Rica 3: Juvenile's Lullaby (1973) - Director: Kozaburo Yoshimura, Starring: Rika Aoki, Jiro Kawarazaki, and Masami Souda

Rika Aoki Returns for the Last Time in Konketsuji Rika: Hamaure Komoriuta aka Rika 3: Juvenile's Lullaby.

Immediately following her last adventure, she lands back at Aiyu Reform School after caught riding a horse. The current head mistress decided in the meantime to beef up security. The new head guard is an eye-patched sociopath with a penchant for beating girls with his bamboo stick. Just like last time, there is a new woman in charge - her name, Tornado Oman. Her gang includes Oshichi the pyro, Snake Okyo the Queen of the Whores (an actual line), Pickpocket Ohama, and Ofuji. They are hell bent on putting Rika in her place but she escapes before that. While starting a new life yet again, she stumbles upon June. June's also half-American and targeted for it. A local gang led by local Gonta kidnap June. They sell her to Mr. Niquison, who makes porn with stolen girls and sells them to brothels outside of Japan to serve their duty. Once again, Rika is back at Aiyu but the girls get sold to Mr. Niquison too. They team up and save June. Each of their skills play a part in the end, even Okyo and Oshichi.

The first and most notable change needs to be addressed. Ko Nakahira did not direct this. Kozaburo Yoshimura (Anjo-ke no Butokai, 1947 starring the legendary actress Setsuko Hara...this is probably the only time she will be mentioned on this blog. That was also written by Kaneto Shindo). Aside from that, Toho handled this one instead of Toei. The only thing that really affected was the opening credits and a few actors not returning, particularly Miki Nono as Junko. Her minor but extremely pleasant presence was missed but the film made up in other ways.

The change of directors was noticeable, Nakahira clearly liked a few things that are littered throughout the first 2 films. Rica 3 is missing a scene where she's thrown in a large body of water and not a single hint of a sleazy nightclub. Part of what I dig about this series is the old school nightclub scenes. These spaces in the films fulfill a specific function, an assumed safe zone. They were central to the previous 2 films. It was the nexus of the story's conflict. It connected everyone involved. Removing that takes something special away. I want a sleazy club with gang intrigue in all my Rica films.

Ok, there is a touchy issue that needs to be discussed. It's Tornado Oman, a Japanese woman. The actress, Masami Souda, played Tornado wonderfully but she's a familiar face to the series. She was Hanako in the previous 2 films. Hanako is half black and darker skinned. Souda was in blackface with her hair in an afro. I'm mixed black, white, and various other things. I'm not offended, I'm confounded by this by this revelation. In my opinion, it isn't racist but very distracting now knowing this.

 Despite the gripes there is a lot to love with the series finale. Rika is brought back to her element, Yokohama. It's still the dangerous shithole it always was. Gangs still roam around with no problem. Rika this time, encounters a young woman in a similar situation from the first film. A struggling single mother with a child from rape by an American, becomes the Rika's new focus. It's identical to the first film but supposes, what if Rika was victimized a few years earlier and lacked a support system, including a mystery man that stalks her benevolently. This new Amerasian girl, June, isn't a tough as nails gang leader. She's a girl barely into puberty and sold into sex slavery. Rika clearly sees that this could have been her fate if things went differently. It's terrifying. Tornado's gang welcomes Rika as one of theirs and save June from the creepy pornographers. In a sense, it's a rebirth of the series. Rika moves on and June could become a tough-as-nails Sukeban. As long as the patriarchy is keeping women down, we need people like Rika to carelessly break society's boundaries.

Not just that but Gonta's ex-girlfriend was raped by Americans before killing herself. Gonta and her kept that trauma secret. In turn, Gonta becomes as bad as the local Americans. He tries to rape several women and works with the Americans in the slave trade. Luckily, he dies in a fantastic car-rolling-off-the-side-the road.

Following similar beats to the first, it deviates in very fun ways like Rika taking out Gonta's gang or the fucking harpoon gun sequence. It's the most fun, has the best fights, best music, best mystery man, and best side characters (Okyo is my favorite, she's very sex positive and kicks ass). This is the rare third part of a trilogy that is easily the best of the bunch.