Bayside Shakedown takes place in the fictional
Wangan Precinct of the
Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department. Unlike most police dramas which tend to focus on action and car chases,
Bayside Shakedown is largely concerned with the
bureaucratic issues of the police department that are very present in many other sectors of Japanese society. The series depicted police work as office politics under a slightly different environment, complete with bureaucratic red tape, lethargic civil servants, bosses more interested in playing golf and saving face than solving crimes, interference from politicians, and conflict between police headquarters and the local officers. The officers depicted in
Bayside Shakedown are only permitted to carry
firearms during major emergencies. Fuji TV used the fictional "All officers are to be armed" (拳銃携帯命令
Kenjū Keitai Meirei) order, which the portrayed bureaucracy is often reluctant to hand down. (In reality, it is compulsory for a uniformed officer to be armed, and plainclothes officers are required to be armed if they expect to be exposed to any danger.) The main character of the series is a young
detective named Shunsaku Aoshima (played by
Oda Yūji). Originally a corporate personal computer salesman, Aoshima decided to join the police department out of heroic idealism, expecting a life of adventure and excitement. Once inside, he is completely underwhelmed by the reality of police work, finding it dishearteningly similar to corporate employment. Throughout the series, he strives against the obstacles of bureaucratic indifference to help people and pursue his ideals of what a police officer should be, often with humorous results. ==Cast==