Who's ready for a laugh?

We (x4) need some positive.

Positive #1!

Cherry blossoms are happening—beautiful flowers.

#2: We also have my fur baby.

Hello Lilly, say hi.

#3: Whxsperofsprxng, earthlinguist, Thora Dali, Eli I Guess,

Results May Vary, Jalen Cox, Aydan Yenaled,

Dhaneja Meegoda—I'm so sorry if I'm saying these wrong—Ahikanana, and Shaun Stapleton.

You guys right now are my best friends.

These wonderful people are writing and offering to write subtitles for all of these videos.

Thank you so much!

I have to think of a way to give back to you guys,

but at the moment what I can do is stop talking so much

because I know these videos have been long.

So, today's video is a bit of a pick-me-up.

Three main Netflix shows that I have been binging to keep up with Japanese,

learn more Japanese, and just generally feel good while staying at home recently.

Where are you going?

Where are you actually going?

So, the first show is Doctor X.

I originally pressed play kind of as a joke,

and I did not expect it to be actually funny and so...good?

The main character—Doctor X, or Michiko Daimon—

is played by the actress Yonekura Ryōko.

A lot of you probably know her voice if you've ever seen the Avengers, Iron Man.

She is the dubbed voice of Black Widow in Japan,

but in Japan, recently, she's really known for this series.

Doctor X is a freelance surgeon who is incredibly skilled,

but has to work in Japanese hospitals, which are incredibly bureaucratic,

and definitely not to her taste.

It's basically a parody of Japanese hospitals and big corporations

and how she basically in the most polite but snarky way

just says like, "I'm not gonna do it."

If you watch Doctor X, you are going to learn how to be sassy in Japanese

politely.

—what we like to call in the business as the professional _ _ _ _ you.

Negotiate contracts, how to push your invoice and say that your price

is exactly the price that we're going to go for.

I was not expecting a Japanese dramedy to teach me how to negotiate my contracts in Japanese.

There are English subtitles available.

Usually, I like to watch with Japanese subtitles

so that I can actually try to learn some of this feisty, sassy keigo.

The one thing about the Japanese in this show you need to be aware of

is that it is a parody.

One of the words they use all the time is "gyoi" (御意 - as you wish).

Gyoi!

Everyone in the hospital staff is just trying to brownnose their way up to the director,

so all of those lackeys are constantly like, "Gyoi." "Gyoi!"

Doctor X is just prancing through all of this just like, "いたしません." ("I won't do it.")

In real life, using "gyoi" is basically saying like, "As you wish."

Like the guy in Princess Bride.

It's definitely over the top, and you don't need to use it.

There are softer ways to say no.

You would just be like, "検討します." ("I'll consider it.")

"検討いたします." (more polite version)

The humor, the way that they make fun of Japanese workplaces

all the time is just so hilarious,

especially Director Hiruma—the Director of the hospital

played by one of my favorite actors, Nishida Toshiyuki.

He is so funny.

They're really milking the comedy on this one.

If you're into fashion or just a good pair of legs,

Ryōko Yonekura.

She used to ballet for fifteen years,

so she's very flexible and has amazing legs.

Her outfits, her heels, her fashion is just so, like,

boss lady beautiful.

There are a lot of blogs that break down every outfit that she wears.

That's a little fun thing you can do on the side, but yeah.

Boss lady fashion, snarky keigo freelancer, it's such a fun watch.

It is a little cheesy, but they know they're being cheesy,

so the writing is actually believable.

Everything is on purpose, and it's just—you will laugh.

My only note is that if you do not like gore or organs,

this is not going to be the show for you

because they are very proud of their props department.

It is very visceral, so if you're not looking for the sinews,

you might enjoy something else instead.

You don't need to necessarily watch it to the end.

I would say the middle, like season three about, is really really good.

#2! Japanese viewers, please don't be surprised by the next title.

I've already been told several times that it's for old men.

Are you ready?

One of my absolute favorite shows right now is Tsuri Baka Nisshi (Fishing Idiot Nishi).

The English title on Netflix is called Free and Easy.

I am absolutely obsessed with this show.

This actor, Director Hiruma, is what I call him,

but he's really Nishida Toshiyuki.

He is actually genius.

His singing, his improv,

he made a joke in Spanish while singing in—

well, no spoilers. But anyways,

He's just such a genius and honestly,

he kind of reminds me of like, the Robin Williams of Japan.

Wholesome and hilarious.

Just like the title says, he's just a simple fishing idiot,

and these are all the high jinks that he gets into.

He has a normal office job, and he hates it.

He's always desperately trying to get off of work early,

and rip off his suit because like Superman,

he always has like fishing gear on underneath.

And one of these times when he's ripping out of the office trying to get away

and back to his wife as soon as possible,

he runs into this older man, and he gives him some life advice.

"The feel of the reel! And the fish at the end of your line!"

That ends up actually being the CEO of the company.

This is not a spoiler.

Basically every episode is the CEO and kind of like normal office worker.

They become best friends, and all they want to do is go fishing,

but they have to keep hiding that they know each other.

The high jinks, the humor.

And usually because this fishing idiot usually messes something up,

he usually gets transferred to different places in Japan,

so you get to see these beautiful coastal landscapes

that you never even knew existed and are just so beautiful.

I haven't finished it, so I'm going to hold back my full review.

But, I do highly recommend it.

I haven't found a version with English subtitles yet,

but if you are at least about N2 level, I think you can get through.

But yeah, so that's kind of like honorable mention #2.

The real #2 is Kekkon Dekinai Otoko (The Man Who Can't Get Married).

In a nutshell, Jack Nicholson from As Good As It Gets with Helen Hunt

lives on the same floor as all the kids in Friends.

This guy, on paper, looks like a perfect guy.

He's an architect, he's rich, he cooks.

But the problem is, he really sucks with human interaction.

Like, it's really bad. Like, this is the Jack Nicholson.

He's very particular about how everything has to be a certain way,

and how the way he eats, everything has to be perfect.

So he's kind of like unbearably perfectionist.

He keeps running into these really successful women,

like doctors and lawyers who think he's a great catch,

but realize he's just absolutely unbearable,

but him slowly realizing how much he craves their interactions.

So he just keeps showing up at like their places of work

with no reason to be there,

or like try to make up a reason to be there

just so he can talk to these ladies,

but he really sucks at it.

The mismatching is just so, so priceless,

and the characterization's really good.

It's really funny, and honestly,

if I can say this, I think the dog kind of makes the show

perceptive, and smart, and hilarious, and sweet.

In terms of language, this is very normal adult Japanese.

There's nothing exaggerated.

You could literally take words right off the show and use them,

and that would be great.

There are English subtitles available.

Season 1 in and of itself was perfect.

I do not think you need season 2.

Season 1 is just a perfect little *mwah*

This show, it doesn't even feel like Japanese comedy.

It just feels like people comedy,

and it's just—it just makes you feel really good.

#3: Kinou Nani Tabeta? (What Did You Eat Yesterday?)

This one blew me away.

I didn't even know we had dramas like this in Japan.

It starts as a comedy, and then it just like—

suddenly you realize you care so deeply about these characters.

Kinou Nani Tabeta? is a story about a middle-aged gay couple

who live in Tokyo. One of them is a lawyer, and one of them works at a beauty salon.

And they're both just trying to navigate their every day,

and come home at night and eat dinner together.

It's based on a really popular manga, which I haven't read yet.

I did not expect a Japanese comedy about LGBT topics to be so well-written,

so realistic, and not over-the-top.

At first, I thought it was going to be really cheesy and a disservice to a whole bunch of people,

but it was so—oh my gosh—

like the acting, the story.

The main characters are Shiro and Kenji,

and Shiro is played by Hidetoshi Nishijima.

He is a very famous actor,

and he is so good with his roles.

He really builds characters that you believe and feel like you know.

His character is a full-time lawyer,

and he just wants to be serious, respected, and do his job,

and he wants his work and his private life separate.

Kenji, on the other side, is the exact opposite.

Like, you can tell he really adores Shiro, but hopes he would just open up.

And I thought this was just going to be kind of like

a flat story of just what they eat every day,

but it really evolved into these backstories of like

Shiro's mind complex of his imposter syndrome.

He never feels like he's done enough.

He's always trying to prove that he's professional.

He's always trying to prove that he's good enough.

The silly things that he does to try to avoid getting stereotyped.

I am so impressed.

You know, we always have this idea of like,

quirky, goofy, kind of shallow comedy from Japan,

and that is not this.

Obviously, there's bubbly, hilarious moments,

but it's gold, and I absolutely love this show.

I really hope there's another season of this, but we shall see.

And, there are cooking scenes, so if you like cooking,

there's lots of cooking.

So, there you have it. Those are my top picks.

They look like just comedies on the surface,

but deep down they're just so well-written,

and the characters are so deep.

It really feels like Robin Williams, Tom Hanks, Mr. Rogers type of caliber

is just on a different level than what I expected from a Netflix show

to be honest.

But yeah, these are my feel-good shows that will make you laugh.

Things I haven't seen yet include The Followers.

I'm a little bit hesitant to try it.

Just looking at the trailers, it looks like it's a bit more flashy and less warm,

but I know a lot of you guys have been watching The Followers.

I don't always just watch vintage classics.

Like, I love good, you know, modern TV too,

but is this one any good? Let me know. Let me know in a comment below.

Other honorable mentions go to, in English, Atelier.

Or in Japanese, it's called Underwear.

These four titles that I've recommended—

these are ones that I would recommend to people

whether they care about Japan or not.

Like, I would recommend these to my parents.

Atelier, on the other hand,

I don't feel like I really gained much by watching the series.

A single woman boss who makes her way through a really hard industry

of like textiles and fashions, and underwear.