#i also miss majima. i want to eat him alive as well:)

[littlegoldfinchh]

u will have to tell me what u think of yakuza kiwami 2

omg your timing is so funny im literally playing kiwami 2 rn

[maddogofshimano]

Majima (1988) Character Story

Everyone’s favorite lord of the night! I like his card art a lot for this one

He’s also got a 2nd 1988 card, but it doesn’t have a separate character story. 

Summary: Set immediately following Majima’s release from the hole. He’s sent over to Sagawa, who puts him to work as manager of the badly failing Grand. If he can’t get the business out of the red and into a hundred million yen of profit in the first month, Sagawa will kill him.

<part 1>

"The Hole. The place where the imprisoned begged for death to release them from the torture. No survivors ever returned from it. Majima was supposed to meet his end in the darkness there. But, after one year..."

Shimano: Heh, good job staying alive Majima. That's a big deal, ya know? Majima: .......... (Tl note: Majima doesn't have a talk sprite here, presumably because he's in really rough shape) Shimano: I don't think it'd be right havin' someone like you go and die a dog's death in a place like that. So I've made a change in plans. Over in Sotenbori I got a kyoudai under a different clan. He's the owner of a cabaret called The Grand, and I'm leavin' ya to be the manager of it. Majima: Cabaret manager......? Why would you...... Shimano: You don't gotta worry about it. And, if everything goes well you can come back to the Tojo Clan. Majima: ! Return to... the family......?!

Sagawa greets him briefly and tell Majima that he has to make 100 mil a MONTH at the Grand or he'll be killed. Majima goes to the Grand and explains the profits he needs and the greeter says that's completely impossible! Majima's not giving up, not after everything he’s been through, and just wants to see the place already.

Inside there are 0 customers, and he’s told there haven't been for the last 2 days. The Grand is deeply in the red. The current floor manager immediately does not like Majima and refuses to cooperate, Majima says that's fine since he's the new manager and he doesn't need his dumb ass anymore. The guy throws hands and Majima flattens him.

Since he just threw out his current floor manager, he immediately upgrades the greeter to new floor manager and doubles his salary. The new floor manager (FM from now on) thinks that's super great, but, there's no customers and everyone's worried about how they're gonna get paid. 

Majima: Don't worry about that, when the customers come then money will come. And getting the customers to come is my job as the new manager.   FM: Oh?? You know how to do that? Majima: Heh, I'm just an amateur in way over my head. I don't know a damn thing about cabaret. Majima says he's a man with nothing to lose and therefore no fear. He'll rebuild this place by any means necessary.

"....Returning to the yakuza is useless for me. It'll be my kyoudai's day to return...!"

"It's time to start the Grand's counterattack." <Part 2>

it's been one week since Majima started managing the Grand. The number of customers in the last three days? Zero. Majima is not sweating it. He's just figuring out what's a hit and what's a miss.

Majima hires a band to play, and manages to re-hire several of the former Grand hostesses. Majima: I haven't been playing around for this week. Majima: The world of the nightlife is dog eat dog. Only the survivors get to remain standing. FM: I'll follow you anywhere, Manager, even to death!

Several of Majima’s own staff members attack him! Majima is thrilled he has an excuse to cut loose and beats the tar out of them.

FM: W-woah! You're so strong!! Majima: Hm. I'm still feelin' the effects of the hole. These guys were total amateurs.

The staff thought if they all beat up Majima he'd get a reputation for being incompetent and they'd get his job, but they didn't expect him to be so strong. He likes their moxie, so decides not to fire them FM: You're really not going to fire them? Majima: We just had a little fight. That's all there is to it. Let's call it... the new Grand's ceremony to strengthen our bonds. That's my way of doing things. The staff are glad to not be kicked out of sotenbori, but ask if that's really okay? Isn't he worried this gamble isn't going to pay off? Majima says there was a time in his life he was worried about gambles like that. Now, he's going to be hungrier than anyone. They understand are are fired up! They want to reignite the dying spirit of the grand! FM thinks Majima is the coolest and that this is the rebirth of the Grand.

<Part 3>

Another week later: they're in great shape! the big band is a huge hit, and the new hostesses are as well. 

Some yakuza show up and make a huge scene. Majima says just to ignore them because he needs their cash, it's fine if they're loud and obnoxious but FM is scared they won't pay. Majima says he'll handle it. 

I did learn a really funny term "ケツ持ち" which is literally "ass holding" and refers to a yakuza taking control of a store to use for a safehouse/protection of the store/etc, and the yakuza think that's what Majima is doing and they're not entirely wrong. Nowadays it's more used for yakuza that have to clean up their subordinate's messes, or the biker that stays at the rear of the pack to keep the cops away.

Majima says his first instance of "customer is king", and finesses the yakuza into the VIP room and away from everyone else, so that he doesn’t lose either set of customers. The yakuza try to dine and dash, Majima catches them outside, they ask "what happened to customer is king?" and Majima responds that since they didn’t pay they’re not longer customers and then kicks the shit out of all of them. Majima then blackmails them into coming back every single night, because if they ever skip a night then they're not his customer and he's going to find them and kick their teeth in. "There's one more thing I want you to remember. I am Majima Goro... The man who will be called the lord of the night in this city." <END>

It’s really funny that Majima has blackmailed yakuza into going to a hostess club under threat of beatings as both the manager and the hostess. If it’s not broke don’t fix it I guess? 

Here’s the other 1988 card btw, the first card’s title is “Manager of the Grand” and this one is “a caged stray dog”.