Kurosagi (manga)
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is a Japanese
manga Manga (Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is u ...
written by Takeshi Natsuhara and illustrated by Kuromaru. The series is about a boy named Kurosaki who swindles only other professional swindlers known as . The series was adapted as an 11-episode TV drama that was aired on TBS from April 14 to June 23, 2006. On March 8, 2008, ''
Kurosagi is a Japanese manga written by Takeshi Natsuhara and illustrated by Kuromaru. The series is about a boy named Kurosaki who swindles only other professional swindlers known as . The series was adapted as an 11-episode TV drama that was a ...
'' with
Tomohisa Yamashita , also widely known as , or Tomo, is a Japanese singer, actor, and TV host. Yamashita joined the Japanese talent agency Johnny & Associates as a trainee in 1996 (age 11) and made his small acting debut for NHK's ''Shonentachi'' (1998) and has be ...
starring as the Black Swindler once again, was released. Another television drama adaptation is set to premiere in October 2022. It won the 2008
Shogakukan Manga Award The is one of Japan's major manga awards, and is sponsored by Shogakukan, Shogakukan Publishing. It has been awarded annually for serialized manga and features candidates from a number of publishers. It is the oldest manga award in Japan, being ...
for
seinen is an editorial category of Japanese comics marketed toward young adult men. In Japanese, the word ''seinen'' literally means "youth", but the term "''seinen'' manga" is also used to describe the target audience of magazines like ''Weekly Ma ...
/general manga.


Plot

Six years ago, Kurosaki's family was destroyed when a "shirosagi" (a "white swindler", who focuses on defrauding others) swindled Kurosaki's father of their family's life savings. As a result, his father killed Kurosaki's mother and sister before committing suicide. Since then, Kurosaki has devoted himself to becoming a "kurosagi" ("black swindler"), who swindles other swindlers, as a means of revenge. As a "kurosagi", Kurosaki's acts have helped innocent victims of swindling schemes get their money back. However, he is frequently met with opposition by a stubborn grad student, who seeks to become a prosecutor.


Characters

; : A 21-year-old famed swindler known as the Kurosagi (or Black Swindler) because he only targets professional swindlers, conning them out of their own money, leaving them in ruins, and then using that money to pay back his client who are con victims. His hatred against swindler started because his father was conned out of his wealth and left him with debts. This misfortune drove his father to kill his wife and daughter and, finally, himself. He tried to kill Katsuragi, who was connected to conman who led his family's misfortunes, but failed and recruited to be "pest control" for conmen who broke the "code" instead. He also possesses hatred to banks as banks gave his father final push to his despair. ; : Tsurara Yoshikawa is a law student who disapproves of Kurosagi's swindling ways but falls in love with him. She lives in Kurosaki's apartment as a tenant. Her dream is to be a prosecutor. When she accidentally discovers Kurosaki's job as a "kurosagi", he kicks her out of the apartment in order to protect her from the repercussions of his actions rather than facing the other option of silencing her. She later returns as a tenant in Kurosaki's building with condition that she would not do anything which endangers Kurosaki's operations. A condition which she accepts as she is aware how powerful Katsuragi, Kurosaki's backer, in the criminal world and how connected he is. Tsurara has a deadbeat father who becomes an unwitting accomplice in a con operation. Kurosaki saves Tsurara's father by trapping the ringleader while leaving no traces of his involvement in the con operation. In the end of manga timeline, she manages to graduate the law school and becomes a prosecutor while still retaining his faith in law. ; : Known as the "Fixer", Katsuragi is an information broker who supplies Kurosaki with information for a cut of the profit Kurosaki makes and supports Kurosaki with acts such as buying defunct companies and being the mastermind behind many of Kurosaki's schemes. Though he is somewhat of a father-figure to Kurosaki, he is a nefarious character as he employs other swindlers aside from Kurosaki. He uses his snack bar as his formal base. He is often seen cooking and a throwaway comment by author points out it is reason he is overweight is he eats all his cooking. He is significantly connected to conman who led Kurosakis' misfortunes. For that reason, Kurosaki tried to kill him but failed. Instead of killing Kurosaki, he recruited Kurosaki as titular Black Swindler. ; : Appearing in the manga and film adaptation of the series, Masaru Kashina is the newly appointed assistant inspector of the East Tokyo Department, in charge of intellectual crimes. Self-righteous and dedicated to returning law and order to Tokyo, he becomes obsessed with apprehending Kurosaki after learning of the Black Swindler and his methods of operation. Because his paternal uncle was a swindler, Kashina was adopted by his mother's relatives and had faked his death when he was two years old in order to create a new identity in order to pursue the swindlers he despises. His obsession of Kurosaki partly stems from the fact that he is aware the fact that he and Kurosaki both have their lives destroyed by swindlers. ;Yoichi Shiraishi : Another Kurosagi or "Black Swindler". He always dress and acts elegantly, on and off the "job". Unlike Kurosaki who take the "job" offered by Katsuragi and acts against usually small time conmen, Shiraishi acts more as freelance who targets corrupt corporations. While Kurosaki acts as temporary partner and another "mark" to conmen, Shiraishi infiltrates the companies as career hopper. His hatred on corrupt companies stems from his past where his father was ordered by the real estate company he works to persuade their neighbors to move to a badly constructed building. One year after moving, an incident at the new building claimed six lives, including Shiraishi's mother. Shiraishi and his father had to endure their neighbor criticisms despite the fact that they are also victims. ;Mikimoto : A conman who is responsible for Kurosaki's father lost his savings and drove him to commit murder-suicide. He has a hobby on folding crane origami. He always leaves a headless crane origami to his mark when he almost completely trap his targets, symbolizing the target's fate. ;Kuro :Kurosagi's pet cat. She is part Black Scottish Cat. As she is not purebred, she is unsalable. Kurosaki picked her from closed dishonest pet shop before the story starts. She is friendly Kurosaki and tenants of his building.


Cast

*
Tomohisa Yamashita , also widely known as , or Tomo, is a Japanese singer, actor, and TV host. Yamashita joined the Japanese talent agency Johnny & Associates as a trainee in 1996 (age 11) and made his small acting debut for NHK's ''Shonentachi'' (1998) and has be ...
as Kurosaki (Kurosagi) *
Maki Horikita is a Japanese former actress. During her career from 2003 until 2017, she starred in numerous Japanese television dramas, television and magazine advertisements, and movies, including roles in ''Nobuta wo Produce'', ''Hanazakari no Kimitachi e' ...
as Tsurara Yoshikawa *
Yui Ichikawa , is an actress and model from Tokyo, Japan. She is also known by her nickname, ''Yui-nyan''. As an actress she has appeared in several dramas (''doramas''), and in recent years she has concentrated more on her film career. She played a minor ...
as Yukari Mishima * Koji Kato as Yoichi Shiraishi *
Tsutomu Yamazaki is a Japanese actor. He won the Blue Ribbon Award for Best Actor in 1984 for '' The Funeral'' and '' Farewell to the Ark''. Yamazaki is well known for his role "Nenbutsu no Tetsu" on the television jidaigeki '' Hissatsu Shiokinin'' and ''Shin Hi ...
as Toshio Katsuragi *
Shiro Kishibe was a Japanese actor from Kyoto. He played the role of Sandy in ''Monkey''. Before becoming an actor, Kishibe was a guitarist and vocalist of a Japanese band called The Tigers. He has an elder brother, Ittoku Kishibe, who is also an actor, and ...
as Mikimoto * Ryosei Tayama as Tetsuji Momoyama * Reina as Yuuko Osawa * Kaoru Okunuki as Hayasa *
Tetta Sugimoto is a Japanese actor. Career Sugimoto was first a member of a rock band before he debuted as an actor in 1983 in the film ''Hakujasho''. For that film, he won a Japan Academy Prize best newcomer award. In addition to his work in film, he has als ...
as Kurosaki's Father *
Show Aikawa is a Japanese actor. Career Show Aikawa was born in Tokushima and raised in Kagoshima. Aikawa has appeared in a number of Kiyoshi Kurosawa's films, including ''Eyes of the Spider'', ''Serpent's Path'', ''License to Live'', ''Seance'', and ''Pu ...
as Masaru Kashina


Reception

''Kurosagi'' won the 53rd
Shogakukan Manga Award The is one of Japan's major manga awards, and is sponsored by Shogakukan, Shogakukan Publishing. It has been awarded annually for serialized manga and features candidates from a number of publishers. It is the oldest manga award in Japan, being ...
for
seinen is an editorial category of Japanese comics marketed toward young adult men. In Japanese, the word ''seinen'' literally means "youth", but the term "''seinen'' manga" is also used to describe the target audience of magazines like ''Weekly Ma ...
/general manga along with Tetsuji Sekiya's ''
Bambino! is a Japanese cooking manga written and illustrated by Tetsuji Sekiya. The manga has been serialized in Shogakukan's seinen magazine (aimed at older men) ''Big Comic Spirits''. As of February 2009, Shogakukan has published 14 '' tankōbon ...
'' in 2008.


References


External links


Official Website of Manga

Official Website of Drama

Official Website of Movie
* {{Shogakukan Manga Award - General 2003 manga Business in anime and manga Fraud in fiction Japanese television dramas based on manga Kin'yō Dorama Seinen manga Shogakukan manga Thriller anime and manga Television shows written by Eriko Shinozaki Winners of the Shogakukan Manga Award for general manga