I thought the Ootsuki spin-off would be its own series, but it starts at episode 14 in Middle Manager Tonegawa. I expected to see Kaiji instead, so I was a little disappointed. Nonetheless, I’m still enjoying this anime because I love FKMT and it’s really funny. This anime might be harder to understand if you have not watched Kaiji seasons 1 or 2. Ootsuki appears in Kaiji season 2, so I think you should watch both seasons before you watch Middle Manager Tonegawa.
Synopsis: Ootsuki works at the underground labour camp because he has a lot of debt and in this show, we get to see what he does when he uses his “One-Day Outing Ticket.” Essentially, he has a free day and he can do whatever he wants. Ootsuki is a food lover so you can expect him to enjoy and savour food in every episode.
Episode 14
Ootsuki likes to take his time and rest… After he is relaxed, he eats food… then sleeps… It’s very relaxing to watch.
Most people run after the clock starts and try to win money from casinos to get out of the labour camp. Ootsuki, on the other hand, is totally calm! He loves to eat food!
Episode 15
The episode is divided into three parts. In the first part, Ootsuki spends his free day with a labour camp mate. Ootsuki teaches him how he spends his free days.
In the second part, Ootsuki spends his free day with a blacksuit (one of the men in black suits). The blacksuit is very skeptical of Ootsuki at first but they become best buddies at the end of the day.
In the last part, Tonegawa walks into a restaurant and ends up in a food eating contest with Ootsuki. It was awesome seeing the two of them meet and I liked how Tonegawa didn’t disappear from the show completely.
This anime has a lot of the same elements from Kaiji, such as a narrator, zawa zawa, and awesome music. The opening song is so good!
Overall, this is still one of the shows I look forward to the most each week. I want Kaiji to appear, but I’m satisfied with Ootsuki and Tonegawa. I used to hate both of them because they were antagonists but this show is showing us different sides of them, making them seem human and likable.
I blogged about Middle Manager Tonegawa in which the episodes were focused on Tonegawa. You can read that here.
Wretched and Divine 