Episode Guide
GO! CABBAGE ROLL DEODRANT HEY BIM! PEACH BOY PICKLED PLUM Back in 2010 I made the decision to move across to Japan. I began studying the language, I doubled down on my efforts to learn all the social etiquette cues and intended to take my extensive collection of records and try to make it as a DJ over in Japan. My plan was to fly over to Tokyo in 2011, spend a good week or so adjusting and then begin hustling for work. Alas, fate has a weird way of taking your life in unexpected directions and months into prep work I met my (now-ex) wife and those plans quickly dissipated and became distant memories. As it turns out, a month after I would have originally flown over, the horrific tsunami consumed the region. From the very first episode, James May makes it clear that this is a travel program unlike other travel programmes. Tokyo doesn’t even show up until episode 3 and with plenty of establishing shots across the six episodes, The Grand Tour star delivers an educational, interesting and humorous plunge into Asia’s prolific island. “It’s a bit of a lark”, James remarks and this much absolutely comes through. With limited linguistic skills, ongoing jokes around “sumimasen” and haikus to sandwich everything together, there’s a consistency to the series that helps this one stand on its own two legs. I love An Idiot Abroad and for me I think that remains the stronger candidate in terms of humour and traveling but to be honest, James May delivers a really compelling and entertaining documentary here that’s well worth a watch. It’s not all laughs either and there’s a couple of well-placed poignant moments early on, especially during episode 2 where James sees the after-effects of the aforementioned 2011 tsunami on the region. There’s some truly breathtaking moments here too and whether it be the digital beauty of teamLab Borderless in Tokyo or the eerie village of dolls in Shikoku, there’s a great array of areas explored. Of course, alongside these areas are the different activities that James indulges in and with food such a large part of the culture, these moments are interspersed throughout the series, allowing James to really dive into the culinary experience and try all manner of food, including octopus and tongue. That’s to say nothing of the giant robots, driving around in a go-kart or even eating cheeky digestive biscuits in Kyoto; there’s so many memorable moments it’s hard to fit them all in here.
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