Polina, a journalist, interviews Matsu, a man who is after the woman for stealing money from the local mission fund. Matsu and his men are after her because she stole close to forty million yen from the fund. She now fears extradition and wants to put this problem behind her. ..
Jake has an emotional conversation with his mother. She requests him to come home and make amends with his father and look after his sister. Jake doesn’t want to. After a friendly bout with Miyamoto, they have an interesting conversation about Hiroto. A seed of doubt is sown in Jake: Hiroto is not trustworthy. His methods are sometimes too much of a stranger to rules. As promised, Jake receives the information on the traitor from Hiroto. He is unsure about his motivations but goes through with the task. Hiroto warns Jake against taking the return favor from Ishida.
Jake asks Ishida for a favor: to look into the company Suzuno Financial, which is owned by Sugita. Jake believes that this company may have been involved in the shady dealings that led to the people he met going bankrupt. Sugito, the owner of Suzuno Financial, is willing to cooperate with Jake and tells him about some of his business dealings. However, it’s unclear whether or not he will be able to help Jake find out more information about Suzuno Financial’s involvement in the bankruptcy. ..
He agrees in principle but is then seen running to Tozawa for further orders. Meanwhile, the traitor turns out to be Kume. On Ishida’s demand for answers, Kume ridicules his “path of righteousness” and bemoans the lack of innovation in Chihara-kai’s business. He feels Tozawa’s insistence to compromise with the moral right puts his organization in a better position to take Chihara-kai’s place as well. Ishida asks Sato to kill Kume but he spares him the ordeal by committing suicide and jumping off the terrace. ..
Hiroto requests Ishida to maintain peace. He advises him against going after Tozawa and Ishida sees his reason. He agrees to a truce. Jake and Tin Tin visit Sugita’s home. They find he committed suicide as Tozawa said and takes all the blame. Hiroto then relays the information of the truce to Tozawa’s men. He feels Ishida is vulnerable and there for the taking. Baku, Emi, and Jake’s boss, refuses to run the story that implicates Tozawa without proof. ..
Jake is advised by Hiroto to not worry about the world and to just have fun. He goes out with Samantha and Sato and has a good time. Polina consoles Jake and tells her to look for someone else. ..
In the final moments of the episode, Samantha is seen visiting Matsu’s house. She gives her money but Matsu refuses. He instead asks her for “what she will not sell”. Samantha is disgusted but realizes she does not have any choice. Sato, meanwhile, returns back to the headquarters. He notices the bodies of men and rushes inside. Ishida is seen fighting Tozawa’s men alone and Sato helps him out. The two collectively take down the remaining men and tremble in anticipation of what’s to come next.
The Episode Review
“Everybody Pays” was a thrilling episode that delivered on its promises. It was an exciting tale of action and adventure, with revelations about the characters and the plot. The finale left us on a cliffhanger, with questions unanswered. ..
The episode also does a great job of marking a distinction between Ishida and Tozawa that I found interesting and something right out of the book of Coppola’s ‘The Godfather. Remember when Solozzo offered Don Corleone to enter into the highly profitable drugs business and he refused? Something similar happens here as well when Kume mentions Tozawa bringing in kabu from North Korea. It also explains to some degree why Hiroto respects Ishida more and why his lineage and the righteous path provide a semblance of redemption to his organization.
In the episode, “Closure,” we see a marked change in the relationship between Sam and Sato. Previously, they were both very tense and angry with each other. However, after finally releasing all their anger and tension, they seem to be more at ease. This is likely because they finally understand what happened and what it means for them. We also see a change in Jake’s ethics. Previously, he was very hypocritical in his actions. He refused to visit his family even though he had lost them dearly, which showed his lack of care for them. However, after learning about the suicides and the loss of another family member’s loved one, Jake changed his ways. He began to care more about those he met and began to visit his family more often. This shows that he has grown as a person since then.
Jake and Hiroto’s conversation was interesting in that it showed how Jake is starting to let go of his naivety and innocence. Hiroto is becoming more hardened and guilt-free in his conscience for his actions like Jake. Creators try hard to portray the men in kinder light, but Jake is some distance from where Hiroto is in his life. He is on the same path, though.
Tokyo Vice is a triumphant success because it takes a hard look at the price these men pay for their success. It’s an interesting thesis that makes for an interesting comparison. Hopefully, we get to see this ahead!
