “The Ultimate Target”

Overview (Spoilers Below):
Masaya has a vendetta against Kirishima, if only Kirishima can remember who he is.

Our Take:
The second half of season one begins with a brief conflict between Kirishima and his aggressive high school rival. As seen in the previous episode, Masaya Hanami was recently released from prison and sought to find and kill Kirishima after getting beaten up by him years ago. It is implied that Masaya joined the Yakuza family because Kirishima did, and he desires to fight him. At first, Masaya doesn’t believe that Kirishima is a changed man until he sees him with Yaeka, which frustrates him even more. Even worse, Kirishima doesn’t remember Masaya until Rei arrives to refresh his memory. Thankfully, the confrontation doesn’t last long as Masaya is collected by his boss, the head of the Kakihara family.
The second half then shifts focus to Kirishima’s partner Sugihara, as he attends a business meeting with Kono. Sugihara attempts to have Kono pay the Sakuragi less money, but things get complicated when Kono tries to take advantage of Sugihara without Kirishima present. Fortunately, Sugihara happens to be capable enough to solve the problem himself. He exposes Kono’s criminal activities and gives the developer a good punch in the face.
“The Ultimate Target” delivers another instance of Kirishima’s internal conflict with his dark side, thanks to Masaya pushing his buttons. More importantly, it finally gives Sugihara his due by having his own mini-adventure after being a comical punching bag for Kirishima. Granted, I enjoyed Sugihara for his entertaining humor, but seeing him be an independent and sympathetic badass makes me appreciate the character more. The episode also includes a brief origin story for Sugihara, in which he was a shoplifter before Kirishima hired him to make tea for the Sakuragi family. It further emphasizes the relationship between Kirishima and Sugihara and showcases Sugihara’s desire to be something more outside of Kirishima’s shadow.
The episode also has Mashiro serving a role in the plot, with him being responsible for having Kono antagonize Sugihara. Of course, his plan failed, resulting in him supposedly murdering Kono. If Mashiro really is as threatening as the episode suggests, then the Sakuragi family is going to be in for a rude awakening during the season’s final chapters.