Although it’s fiction, the series offers a peek into Tokyo’s sordid underbelly seething with violent loan sharks, pachinko addicts, prostitutes, and fraudsters. Welcome to the world of Anpanman, an anpan (bread filled with anko, or sweet red bean paste) headed hero. Japanese Difficulty level: Intermediate This list features cartoons with varying degrees of Japanese. Cons: Almost too cute and maybe too childish. I also play them on my Japanese Playstation 3. Pros: As a popular series abroad, it's easy to obtain. If a cheeky (in more ways than one) version of Japanese family life is what you're looking for, give Crayon Shin-chan a look.

Zettai! Similar show: Ainori Love Wagon: Asian Journey. Originally released on TBS in 2011, Midnight Diner gets a reboot with the help of Netflix, this time with the added tagline “Tokyo Stories.” This slow-paced show is set in the heart of Shinjuku, at a small diner only open between midnight and 7am. She uses the money to start her own hostess club, flaunting her new wealth to the increasingly furious crooked bank managers she stole from. Is it kismet or is something darker afoot? Similar shows: My 3 Daughters, Tama and Friends, New Atashin’chi.

Shinichi Sakita (Gaku Hamada) is down on his luck and returns to his hometown after losing his job at a bank in Tokyo. Here, among many other things, you’ll learn that raccoons don’t wash their hands because they have a penchant for cleanliness (you’d think their nickname of trash pandas would have been a sufficient hint) — it’s because they’re killing time. GTO: Great Teacher Onizuka, Stay At Home Dad, この男は人生最大の過ちです/Kono otoko wa jinsei saidai no ayamachi desu, , Wise and Foolish, Let Me Call You Father-in-Law, Based on Yoshio Suzuki’s manga of the same name, this human drama shows a slightly seedier side to Japan — albeit a more PG version than. Later editions were based more on fiction than fact, but Chibi Maruko Chan was already a hit and the serialized comic ran for a laudable 10 years. The latest season in the worldwide hit show sees six contestants hanging out in a beautiful two-story house in picturesque Karuizawa, a famous resort area and playground for the rich and famous. Created by actor (All Around Us), writer (Tokyo Tower: Mom and Me, and Sometimes Dad) and all-around talent Lily Frank, Oden-kun reflects its author's unique personality and art style. Can't find the series by searching in English? It’s well worth a watch if you can get past the queasiness of someone tooting out of their face.

Although time consuming, this study method's big yields means it's worth investing time in. Here are some of the best variety and reality shows available: Downtown’s Hitoshi Matsumoto heads a battle of wit around an oval-shaped table. And most Western-released Dragon Ball DVDs feature both languages. Weekly Japanese Idiom: “Souseki-chinryu” — Sore Loser, What’s New in Odaiba this Month: November 2020, A Beginner’s Guide to Japanese Ceramics, Porcelain and Pottery, How to Make Homemade Pumpkin Pie in Japan and other Seasonal Autumn Recipes, 10 Kanto Spots To Take The Perfect Fall Foliage Photos, Whether Trump or Biden Wins, The Covid Stays the Same, The Making of Amezaiku, Japan’s Candy Artistry. Genre: Kids Some of our favorites include: ビンスイ (瓶吸い/ bin sui — to slurp from a bottle), 潔癖 (けっぺき/ keppeki — clean freak) and 蛞蝓に塩 (なめくじにしお/ namekuji ni shio — crestfallen, dejected, shriveled (literally “like a slug sprinkled with salt”). You didn’t think we’d forget Japan’s biggest reality TV show, did you?

But thanks to the internet, most are easily accessible. Subtitles: Japanese This technique's advantage lies in its focus on raw Japanese. The original manga series started out as a collection of semi-autobiographical stories from author Momoko Sakura’s life. Difficulty level: Beginner to intermediate At last I could improve my listening skills while being entertained! Both shops have made international ordering easy by offering English versions of their stores and accepting foreign credit cards. If toilet humorisn’t quite your bag, then check out the following three shows for some linguistic leveling-up. Luckily region-free DVD players that can play DVDs from any country are inexpensive. Alas, losing her job would be better than the fate that awaits her — it turns out Amagi has a thing for being treated like dirt. Cons: When the action gets heavy, useful vocabulary dwindles. Takanawa Area Guide: Tokyo’s Future Global Business Hub is A Tranquil Neighborhood, The 6 Best Kichijoji Coffee Shops As Recommended by Locals, The Fight to Make Japan Accessible to All Travelers, The Hate Crime Against Jazz Pianist Tadataka Unno Concerns Us All, Out With The Kids in the Outskirts of Tokyo: Family Day Trip Tips from A Mom That Has Seen it All, Beyond Beer: 4 New and Noteworthy Craft Beer Hubs in Tokyo, Akira Online Japanese School Tokyo: Japan’s Only Online Language School that Uses Scientific Approach to Help You Study Japanese, Enhance Your Tokyo Experience and Achieve Personal Ambitions at Temple University, Japan Campus, Summerhill International School Provides Enriching Environment Where Creativity Blossoms and Children Shine, TW Social: What We Got Up To in September 2020, TW Social: What We Got Up To In August 2020, TW Social: What We Got Up To in July 2020, great way to boost your vocabulary and conversation skills. Others, like Nintama Rantarou, take aim at older children and feature a slight level-up in Japanese and plot. Main image: ©“Brave ‘YOSHIHIKO’ and the great satan’s castle” Film Partners, Weekly Japanese Idiom: “Souseki-chinryu” — Sore Loser, What’s New in Odaiba this Month: November 2020, A Beginner’s Guide to Japanese Ceramics, Porcelain and Pottery, How to Make Homemade Pumpkin Pie in Japan and other Seasonal Autumn Recipes, 10 Kanto Spots To Take The Perfect Fall Foliage Photos, Whether Trump or Biden Wins, The Covid Stays the Same, The Making of Amezaiku, Japan’s Candy Artistry. When I first started learning Japanese I focused on listening for words and phrases I had studied. This mini-drama in six parts is a dark thriller with several twists — what happens when the person you’ve switched bodies with knows how it happened and doesn’t want to switch back? Access to these shows would have been nearly impossible just a decade ago. It’s about the Isonos, a typical Japanese 大家族 (だいかぞく – big family) living together in Tokyo. Japanese difficulty level:  Intermediate. If you’ve exhausted our Part I list already, or you’re simply looking for more Japanese shows to watch as you #stayhome, here’s another round of our favorite shows that can help you survive the quarantine—and emerge from it with improved nihongo skills. Enter Netflix. ), in a long running, influential cultural mainstay. Jimmy is the story of how Jimmy (real name Hideaki Onishi) met legendary comedian Sanma Akashiya, more affectionately known as Sanma-san, in the early 1990s. There’s no shame in watching kids’ shows — in fact, they can be extremely useful as learning tools, especially for beginners. You can also use this method with Japanese music and then check the lyrics online. Japanese difficulty level:  Beginner to intermediate. And don't forget to go back later to check your progress. The age gap, as well as Daidoji’s comparatively mediocre career and bad style, is too much for Papa Hanazawa, who does everything he can to stop the couple’s engagement. Similar shows: The Many Faces of Ito, Underwear, First Class.

Pros: American humor (for Americans).

Although often compared to Chic Young's Blondie character of the comic-strip of the same name, Patrick Drazen compares Sazae-san to Peanuts' Charlie Brown, as a "wishy-washy" character engaged in the balancing act of everyday life (Anime Explosion 143). And a great sense of humor. But beware, taking on Jarinko Chie means taking on Kansai-ben (Osaka's local dialect). Most of the series mentioned above feature 15 minute shorts, a length perfect for repeated, focused viewings. She not only trips him so he falls, she berates him for an insensitive remark he makes. How is he even alive? Pros: Did I … If toilet humor isn’t quite your bag, then check out the following three shows for some linguistic leveling-up. Most Japanese DVDs do not feature English subs. On the final viewing, turn on the subtitles to see how successful you were. It’s well worth a watch if you can get past the queasiness of someone tooting out of their face. • London Hearts heartthrob Atsushi Tamura hosts an interview series that takes us into the dark underground of Japan’s sordid side, something not usually shown on “normal” TV. So if you buy Crayon Shin-chan DVDs for study purposes, make sure to get the Japanese release. These two seasons gather the biggest modern hits from the series to sing and dance along to. Difficulty level: Beginner to intermediate. words written by Among them I discovered Chibi Maruko-chan, Oden-kun, and other shows that served as more suitable learning material for a beginner. Famed photographer Limi Nara gifts struggling actress Natsume Hyakuta with a tag on her Instagram account, leading to a slew of new followers (and opportunities) for Hyakuta to contend with — for better or worse.

!, Hakkiri 5~Sonna ni Sukareteinai 5nin ga Sekai wo Sukuu. Nothing has been more satisfying than cultivating what feels like a sixth sense and understanding dialogue that was once just a bunch of indecipherable sounds. Genre: Feel-good drama A more painstaking method involves listening to the dialogue and trying to write out the Japanese. English, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Portuguese, The Many Faces of Ito, Underwear, First Class. The series features (slightly) animated versions of popular Japanese picture books with enthusiastic narration and colorful background music. I love revisiting a series from years ago. The premise? After the murder of his mother, he ends up traveling back in time to 18 years earlier when a series of kidnapping and killings of his classmates haunted the town. She embezzles a total of ¥180 million from illegal bank accounts — making her untouchable — before getting laid off. In season 2, Kazuma quits his salaryman job to take over his father’s sento business, leading to new neighborly encounters and domestic troubles. Based on Yoshio Suzuki’s manga of the same name, this human drama shows a slightly seedier side to Japan — albeit a more PG version than Ushijima the Loan Shark. The anime series is a fun, slice-of-life story about Maruko, an average kid who grows up in suburban 1970s Japan and isn’t really into school. 11. All of the characters … • Mika Ninagawa (Helter Skelter, Sakuran) makes her series directorial debut with a dazzling tribute to Tokyo and the women who live there. What follows is a psychological thriller with layers of revealed secrets that will keep you guessing with every episode.