“He’s Garbage” — Ryō-chan’s Attack on Ken Watanabe Raises Questions of Criminal Liability

“Who are you to judge your juniors?”

This time, it doesn’t appear that things will end as the usual mock-fighting comedy routine.

A controversy erupted after Ryō-chan (40), a member of the comedy duo “Onigoe Tomahawk,” harshly criticized Ken Watabe (53) of “Unjash” on social media.

On July 8, Ryō-chan posted the following on X:

“How long is Ken Watabe going to keep being a piece of trash, damn it? After doing something like that, who does he think he is to judge younger comedians? Seriously, it makes me sick. Why the hell do I have to be considerate toward a piece of trash like that?” (quoted as originally written)

He later posted a lengthy explanation of the events that had led to the outburst.

According to Ryō-chan’s account, Watabe’s side had apparently approached him through a senior former comedian with a request for Watabe to appear on Ryō-chan’s YouTube channel as a way of promoting an upcoming talk event scheduled for August. Ryō-chan was considering the proposal positively, but the intermediary senior comedian reportedly informed him unilaterally that:

“It would be difficult for Watabe to appear.”

This, apparently, was what enraged Ryō-chan and prompted his posts on X. As of July 13, the posts had still not been deleted.

Watabe’s agency denied the facts as presented by Ryō-chan and released the following statement:

“This matter originated from a third party making an inquiry regarding an appearance without the involvement of either Mr. Watabe or our company. There is no truth to the claim that Mr. Watabe himself wished to appear, nor that our company approved such a request. Expressions that severely damage Mr. Watabe’s character have been repeatedly used, and our company cannot simply overlook them.”

The statement was delivered in a tone that made it clear the agency did not regard the matter as a joking one.

Meanwhile, Kensuke Miyaji, formerly of the comedy trio “Nibun no Go!” and now the president of an event management company, issued an apology, saying:

“There were serious shortcomings in the way I handled the matter and in my failure to properly confirm the details.”

How much could be claimed in damages?

“Taken together, it appears that Mr. Miyaji approached Ryō-chan without first obtaining Mr. Watabe’s approval. When it looked as though the appearance might actually happen, he brought the proposal to Mr. Watabe, who declined it, and that’s probably when things became complicated. However, Ryō-chan doesn’t seem to believe that explanation. He wrote, ‘Do you think you can just hide behind a former producer and say, “I didn’t know anything about it”? I’m a comedian too, so I know how these things work.’ He continues to place the blame squarely on Mr. Watabe. Despite the controversies surrounding him, Watabe remains one of the top figures at his agency as part of ‘Unjash.’ Being publicly called ‘trash’ by a younger comedian from another agency could be seen as an attack on the agency’s reputation as well,” an entertainment reporter for a sports newspaper explained.

“Onigoe Tomahawk” is well known for its sharp tongue, and the duo has frequently aimed its biting humor at fellow comedians on its YouTube channel.

Regarding that approach, Ryō-chan’s partner, Kin-chan, appeared on the YouTube channel of Yūsei Yashiki of “New Yorkon” June 10 and commented:

“More and more people are so desperate to go viral that they’re harming others on X.”

“People are trying to make money through X.”

According to him, their manager had warned them about such behavior, and the number of similar posts had recently declined. Then this controversy erupted.

“If someone makes insulting posts about another person on X against the wishes of the company and then refuses to delete them, Yoshimoto Kogyo may well regard the matter seriously. Yoshimasa Iwahashi, formerly of ‘Plus Minus,’ also had his contract terminated after publicly exposing information about celebrities. Kuruma Takahira of ‘Reiwa Roman’ is likewise said to have had his contract terminated after posting an apology video regarding an online gambling issue without the company’s approval. Refusing to follow the company’s instructions could result in someone being cut loose,” said a television network entertainment producer.

There is also the possibility that this incident may not simply be dismissed as comedians joking among themselves. Given the possibility that the facts may have been misunderstood, “FRIDAY Digital” asked attorney Kenta Morizane of “Morizane Law Office” about the potential legal consequences of publicly referring to someone as “trash.”

“If Mr. Watabe’s side were to file a criminal complaint and the matter developed into a criminal case, the first question would be whether the conduct constituted defamation. Because the remarks were made publicly on social media, the element of public disclosure could be satisfied. However, terms such as ‘trash’ or ‘piece of crap’ do not constitute statements of fact, so defamation would most likely not apply. Instead, the crime of insult could potentially be established.

The penalties for the crime of insult were strengthened in July 2022 and now include imprisonment of up to one year or a fine of up to ¥300,000, among other penalties. As for civil liability, a claim for damages based on a tort could be considered. However, it would be difficult to determine the actual amount of damage suffered. Even if a claim for emotional distress were filed, the amount awarded would probably be, at most, several hundred thousand yen.”

The dispute has turned into something far more serious than the duo’s usual trademark mock-fighting comedy. Whether Ryō-chan and Watabe will eventually reconcile remains to be seen.