Shinjuku Swan

A manga about a young man who becomes a scout man for the red light district of Shibuya, Japan.

We’ve discussed this on an older episode.

This is essentially a crime drama. It’s a well done story that follows the main character’s decent into the seedy underbelly of the red light districts. There’s a fair bit of exploitation as the scout men recruit women to work at cabaret bars and brothels while taking a cut for themselves. This manga doesn’t shy away from those elements and the main character strives to uphold a sense of righteousness to protect his clients. Eventually it turns into all out war with other scout groups and criminals that makes this feel like a delinquent series that stars men instead of teenagers. Ken Wakui really evolved his art work as the series progressed and it’s almost completely different for his current manga Tokyo Revengers.

~dakazu