A quite intriguing Japanese police drama is in progress on the usual channels – “Tokyo Salad Bowl”. The premise is that Tokyo is not a melting pot where different peoples combine but a salad bowl where variety adds to the spice of life. That may sound a little too close to Woke, but have patience.
The first episode is a little silly as the two principal characters are introduced – a green-haired female police sergeant who loves foreign food, and a stone-faced interpreter for Chinese language who turns out to be an ex-cop. There are apparently about 600,000 foreigners living in Tokyo – Filipinos, Vietnamese, Chinese, and more. Being Japan, immigration is tightly controlled, but individuals overstay their visas, exposing them to exploitation by criminals. Tokyo police have international departments focused on such people.
Of course, the main characters have back-stories, which are revealed as additional characters are added to the series. The series is currently in progress, and so the mystery is still deepening. For viewers who like something different and can live with subtitles, this one may be worth checking out.