Let’s take a look at Netflix’s biggest open secret. As much as the streaming giant puts out favorable shows like the Lovecraftian Stranger Things, which premiered back in July 2016, and the fantasy drama, The Witcher, which debuted in December 2019, they haven’t had much luck when it comes to Japanese Manga adaptations. Less than three weeks after the live-action remake of Cowboy Bebop, any production toward a second season was shut down. Currently holding a 4.5 score on IMDB, Death Note is swept under the rug by fans of the original. Least of all the adaptation nuisances, the 2017 Netflix version of Hiromu Arakawa’s FullMetal Alchemist seems to be on the border when it comes to audience reception.

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The ever-escalating hype surrounding the upcoming adaptation of the beloved One Piece franchise has fans feeling both excited and nervous. Between the still, the teaser videos, and the announced cast members, this could be a make-it-or-break-it type of situation for Netflix’s relationship with Japanese pop culture. Until that telling point in time arrives though, we can all be pleasantly distracted with another new live-action take on a recent manga hit, The Violence Action.

The Two Versions of The Violence Action

     Netflix

First released as a manga series within the Seinen category (which is Japanese comics like One Punch Man and Akira that are aimed toward young men) in April 2016, The Violence Action is currently up to its sixth volume after halting production for a time due to the original author’s poor health. Four years later, in 2020, news broke about The Violence Action getting a formal screen adaptation.

The original version garnered numerous accolades, including being ranked within the top ten for best manga for male readers and recommended comics in 2018 by various media conglomerates in Japan.

Played by Kanna Hashimoto, Kei Kikuno is an equally quirky yet heartfelt young woman who leads quite a double life. She is your ordinary college student, with her academic focus centered around financial bookkeeping during the day. But at night, coming from a single landline in a secluded ramen shop, Kei receives calls from those looking to pay for her services as a killer for hire.

Balancing the brutality that comes with such an occupation, The Violence Action surrounds the leading femme fatale with numerous comedic relief characters such as Zura-san, played by Takashi Okamura, Kei’s unsavory driver who dons an extravagant bulletproof hairpiece to cover his bald head and Watanabe, brought to life by Oji Suzuka, a fellow student who bumbles his way into finding out about Kei’s true calling and ends up a part of her team.

Violence With Style

Just because this new manga adaptation is certainly zany and off the walls at times, there are plenty of hard-hitting characters too. Yuu Shirota stars as Michitaka-kun, a frighteningly strong and deranged hitman looking to destroy Kei and lead his father’s branch of the yakuza to prosperity.

Throughout the movie, his signature slicked-back hair and white jumpsuit, mixed with his creepy renditions of popular Japanese songs, make Michitaka an unforgettable antagonist. Mr. Shirota can stand next to the likes of Anthony Carrigan’s depiction of Victor Zsas in Fox’s Gotham and Theo Rossi as Shades in Marvel’s Luke Cage on Netflix. Also deserving of a spotlight in the villain category is Jiro Sato and his portrayal of Sandaime Kumicho, third-generation leader of the denma-gumi who is looking for a successor throughout The Violence Action.

His repeated use of flat dad jokes subtly shows his cold disconnect toward the line of work that he is in. The last scene regarding his character arc truly shows that no matter how funny he tries to be, his eerie soul always ends up coming through instead.

Putting aside all the colorful ruthlessness this live-action manga remake has to offer, The Violence Action holds a well-balanced foundation for the story. Kei Kikuno and a couple of her assassin acquaintances find themselves in the middle of trouble when a routine call finds the pink-haired and petite enforcer caught in the middle of a yakuza familial feud. Instead of killing her target, Kei ends up catching feelings for him and saving the man with just a moment’s notice. In turn, she naturally ends up being targeted by those who hired her in the first place.

Fighting through perilous situations and enemies that are literally tougher than nails, the conclusion unquestionably provides the audience with those same types of fight scenes that are reminiscent of those from fantastical anime, absurdly entertaining but, at the same time, dizzyingly gripping in terms of who will come out on top in the end.

While not taking itself too seriously, this live-action remake should not be discarded with the other mediocre attempts that Netflix has made in the past. Whether you feel like happily losing yourself in a story of guns and romance or you are a fan of all things manga, don’t miss your shot at seeing The Violence Action.