Ore no Sora

Ore no Sora:Keiji Hen (My Skies: Detective Chapter) is a two-episode OVA from 1991-1992. It's based on a best-selling manga by Mitomiya Hiroshi. It spawned multiple sequels and prequels, as well as a film, two TV specials, two TV series, and pachinko games. It tells the story of Yasuda Ippei, heir apparent to the all-powerful Yasuda kairetsu. Rather than take a mundane job as his father's successor, he joins the police to right what he sees as the wrongs in Japan's corrupt society.

The OVAs recount two episodes, of many, from the manga.

In the first episode, rookie cop Ippei sees first hand how the wealthy and powerful work with the yakuza (organized crime) to break the law with impunity. The Kasei yakuza group, under the leadership of up-and-comer Toyoda Yoichi, is staging live-action sex shows in which a young girl is gang-raped for the voyeuristic pleasure of, or outright participation by, an audience of businessmen and politicians. When the investigation into these shows is stopped by higher-ups, Ippei takes matters into his own hands. He recruits a gang of private investigators/intelligence agents. He learns that Toyoda killed his girlfriend and buried her, encased in concrete, in a deep lake. Unable to find the body, he buys the lake and all its surrounding land, drains it, recovers the body, and nails the villain.

In the second episode, Ippei's police district confronts a series of kidnappings staged by Hundred Faces, the nom de plume of a criminal who taunts the police with their inability to solve his crimes or prevent future ones. 

With conventional investigation techniques exhausted, Ippei once again takes matters into his own hands. He gathers the best profilers in the country to make an "image" of the culprit and create a list of possible suspects. 

When one likely name emerges, Ippei publishes it to the mass media and then nabs Hundred Faces in the act.

Now, not one minute of these episodes is believable. Even an all powerful conglomerate could not purchase and ruin a pristine country lake without pushback. Even the world's best profilers could not create a profile so precise that it includes only one person. Further, the themes of the show have been better explored in other anime. For example, Sanctuary delves into the intertwined corruption of politicians and yakuza with greater grit and realism than Ore no Sora.

The voice cast includes several notable seiyuu:

• Futamata Issei (Ippei) is best known for his roles as Godai Yuusaku in Maison Ikkoku, Akira (Chibi) in Urusei Yatsura, and Saburo in Sazae-san. He played the main character, Yoshio, in Dokushin Apartment Dokudami-sou, Kouji Tanaka in Okama Hakusho, Ishida, coach's assistant, in One Pound Gospel, and the psychopathic brother, Cross, in Hi-Speed Jecy, and he appeared in Fukuyama Gekijou, all Orphan releases.
• Nagao Rihoko (Hitomi) appeared in only a few anime, including Project A-ko and Ikenai Boy.
• Nagai Ichirou (Detective Matobe) starred in numerous shows, playing grandfather Jigoro in Yawara!, the off-the-wall narrator in Gosenzosama Banbanzai!, Professor Hajime in Queen Millennia, and Happosai in the Ranma 1/2 franchise. He appeared in Nayuta, One Pound Gospel, Rain Boy, Manxmouse, Nora, Hidamari no Ki, Yuukan Club, Amon Saga, Botchan, Ipponbouchou Mantaraou, Tengai Makyou, and Yamato 2520, all Orphan releases.
• Genda Tesshou (Detective Tamura) played Colonel Muto in Joker Game, Moloch in Yondemasu Azazel-san, Rei in the Urusei Yatsura franchise, Moguro Fukuzou in New Laughing Salesman,  and "Oyaji" in Mitsuboshi Colors. He also played Akauma in Fire Tripper, Jin Kiryu in Blue Sonnet, Zigong in Eiyuu Banka Koushi-den, Paul Rusch in Yume Kakeru Kougen, Jim Hyatt in AWOL Compression Remix, the loyal lieutenant Galbreath in Next Senki Ehrgeiz, the dragonman Baguda in Greed, the narrator in Akai Hayate and Meisou-ou Border, Dog McCoy in Dallos, Mayor Carlo in Inochi no Chikyuu: Natsu no Dioxin, Hebopi in Wild 7, rebel leader Oosukune in Izumo, Miyoshi in Sanada 10, and Rikiishi's trainer Kuroki and Kirishima in Eguchi Hisashi no Kotobuki Gorou Show, all Orphan releases.
• Tobita Nobuo (Nikaido Ryoichi) played Lumial in the Angelique franchise, Ken Wakashimazu in the Captain Tsubasa franchise, Randy in Fake, Sinistra in Kiddy Grade, the title role in Locke the Superman, and Dayon in Osomatsu-san. He appeared in Genji, Part 1, Ziggy Sore Yuke! R&R Band, Condition Green, Eien no Filena, and Choujikuu Romanesque Samy: MISSING 99, all Orphan releases.
• Satou Masaharu (Yasuda) played the villainous Professor Jason in Al Caral no Isan and Oboe in Hameln no Violin Hiki, both Orphan releases. He had numerous featured roles, appearing in the Dragonball, Dr. Slump, and Transformers franchises.
• Ishikawa Ikuo (Honda) had featured roles in Judo Boy, Casshan, Irresponsible Captain Tylor, Shin Tetsujin 28, and Itoshi no Betty Monogatari.

The director, Shirato Takeshi, should be familiar to Orphan viewers; he also directed the searing Kuroi Ame ni Utarete, the poignant Kuro ga Ita Natsu, and the incomplete Yamato 2520, as well as several Kinniukuman and Yamato movies.

The raws knocked around inside the group for several years before Perevodildo translated and timed the show. (Moho Kareshi did an initial version of the scripts.) I edited and typeset. Topper3000 and ImAWasteOfHair QCed. The first set of raws were from VHS tapes and were published as Orphan-raws. In mid-project, WOWmd found and encoded new raws from laserdiscs. The laserdiscs are clearer but have a lot more blended frames. Viewers are welcome to fit the subtitles to the VHS raws, if they prefer. (Good luck with the typesetting.) It may be possible to wrestle a better encode from the laserdiscs. If so, we'll do a v2.

Ore no Sora ranges from the distasteful to the preposterous. Its fawning over its ultra-rich hero is disingenuous, at best, and it spends way too much time ogling the bodies of female victims. Still, it moves along quickly, even if it leaves a negative final impression. You can get the OVAs from the usual torrent site or from IRC bot Orphan|Arutha in channels #nibl or #news on irc.rizon.net.