"Launch!" What awaited beyond that command was a relentless rescue battle.
In Episode 20, to save five members of the "Betsu-han" (Special Unit) imprisoned in Sheki Castle in the Republic of Golbad, Nogami Yusuke (Sakai Masato) and his comrades from the unofficial organization directly under the Self-Defense Forces finally entered the castle.
With support from the strongest unit "PMSC Y2K" led by his brother-in-law Nokoru (Ninomiya Kazunari), the extraordinary physical abilities of Chokky Tapanit (Ohm-Tanapak / Voice: Kitou Akari), a famous Thai businessman and monitor for TENT, the diverse skills of Betsu-han member Nagano Toshihiko's agent Gern (Pattarapol Kantapoj / Voice: Ooyama Rikiya), and communication support from the rear, elites crossing national and organizational boundaries bring the rescue operation to a conclusion.
Meanwhile, Nozaki Mamoru (Abe Hiroshi) of the Metropolitan Police Department's Public Security Division, Foreign Affairs Section 4, tries to speak about clues regarding the girl "Prisha," but the agent Drum (Tomie Drum) resists fiercely... The resolution of the rescue and the turmoil ahead are revisited in "After VIVANT."
The Identity of the "Young Samurai" Nozaki Discovered
The two "Samurai" who abducted Prisha (Nojima Ruku), then 2 years old, the daughter of nuclear fusion researcher Elisha Mammadov (Manaf Dadashov). The older one was recognized by Elisha as Nogon Beki (Yakusho Koji), the former leader of TENT.
The other was neither Batraka (Hayashi Yasufumi) nor Piyo (Yoshihara Mitsuo). Elisha also shook her head at photos of Nokoru and others.
"He had long hair and was handsome."
Next, Nozaki showed a photo of Adiel (Tsaschiher Khatanzorig), Nogami's benefactor who is now deceased. In Drum's mind, Adiel's daughter Jamien (Honma Sae) came to mind. Is she the same person as Prisha? When Nozaki stated there were "clues," Drum moved to prevent him from speaking further, but Nozaki himself stopped him.
At that time, at Nogami's home, his lover and doctor Yukino Kaoru (Nikaido Fumi) was making breakfast, and Jamien was offering pigeon cookies before Adiel's photo. The calm morning scene feels eerie.
Under the watchful eyes of Ryu Minshuen (Kanji: Liu Mingxuan / Sakai / Triple Role) and Han Linxin (Kanji: Fan Lixing / Miyashita Kyoko) of the "Chinese Betsu-han" known as "Shinshi," and information broker Tairan Guliyeva (Mirze Aghabayli / Voice: Wakamoto Norio) who surrounds Elisha, what did Nozaki say? Viewers were anxious, commenting "Nozaki talks too much" and "Nozaki and Drum are suspiciously honest..."
Frontline, High Ground, Communication Base – The Escape Route Connected by Comrades
While Nogami and others headed to Orko Village in a van, Kos (Ilgar Musayev), who refused cooperation until the end during negotiations with Nokoru, called the castle. Immediately, Tojo Shota (Hamada Gaku) from the Cyber Crime Countermeasures Division in the rear cut off communications. Nokoru caught Kos, who went to the window seeking signal.
"There's always someone trying to get money from both sides... that's human nature."
A bullet passed near Kos's hand, and a warning arrived on his smartphone from Filza (Gulnar Yunusova / Voice: Kaida Yuuko), an agent of Betsu-han member Tashiro Kumiko (Rei Yamada): "All village communications are being monitored." With threats to shoot their heads next, even Tojo and "Blue Walker" genius hacker Ota Riho (Hanaoka Sumire) hesitated.
The "setup" for the communication network entrusted to Natique (Ruslan Huseynov / Voice: Namikawa Daisuke), Tashiro's agent, in Episode 19 became clear. A strategy to block reports through jamming, monitoring, and sniping emerged.
For residents heading directly to report to the castle, Tenggel (Ei Momotaro / Voice: Enoki Junya) of Y2K sniped their legs. Nogami instructed Romal (Shahriyar Abilovj / Voice: Morikawa Toshiyuki), another of Tashiro's agents, to treat them at the home of village chief Isaac (Parviz Mammadzada / Voice: Yamaji Kazuhiro). Meanwhile, villagers watching the rescue team offered prayers. Viewers reacted, "The villagers are too good." The villagers, whose cooperation Nokoru secured in Episode 19, now supported the rescue team's success with prayers.
At the castle entrance, Gern subdued two guards, and Nogami switched to his alternate personality F (Sakai / Triple Role). Over the radio, he suddenly called out "Ota-chan," earning a rebuke from Nogami. Tojo was surprised too. Even in tense situations, F remains unchanged.
Next up was our Chokky. Watching over him were Shinjo Kotaro (Ryusei Ryo), formerly of Public Security Intelligence, and others. He faced the challenge of breaching infrared sensors.
The grace period was about 6 minutes. Yet in the actual attempt, more sensors appeared! "We have to break through the wall. It's impossible," Chokky hesitated. Bolt (Nozaki Keirui / Voice: Nakamura Yuichi), leader of Y2K, applied special anti-slip tape made by Betsu-han to Chokky's soles. Gern offered prayers, and on F's order, Shinjo gave him a hug. An all-out effort boosting equipment and morale alike.
Chokky crawling through the sensors coughed due to smoke, nearly failing. Just as he began climbing the wall... two guards approached! F instantly eliminated them, but Chokky froze in fear. Then, an unexpected trump card appeared. After hugs, it was financial incentives. F had covered that too.
Resolved, Chokky performed the feat of traversing the wall! The true value of the special tape was demonstrated here. If streaming, keep your eyes on his feet. Viewers cheered, "Too cool." We were overwhelmed by the person who had been so reluctant earlier.
"Sorry for the wait, let's go home."
The group advancing into the castle was hit by a power outage caused by lightning striking the rear base. Satellite imagery and auto-translators were unusable. Still, F continued the mission through Shinjo and Gern. Reading guard movements by footsteps, steadily defeating enemies, they finally reached the dungeon!
"Sorry for the wait, let's go home."
At F's voice, Betsu-han member Kurosu Shun (Matsuzaka Tori) started to say "I thought you'd come..." but showed anger upon seeing Shinjo. F interrupted, and Mata (Uchimura Haruka) conveyed that TENT was also cooperating in the rescue. However, only Wada Mitsugu's (Hirayama Yusuke) cell was empty. F went to the torture room deeper inside. The rescue wasn't over until all five were brought out. Those curious about "Wada-san," which trended #1 during broadcast, should check out the live-streamed TBS Radio show "VIVANT Ponkotsu Meeting Room"... oh, "Villain Meeting Room" after the broadcast! Another unexpected face seemed to visit the meeting room too.
When communications restored, F reported Kurosu's survival to Ota. As Ota wept and Tojo was shocked by her reaction, Filza snapped, "Save personal matters for later" (she was scolded again later). Viewers marveled at Ota's awakening, saying "Ota-chan's awakening is insane" and "The power of love is great."
Noticed by enemies, the group dodged gunfire inside the castle toward the exit. Gern threw a boomerang-shaped giant shuriken into the guard room, defeating soldiers, then fired dual machine guns he seized. An impressive defense keeping enemies away to let comrades pass. Viewers were stunned by Gern's combat style, exclaiming "His attack methods are unbelievable."
The rescue team successfully brought their comrades outside Sheki Castle!
Providing cover fire from outside, Nokoru targeted Li Mindza (Kanji: Li Mingze / Kohata Ryuu) and Tong Turfan (Kanji: Tong Tuerdi / Higashi Hiroshi), two of the three who kidnapped the Betsu-han members...
Passing Isaac's house, cafeteria owner Gazimov (Gurban Ahmadov) couldn't help but applaud. F paused, thanked the two, and resumed running.
However, three vehicles and one motorcycle pursuing them closed in.
Another "setup" entrusted to Natique was bombs placed at three points along the road. But at Point A, the explosion occurred after the pursuers had passed. The error was 1.5 seconds. When F ordered correction, Ota replied, "Already executed." Filza and Tojo were amazed by Ota's work, having hacked Shinshi headquarters and neutralized surface-to-air missiles. Truly Blue Walker, surpassing even F's instructions in speed!
Meanwhile, Tojo looked like he might cry. Past Point B, signals from another base station reached, allowing mobile phone use. Not only pursuers but external communications must be stopped. Viewers suspected this failure was intentional or betrayal.
Finally reaching Point B! Two pursuer vehicles were destroyed. But F immediately asked:
"What about the motorcycle and the other car!?"
Behind-the-Scenes of Azerbaijan Location Shooting That Created Episode 20's Frenzy – And the Story Moves to "Escape Arc"
Before Episode 21, where the story shifts from rescuing Betsu-han members to escaping the Republic of Golbad, Producer Iida Kazutaka shared behind-the-scenes stories and reactions regarding Episode 20's filming.
Thank you so much for your enthusiasm for Episode 20! Looking back at my smartphone photo files, scenes filmed in Azerbaijan exactly one year ago are now reaching everyone, which fills me with deep emotion. Among them, the Sheki Castle scenes involved nightly shoots until morning, with rain continuing daily despite claims it rarely rains in that season. Even during the Rahiji Village scenes where the rescue team ran through, rain persisted. Under these harsh conditions, Japanese and Azerbaijani staff, cast, and locals collaborated to create those scenes.
Through this shooting, I felt a major difference from Season 1: VIVANT's characters are connected to the "outside world" in this series. Episode 20 symbolizes this with villagers entrusting their future to the rescue team, a memorable depiction.
On social media, many responses focused on locals praying and rejoicing. Actually, local children watching the filming with curiosity left a strong impression. Their sparkling eyes and smiles remain unforgettable. Personally, I hoped the drama would convey to Japanese audiences that across the sea, there are children equally pure and hopeful for the future.
And for Episode 21, reactions to the trailer included "What is Tojo doing!" (laughs). Indeed, though rescued from Sheki Castle, can they escape pursuers and return to Japan? Episode 21 is truly the "Escape Arc." Also, will there be direct confrontations between Zhou, Li, and Nogami, whom viewers "hate"? (Though looking at Linlin-san's (Zhou's actor) SNS, many seem to have grown to "love" her recently (laughs)). Please pay attention. Furthermore, viewers didn't miss the word "Messiah"!! I promise Episode 21 will deliver exciting developments and a drama families can watch safely. If possible, please watch in real-time!
The strongest team breached the impregnable castle. On the return journey, precision within 1.5 seconds and signal control are tested. That explosion, F's scream. Three bombs were set. Will the last one find its moment?
