The "Beyond" Seen in Pending Train

The Friday drama that aired its final episode yesterday,
"Pending Train - 8:23, Tomorrow With You"

Ever since I decided to write this note,
I've spent about two hours typing and deleting words.
There is just too much I want to write.
First of all, it would be a lie to say that I didn't have any lingering doubts about the ending of the final episode.

Since Hasumi, played by Shotaro Mamiya, collapsed onto the sofa with a look of relief,
one could think that "the meteorite missed."
However, the fact that Yone-chan's letter, played by Joichiro Fujiwara, reached the future where Tanaka, played by Tetta Sugimoto, remained,

could also be interpreted as "it couldn't be prevented."

But even if it wasn't prevented, Naoya and the others escaped to a place where they would be saved,
so one could also think that "everyone was saved."

Seeing an ending that leaves all possibilities open,
I wasn't feeling clear-headed enough to even tweet about it.

I honestly don't like "open-ended endings" (as I call them) that leave the interpretation of subsequent developments to the viewers.
However, even after watching the final episode of Pending Train, the impression that "it was a good drama" remained.
I thought about what the appeal was that could overcome even an "open-ended ending" in my own way.

[The Balance of Reality and Unreality]

Yuki Yamada's first starring role in a prime-time drama. Because he is an actor who leaves an impression with his passionate acting and his stance of taking pride in his work,
I really wanted this drama to be a hit. The content was <time leap>.
When I first saw the synopsis,
I thought, "This drama is a gamble..."
Time leap stories lack realism.
In a climate where dramas that make you put yourself in the characters' shoes tend to be more popular,
I honestly felt anxious on my own, thinking, "A time leap?!"

However, by the first episode, I was immediately made to realize that my anxiety was groundless.
It was to the point where I felt embarrassed for having been anxious on my own.

This is because the <realistic circumstances> of the characters fit perfectly into the unrealistic <time leap>.
Whether in the present day or in a devastated future, the pain and weakness in one's heart do not disappear.

But because the characters came to a devastated future, they faced their own weaknesses that they had covered up by acting tough, and became strong in the true sense of the word.
I think I was moved because I saw myself in them.
The unrealistic setting that I had been concerned about actually heightened my emotions.
I really thought I could never beat TBS.
I don't know what kind of battle this is, though.

Above all, it was episode 9 that expressed this.
When the cast members were asked which episode they liked,
episode 9 was the one that was mentioned across the board.

Even though I thought I had finally returned, the things I wanted to convey were brushed aside and didn't reach anyone.
They only looked at the surface.
Even though I should have been able to return, I wasn't happy.

The thought that the present-day arc was painful was short-lived, as I realized that the present day where Naoya and the others despaired is the present I am living in now.
Looking at things only through one's own scale, judging people by cutting out only a part of them,
making arbitrary interpretations, and not trying to understand.
The moment I thought, "Wait...? This is still happening now," it suddenly stopped being someone else's problem.

On Yuki Yamada's All Night Nippon X,

"I talked with the producer, saying that if this drama doesn't get through to people, then I'll give up on humanity, I'll give up on the human race."

This drama is packed with so many thoughts, as evidenced by him saying that.
There are things you realize precisely because it is depicted from the perspective of Naoya and the others who saw the future through an unrealistic time leap.
The brilliance of this structure... does it get across...?
I feel like I want to walk around handing out flyers.
I can't beat TBS.
I really don't know what kind of battle this is, though.

[The Protagonist Who Is There But Not There]

During an Instagram Live held during the filming period,
Yuki Yamada said something like this.

"Naoya doesn't seem like a protagonist.
Normally, I think Yuto would be the protagonist."

Indeed, Naoya doesn't seem like a protagonist.
Normally, I think someone overflowing with a sense of justice,
like "I'll save everyone!"
would be the protagonist.

But Naoya is different. Instead of inspiring others,
"I don't think we'll make it back"
"Just because we make it back doesn't mean we'll be happy"
he says these things calmly.

However, I believe the words Yuki Yamada followed up with,

"Living is painful, isn't it?
But as long as you're alive, everyone is a protagonist"

are the core of the drama Pending Train.

The protagonist is Naoya, but it's not just Naoya.
That is precisely why I think each episode featured a different character.
I intend to pack the charm of each individual character into the next section,
but each of them carries their own burdens,
and if you look at just one side, they may seem evil,
but if you look at the whole picture, they can also look like justice.
I felt that what this drama wanted to depict
was the human figure that cannot be understood

from just one part.

[Relationships Conveyed Through Dialogue]

The greatest charm of Pending Train is the affinity between the dialogue and the expressive power of the cast!
No matter what anyone says, this is it!!
Because I don't want to forget it myself,
I want to summarize my favorite lines by relationship.

I'll say it in advance, this chapter will probably be long.
It's already long at this point, and I'm so grateful that you've read this far,
but this chapter will probably, no, definitely be long.
But if possible, I want you to read it.
I'm sure you'll find at least one line that will save you when you're struggling.

<<Naoya x Yuto>>

This is what Yuto said to Naoya in episode 3,
who had been blaming himself ever since his younger brother Tatsuya was arrested.
He was tossed around by a mother whose boyfriends kept changing,
he left home to make Tatsuya happy,
worked part-time to support their life, studied, and finally got his license to become a hairdresser,
yet Tatsuya went down the wrong path.
He should have done everything he could for Tatsuya,
so why did it end up like this? How could he have saved him?
These were the first words that affirmed Naoya,
who had been blaming himself alone all this time.

This is what Naoya said to Yuto in episode 4,
who wanted to change the situation but was stuck without results.
He continued to carry the weight of his senior being seriously injured because of his own vanity,
and to make amends, he felt he had to fulfill his promise to save many people,
that he had to be useful, and these words saved Yuto's feelings of rushing ahead.
In the final episode, Naoya said

"There are feelings that only someone who has drowned can understand"

I was convinced by that line, but I think these words
are the words that Naoya and Yuto had always wanted someone to say to them.

And the words Naoya said when he came to save Yuto
are the final destination that connects these two lines.

I'm glad these two, who can save each other,
were able to meet. While complaining,
they'll surely balance each other out well,
and these lines, which make you feel that
they'll be together no matter what, really touched me.

《Naoya x Sae》

These are the words Naoya said to Sae
when she escaped from Car 5 in Episode 6.
Packed into just six characters is his regret
for letting her run this far alone,
and the frustration of not being able to help her.
It was the best line, showing off
Yuki Yamada's expressive power.

Furthermore, in the scene that follows, Naoya
says these words to Yuto.

Because this scene followed, the poignancy that
“the person Sae wanted to be saved by was probably
not me” is added on top.

To put it another way, in Episode 8,
Naoya decided not to return to the present
and said these words to Sae.

What these two scenes have in common is
that Naoya puts on the brakes.
In a normal romance drama, he surely would have
pulled Sae into an embrace while saying "You did well."
Even when he decided not to return to the present
and said these words, Naoya lowered the hand
he had reached out to wipe Sae's tears,
and only pushed her back firmly. The meaning of this action
is expressed directly in these lines from Episode 7.

Because if he carelessly reached out to Sae,
he would start having expectations.
Because he can't bear being betrayed.
If that's the case, he doesn't want to get close from the start.
He really wants to hug her and say she did well,
but he's afraid to reach out.
Because that feeling continued into Episode 8,
he pushed her back without even wiping her tears.

In response to Naoya like that, Sae
hugged him without a moment's hesitation.

It was the same in episode 9. Even though Naoya tried to push her away by saying,
"I've already forgotten about you,"
when they were reunited in the final episode,
Sae looked at Naoya and said with a smile,
"I finally found you."

I think that straightforwardness is the reason
Naoya wanted to keep his distance,
and at the same time, the reason
he was drawn to her.

That is precisely why Sae's final words,

which resonated with Naoya and helped him break out of his shell,

and the scene where they touched cheeks and bumped foreheads
gained even more depth.
Along with that depth, I also let out a "Whoa..."

I also want to touch upon the fastball pitch Yuto suddenly threw at Sae
when she said she only had respect for him,

but that's for another time.
(Apparently, Akaso-kun was practicing
so it wouldn't sound too clingy, and was teased mercilessly by Moka-chan.)

《The Kayashima Brothers》

Truth be told, I really love seeing Yuki Yamada and Yuto Ikeda
co-star. They have appeared together quite often,
in shows like "Here is Ethics" and "Blue SP."
Yuto Ikeda-kun has even posted photos on Instagram
wearing Yuki Yamada's merchandise hoodie.
Having a long career as an actor, he already has amazing stability,
but every time I see him co-star with Yuki Yamada,
I really love Yuto Ikeda-kun's acting as he becomes more and more reliable,
so I was overjoyed when I found out they were playing brothers.
It was because of that relationship between the two
that Naoya and Tatsuya had such a unique atmosphere.

The line Naoya said while crying in the first episode.

In the story, Naoya had said to Yuto, who wanted to return, "I want you to forget about me and keep smiling," so I had lost sight of it, but
"I want you to forget about me and keep smiling"
it was clear from this line that Naoya had wanted to save Tatsuya ever since the first episode.
At the same time, until it played in this scene,
I felt a rush of adrenaline from the thrill of how perfectly the theme song,

which is a great song but I didn't know how it would
cut into this drama,
fit in.

I also think that when Naoya called out to Kazuma in the middle of the story, saying,
"What are you doing sneaking around by yourself?"
"That's amazing."
"Hey, are you a high school student? Come have a drink with us too,"
he was likely projecting Tatsuya's image onto him.

On the other hand, Tatsuya, after being released, learns that Naoya was involved in the accident,

and throws the floral tribute that had been placed there. Even at the briefing for the families,

he had a scene where he threw the papers. I was deeply moved by Yuto Ikeda's acting, which skillfully portrayed Tatsuya's clumsiness in being unable to express his desire to see Naoya except through anger.

The emotions of these two link up in Episode 3. These are the words Naoya let slip in the scene where Yuto said to him, "You've done all you could, you're admirable."

When Naoya said these words, Tatsuya also looked at his family in the ramen shop, overlapping his younger self with Naoya, and shed tears. The link between their "bravado" and "desire to see each other" was depicted so poignantly that this is one of my top two favorite scenes in the entire drama. I was left speechless by the clash of acting and expressive power between Yuki Yamada and Yuto Ikeda.

A line that left an impression on me where Naoya talks about Tatsuya is from the scene where Yuto and Sae try to persuade him to return together.

This line, which hits the core, is something a typical drama protagonist wouldn't say. For Naoya, who left his parents' home to save Tatsuya, studied desperately, and became a hairdresser, only for Tatsuya to end up arrested, it's natural for him to think, "How can I save him?" Since the current situation is the result of him doing his absolute best, it's only natural that he wouldn't know how to interact with him even if he could go back. I really loved that this drama and its script depicted that, rather than sugarcoating it.

My favorite line from Tatsuya was,
without a doubt, his line in the final episode.

I think these are words Tatsuya had wanted to say
for a long time. Feelings he couldn't express
due to guilt or remorse were finally conveyed
because he thought there might be no future.
Naoya, who responded to those feelings by saying
only "Protect her," was the coolest
big brother ever.

Yuki Yamada also mentioned this on an Instagram Live:

I think Naoya feels it doesn't matter
whether he makes it back or not.
If it weren't for Tatsuya.

That came across throughout the whole series.
The reason he was angry when Tanaka stole his bag
wasn't because it was stolen, but because
it was the only tool of his trade that connected him
to Tatsuya and the days he worked hard for him.

Tatsuya was always at the forefront of Naoya's thoughts,
and Naoya was always at the forefront of Tatsuya's.
I love Yuki Yamada and Yuto Ikeda for
exquisitely expressing the feelings of those two.

《Rena》

This is the line where Rena, who had closed her heart
because she felt she had nowhere to belong and no one
saw her true self, declared she would live here.

She said, "I will never regret this," but
Rena, who shed tears alone in the bath while
harboring regrets, is probably similar to Naoya somewhere.

That's why, even though it started as a fling,
seeing her happy expression when Akashi finally chose her
made me happy too. It's amazing that Kotone Furukawa
could make me think "she's cute" by the final episode,
when at first I thought she was a terrible person
I would never be able to like.

《Yone-chan》

The scene in episode 6 where Yone-chan pleads
to stop the fighting between Car 5 and Car 6,
which wouldn't make anyone happy.

While everyone was beating each other with weapons and fists,
this scene where he alone put down his weapon and moved
everyone's hearts with the sketchbook he had protected
and his words, combined with Joichiro Fujiwara's
passionate performance, really resonated with me,
and apparently even the staff on set were moved to tears.

After returning to the present and being exposed and
made a laughingstock,
the fact that she was told "Thank you for having the courage"
was also triggered by Yone-chan's message.
The overwhelming "good" element of this drama.
Kato's gentleness in supporting Yone-chan
was also a perfect fit for Kai Inowaki, and it was wonderful.

There were many other good lines,
but I feel like I won't be able to stop,
so I'll leave it at one more.

《Naoya Kayashima》

In the final episode, these were the words Naoya said to the people
who were making a fuss as they pleased,
praising Naoya and the others as "righteous heroes" or "con artists."

I felt like these were the words of the people involved in this drama,
including Yuki Yamada.

When you work in the entertainment industry, your roles or
certain remarks are taken out of context, and an image is
created for you, and if you deviate even slightly from that,
people often get disappointed or disillusioned on their own.
I'm sure there are more than a few times when they feel,
"What do you even know?"

What Pending Train wanted to convey through the figures and words
of Naoya and the others was surely this
"Look at what's beyond them"part.

At the same time, I thought the reason the ending was left open-ended
was because they wanted to show that what's importantisn't"what the future holds"
but"how you live your life."
Because I could think that way, I believe the impression
that remained with me was "it was a good drama."

I'm sure I'll want to rewatch this drama when I'm going through a hard time.
I've added another favorite drama to my list.