“Nothing Has Changed”—Onigoe’s Ryo-chan Apologizes, Too… Why There’s Little Sympathy for Un-jash’s Watanabe in the Comedy Community

Feeling Betrayed

Ryo-chan (40) of the comedy duo “Onigoe Tomahawk,” who called Un-jash member Ken Watanabe (53) “trash” on social media, issued an apology on July 17.

On X, Ryo-chan explained the circumstances that led to his outburst, stating:

“I now fully understand that the production company asked me to have Mr. Watanabe appear on the show while the details between the production company and Jinrikisha remained unclear, and that I took the production company’s claim—that they had confirmed it—at face value,”

he explained.

He continued,

“At first, I honestly felt happy when a senior colleague—whom I thought disliked me—asked to appear on our YouTube channel, so I responded sincerely in my own way. However, when he turned me down, I mistakenly felt betrayed and became angry,”

he wrote. He added

“However, no matter what misunderstanding occurred, that does not justify making such a post in the heat of the moment. I deeply regret that those were words I absolutely should not have said. I will delete the post in question,”

He then took down the post in question.

The incident began on July 8, when Ryo-chan used X to berate Watanabe, calling him “trash” and other insults, in connection with Watanabe’s solo talk show.

Kento Miyaji, a former Yoshimoto comedian in charge of producing the talk show, approached Onigoe’s YouTube channel to ask if Watanabe could appear as part of the promotion. While Ryo-chan responded positively to her senior’s request, she also explained that since the promotional nature of the appearance was so strong, it would be treated as a “sponsored project” requiring separate procedures.

In response, Watanabe—who had made the offer—stated

“It’ll be difficult for me to appear,”

to the Onigoe side. This made Ryo-chan lose her temper, and she denounced Watanabe on X. A sports newspaper entertainment reporter adds:

“Later, the behind-the-scenes details came to light, revealing that Mr. Miyaji, who acted as the intermediary, had been moving forward with the YouTube collaboration without confirming it with Mr. Watanabe. In other words, Mr. Watanabe was unaware of it.”

While the controversy appears to be subsiding following Ryo-chan’s apology, some in the comedy community are taking a more level-headed view of Watanabe as the “victim.”

Prioritizing Branding

In his July 8 post—which has since been deleted—Ryo-chan wrote the following:

“Do you really think you can get away with saying ‘I didn’t hear about it’ or ‘I didn’t know’ just by using your former senior producer as a shield? I’m a comedian too, so I know how these things work.”

“If it were just two guys saying, ‘Put me on!’ and ‘Sure, no problem!’, I’d go along with it out of loyalty. But you’ve got no real passion as a comedian, do you?”

It seems Ryo-chan wasn’t just upset about being turned down for a YouTube appearance; he also took issue with Watanabe’s “position talk.” A comedy industry insider told this site,

“If Watanabe and Onikoshi had communicated directly, he couldn’t have claimed ‘I didn’t know.’ From Ryo-chan’s perspective, since Mr. Miyaji was acting as an intermediary, he was likely also dissatisfied with the fact that the structure of the situation allowed the ‘I didn’t know’ excuse to hold water,”

the insider explained.

Ryo-chan’s words and actions—treating his senior as “trash”—were certainly over the top. On the other hand, a person familiar with Watanabe commented,

“It’s true that Ryo-chan, who criticized him on social media, is mostly to blame, but while the conflict was ongoing, Watanabe could have reached out to Ryo-chan directly to find a compromise that satisfied both sides. That’s where I think it offered a glimpse of a certain ‘callousness’ that hasn’t changed from six years ago. It really is hard for people to change, isn’t it?”

“

Watanabe’s life was turned upside down six years ago by reports of an “affair in a multipurpose restroom.” His glittering career—in which he was highly valued not only as a comedian but also as a TV show host—collapsed. He made a comeback from there, steadily building up work with regional stations and streaming programs. Through side businesses—such as wedding congratulatory messages that capitalized on the scandal and the publication of his book—he got back on the upswing.

According to the comedy industry insider mentioned earlier,

“Before the affair scandal, Watanabe exuded a sense of ‘omnipotence.’ He prioritized his own branding; he was friendly to people he saw as beneficial to associate with, but indifferent to comedians he considered inferior. For a time, the comedy world was swirling with hatred toward Watanabe, mixed with jealousy,”

he revealed.

Veteran comedian Koji Higashino (58) commented on Watanabe during the July 10 broadcast of “Koji Higashino’s Honmono Radio” (ABC Radio), saying,

“He’s been steadily climbing the ladder one step at a time, but he skipped two or three steps and ended up tripping over his own feet,”

He was sarcastically pointing out that the “Watanabe of the past” had reared his head slightly during the trouble with Onigoe.

Tickets for Watanabe’s talk show are reportedly already sold out, partly due to the controversy. While Watanabe himself happily reported this on the radio, it seems there are quite a few comedians who know him and are watching the situation with “cold eyes”—