The American crime drama television series Tokyo Vice has been taking the country by storm since its premiere on April 7, 2022, almost instantaneously getting renewed for a second season that eventually premiered on February 8, 2024.
Based on the 2009 novel of the same name — written by Jake Adelstein, who doubles as the main character of the overall story — the show stars Ansel Elgort and Ken Watanabe in lead roles, as well as appearances from Rachel Keller, Hideaki Itō, Ella Rumpf, Rinko Kikuchi, Tomohisa Yamashita, and beyond.
As far as the plot goes, an American journalist — Jake Adelstein, who is played by Ansel Elgort — relocates to Tokyo and is given the opportunity to work for a major Japanese newspaper. Starting at the very bottom of the barrel, Adelstein becomes the publication’s first foreign-born journalist, beginning to explore the dark and dangerous world of the Japanese yakuza, “members of transnational organized crime syndicates” that are known for “extortion, fraud, and smuggling, as well as more traditional activities such as gambling, prostitution, and loansharking.” Naturally, this results in a storyline that is sure to keep you on the edge of your seat from episode to episode, as well as posing quite a few questions.
Given that Tokyo Vice features some rather outdated elements, fans of the American crime drama television series cannot help but wonder what year the story is supposed to take place, but fortunately, we got you covered. Keep scrolling to see for yourself…
The television version of Tokyo Vice begins with Adelstein joining a major Japanese newspaper in the year 1999, however, the book version manages to cover 12 years of his career. While season 1 begins in 1999, it is unclear when season 2 begins. All we know is that the second season picks up where the first season concluded, however, the exact year might have to remain a mystery…