Midnight Diner: Tokyo Stories

What is it about stories that feature food? I like them, I do. Anyway, I was at the gym and I had another 20 minutes or so of time to go on the elliptical and the Kdrama I was watching had finished and I didn't want to start the next hour long episode of that. So I thought I'd try Midnight Diner: Tokyo Stories from my Netflix list. The episodes are just over 20 minutes long, so it seemed perfect.

This isn't a drama, per se. It's more like a series of disjointed stories that all take place in the diner of this dude, a diner that's only open from midnight until 7 AM. The witching hour. A story about people and food and the connections that they make. Or maybe I'm extrapolating, as so far I've only watched the first one.

First off, production-wise. I like the look of this one. Why? I don't know. It feels earthy and dark and gritty. It feels like city. It feels like what Tokyo should feel like (not that I've been there yet, but what I imagine it as). Neon lights reflecting off of damp city streets. Old and new, all on top of each other. Which is what Shanghai was like and somehow I feel like Tokyo must have a similar feel.

The first vignette features Shimada, a late night radio DJ talk show guy. In a chance encounter at the diner, he meets a female taxi driver and soon realises that she played his favourite ninja character (Crimson Maple) on a show from his youth (think Power Rangers). She was his first crush and he'd even written a fan letter to her.

He talks about her on his show. She hears him, as she's driving people around the late-night city. And here's where I thought, okay, this is veering into romance territory where we've got a guy who's met his first love years later, etc. etc. and I thought, yeah, I know where this is going. But I was wrong. Heh. I've been watching too many Korean dramas.

Because it turns out she doesn't really want to be talked about...but it isn't because he's outed her story. It's because Flying Squirrel (another ninja from the show) was her first crush...but things didn't work out because Flying Squirrel was a girl that had been born with a man's body and is now living/presenting as a woman (who also frequents the diner, with some fabulous pink hair). She doesn't want her story to get talked about if there's any resurgence over the show because he/she once protected her and now she wants to do the same.

I did not expect that.

Things work out in a friendly fashion & Flying Squirrel makes an appearance on the radio show. And the last scene is a bunch of them having a fan-club-ish type of meeting at the diner, all dressed in ninja costumes (and Shimada as an honorary member dressed in white).

So, I liked it. There was something quirkily charming about it and very random. It might actually be one of the first non-anime Japanese shows that I've really liked (my forays into Japanese dramas have NOT been very successful). I'll definitely watch some more. I look forward to being surprised. Also, it made me hungry.

Edit: 22 May 2020 -- (90 minutes, 1003 calories -- along with first episode of Good Casting) So, It's been over a year since I started this one and I've only (just now) finished episode 4 out of 10. I do like it, though it varies. Episode 2 I just thought was okay (a comedian gets in an extended argument with his former assistant). Episode three was sweet and made me tear up just a bit (awkward lady who knits sweaters for guys she likes; winds up with a younger dude who appreciates her when no one else does). Episode four was also good (Physicist dude falls in love with a Korean lady who learns to cook omurice just for him, though he has to chase after her to Korea because of parents not approving).

I'm going to finish it up now, I think, as I'm using this as my "filler" after Good Casting...since those episodes are 60 minutes and I'm doing at least 80 minutes on the elliptical every day and this fits well as the episodes are around 20 minutes.

After watching the episode today, I think what I appreciate about this show is how well it does at telling a fairly complete story in a short amount of time. And the food. It always makes me hungry. It's also quirky, mostly in a good way.

Edit: I did finally finish the first season. The episodes are a bit of a mixed bag, though overall I do like the show a lot. Actually, other than that second episode that I didn't care much for, the rest varied from little nuggets of joy to decent stories. And the food is always good. Netflix's 3 words for it are: sentimental, heartfelt, and understated and for once I have to say that I agree. There's also a season 2 and another (probably the original) series called just Midnight Diner (with the same chef, but not set in Tokyo?) I'll do another post for the second season, I think, since it's been over a year since I started this one!