Chief of Police: Kawaji Toshiyoshi

Episode 98: The Enemy Awaits in Senjogahar

First I want to tell how ECSTATIC I am to get Kawaji back. For those who didn’t know, I had to trade this gem (and then some) for a wishlist cel of Saitou and Eiji. I was REALLY broken hearted to let this cel go as I have grown fond of the guy in RK fandom and grown fond of the cel itself. So… KAWAJI HAS RETURNED! YAY!!! On to the old description ne?

Kawaji Toshiyoshi is actually high on my wanted list on RK. He is the Police Commissioner and works under Okubo Toshimichi much like Saitou does. In essence he is Saitou’s boss but that doesn’t show much in the anime as you can easily tell in episode 30. In the anime Kawaji is characterized as a very bureaucratic man who is very into his superiors and rank. In the TV series he is almost unlikable because of his arrogant attitude, but I think that stems mostly from his military/police background. He is seen with Yamagata and Okubo mostly.

I believe this cel is from the movie where he is treated more respectfully and not used as a “device” to show the arrogant Meiji officials. I think that’s a little unfair, especially since the real guy was a remarkable man. Kawaji is known as the “Father of Japanese Police System” because of his modernization of the Police, employing the methods especially of the French Surete and Prussia. I love using Kawaji in my stories with Saitou so that’s why I really like his character too. The image you see above is actually quite close to the real man.