Kogure and Fujio as mirrors for Ken in Exceedraft E13

[Originally posted on Bluesky on 02 April 2026.]

Exceedraft Episode 13, "The Forbidden Fist of Hell!", exhibits the classic crime fiction trope of having the hero detective mirror both villain and victim. The path to resolving E13’s case has Ken (the hero) simultaneously acting like Kogure (the victim) and Fujio (the villain).

All three men start off alike in being formidable opponents in karate fights. Then to rescue Kogure, Ken has to deceive Fujio just like Fujio has deceived Kogure. He does so by making Fujio think that he’s as unfortunate and exploitable as Kogure.

Kogure used to be unbeatable when he and Ken were in university until he dropped out to work to cover his sister's medical bills. It's his pressing need for money that Fujio exploits to coerce Kogure into fighting in Fujio's illegal closed circuit matches. To rescue Kogure, Ken appears before Fujio seeming like Kogure in being great at fighting and financially hard-up enough to want to earn the massive winnings of Fujio's dangerous matches.

In Ken's regular life, he's good and nice like Kogure. He's also similar to Fujio in liking to take the personal approach for getting what they want. Ken does it to bond with those he cares about, like when he practises karate with the arsonist he reformed and when he cooks for Kosaku.

Fujio has his underlings but gets hands-on even for doing the dirty work in blinding a fighter he wishes to discard, then fooling and doping Kogure. He stages a car crash with Kogure to make Kogure think it's really Kogure's choice to fight the illegal matches for compensating Fujio and covering his sister's surgery bills. The deceiver becomes the deceived when Ken fools Fujio in a similar manner by making him think that recruiting Ken to fight is his idea.

Compared to other cases in Exceedraft, E13's resolution is more personal as Ken sheds his armour for hand-to-hand combat against Fujio. In Ken's victory over Fujio, he defeats not only the crime’s primary mastermind, but also the dark potential within him to harm rather than help others with his strengths.