Why Did Kazuma Kiryu Go to Prison in Like a Dragon: Yakuza Season 1?

Warning: The following article contains spoilers for Like a Dragon: Yakuza Season 1.

When Like a Dragon: Yakuza‘s debut episode jumps its story forward 10 years, protagonist Kazuma Kiryu is behind bars. So, why did Kiryu go to prison in Like a Dragon: Yakuza Season 1?

Why Is Kiryu in Jail in Like a Dragon: Yakuza Season 1?

The events leading to Kazuma Kiryu’s incarceration aren’t depicted in Like a Dragon Season 1’s initial three-episode drop, nor are they addressed explicitly in dialogue. Clearly, this is a mystery the Prime Video show’s creators Sean Crouch and Yugo Nakamura are holding back for Episodes 4-6.

That said, Like a Dragon: Yakuza Season 1, Episodes 1-3 contain several clues regarding Kiryu’s journey to the slammer. For starters, whatever the would-be “Dragon of Dojima” did, it clearly put him on the outer with his fellow yakuza. A bunch of Shimano Family heavies even try hauling Kiryu in front of their boss the moment he’s set free! And dialogue in Episode 2 confirms the only thing keeping Kiryu safe from his former outfit, the Dojima Family, is its new patriarch (and Kiryu’s childhood pal) Nishiki.

This dialogue exchange also includes another major hint at the nature of Kiryu’s crime. According to one of Nishiki’s lieutenants, Kiryu is guilty of “violating the laws of filiality.” Like several other characters in Like a Dragon: Yakuza Season 1), he uses the term “oyagoroshi” for Kiryu, as well. This is the Japanese word for someone who murders a parent. Given yakuza family heads are viewed as “fathers” by their underlings, the implication is Kiryu went to prison for bumping off Nishiki’s predecessor, Sohei Dojima.

Related: What Yakuza Game Is Prime Video’s Like a Dragon Season 1 Based On?

Does Kiryu Go to Prison for the Same Reason in the Yakuza Games?

Assuming Kiryu did indeed wind up in prison for killing Sohei Dojima in Like a Dragon: Yakuza, does that square with the original games? Maybe. Anyone eager to avoid potential spoilers for Season 1’s remaining episodes should bail out now. Still here? Great. So, in 2005’s Yakuza (and its 2016 remake, Yakuza Kiwami), Nishiki guns down Dojima, not Kiryu. But Kiryu takes the blame and goes to jail.

Related: All Yakuza Games, Ranked from Worst to Best

Whether this aspect of Kiryu’s backstory will play out the same in Like a Dragon: Yakuza Season 1’s latter three installments remains to be seen. After all, the first three have already made plenty of tweaks to established canon. So, you’ll just have to tune in when Episodes 4-6 drop to find out!

Like a Dragon: Yakuza Season 1, Episodes 1-3 are currently streaming on Prime Video. Episodes 4-6 premiere on Nov. 1, 2024.