Title: 特上カバチ!! Tokujo Kabachi!!
English Title: Unnecessary Quibbling
Country: Japan
Language: Japanese
Year: 2010
Episode: 10
Cast:
- 櫻井翔 Sakurai Shō
- 堀北真希 Horikita Maki
- 遠藤憲一 Endo Kenichi
- 渡辺いっけい Watanabe Ikkei
- 田丸麻紀 Tamaru Maki
- 高橋克実 Takahashi Katsumi
SYNOPSIS
嵐 Arashi - TroublemakerTamura Katsuhiko aims to become an administrative scrivener, which is a person that helps draft legal documents and assists clients engaged in legal proceedings.
Sumiyoshi Misuzu is a former delinquent and is an exceptional administrative scrivener. She has been quite successful in helping her clients win out-of-court proceedings.
Katsuhiro and Misuzu are always at odds, but they gradually come to understand each other.
REVIEW
In Tokujo Kabachi!!, the main character's job is quite confusing; it's like a cross between legal secretary and government employee and sociologist. I'm not really sure if this job is unique to Japanese society or not.
What is quite clear is that they help their clients to win legal disputes. As these things go, one party wants something that the other party does not want to give, or one party needs something that the other party cannot provide.
Tamura Katsuhiko is such a straightforward character and he wants a win-win outcome wherein his clients get what they want and the other parties are also satisfied. Other professionals in the field are quick to enlighten him about how a win-win outcome is more of an idealistic thinking. They tell Katsuhiko to be realistic and Sumiyoshi Misuzu tells him to focus on making sure his clients win the legal disputes.
Katsuhiko is a strange fellow though. He not only goes out of his way to help his clients with their legal issues, he even tries to mend his clients' broken relationships. And although he agrees to focus on his clients, he always attempts to get a win-win outcome for his clients and other parties.
I didn't get why Katsuhiko and Misuzu chose to become administrative scriveners, it's not exactly a career that comes with much fanfare such as being lawyers or doctors. I also didn't get why they chose to remain so, even though better job opportunities are available to them.
I know people don't always have to aspire for more; sometimes people are quite content to remain who they are right now and to remain where they are at the moment. What makes me question Katsuhiko and Misuzu's motives is possibly the fact that their reasoning for wanting to do so is not quite crystal clear. It's like they decided to remain as administrative scriveners just because they want to and not because of any compelling reasons. Perhaps if their convictions are more obvious, I would understand their decisions even though I don't entirely agree with their choices.
This drama was quite notorious for not portraying reality. Some lawyers were opposed to have the drama released in DVD format because the administrative scriveners in the drama performed some work that they are not legally allowed to do. I suppose this creates some confusion on the responsibilities of administrative scriveners and their role in the society.
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特上カバチ!! Tokujo Kabachi!!
