Taizo

*This is about the episode "Taizo." You may be looking for Chester Nakayama, also known as "Taizo," or his son Henry Nakayama II, who was also referred to as "Taizo."*

**Taizo** is the sixth episode of *The Terror: Infamy*, the second season of AMC's *The Terror*.

## Summary

*A story of the past provides insight into the present evil that stalks the Terminal Islanders. Chester returns home to his family, only to find that someone he was searching for is gone. Henry and Asako are faced with a difficult decision.*

## Plot

The scene is set at Terminal Island, in 1919. Yuko Tanabe stands before a mirror and listens to music on a phonograph. A man shows her a photograph, saying that when Yoshida-san showed it to him, he thought "This can't be," that he could never be so lucky. He hugs her, saying that she's exquisite. She shies away, telling the man "Furuya-san," that there is something she must tell him. He stops her, saying that it may seem frightening at first, but will soon be exhilarating. He says that it's alright, that they're married. She insists that there's something she must tell him. She uncovers her belly, showing him that she's pregnant. She apologizes, saying that she was going to write and tell him before the journey. He says that she didn't, that she tricked him. She says that they can tell everyone that it's his child, and it will be. He smashes a glass and shouts, asking if she takes him for a fool. She says that they told her that he was kind, and understanding. She begs his forgiveness. He lifts her chin, telling her that he asked for a bride, and not a whore. She implores him to let her explain. He shouts that there's nothing to explain, that she's soiled. He tosses her outside and shuts the door. She knocks and pleads, but gets no response.

It is one year later. In Los Angeles, California, she shakes a rattle to amuse her baby. She is living in a tent, homeless. She grabs some old bread, giving some to her baby. The baby cries and gasps. She does too, not knowing what to do. Shortly afterwards, she is in a church, where a nun is telling her that she did the right thing, and that children can't be raised on the streets. "A moment of weakness," she says, "and so much destruction in its wake," wondering what a woman is if she can't raise her own child. She walks away. She is at the edge of a bridge, with a small bag, when another woman approaches. She asks if anything is worrying her. She says that she's just reflecting, and the woman replies that she used to do the same, to reflect on life. She used to think that it would be peaceful down under the water, that troubles and sorrows could be washed out to sea with the tide. She says to take it from her that pain doesn't need to be washed away, that it will eventually fade. Yuko tells her that she misunderstands, that she's just resting before returning home. The woman walks away and Yuko rattles the bag, which is weighted with stones. A drum beats and she lets herself fall backwards, into the water. Weighted by the bag, she sinks.

Yuko is in a bed of the home of the woman she spoke with just before falling off the bridge. She opens her eyes as a fly buzzes above her head. She looks around and sees Asian artwork and pagoda structures. The woman is preparing tea. She smiles and wishes Yuko good morning, saying that she slept quite well. Yuko asks her what happened, saying that she remembers being underwater. The woman replies that she saved her from an accident. Yuko tells her that she doesn't know how she got there. The woman tells her that the rest will soon fade with luck and to just know that she's safe now. She gives Yuko tea. Yuko drinks and looks around a bit more. She tells the woman that she feels like she's back in Japan. The woman tells her that she spent years building it to look like that, urging her to eat and recover her strength. Yuko bows to her, saying "let's eat." She digs in, quite enjoying the food. She apologizes, noting that she must have been quite famished. The woman tells her that she's hungry to recover. Yuko notices a design on some sheets hanging, asking if it's the *Yotsu Hanabishi*. She says it's the crest of her ancestors. The woman calls it a coincidence and, getting up, tells her that she needs fresh air. Yuko marvels at the grounds, noting that not a single leaf is out of place. The woman is happy, saying that she knew that Yuko would find the beauty in it.

They observe a gardener, whom Yuko comments hasn't taken a break all morning. The woman agrees that he's quite hard-working. Yuko asks if he's been with her long, and she replies it's been so long, she can't even remember, but there could be no better garden to tend. Yuko starts to ask her about finding her on the bridge, but the woman reminds her that she told her to not think of that. Yuko asks her about the time that she once stood there. The woman tells her that there is no need to say more. Yuko replies that all she wanted was to be a mother, someone to care for and love. She wobbles and the woman stops her, telling her she was about to ruin the sand. She says Yuko's overexerted herself. They sit down on some rocks for a rest. Later, Yuko wakes up back in the bed, and observes the gardener. She hears a tray rattling and a door sliding open. The woman is preparing tea, and wishes her good morning. The fly buzzes above, and when it lands her arm, she smashes it, leaving a bloody spot on her arm. The woman asks her if something is wrong. She looks again and sees no blood on her arm. She says nothing is wrong. The woman gives Yuko a bath, telling her that she has beautiful hair, like silk. Yuko observes a walkway, and asks if it's new. The woman wonders why she asks, and Yuko replies that it's not quite finished. The woman ignores the question and brushes her hair, saying that hair like it requires proper attention. Yuko apologizes, saying that she's feeling dizzy. The woman presents her with a red kimono, saying that it suits her and fits her perfectly. She tells her to enjoy it. Yuko tells her she's far too generous.

Yuko stands at a bridge and observes fish swimming in a pond. She observes the gardener, pruning. In the water, she observes what appears to be her own body falling in. She gasps in shock. The bones of the gardener crack strangely as he approaches her. She flees, but is pulled into the sand as if it's quicksand. Then, arms reach out and pull her down into the sand. She shouts for someone to help her. The woman approaches, telling her that she tried to warn her. She holds out a stick, telling her that she'll save her. Yuko awakes in the bed. It's a familiar scene. The tray rattles and the woman tells her that she slept quite well. The fly buzzes above. Yuko asks her where she is, and she tells her to calm down and eat her breakfast. Yuko asks just what this cursed place is. The woman replies that it should be obvious - it's paradise. Yuko says that she doesn't remember how she got out of the water, and the woman tells her that she never left. There's no need to fret, she's safe. Yuko replies that she can't be there in a place like this. She's a mother. The woman tells her that's no more, that they have each other. She says that she knows Yuko's fear, a ravenous hunger for restitution, what the priests call an *onnen*. She tells her that she can help her, that they can be happy there. Yuko shouts that she's a mother and she has to get back. The woman gives it to her straight - she's dead. It's all gone. She says that she knows too the pain of losing a child, a pain that will dull in time. Yuko replies that she's made a terrible mistake. The woman says that she will now be Yuko's mother. Yuko shouts back the woman is not. She's a demon, a *Bakemono*. As the building rattles, the woman calls her an ungrateful whore, telling her that this is what she chose. She went to the bridge on her own and chose oblivion, even though she warned her. She says she saved Yuko from the sand, and asks if she should throw her back to the depths. She tells her she's waited very long for her, for one of her own, and hugs her. Yuko sees her family crest and realizes that the woman must be an ancestor of hers. The woman agrees, they are of the same family, and her blood can join her, so many generations later. This is their paradise, for eternity. She tells her she must eat, that she needs her strength. She heads back to the kettle, but Yuko grabs it and beans her, knocking her out cold, bleeding from her head.

She says there must be a way out of there. She gets up, only to be immediately approached by the woman, who tells her that there's no way out. She asks where else she would go. Yuko wakes up again on the bed. She heads outside, wearing the kimono, and does some calligraphy. The woman tells her that she's trying too hard and carefully paints a character. She tells Yuko that the monks say that to truly master calligraphy, one must let the letters flow like breath. She says that Yuko has copied the *Yotsu Hanabishi* perfectly. Yuko admits that she's been quite taken by it. She reflects on how nothing is out of place there, including herself. She asks the woman if she never had a daughter herself. The woman says she doesn't speak of her, but Yuko notes that the kimono, a yukata, must have been her daughter's. Yuko speaks of the girl she saw in the water, which was actually the woman's daughter. "Down in that hell?" she asks. The woman tells her that it's enough. She asks if it's the woman's doing, if she sent her there. The woman tells her to shut up. Yuko insists that she must remember, that she's built this place to forget about all of that, yet she can't have her daughter back. "Because she's just like you," the woman replies. Unreasonable, disrespectful and selfish. Yuko says that it's just as she thought, that her daughter was never perfect enough for her. She asks how she killed her. The woman replies that she had enraged her, and it was her fault that she fell. She brought it on herself. "And so have you," Yuko observes, seeing that the woman has stepped into the sand. The hand grabs her and she screams. She begs for Yuko's help. Yuko hands her the rod. The woman thanks her, "my child." Yuko says that she told her - she's not her child, she's a mother. She shoves her and releases the rod. The woman is pulled under.

Clouds appear in the sky and thunder rumbles. Yuko starts running. She races for the door of the house, only to find a wall of roots and branches. She tears through and emerges from the other end, a moldering corpse with her bones cracking. There's a cross behind her - it's a graveyard. She stands, an undead figure risen from the grave. It is 21 years later, 1941.

It is now July 3, 1943 at the Colinas de Oro War Relocation Center. A truck approaches the gate and is cleared to enter. Chester is inside the truck. A man taps him, telling him to wake up, that he's home. His parents, Henry and Asako, as well as Fumi, walk together. Fumi says that Chester brings pain, that it stalks him. She says that her son is safer in Italy than they are there. Asako replies that there are times when misfortune simply happens by chance. Her son has come home, alive, and she wishes that Fumi's will too. Chester gets off the truck, as the soldiers say that he is being given a medical discharge. His mother hugs him. His first question is where his girlfriend, Luz, is. Asako tells him that she's okay, but that her father came. "She left?" asks Chester. Asako says she's sorry and hands him a letter, saying that Luz asked her to send it, but that he needed happy thoughts and not this. He reads the letter. It says that they were thrust together into the real world, a harsh reality. She was worried and didn't know if he could become the man she needed him to be. However, he grew and became exactly the man he needed her to be. She could see their life together, but the horrible night she lost their children clouded everything. She tried to wait for him, and thought she could be brave enough to see him. She will only see his face in a future that can never be. She says that she wishes it could be different, and she's sorry. He observes a gravestone - Enrique and Hikaru - 1942.

The sun rises on the next morning. Chester has spent the night sleeping by the gravestone. Fumi comes up before him, telling him that a spirit follows him, that it killed his sons and drove Luz mad. She says it's why her husband died, and now he's put everyone in danger. Asako grabs her, telling her to leave him alone, that he's in grief. Fumi asks her for whom, saying that she brought this upon him, that none of this would have happened had she not been so selfish. Asako slaps her. She tells her that her son is a soldier, a hero, and asks her what she is. She leaves, and Asako grabs Chester, saying they should go home. Chester tells her that Fumi is right, that a spirit does follow him. It followed him across the Pacific and tried to kill him in the Jeep crash. He asks Asako if it did this too. She urges him not to listen to nonsense, but he demands to know what Fumi was talking about. She hugs him and her bones crack strangely, veins popping in her face. "My sweet baby," she says. "How I've missed you." She tells him to find his woman. His babies are dead, but his line, "*our* line" must continue. "*Yurei*," realizes Chester. "My *Taizo*," she replies.

He demands that he let her mother go. "You call her mother?" she asks. He calls her a demon, and tells her to leave his mother. She replies that she is no mother, but rather a thief. She starts to walk away. He demands that she face him, and she turns around and starts choking him. She lets go as a crowd starts to gather, again calling him "*Taizo*." The body of Asako Nakayama collapses to the ground. He and Henry rouse her. She is okay. Later, in their room, she explains that Yuko was inside her, but she was there too. She watched as her own hands tried to choke Chester. She tried control her body and fought, but couldn't do it. She felt so much pain and desire in the spirit, a tremendous hunger. Chester asks what it wants. "You," replies Asako. She says that she had a sister, who died many years ago, Yuko, Hideo's picture bride. After he sent her away, she went to the Badger Avenue bridge and jumped. Chester asks just what it is she would want with him. Henry explains that she was already pregnant when she came to Hideo. "It called me her child, Taizo," realizes Chester. Henry says that "Taizo" is the name that she gave him. "I'm sorry," says Asako.

It is the fourth of July and fireworks light the sky over the Colinas de Oro as "The Star-Spangled Banner" plays on a radio. A woman comforts her baby as Yuko stands among the festivities. "Taizo..." she whispers. Back at the Nakayama family barracks, Asako tells Chester that she was still in Japan when she learned that Yuko had taken her own life. She would never let her sister's child be an orphan. She crossed over and took in Chester. Chester asks about his father. Henry says that he was a soldier, who died in war. Chester takes it all in, asking about all the meals where they sat together, never saying a word. Henry tells him that they feared the truth would hurt. "You mean it would hurt you," replies Chester, angrily. "Son," starts Henry, but Chester tells him to not call him that. He points at Asako, saying that she's his blood and he's nothing. Henry stands, asking if this is truly so. Chester leaves.

Outside, Yuko walks and hums, holding a baby. The wind blows as she stands before an empty grave. She falls inside, and finds herself in the sandy remains of the "paradise" from before. She says that only her own blood can join her. Chester stands before the grave of his stillborn children. He hears a baby crying nearby. He looks in the empty grave, and sees Yuko lying inside with the baby. "Yuko," he says, as the baby screams.

In the barracks, the group is gathered before Yuko. "*Yurei*," says Yamato-san, asking how this can be. Chester says that he knows the traditions and needs to help them. Yamato-san replies that he is not *onmyoji* and he only knows pieces of old *kaidan*. Henry tells him that that his is more than most. Yamato-san nods. He says that Yuko's spirit is somewhere else. An unfulfilled soul needs a body to occupy. If they destroy the body, then the soul cannot exist. Asako is aghast at the idea destroying the body, but Henry tells her that is no longer really her. Her spirit must be set free. Asako says that she looks just like she remembers - a girl preparing to meet her husband. She nods, agreeing that it must be done.

Yamato-san paints her body with Japanese characters, chanting "*Namu Amida Butsu*." They bind the body and pour gasoline over it. They leave Chester alone with a lantern, clasping their hands and bowing to the body before they go. "*Bakemono*," shouts Chester, tossing the lantern and setting the place ablaze. He watches as the fire grows. He leaves. In the remains of the paradise, Yuko sits, her body covered in the Japanese characters. She gasps and her body contorts. She races for the door and is met with a blazing inferno. The others watch as the building goes up in flames. "No!" Taizo!" shouts Yuko. As the body burns, Yuko appears to catch on fire from the inside out. She plunges into the flames. That morning, the building is charred to the ground. There is little left but ashes, yet Yuko's voice sings a lullaby. "Taizo..." she whispers.

## Guest starring

* Hira Ambrosino as Fumi Yoshida
* Eiji Inoue as Hideo Furuya
* Natuski Kunimoto as Chiyo

## Co-starring

* Naomi Simpson as Sister Agatha
* Mark Fukuhara as Gardener
* Dominic McDowell as Army Medic
* Logan Tarasoff as Army Escort
* Yumi Nagashima as Young Mother

## Trivia

* The first half of this installment is presented almost entirely in subtitled Japanese, save a brief English speaking part from a U.S. nun.

## Reception

This installment of the series was praised by multiple sources for the answers it provides regarding the backstory of the series, and Yuko Tanabe in particular. Chris Flackett of 25 Years Later expressed that Yuko was the character that he was most interested in from the start and he was glad to finally get answers regarding her past. Den of Geek stated that the series continued to improve with this installment, noting that while the series has been remarkably grounded so far, this episode takes us to the afterlife. Slash Film described the episode as a fill-the-gaps one that, while good, left viewers wondering what there would be left to say following this. Hidden Remote felt that the revelation of Yuko's backstory was refreshingly simple, as too often such reveals are too deep and twisty to be truly interesting. Sean Collins of A.V. Club was a rare voice of dislike for the episode, grading it a C- and stating that "by divorcing the central supernatural premise so totally from the show’s sociopolitical framework, *The Terror: Infamy* effectively argues itself right out of its historical context."

## Videos

'She Left!?' Sneak Peek Ep. 206 The Terror Infamy-0'Taizo' Next On Ep. 206 The Terror Infamy'Yuko Is Following Chester!' Moment of Terror Ep. 206 The Terror Infamy
## Notes and references

1. ↑ The Futon Critic - *The Terror*
2. ↑ WGA Directory - *The Terror: Infamy*
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 TV Web - *The Terror: Infamy* Trailer #2
4. ↑ 25 Years Later - The Terror: Infamy S2E6 "Taizo"
5. ↑ Den of Geek - The Terror Season 2 Episode 6 Review: Taizo
6. ↑ Slash Film - 'The Terror: Infamy' Episodes 5 and 6 Start Answering Questions
7. ↑ Hidden Remote - The Terror: Infamy keeps things simple with Yuko’s backstory and that’s a good thing
8. ↑ A.V. Club - *The Terror: Infamy* reveals the secret of its sinister spirit