Patlabor Ep. 25: Spring Storm

During a nighttime call, Ota searches a construction site in Unit 2 and is attacked by a Bulldog due to Shinshi’s incoherent orders. Noa sneaks up behind the Bulldog in Unit 1 and tackles it, but Ota still wants to shoot it anyway. Shinshi tells Ota to use his baton to destroy the Bulldog’s leg actuator, but Ota ignores orders and fires even though Noa is on top of the downed labor. Noa then stabs the Bulldog wit her baton to disable it. Back at the station house, Asuma criticizes Ota’s actions and notes how there’s always some reason that Ota has to use his gun. Shinshi says it’s his fault for hesitating, and Ota agrees, saying Shinshi shouldn’t give orders that make things worse. Hiromi tells Shinshi not to pay attention to Ota, but Shinshi thinks that Ota is right. Shinshi then pulls up the specs of the Bulldog to compare their own reaction times against the reaction times of the labors they fight against. Noa is impressed and tells Shinshi he should’ve gone into computer work, but then realizes that didn’t come out right. Shinshi then receives a surprising phone call. Shinobu pours herself a cup of coffee and asks Goto if he’s going to reorganize Division 2 to fill the hole left by Kanuka. Shinshi hangs up the phone and spaces out for a minute, so he tells Noa he’s going to wash his face. He apologizes to Ota for what happened, and when Ota gripes about the good snacks being gone, Shinshi apologizes again, which prompts Ota to tell him that he apologizes too much. Later, Shinshi dresses in a suit and meets a woman named Yoshikawa in a bar. Yoshikawa goes over Shinshi’s work history, noting that he worked as a programmer for a brokerage firm for five years until he joined the police in 1997. She then tells him that a software start up wants to offer him a job, which he says he’ll have to think about. She asks him if he’s satisfied with his current job and if they need him there. She says that his salary will be tripled and he’ll be a department head. Back at home, Shinshi asks Tamiko if she wants to move to a bigger house, but she answers that the condo is good enough and that their mortgage is high enough already. She says she doesn’t mind living there as long as they’re together. The next day, Ota and Noa fight in a mock battle, and Shinshi’s inability to quickly give orders causes Ota to lose. Ota ignores Shinshi after the fight, and Shinshi asks to speak with Goto. Goto tells Shinshi to relax, but Shinshi says he doesn’t think he can do the job. He can’t lead Ota and says it’s hard for Ota to take orders from him. Goto thinks they’re doing fine, and even though complaints are up, arrests aren’t down. Shinshi says the credit for the arrests goes solely to Ota, but Goto counters that the forward and backup share the credit. Goto points out that Shinshi and Ota have only been working together for a short time, so he should stick with it for a while before making decisions. Shinshi calls Yoshikawa and asks for more time to consider the job offer. Shige thinks that Shinshi was on the phone with Tamiko, so he plays along. Shinshi gets home and finds an angry Tamiko waiting for him and demanding to know who Yoshikawa is. She knows about the job and doesn’t want Shinshi to take it because she now claims the neighbors are so nice, even though she said earlier they were nosy. Shinshi asks about dinner as she storms off, so she tosses him a package of instant ramen.

Shinshi meets with Yoshikawa again and is surprised to see his former coworker Izaki there. He realizes that it’s Izaki’s company that wants him, and Yoshikawa leaves them to talk alone. Izaki asks Shinshi to take the job, but Shinshi responds that he hasn’t made up his mind yet. Izaki counters that department head was just an initial offer and that he thinks Shinshi could be in an executive position, but Shinshi says he’s no leader. Izaki thinks that Shinshi is underestimating his own talents and says it’s an offer he can’t refuse. Back at home, Shinshi drafts a letter of resignation and goes to sleep alone. He starts cooking and tells Tamiko to eat something, but she ignores him until he leaves. At the station house, Noa comments that Shinshi looks pale as everyone eats, so Ota offers his hard-boiled egg. Shinshi prepares to knock on Goto’s door, but Goto sneaks up behind him. Shinshi says he wants to talk about something, but just then an emergency call comes in. Division 2 responds to a scene where a Tyrant 2000 controlled by a terrorist is wrecking police cars. Ota wants to fight, but Hiromi points out that the SWAT team doesn’t want to agitate the terrorist. Asuma thinks that the SWAT team wants to get the first shot at the terrorist, and Shinshi says it’s department politics as usual. A SWAT officer pushes past Shinshi, which sets him off. They then try to subdue the terrorist with a water cannon, which completely backfires. Goto asks if he should respond, but the SWAT commander stubbornly sends in an APC, which is immediately destroyed. The SWAT unit retreats as the Tyrant 2000 heads for a nearby school, so Shinshi yells at Ota to launch in Unit 2. Shinshi says he’ll slow the terrorist down and drives off in his command car. Goto calls Asuma and tells him to follow Shinshi. Shinshi drives aggressively between the Tyrant 2000’s legs to trip it up, but he crashes into a building. He then orders Ota to shoot, which catches Ota by surprise. Ota then fires and hits the Tyrant 2000, disabling it. Noa then rushes in with Unit 1 and tabs the Tyrant 2000 with her baton. Later, Shinshi calls Yoshikawa and declines the offer, but she isn’t surprised and says Shinshi might love being a cop more than he realizes. Goto compliments Shinshi for taking command and asks if he can forget about that talk that Shinshi wanted to have. When Shinshi returns home he finds Tamiko packing up to move and has to tell her he declined the job. This makes her angry because he decided things without telling her, and she also said goodbye already to the neighbors.