[ENG MTL] The Private Detective Mike EP1: The Fable of 31 → 1

drive.google.com/drive/folders/1F_EK1sQJvE8cf7BFR7orMh8X6u9LrxtK?usp=drive_link
archive.org/details/the-private-detective-mike

YT is ignoring some of the line breaks in the subtitles. links above include downloads for the srts (as I add them) and the episodes, which I recommend over YT as the quality is _slightly_ better

i don’t know japanese but nonetheless I’ll be slowly cleaning up this MTL so I can watch the show. i’m hoping one of you out there beats me to the punch with a real translation—feel free to use my sub timings if they’re of any help to you, and you can reach me @clownswords on discord if you want some seriously wonky transcripts to work from

[from the playlist desc]
a few notes about the series as a whole
– it’s called “legendary” for the unique circumstances behind its production: the entire series was shot on 16mm film, during a time when shows had transitioned to DV, and with a different up-and-coming director per episode
– part of the intent was to hand the previous eras of film to the younger directors of the next
– it’s essentially a reboot with the “world” around mike having been remade, the events of the films never made relevant
– there are widescreen director’s cuts of all 12 episodes available only on separate dvds (x.com/cosmicspooks/status/1814935212419166669)
– notably, they all cut the opening song “cherry in the beak” (くちばしにチェリー) by EGO-WRAPPIN (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f2w9JwQaT4U)
– there are a *lot* of guest stars, with one usually playing a character central to the episode
– a full list can be found on wikipedia (ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/私立探偵_濱マイク#作品リスト（テレビドラマ）)
– web.archive.org/web/20101120183610/http://sotome.jp/mike/project.html

[for the episode]
(1:57) they don’t show the whole process, but mike uses Amidakuji/Ghost leg to determine who has to deal with Kin-chan (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghost_leg)
– he calls it something like “Amidada”, but I’m not sure of the meaning
– i wrote it as “lottery” instead, but knowing how Amida plays is needed to understand a (still very explicit) metaphor later on

(11:30) “Milk” is the character’s nickname. the director’s cut supposedly explains how she came to work for mike
– you can read about her background here instead: web.archive.org/web/20101020144804/http://sotome.jp/mike/milk.html

(12:31) the address on the slip seems to be “Kanagawa Prefecture, Fujikawa City, Miyoshi Town/Neighborhood 3-11-6” (神奈川県富士川市三好町3-11-6)
– Kanagawa is of course a real prefecture, but Fujikawa is a town (not a city) in the Yamanashi prefecture..
– Miyoshi-cho did exist in 2002, but in Tokugashi instead. it isn’t the only “Miyosho-cho”, but the others are not spelled the same
– it’s TV, so the address is likely fictional
– later on, it sounds like yamamoto actually calls it the “miyoshi theater” instead of “the theater”, which maybe indicates this takes place in a fictional part of Yokohama…?
– but they also identify the nearby area as Koganecho…

(19:41) mike uses a term a bit more connoted than “housewife” (en.wiktionary.org/wiki/団地妻)

(20:30) sayoko’s referring to the annual NHK Kōhaku Uta Gassen (The Red and White Song Battle) (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kōhaku_Uta_Gassen)
– Julie is the nickname of Kenji Sawada, a musician (and actor) who appeared on the program 17 times
– he wasn’t there in “recent” years, though? (ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/沢田研二#NHK紅白歌合戦出場歴)
– she’s singing 勝手にしやがれ (Do As You Please/Do As You Like): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aFAdojrMoao
– and she’s likely thinking of his performance from the ’77 Kōhaku: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZbADPnLklI

(29:45) in order
– en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masumi_Hayashi_(murderer)
– en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1998_Japan_Series
– en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shoko_Asahara

(34:00) the radio host is describing the positions of horses in the middle of a race
– my transcript is screwy, but this might be the exact race: en.netkeiba.com/db/race/200206020203/
– goofy thing to include here but you never know who it might matter to…

(36:35) OCRs failed me here, but they read like threats from insurers, yamamoto, neighbors(?)