# Tiger and Dragon (2005)

> A young yakuza thug apprentices with an indebted rakugo performer, pairing gangster grit with traditional comic storytelling.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/34902

## Facts

- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 11
- Episode runtime: 46 min
- Status: Ended
- Genres: comedy, drama
- Network: TBS
- Cast: Tomoya Nagase, Junichi Okada, Misaki Itō, Takashi Tsukamoto, Yu Aoi, Toshiyuki Nishida, Sadao Abe, Toshinori Omi
- TMDB rating: 7.8/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1731947/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: measured
- Intensity: mild
- Complexity: simple
- Violence: mild
- Tone: breezy, wry, warm, comedic, sincere

## What critics say

Critics and viewers broadly regard the series as a warm, character-driven comedy-drama with strong performances, though its audience rating is modest and based on few votes.

## Synopsis

Tiger and Dragon (2005) is a Japanese comedy drama series broadcast on TBS, a single-season limited run of eleven episodes of about forty-six minutes each. Young yakuza thug Toraji Yamazaki (Tomoya Nagase) apprentices himself to Ryuji Yanaka (Junichi Okada), an indebted comic rakugo performer whose not-so-fashionable son runs a clothes shop in the Harajuku backstreets of Tokyo. Toraji's rough street instincts clash with the discipline of live comic storytelling, and each episode builds around his efforts to master the art while the debts and loyalties of the criminal underworld keep pulling at him. Supporting roles include Takashi Tsukamoto as Ginjiro Nakatani, Yu Aoi as Risa, and Misaki Itō as Megumi, adding friction and warmth to the household. The tone is breezy and wry, with sincere moments of found family and quiet humility beneath the jokes. Set in contemporary Tokyo, it has the light touch of a Japanese sitcom fused with the gentle heart of a mentor story. Fans of Gokusen and Kinpachi-sensei will find resonance in its blend of tough-guy outsiders and warm, comic human bonds.

## Shows like Tiger and Dragon

- [Back Street Girls: Gokudols (2019)](https://ember.film/tv/75365)
- [Saving My Stupid Youth (2014)](https://ember.film/tv/55625)
- [Midnight Diner (2009)](https://ember.film/tv/42558)
- [From Today, It's My Turn!! (2018)](https://ember.film/tv/70940)
- [Ikebukuro West Gate Park (2000)](https://ember.film/tv/4689)
- [Gokusen (2002)](https://ember.film/tv/56298)
- [GTO (2012)](https://ember.film/tv/41825)
- [Hinamatsuri (2018)](https://ember.film/tv/66443)
- [Hero (2001)](https://ember.film/tv/1370)
- [Chosen Home (2025)](https://ember.film/tv/433089)

---

Site overview: https://ember.film/llms.txt