Save it, store it, and binge-watch it! — Drama "Pending Train: 8:23, Tomorrow With You"

After all, with Eiji Akaso and Yuki Yamada co-starring, there was no way I wasn't going to watch it.

However, since I couldn't watch the first episode in real-time, and my personality makes it impossible to wait a week every time, I endured and endured. Even when I saw the words "Pending..." on Akaso-kun-related social media, I would close my eyes and close the screen to avoid spoilers, doing my best. (← I should have just caught up on the recorded episodes instead of doing all that.)

Once the final episode aired, just as I thought, 'Right! Time to binge-watch!', I couldn't find the time, and it remained on my to-watch list.

With "Mukai-kun, Look This Way" also airing, I had half-given up, thinking I wouldn't be able to binge-watch it until summer vacation. Then, unexpectedly, I caught COVID and had to recuperate at home. My family caught it too, so I was stuck indoors for a three-day weekend!

I had to watch it!

And so, I finished it in a day and a half!

It was so, so good.
Both Akaso-kun and Yamada-kun stayed true to their 'signature' roles until the very end!
The story was great, too!
Having been completely hooked on the American drama "LOST" (2004-2010), it's no surprise that I'd get hooked on a story about people being transported to an outrageous place and having to survive without knowing why.

The cast and the setting were one "Oh!" moment after another.
If I wrote it all down, it would go on forever, so I'll just introduce the parts that really hit the spot for me!

【Episode 1】
Since there are so many characters, the first episode inevitably feels like an introduction.
You might be able to figure things out by looking at the relationship chart on the official website, but for now, I went in without any prior knowledge...
And the biggest highlight for me wasn't Akaso-kun or Yamada-kun, but Moka Kamishiraishi as Sae Hatano and Kai Inowaki as Yoshihiro Kato!
Yes! Aren't they Miyuki and Hiroki from the drama "Stepmom and Daughter Blues" (Gibomus)!

Those two from one of my favorite dramas, which I've completed from the 2018 regular broadcast to the biennial special dramas!
First of all, I was ecstatic about that.

Of course, I was also glued to the two leads.
Akaso-kun is wearing a denim shirt that makes him look like a serious, ordinary person—not the suit-wearing Adachi ("Cherry Magic") or the flashy clothes of Higuchi ("She Was Pretty"). He also looks great in the orange firefighter uniform (it gives off a "My Boyfriend in Orange" vibe ❤️).
Yamada-kun looks so good in a stylish soft coat and round glasses, which is different from Shindo ("Tokuso 9") and, of course, Draken from Tokyo Revengers!

The dynamic of a straight-laced, serious guy versus a cynical guy who seems to have given up on life made for a very enjoyable first episode.

【Episode 2】
So much happened that it was information overload, but what left the biggest impression on me was the scene where Shirahama-san (Akaso-kun) and Hatano-san (Kamishiraishi-san) are on top of the train car, looking at the moon and talking about an okonomiyaki restaurant.

This is dangerous! A killer line!
Even if you weren't Hatano-san, who seemed to have had a secret crush on him since before the accident, you'd be knocked out (that's an old term...) if someone said that to you.
It seems like a fire station in Tsukishima, so it's an okonomiyaki & monjayaki date! I'll go with you anytime!

【Episode 4】
In this episode, Kayashima (Yamada-kun), the hairdresser, cuts the passengers' hair... and speaking of hairdressers!!
The charismatic hairdresser Riichi-kun from the drama "Hey Teacher, Don't You Know?" (2019), which is a must-see for A-Gees (Akaso-kun fans)!!

I don't know if fans were sent to heaven by Akaso-kun's beautiful physique and his always-teasing, heart-wrenching expressions, but at least I've already watched it several times, even without subtitles.
I feel like just looking at the visuals is enough.
Thinking about it now, MBS is the best, just like with "My Beautiful Man"!!

Anyway, was I the only one who superimposed Shirahama-san (Akaso-kun) onto Kayahara-san's (Yamada-kun) haircut scene?

Come to think of it, Kotone Furukawa, who played the super-selfish gal Rena, was also a hairdresser in the JT commercial.
I loved that series.

【Episode 5】
In this episode, new characters appear as passengers of Car 6.
Among them, I was looking forward to seeing Takumi Nishigaki, who played "Shin" in "Minato Shouji Coin Laundry".
But I had such a strong image of him in his uniform from Minato Shouji that I didn't notice him at all. I'm sorry 🙏

And the highlight of this episode was definitely the bath!
Even when Shirahama-san (Akaso-kun) is soaking in the hot water, you can see his nice body from his shoulders to his arms. The gap between that slightly baby-faced look that tickles your maternal instincts and his muscular build is just great.
A body that passes for a firefighter! Yes, here comes my imagination!

【Episode 6】
With the conflict with the passengers of Car 6, guess what!
Adachi (Akaso-kun) vs. Senior Urabe (Suzunosuke)!!
Adachi-kun throwing and hitting the wild Senior Urabe.
A highlight that only "Cherry Magic" fans would understand.

And of course, the climax is Yonezawa-kun (Naniwa Danshi's Joichiro Fujiwara). The soul-stirring cry from this character who usually lightens the mood!!

[Episode 7]
Shotaro Mamiya appears as a physicist who holds the key to returning to the present day. Somehow, I get the image of Masaharu Fukuyama's Galileo character. It feels like he's about to start writing mathematical formulas everywhere (lol).

[Episodes 9 & 10]
These two episodes are the modern-day arc.
A modern society that makes you think you shouldn't have come back.
But, it doesn't feel like an exaggeration at all.
I was nodding along while watching, thinking, 'What a truly disappointing world.'
And, the kid playing Naoya's (Yamada-kun) younger brother, Tatsuya, who I've been curious about.
I felt like I'd seen him somewhere...
I looked him up and found out he was the one who played both of the twin high school students in 'Kansatsui Asagao,' which I had just watched on recording the other day!

Apparently, he also played the younger version of Ryo Narita's character in the movie 'Ito'... definitely someone to keep an eye on in the future.

Anyway, I finished all 10 episodes in a rush.
I thought it might be a love triangle, but more than that, the growth, bond, and trust between the two men... that was intense!

Akaso-kun was so full of justice, straightforward, and reliable from the very beginning that he was almost too cool... I even started to wonder if he actually had a hidden dark side, but he remained cool until the very end!

The too-cute Adachi ('Cherry Magic'), the too-sexy Riichi ('Hey Sensei, Don't You Know?'), the too-kind Higuchi ('She Was Pretty'), and now the too-cool Yuto.

I'm falling deeper and deeper into the fandom. (I even got into his funk music, lol)

This review has been jumping all over the place, but finally...
Maybe because survival equals battle, this show had a huge gathering of heroes.

Akaso-kun = Kamen Rider Cross-Z
Yamada-kun = Gokai Blue from Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger
Wataru Hyuga (playing high school student Kazuma) = Kamen Rider Revice
Shunya Shiraishi (playing Detective Muraki) = Kamen Rider Wizard

The official Instagram account also posted a video like this.

Personally, since I watched Wizard in real-time, I wish Shiraishi-san had been included too...

Anyway, as an 'Ages' fan, I really have to watch 'Cross-Z.' It's available on Hulu, but there are no subtitles.
Oh well, that's fine.

During summer vacation, I'll immerse myself in Kamen Rider from five years ago at my home, which is just a few minutes' walk from the Toei Tokyo Film Studio.

Anyway, thank you, 'Pending Train,' for making my and my family's few days of COVID isolation so fulfilling.

Since there's a possibility that subtitles might disappear when it goes to streaming, I'll keep my terrestrial recording as a permanent archive!