WMG / Jet Set Radio

Tab was in the Noise Tanks in the original game's continuity.

• Not only was he the one who fixed up Roboy (formerly in the Noise Tanks himself) in Future, but in the original, where the Noise Tanks were (probably) human, they all wore jumpsuits, and so did Tab. He also has some sort of device on his wrist that also looks Noise Tanks-esque.
  • The wrist device is a radio, which several other characters, namely Beat, also wear. It’s also the watch radio that pops up on the screen whenever a character (the Rokkaku Police or the Golden Rhinos, for example) is speaking over the radio.
• I like this theory a lot! I could add to it by suggesting that Corn (of Future) was formerly involved with the development of Noise Tanks, possibly as some sort of intern or protégé of a Rokkaku employee, which explains his tech genius and motivation to fix up a Noise Tank for his own bidding. If he were formerly affiliated with Rokkaku, he probably decided to break away from them upon learning their evil intentions and decided to use his intelligence for the good of Tokyo-to, starting by using Rokkaku's own technology against them.

Jet Set Radio Future is set after a natural disaster hit Tokyoto & Related subtheories

For starters lets look at the city itself, entire areas have vert unusual almost twisted designs with stores who's entrances are off the ground, massive drops, and clearly a lot of haphazard construction. What if this was not simply artistic license but a symptom of an ongoing series of natural disasters caused in part by things in the first game?

• Subtheory #1: The disaster was an earthquake and a big one at that, why else would half the streets look like there either a solid two or three feet bellow where they're supposed to be and buildings seem half sunk into the ground. Further more parts of the bottom of the sewage system are almost vertical from the ground shifting.
• Subtheory #2: Poison Jam and the sewage plant. It's clear that some crazy stuff went down in the bottom of the sewage facility. Massive chunks of the hallways are vertical or twisted at odd angles, there's only scattered evidence that the area did anything productive, and the style is totally different from the rest of the plant. There are also various holes in the walls and running fluids that if the area is shut down shouldn't be running anything. This Troper believes this is where Poison Jam comes from, they are maimed or seriously burned sewer workers who formed a gang after getting fired for being injured when the earthquake totaled the section of sewage system they were working in, all the half boarded up holes were attempts to rescue coworkers buried in the rubble and under the pieces of metal, gloves, and masks they are still wearing their old jumpsuits.
• Subtheory #3: Rokkaku involvement: The Rokkaku Gouji group did not cause the earthquake but did take advantage of it to begin massive public works projects completely repairing and improving there image after the ending of the first game. The result was a rise again to power letting them use there new found resources to begin the culture cleansing they are in the midst of in game.

Onishima was a Rudie in his youth.

Considering his very ironic hairstyle commonly associated with Japanese delinquents, and his bad upbringing alluded to in the game's manual serving as his motivation to join the police force, it could be guessed that Onishima used to act out as a Rudie back in his day, possibly to cope with his home situation, and eventually had a change of heart, motivating him to become an officer of the law. This could provide a bit more explanation as to why he's so aggressive with the gangs of Tokyo-to, making him come across as The Atoner in a way for his days of vandalism.

Tokyoto has an overpopulation problem.

This is most obvious in Kibagaoka Hill, Rokkaku-Dai Heights and the Fortified Residential Zone - all of which are slums with cheap houses literally built on top of each other in massive heaps. Considering that Tokyo in Real Life has a major homelessness problem and JSRF's chronological setting, it's entirely possible that Tokyoto was overwhelmed by war or climate refugees.

Japan was at war with North Korea.

The massive slums of Kogane-Cho are from a massive influx of refugees fleeing a war with North Korea. The Fortified Residential Zone was built to safeguard civilians from a nuclear blast (it even has its own method of hydroelectric power) and the ballistic missiles in Kibagaoka Hill were built for a retaliatory strike. The reason it's in such a state of poverty could also be the result of Japan's historically hostile attitude towards foreigners.

The Rokkaku Group banned organized religion.

There are ZERO Shinto shrines or Buddhist temples found in either of the two games, with the exception of the scrap metal Torii hidden in Rokkaku-Dai Heights. In addition to graffiti, rollerblading and the GG's culture, religion itself may have been a victim of their cultural purge.

JSRF is part of the Warhammer 40,000 timeline.

The Fortified Residential Zone may in fact be a prototype hive city and Gouji's tower may be the work of the Ruinous Powers.

Gouji's tower is only the first of its kind.

The tower seen in the background of the Rokkaku Stadium after the game has ended may not be a case of developer oversight after all.

The Fortified Residential Zone is home to an offshoot of the Aum Shinrikyo cult.

Most of the residents there wear what look like hazmat suits and are frequently seen giving speeches to large crowds inside the Zone. Given that the prevalence of Haniwa (ancient funerary sculptures used as a replacement for human sacrifice in Japanese tombs), the Zone's fully-shielded and enclosed structure (likely from nuclear attack) and their hazmat suits (poison gas was the modus operandi for Aum Shinrikyo's terrorist attacks), the cult may be alive and out for blood in the JSRF universe.

The Noise Tanks rebelled against the Rokkaku Group.

After being destroyed by the Golden Rhinos, the few remaining Noise Tanks used their mind control helmets to enslave Gouji.

The Noise Tanks are cyborgs made from dead Rudies.

Their skating abilities may be from having the brains of Rudies that the Rokkaku Group have successfully captured or killed.

DJ Professor K uses slander and false rumours to keep the rudie movement alive.

A rarely-mentioned point of contention in the community is whether DJ Professor K’s descriptions of both individual rudies and rival gangs are truthful – especially apparent when some of the interactions the player can have with different rudies in the Garage indicate otherwise. Whilst his description of Beat as a “rumour-spreading punk” could easily be chalked up as genuine or a case of mistaken identity related to the Zero Beats, other incidents are less explainable.

For example, Gum is described as “perverse” and as “a real cool lady who leaves a trail of broken hearts wherever she goes” by DJ Professor K, despite none of her interactions or dialogue ever actually implying this. Now, some would argue this is backed up by the manual, but I counter that this is only the case in the English release – the Japanese manual for JSRF describes her as more “calm and composed” than Corn, and as being a “bad judge of character”, with it being explicitly stated that the English manual is supposed to be DJ Professor K’s introduction to characters. That said, Gum’s interactions in JSRF tend to lean toward the Japanese characterization, with no evidence of DJ Professor K’s interpretation of her… implying Gum is an unfortunate victim of slander.

That said, DJ Professor K doesn’t just describe rudies, but also describes other gangs, calling the Love Shockers a “team of psychos”, and refusing to acknowledge the Immortals’ claims (whether they be a form of outlandish kayfabe or actual connections to the Egyptian royal family.) These points go from a playful ribbing at the rudies all the way to pretty vicious slander directed toward Poison Jam (though this is somewhat justified given they're implied to have attacked a record store in Chuo Street.)

But… why?

Cube’s comments after revealing the fake Yoyo seem pertinent, saying “There's never been peace on the streets, and there never will be. Chaos is its true nature.” When you think about it, keeping a state of chaos is the best way to keep rudie activity high – prior to JSRF, things have constantly been happening, from the 99th Street blackout, to the attack on the Chuo Street record store, to the theft of the Goddess of Dogenzaka Hill – but all of this keeps rudies on the streets and keeps the culture alive.

DJ Professor K knows this culture well, so maybe his radio station – Jet Set Radio – is not only providing the music to which the revolution takes place, but also the subtle source of a little bit of social engineering of his own to ensure the culture never dies, even in the face of the 21st Century Project and the ever-increasing forces of the Rokkaku Group.