Ao no SP: Gakko nai Keisatsu Shimada Ryuhei (2021)

You're under arrest!

Ao no SP: Gakko nai Keisatsu Shimada Ryuhei, which translates literally as Blue SP: School Police, Ryuhei Shimada, is a Kansai TV co-production that aired in 2021 as part of its “Tuesday 9pm drama lineup” as well as on its affiliate channel, Fuji TV. K Factory is the other production house involved in co-producing this drama which is given the title of School Cop on Netflix for worldwide distribution.

The drama is adapted from the book, School Police, written by Mitsugu Sasaki. The screenplay is co-written by Tetsuya Oishi (Iryu Sousa series), Junpei Yamaoka, and Soichiro Kojima while Masahiro Kunimoto, Takeshi Shirakawa, and Takashi Takahashi serve as co-directors. The score is composed by the prolific Kanno Yugo (Nihon Chinbotsu: Kibo no Hito, Hyochakusha, Koi wa Deep ni). The Japanese 4-member piano-rock band, SHE’s provides the upbeat theme song, Oikaze.

Based on the premise of local law enforcement introducing the school police system in public junior high schools on a trial basis. Ryuhei Shimada, a detective from the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department's Investigation Division 1, volunteers as the first school cop for this initiative where he becomes assigned to Akamine Middle School.

What I Liked

The story provides a balance between episodic procedurals that focus on students and teachers - usually involving trouble with the law - and the overarching mystery of why an experienced Division 1 detective would volunteer for this school police program. The storytelling is mostly lighthearted but does get somewhat serious and emotive, particularly towards the second half, with a mix of satire and bits of social commentary infused into the plot.

What I initially thought would involve mainly the garden variety kind of school problems eventually morphed into more serious issues such as sexual harassments and assaults, racism and authority abuse. Even GL is briefly addressed in one of the episodes. The unexpected presence of wide-ranging themes certainly keeps the plot interesting and thought-provoking to a certain extent.

This drama is headlined by Fujiwara Tatsuya who plays the titular role of Shimada Ryuhei to perfection. Out of the box and slightly unhinged, this school cop employs a variety of unorthodox and most likely illegal methods of investigating and solving crimes. I do not completely disagree with his approach which turns out to be effective and efficient most of the time. My second time seeing the actor, there is an appealing uniqueness to his portrayal that embodies entirely the concept of the anti-hero, which his character truly represents within the context of the story. And he’s absolutely fun to watch.

There is no question that the production is clearly moderately budgeted, and that the technical execution is nothing to write home about. Nonetheless, the production design appears decently rendered while the one aspect that impresses me the most is the action choreography. The fight sequences depicted in several episodes are quite stunning and feature some pretty slick moves by the ML. They may not look as polished as bigger budget dramas but I appreciate the raw edge of the physicality involved which adds to the sense of realism.

What Fell Short

The individual cases presented are very quickly resolved while the disturbing nature of certain issues are generally glossed over without further in-depth exploration. I suppose this is more of a personal wish to observe the issues being fleshed out because the episodic format rarely allows sufficient time and space to let the sub-plots breathe and expand.

Aside from the ML, Maki Yoko plays the FL homeroom teacher, Asamura Ryoko. I thought her performance was somewhat lacking in terms of her articulation of the characterization. There are brief flashes of emotional intentisy here and there but overall she appears rather subdued.

Final Thoughts

School Cop is a light and easy watch that’s entertaining, provocative and well paced with a compelling performance by Fujiwara Tatsuya. At only 10 episodes and available subbed on Netflix, this is one production that’s well worth the binge.

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In term of story, the drama probably is not the most original but the problems faced by the students are quite relatable to what is happening now in real life. As what we might expect, Shimada will be the hero in every situation but I think there are times that Shimada's preparedness is too exaggerated and unrealistic. Fujiwara Tatsuya played Shimada really well, his delivery of Shimada's no-nonsense approach and harsh comments is my main highlight of this drama. Maki Youko as Ms. Asamura unfortunately had her role diminished in the later half of the drama and you don't get much impression on her as we move towards the ending, overshadowed by Katsumi Takahashi who plays the headmaster.

In general, the drama is quite interesting especially when the main plot starts to be unveiled, but it could better if the "weekly cases" is more complicated. Also, I think there is one certain episode that can be omitted where there is no case at all and we ended up with a weak story about parenting issue. If you decide to watch, be ready to enjoy Shimada's antics and by the end of the drama maybe you will also start to question "Do we really need the school police?"

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One of the most thrilling, adventurous, suspenseful, and dramatic dramas I have watched in a long, long time! The story was most certainly original and the student's problems are definitely unique to any other school/student drama I've seen (or read in manga or manhwa) before. However, there is a familiar feeling within the depths of this show that I just can't figure out. I can't tell if it's because of the story, or if I recognize the cast in other roles from other shows I've seen, or if I recognize and am comparing the story (even faintly so) within another story. Though honestly, I have to say that I wanted to watch this story because of Fujiwara Tatsuya, however, I am so glad I watched this because of the ENTIRE cast!

To be honest, though, when I watched the first three episodes or so, I just didn't understand why Fujiwara Tatsuya was cast in a very unusual setting. Though the more I watched this show I was surprised with how well he fit within this story as his character, Shimada Ryuhei. He taught so well, in his unorthodox way, and to watch him in action was superb! Watching the growth of each person throughout the show, as their character and as themselves, was insanely amazing!

Even though this show is mostly kid actors, the story(ies) and plot line(s) are pretty adult and mature for being at a middle school, however, I think that the cast, director, and screenwriters really created a very special and exciting story! With each episode, a new student was brought to the front as the "main character" and their problem was brought to light, and at the end of each episode while it seemed like the student was put on the backburner... it wasn't. Even though each student's issues seemed to be resolved, they all seemed to melt within the entire story as a whole. If I'm being honest, each student's issue is about 50% relatable and 50% not relatable, at least to me. Though I'm sure that seems to be an even balance for the millions that live on this earth (if that makes any sense).

This show is epic! The amount of talent within its cast, the writers, the staff, the director, producers, etc... Is one of a kind! Each character seems to have their own sense of justice, conceited or selfish, even the students! Each student was supremely talented; not one person seemed out of their league or too inexperienced. In fact, I was so drawn in by each students acting talents that I completely lost track of the timing of the episodes! The story was so enthralling that I wanted to marathon it straight through to see how the students would cope and deal with each problem that came their way. And I was not disappointed! Each unique problem was settled by a very unique consequence, reason, or action.

The story of this entire show was created so thoroughly that no stone was left unturned from beginning to end! Each episode created such a thrilling and gut-wrenching story that built up to such a creative, epic, unique, and exciting end! Even though I wish there was a more complete follow-up to the ending, I promise you that if you watch this show, I promise you will enjoy it all to its fullest!








(if you've made it this far, here a line I found intriguing: "spite is frightening." this one line was truly telling for not only that episode or even that specific character, but for the entire show; though maybe not for each and every single character, this one line was heavy enough for me to consider it for many characters actions, teachers and students and parents alike.)

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A dynamic of two professions

A school cop system? It is an interesting system to be introduced in education. However, Asamura is right on it shall not be implemented. But to create a safe school's environment to the students is a long journey.

The story began with Shimada Ryuhei assigning himself to be a school cop in a middle school. Little did we know, the school held some unsettling secrets that have been left buried. Ryuhei is a police with integrity, although he could be a bit emotional while handling the cases. One by one, he slowly revealed the truth behind everything.

Overall, I love Ryuhei's straightforward character. He could snap and knock some realistic senses to the teachers, students, parents and the fault systems. He gave better life lessons than the teachers to the involved parties. On another note, Asamura tried her best to be a good teacher which I understood but again, Ryuhei saw things more clearly. I like his words on them being slaves to the rewarding job (teaching).

I also like the relatable stories among the students. The dedication of the teachers, parents' decisions on their children's future, abandonment, etc. They indeed reflect the reality of life. I learnt a lot from School Police.

Every acting performance is solid. I like the students and also Saegusa being a comedic relief.

"I hope someday, the school will be a place where police isn't needed." —Shimada Ryuhei

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Acción policial y suspenso en la escuela

Otro excelente dorama de Fujiwara Tatsuya, en esta ocasión tenemos una historia que a mi criterio, es muy original honestamente nunca había visto una historia en donde introduzcan un sistema de policias dentro de una escuela, pienso que incluso esto es necesario en algunos países donde hay incidentes de violencia dentro de las escuelas, y seguramente la presencia de un policia ayudaría bastante. En esta historia, nuestro héroe entra con una agenda secreta, en donde se desarrolla una historia llena de suspenso, acción y aprendizaje sobre las situaciones que afectan a los estudiantes de esta edad hoy día y al sistema educativo en general, vemos temas como el impacto del SNS, el trato a estudiantes extranjeros, horas de trabajo excesivas para los profesores en la escuela, situaciones de acoso sexual, violencia dentro de la escuela, entre otros, la verdad todas las historias independientes fueron muy buenas, y sin duda alguna, el caso principal que se desarrolla durante toda la serie es fascinante, y sumamente inesperado todo lo que ocurre al final, yo realmente me sorprendí mucho con la manera en que se revelaron las cosas al final.

Con respecto a actuación, considero que Fujiwara hizo demasiado bien su papel de policia con rencor, realmente podía sentir como transmitía el odio y frustración que llevaba dentro, como siempre Fujiwara es perfecto para mostrar ese tipo de emociones incluso sin palabras; sus escenas de acción fueron super emocionantes, excelentes coreografías de peleas, hasta en cámara lenta, lo cual me encantó. El desarrollo de su personaje fue muy bueno, y vemos que luego de experimentar todos los sucesos de la serie, el personaje aprende muchas cosas que vemos con las decisiones que toma al final. Maki Yoko muy buena como siempre, pude ver en ella todas las emociones de inseguridad, y el hecho que ocultaba cosas también lo pudo transmitir muy bien. Yamada Yuki me encantó también con su actuación, muy agradable y simpático, con muchas escenas divertidas y también en muchas de las de acción. El resto de profesores muy buenos también, y una mención especial para los actores niños que hicieron su trabajo excelente, creo que hay mucho talento potencial en muchos de estos niños, así que espero verlos pronto en otros proyectos.

La música del dorama excelente, el tema instrumental cuando venían temas de acción me encantó y despertaba mucha emoción en mí, porque ya sabía que venía alguna escena chévere o emocionante. Adicionalmente a esto, el tema principal de la serie fue uno de los mejores de la temporada en mi opinión, la canción "Oi kaze" de la banda de rock SHE'S fue excelente para dejarme con ganas de ver el próximo capítulo.

En general, este dorama me pareció emocionante, interesante, único, divertido y con mucho corazón y lleno de lecciones que recordaré, junto con personajes sumamente carismáticos, y me dejó con muchas ganas de una segunda temporada.

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