[Part 1] A drama nerd forgets to eat while visiting filming locations.
To witness the moment Yuki Yamada
becomes the King of Yokohama Arena,
I woke up in the morning, drank miso soup,
left the house, gobbled down a single
rice ball at the airport, and boarded
the plane, heading for Tokyo! At this
moment, I didn't yet know that my next
meal would be at 21:30. This is a note
summarizing the three days of a drama
nerd who hopped between filming locationswhile forgetting all about food.
[How to spend time on a plane]
First, on the plane, I watch dramas
I downloaded to my phone in advance.
This is a personal quirk of mine, but
I download dramas onto an old phone
I used to use and bring that along.
The goal is to preserve the battery
of my main phone. This time, I prepared
two titles. The first one I watched
was "Life: Senjou no Bokura" (Life: Love on the Line),
a drama starring Jin Shirasu and Riku Hagiwara.
Since it was only four episodes, I had
arrived at the airport by the time I finished.
I arrived in Tokyo around 12:00.The first place I headed to was here.
[Tokyo Skytree]
Goal 1: "TV Station Official Shop"
Here, they have various goods from
all sorts of stations. If you know
exactly what goods you want, it's
safer to go to the station's own shop,
but this is a recommended spot for
people who want to see goods from
various programs. And as it happens,
a special exhibition for last year's
popular drama "Brush Up Life" was
being held. I was quite happy to see
the Drama Club notebook that alsoappears in the show on display.
Goal 2: Pilgrimage to drama filming locations
Tokyo Skytree is one of the filming
locations for the drama "Watashi ga Himo wo
Kau Nante" (Why I Keep a Gigolo).
This spot was used in the scene where
Mori-o, played by Sho Nishigaki, and
Momo-chan, played by Kohaku Shida,stalk someone on a date.
Goal 3: Pilgrimage to comedy filming locations
This is the filming location for the
first episode of "Bakari-Zuka," a
variety show featuring Bakarhythm
and Iizuka-san from Tokyo 03, which
aired as a special. It was the place
where the opening for the first episode
was filmed, which was a pretty trickyproject about coming up with an outfitfor when Iizuka-san went bald.
After finishing buying merchandise and taking photos,
this is where I headed next.
[Coin Laundry Shiroi Ie]
This place, which serves as the filming location for "Minato's Coin Laundry",
was a place I had wanted to visit at least once.
It's no exaggeration to say that not only last year, but especially the summer of 2022,
was spent together with Minasho,
and every time I watch it, that summer comes back to me.
The texture and beauty of the visuals, the truly
genius music by Yasuyoshi Suzuki,
and the atmosphere created by the cast.
It's a perfect drama in every way.
The moment I arrived, my heart tightened.
That washing machine where he pressed, "It's weird that we're friends but I can't even go to your house."
The place where the ad-lib "It's 119!" came out
after catching the underwear thief.
The sheet scene that made me so nervous it was awkward.
That place where they met.
I loved it so much it was overwhelming.
Regarding the chair in front of the washing machine in particular, I wanted to sit in it, but I hesitated wondering if I was allowed to,
so in the end, I didn't sit in the exact same spot and instead
sat quietly in the corner.
To all the fans who took photos for me,
thank you so much!!
Listening to Yasuyoshi Suzuki's music while actually at Minato's Coin Laundry was truly
the best.
After leaving Coin Laundry Shiroi Ie,
the next place I headed to is this one, which makes me want to cry just thinking about it.
[Luce Mizonokuchi Branch]
This was the one place I absolutely, absolutely did not want to compromise on during this pilgrimage.
The reason I was able to survive the past year is definitely because of the drama "Pending Train."
It is definitely in my top 3 favorite dramas of all time.
I have always loved the combination of Yuki Yamada and Yuto Ikeda,
and the scene in episode 3 where the Kayashima brothers' emotions intersect
brings tears to my eyes no matter how many times I watch it.
That is exactly why I absolutely had to come here,
the workplace of the Kayashima brothers.
My eyes welled up the moment I saw the exterior of the shop.
When I opened the door to ask if I could take pictures,
I almost made a scene by shouting, "Naoya and Tatsuya both opened this door!"
I was so excited and overwhelmed by the Pending Train filming location,
but I will witness an incredible moment the next day,
which I plan to post about in a separate note.
I was so happy to be able to stand in this place
that I felt like I was going to collapse from my knees.
Leaving the nostalgic Pending Train filming location behind,
I headed to another famous spot.
[Setagaya-Daita Station]
Setagaya-Daita Station, which became famous overnight
thanks to the drama "silent."
It was such a calm and quiet atmosphere that I wondered if I was really in Tokyo,
and I was able to enjoy this space in peace.
The station platform where Tsumugi saw So.
The bench in front of the station where So picks up Tsumugi's earphones.
Minato's "Panda falls" bench.
The bridge where Tsumugi watches So and Nana.
As a drama nerd, Setagaya-Daita Station was a place I absolutely wanted to visit once.
I couldn't come during the bright hours of the day,
but I was happy to finally be able to step off the train here.
[Arriving at the hotel]
I arrived at the hotel around 21:00.
With only the miso soup and rice ball I ate in the morning,
I made a huge journey: Haneda -> Oshiage -> Keio-Horinouchi -> Mizonokuchi ->
Setagaya-Daita -> Shin-Yokohama.
My fuel efficiency is quite good. It's bad for my health.
My companions during the travel were Kento Kaku and Kaho's
"Afro Tanaka," along with the theme songs and soundtracks
associated with each filming location.
After that, I watched dramas until 2:00 AM
and the first day ended.
My legs were so heavy that for the first time,I drew a bath at the hotel during my trip.
The Yokohama part of the second day will be in the next note.
My legs are still sore.