Japanese React to Why I DON'T Watch JAPANESE TV by Abroad in Japan

[@ThatJapaneseManYuta]

I didn't know reaction videos were really fun to make. I could possibly use this format to talk about more complex stuff while keeping you guys entertained. Anyway, there's a lot of interesting content in Japanese (not just on TV) that is not translated in English. So if you want to learn Japanese with me, I can send you some Japanese lessons where I teach you the kind of Japanese that Japanese people actually speak. Click here and subscribe bit.ly/3nqFEi5

[@BohdanMelnychuk]

7:35 no sound from you, not sure if this is something that can be fixed at this point. 19:28 too.

[@jadetea6112]

Your reacts are quite pleasing to watch, typically I don't like them. But I think yours are a good combination of meaningful reflection and humor! :)

[@s-l-e-e-p-yJak]

I would like you to do more reaction videos on Japan and Japanese culture.

[@tams805]

It's not really that it isn't translated in English or any other language. It's that quite a lot of Japanese TV is bottom of the barrel rubbish. I'd say the worst part is so much of it is 'fake'. Acting is always 'faking' real life, but good acting makes you not realise that (other than some comedy). But even the reactions are just too over the top. But hey, if Japanese people like that... cool? I just won't be joining them in watching that drivel.

[@flinx]

After the pandemic gets better maybe show Japanese people on the street a clip of Gordon Ramsey. Describe the show and ask if Japanese people think it could work in Japan, or if too many viewers would disapprove?

[@AbroadinJapan]

YUTA: What is Dadachamame...?! ME: EXACTLY! Thank you Yuta, I feel vindicated.

[@kcfish4862]

Collab when

[@vith4553]

awesome

[@mayoihachikuji6159]

needs a collab

[@Azusa0320]

You guys should do a collab!!

[@ifonly6788]

Chris please don’t use words I have to google to understand!

[@chicoarraes]

I'll have to disagree with you there about reaction boxes, they are very Japanese. The fact they are prevalent on tv is very relevant because they have been present in Japanese culture for decades while steaming is a very recent thing. Also they are a staple of Japanese audio visual expression used in a very specific way.

[@reishin6]

Not only that but they always have fancy frames, they're smaller than youtube reaction boxes, always square shaped and they only show the head. Very distinguishable indeed.

[@chicoarraes]

@@reishin6 all of which is a great merit to Japanese television. First, they were able to recognize a very engaging format before the internet even existed,let alone made it popular. Second, they figured out the technology to do it without computers or with very weak computers, which is not trivial. Analog video manipulation is really complex.

[@NaNa-wy2tk]

They exist in other asian countries as well so I'm more inclined to say it's more an east-southeast Asian thing, and not uniquely japanese.

[@rikkatakarada7947]

@@NaNa-wy2tk no, not all southeast asian tv use reaction box. Indonesian tv shows very rare, even never use reaction box

[@NaNa-wy2tk]

@@rikkatakarada7947 so it's more an east asian then. I just know philippines and thailand uses reaction boxes.

[@Dunkle0steus]

for Chris's point about the reaction boxes, I don't think Chris was saying that reaction boxes are "Japanese" or that other countries don't do them, his point is that Japanese television shows seem to use them a lot. He's saying their use is very common in Japan, much more so than on network television in other countries. I admittedly don't watch many talk shows on western TV, but I've seen a few and I've never seen reaction boxes on any of them.

[@citrusblast4372]

Lol ok

[@bimajuantara]

And of course streamer use reaction boxes, they have to engage with their audiences. While there is no interaction with tv shows.

[@PetrSojnek]

Yeah, also I think he was kind of criticizing uselessness of said boxes. Basically people were not really reacting, it feels like they were told to fake certain reaction in that box.

[@TylerTraverse]

Exactly. He was talking about TV, not internet content. Very differently mediums

[@vishnup604]

i was gonna say the same thing but its already here

[@LemifromJapan]

As Japanese, it's very hard to tell the negative truth when we know that might dissapoint that person.. But sometimes I feel uncomfortable when people are overly happy,too. I'd like to be natural.

[@DjokovicIsOurLordAndSaviour]

Yes, being authentic is best for sure.

[@chaunceyloveshack9530]

it's a hard line to walk

[@user-yc3fw6vq5n]

@@chaunceyloveshack9530 Japanese think about it being a hard line to walk more

[@satanexe5632]

That sounds awful. As an American I've been raised to always say what I'm thinking. I can't imagine having to pretend all the time.

[@ichigoparfaitgatomaranai]

To be honest a British TV program would probably be completely fine with Chris finding no difference between the edamame. Chris is the epitome of what a British person finds entertaining, sarcasm and honesty.

[@ThreadBomb]

It would depend on the program, obviously.

[@mathis8210]

In an informative or entertainment show, yes. In a covert advertisement on trash TV, no.

[@karry299]

Needs more moaning about the northern line and going south of the river. Oh, and general seething hatred of everyone who doesnt belong to your particular tribe of Brits.

[@tomoakley760]

@@karry299 Northern line is shit though 🤣

[@HikariMiwa]

no wonder it's so boring

[@anthonycampbell97]

15:45 Yuta in a box reacting to Chris in a box reacting to himself imitating Japanese television. Meta.

[@CTcCaster]

IKR HAHAHAH this is meta af

[@laterreurrouge1917]

Chris-ception !

[@laterreurrouge1917]

@セブ he already reacted here in the comments ... but yeah, we need his video answering the video that answers his video ... we need CHRIS-CEPTION !

[@user-yc3fw6vq5n]

Talking about reaction boxes

[@thelurkeroftubes]

British TV would be fine with someone saying "I can't taste the difference ", someone like James May is a good example.

[@ToastieBRRRN]

true

[@aliveyetundead]

Yeah, I agree. I'm brazilian and I definitely can visualize someone saying they couldn't taste any difference, and in degrees: you could get from the super polite "it's very subtle, right?" all the way to the straight up "it tastes like shit", if it's a humor program or whatever.

[@burnhart]

i cant imagine carl pilkinton saying anything different and theyd prob air 40 mins of carl bitching about how they are exactly the same XD

[@ThreadBomb]

It would depend on the show. If it's some lifestyle show, they definitely want positive reactions from their hosts.

[@mathis8210]

Depends on the type of show you are starring in. If its trash TV in the middle of the day, they would also want you to pitch the product well. Thats the purpose of a (covert) advertisement.

[@mimo93maminon]

Chris compared Japanese TV to Western TV. When he said things like sound effects and reaction boxes are Japanese, he was still only talking about TV. Twitch and KZbin follow different rules and address different audiences. You mentioned that Chris is talking about shows that only Japanese elders and housewives watch during the day because they don't work. Those aren't the people watching PewDiePie or twitch streams in the West. TV shows that are aimed at Western elders and housewives during the daytime are very differemt from those here in Japan and I think that was the main message he wanted to get through

[@hunterashwill5766]

Exactly 💯, this comment needs more likes.

[@GenerationNextNextNext]

Even though they follow different rules and address different audiences, the fact that people are drawn to reaction content shows that the concept is still something some people are interested in. Most westerners aren't used to getting that kind of content from television, but it's still content that westerns are drawn to online from people that cater to their preferred sense of humor. But I agree that typically housewives and the elderly in the west would not enjoy it.

[@Nikotheleepic]

Also the reaction boxes on japanese tv are very often random nobodies but the reactions we watch on twitch or youtube are specifically the content creators we enjoy and are interested in the, well, reactions of

[@Nikotheleepic]

@@GenerationNextNextNext read my comment for the rebuttal

[@Bruce_Wayne777]

Exactly!! Pissed me so much when after each point Chris made he pauses and say “no I saw that on pewdipie too” 😂😂, dude pewdipie is a youtuber, he aint on national TV!!

[@aaro1268]

Canadian perspective: Reaction boxes are not used on television (we see a mix of canadian, american, and british television). Jump cuts are used instead. Sound effects and text overlays aren't used very often. Instead, scenes are composed for intensity; long brooding dialogue or strong body language. I think that's the biggest difference I notice. Japanese TV is very effusive with sound and visuals, while north american and british television are effusive with wit and gravitas (and pretentiousness). Shows like Deadliest Catch are a good example of the usual tone of daytime television here. Daytime television anywhere in the world is equivalent to visual junk food. Different countries have different tastes, but it's all sodium and saturated fats.

[@sigurdtheblue]

Yeah, because documentaries taking a shift in the early 2000s, people started slowly making everything that way - making everything feel like it is the most important thing in the world and there is a lot of pressure. Our movies also take terrible sound design like that where everything has the same irritating ASMR sounds that are an attempt to brainwash you with "realism" and the soundtracks are designed around the scene in the same way. The only thing that feels somewhat normal is daytime television, but it is overly positive and glosses over things and also really avoids giving information in a convenient way to keep you watching.

[@tomfordgunningham465]

This is the reason why the only "proper" tv shows I watch in the UK are comedy panel shows such as mock the week etc

[@Audiojack_]

They showed Takeshi's Castle on finnish television as well, in the early 2000's. It was called "Hullut japanilaiset", literally translated as "the crazy japanese people."

[@EricNeuls]

Same as in America except it was called Most Extreme Elimination Challenge and they had American comedians dubbed over the audio.

[@FiveOClockTea]

It was shown on German tv too :-D But they just left the title as Tekeshi's Castle

[@mainstreetsaint36]

@@EricNeuls Don't get eliminated!

[@EricNeuls]

@@mainstreetsaint36 HAH YES!

[@flp322]

It was on Dutch TV too in the evening! It had two dudes who did the commentary together, was hilarious

[@八咫烏-u1y]

This is the most ambitious crossover i've ever seen

[@madLphnt]

Lol

[@gac8054]

agreed!! I didn't realize how much we were all missing out!

[@unixtreme]

Japanese TV is what TV would be if it was designed for 70 year olds. On the bright side is pretty wholesome and easy to follow, on the negative side its repetitive as hell.

[@albumkosong]

I mean let be honest that the only one that watch TV at this point and yeah also anime/toku or another for children or adult

[@famicomplicated]

I think Chris' point about reaction boxes are that it's on TV, and has been for decades in Japan. Twitch and game streaming in general is very new, and is only online. Regular British/American TV never has reaction boxes, ever. It's a very Japanese thing. In general, as a British guy in Japan, I 100% agreed with all of Chris' points and I think most expats do. We're so grateful we can watch Netflix/Amazon etc in Japan because without it we might go insane with only Japanese TV to watch! ;-)

[@pendragnx]

^^^ What he said .. American TV doesn't have these (or it's extreeeemely rare, I can't even recall watching something like that)

[@metaphoricdirigible1499]

It’s true about the reaction boxes, but one thing I’ve always hated about American TV is the loud shouting talking heads and the Gordon Ramsey’s being very rude and negative. It’s just abrasive and what I hate most about mainstream American TV. Excessive positivity can be annoying as well, so I can see how Japanese TV food shows might not be someone’s cup of tea.

[@jadetea6112]

Bwahaha, Korean TV is similar too, but at least there's drama or a movie channel every so often.

[@ジャガイモ-b4h]

Exactly this. Nowadays western youtubers also started using lots of sound effects, some straight out of stock sfx from japanese variety shows. Doesn't change the fact that western tv doesn't have those.

[@famicomplicated]

@@ジャガイモ-b4h It's strange that Yuta doesn't think the laughter is canned on Japanese TV, to me it's so obvious, as is the gasps of へええええええええええ / eeeehhhhhhhhhhh" at everything. You can tell they literally have a soundboard as it sounds the same every time! American chat shows may have "forced" laughter, but it's from the actual audience at least.

[@BaconNDCheese]

Also regarding the thing about western producers expecting positive reactions from food comparisons. There are so many shows where people just say they don’t taste a difference. In western tv confrontation is entertainment where as in Japan, being conservative and polite is expected. I think thats what Chris was going for when he was talking about his Edamame story

[@melize7035]

Not if it’s paid advertisement disguised as just a tv show.

[@314rft]

While that exists in the US, Chris is British, and thus comes from the country that is *known* for its sarcasm.

[@davidyodo24]

You know Trash Taste Podcast??? It's interesting to see you as a guest there

[@RecordToDeathToBoredom]

Honestly, I wouldn't know what to expect if he joins that show. I've never seen him outside of interviewing people, teaching, and always talking to himself for a youtube video. Oh, and talking to his camera woman. It'd be interesting to see how he meshes with those 3.

[@Nalderification]

The podcast is cringy, no one should risk to show up there

[@StormCrusher94]

@@RecordToDeathToBoredom he done a few collabs with life where I'm from and another kid youtuber, but that was a few years ago.

[@micahhewko2215]

@@Nalderification Sorry, I don't speak wrong.

[@whatever63644]

@@Nalderification how on earth is that cringy? The rates are decent, they don't make inappropriate jokes or show rude manners. I really don't get why you think that's cringy besides the *weebs are cringy* mindset.

[@reks724]

He's not criticizing, he's just being snarky for comedic effect. It's a British thing.

[@sm1purplmurderedme583]

exactly

[@gabeshiki9013]

been looking for this comment. Thanks

[@cherryswachan]

It's rude. British don't have their own anything? So they're just jealous rude people. It's obnoxious

[@gabeshiki9013]

@@cherryswachan Its not rude. He's giving his opinion on why japanese TV is terrible. Which it is. And what do you mean by british people don't have their own anything.

[@gabeshiki9013]

They literally have the western style of tv like late night talk shows or food programs with actual constructive criticism

[@VicAnthropy]

When Chris mentions reaction boxes on Japanese TV, he is making a comparison to TV in other places in the world, not to other mediums like KZbin or Twitch which are very different from broadcast television.

[@raruteam]

About the edamame, I understand the producers invited him to promote that variety of edamame so it wouldn't be good if he just say "There's no difference" but it's just not OK to force someone to react a certain way or say certain things, I don't think he was hired as a paid actor and I actually find irritating when someone just pretend they like something to please the audience.

[@mathis8210]

Yeah, it seems they fucked up there and forgot to inform him what he was supposed to do...

[@heroemilia9272]

I just thought that if they wasted 40mins on it, y didn't the producer explained the difference to Chris and then explain it in his own words ...

[@primalconvoy]

Mind you, there was a clip of British TV, where the daytime tv presenter asked the weatherman if they liked a certain singer, and the weatherman said they they weren't really a fan of their music. However, the presenter then said that the singer would be on next, singing their new song live....

[@Figgy5119]

Yuta, you're making a false equivalency. Reaction boxes on youtube vs tv is a very different thing. When you're watching Pewdiepie play, you chose to watch a let's play or a reaction video so you expect to see him as well as the game. When you're watching TV, you are not watching the "let's react to other people eating" show, and you do not want or need to see other random audience commentators reaction boxes. That is a very Japanese thing.

[@tams805]

To be fair to him, most Japanese people probably are expecting reaction boxes. But yes, it definitely is weird outside of Japan. Most of the rest of world prefer to watch the content undisturbed or with the people reacting actually being where ever the content is. If not, then watching a full screen clip and then discussion afterwards.

[@callumscott4118]

exactly well said as soon as he said that i scrolled to see if someone thought this

[@RickGrimes807]

What do you mean people don't want to see the reactuon boxes when they watch that tv show lol? Just as you choose to watch a reaction video on youtube with reaction boxes, you also choose to do it when you watch that channel on tv. People know what to expect when they watch that same type of variety show for decades, lol. Not to be rude at all but your point makes no sense

[@Figgy5119]

@@RickGrimes807 my comment makes no sense? 200 likes says otherwises.

[@RickGrimes807]

@@Figgy5119 oh the shallowness of that reply!😊

[@MrGateKing]

As an American, i can say cable tv is different from KZbin. A lot of people here who watch cable tv don't know what KZbin is.

[@LegenGary]

Seeing Japanese people react to videos about Japan really adds more to the videos themselves. It's like watching the video all over again but with, a fresh perspective.

[@Viceroy_Sundercles_III]

Agreed. I HATE reaction videos, but I’ll watch Yuta’s because it’s a culture discussion.

[@sigurdtheblue]

@@Viceroy_Sundercles_III So you mean that you enjoy educational reaction videos and those that expand on the original, rather than challenging a person or maybe even using the reaction to basically steal content (like watching a Nintendo Direct and telling people your reaction, when the Nintendo Direct should really overshadow a reaction video by a lot).

[@davidlevingstone4429]

Japanese ppl just deny, and justify/excuse every flaw they possibly have, they are simply incapable of seeing there might be a better/different way to do things, meanwhile westerns see japan see what japan does better and praise the ever living shit out of it while trashing their country of origin for not doing the same.

[@chaunceyloveshack9530]

@@davidlevingstone4429 oh boo hoo ya whiney exaggerator

[@victoriazero8869]

Yuta himself admit he doesn't watch TV often so I couldn't say in good faith he's a good barometer for 'average Japanese', let alone 'average Japanese TV audience'. His perspective is too different to the target audience that Chris snark about.

[@Gatrehs]

The Cams in twitch streams aren't reaction boxes, they're cameras of the streamer(s) themselves as they're streaming. The reactions chris is talk about here would be if you took a random viewer of the stream, put his cam somewhere on the stream and he started giving commentary on the streamers gameplay.

[@loztagain8278]

In the UK it would have been found as hilarious if someone just said "I can't tell the difference between cheap and premium fish and chips" They would love it.

[@RJALEXANDER777]

Makes sense though that the edamame beans would taste the same. Fish and chips is a whole meal with dozens of factors involved. You can easily make one example taste different from another. With the beans it's just one green bean vs the same kind of green bean. Funny story, when I first tried those things I tried to eat the pods. Took me a while to figure out that wasn't what I was supposed to do.

[@DizzyBusy]

@@RJALEXANDER777 now imagine that was how you felt about beans, there are dozens of factors involved 😂

[@RJALEXANDER777]

@@DizzyBusy A good comparison would be apples maybe. There's so many kinds of apples and many do have a very distinct taste.

[@sidneyrobinson18]

I think you missed the point he was saying about the reaction boxes a little, he was referring specifically to how they were all 100% positive reactions to everything

[@yoku651]

My two favorite Japan-based KZbinrs! Do you guys have any actual collaborative videos? I'd love to see that one day!

[@Original_Tenshi_Chan]

Yuta, I don't think Chris was saying that Reaction Boxes were uniquely Japanese. I think he was saying having an overly enthusiastic, hyper emotive presenter in the Reaction Box was a Japanese Variety thing. He's speaking more about the person in the box, than the box itself.

[@nathanmantle377]

Finally someone said it.

[@SupremeKame]

Actually, the reaction boxes in general specifically on TV is uniquely Japanese.

[@Alex-dn7jq]

Japanese shows: canned sound effects Americans shows: canned laughter.

[@rsmith02]

In the US it's old-fashioned though. Do any current shows use it?

[@kevinmiller8111]

@@rsmith02 Big Bang theory and I can't stand it, something best left in the past.

[@AICW]

@@rsmith02 It was still in common use up until around 2010 or so. Only very recently has canned laughter started to leave TV shows in the U.S.

[@aokiji5888]

Yeah but canned laughter is only used in sitcoms aren't they? They are never used on reality tv like in Japan

[@wakakabravo7998]

japanese shoow do have canned laughter but it mostly a laughter made by young girl.

[@em.y.ka.d]

My entire Japanese family take information they "learn" from those morning shows as fact. My mom would say "It's true! I saw it on TV!" Grew up like this. I didn't realize the truth until I was a bit older.

[@octavioernani1138]

The point of reaction boxes is that they're almost exclusively an internet thing in the west, they're nonexistent in TV

[@Rationalific]

"Abroad In Japan" is spot on. You kind of disagree with him on some points, for example, saying that the reaction box is all around, but I first was in Japan in 2001, WELL before video game streaming and reaction videos, and they were all into that even then. It was and is a Japanese thing, and it's in so many shows on TV.

[@capitalb5889]

And they had had them for years before that as well

[@samuelschonenberger]

I just realized why I really like watching Chris and Yuta: They are both sarcastic dudes that provide honest commentary on Japan just with slightly different perspectives

[@Droid15243Z]

Going to be honest, 99% of tv is trash.

[@KJarme]

Agreed, except some news reports sometimes and other things like Anime

[@Amorth89275]

You're totally right! And it is still much more in this period of this covid.

[@donnadizucchero]

Any TV. The whole idea is devil's affair. I gather they still have it around to keep people's jobs.

[@zacwoods]

Thats a universal thing lol. More like Tel-Lie-Vision

[@pingozingo]

Drew Gooden did a funny video on Cable TV being trash

[@animock3051]

Fun Fact: When Takeshi's Castle was brought to the US, it was dubbed in english with the title MXC, and with a completely different script with a different setting, plot, and even names. When asked if the writers and director had actually seen the subbed version of the show they said they had not and just did whatever they wanted. Personally I think the dubbed show is infinitely funnier and heavily inspired the writing for ABCs Wipeout.

[@KARMA-jr6uk]

Same with indian version it was voiced by indian comedian and it was really funny because of his voiceover i really missed those days

[@kuroihemlock]

The problem is that Chris is not a food taster. It’s like asking an average person to tell the difference between Chianti and Chianti Classico, they would taste the difference but are not educated to tell why it’s different. Chris is also British and the British are more reserved and have more of a dry humour boarding on sarcastic. That’s why Chris doesn’t overact to food, even I as a Canadian am lost on why that’s important. I’d rather be educated on the difference so I can understand why it’s important and I think they failed to express that to Chris and expected him to automatically know the difference just by taste alone.

[@Garrett_Rowland]

Around 13-16 minutes, I feel like a lot of the points you are making are about internet videos. Reaction boxes are pretty common in youtube videos, for instance, but I cannot remember seeing any in US of UK television. In general, actually: I have watched plenty of Korean and Japanese television (or seen it on, rather), and I notice that the TV content in East Asia is much more similar to internet content than is US television. There seems to be less of a distinction. I really enjoyed your video, though. That's just one point I wanted to make. I saw Chris's video a while ago (whenever it came out) and mostly agreed with everything he said, but it is interesting to hear an articulate reaction from a Japanese person. Double the perspective.

[@NaNa-wy2tk]

yeah, I also noticed east asian tv is similar to internet/youtubers! I could be watching a western youtuber and it would be remind me of asian variety shows. KZbinrs could get so many ideas from asian variety shows!

[@Marina.F3918]

I think the point is if you can accept face cams on KZbin why would it be so weird to see in Japan just because it's on TV. I've been living here in Japan since I was 11 and really like Chris's content however had to disagree with a lot of his video here. The shows he watched are the basic ones and even then he wasn't charitable to really any of the culture difference. If you come in with a 100% British mindset going to another country and criticising it from the getgo I don't think that would be fair. I also don't know how good his grasp on Japanese is but there's a chance that many things are going over his head in the shows like jokes as most are hosted by comedians and there's so many amazing shows that do debates are educational

[@PrettyTranslatorSarahMoon]

When I first ran into those fine bros style react videos on YT, I thought, "Oh, they're copying Japanese TV." React boxes may be all over YT now, but that's relatively new. I saw nothing like it in the US before YT. Could've been a thing in other non-Japanese countries, though.

[@NaNa-wy2tk]

youtube and internet in general is reminiscence of asian variety shows, in my opinion. It makes me wonder why there's hasn't been much youtubers that thought of getting ideas from asian variety shows.

[@seasesh4073]

I think he misunderstood the reactionary boxes horribly wrong. Here in the west, when they're used it's usually related to the video, ie you're only watching it for the person reaction or if it's a stream, it's the real time reaction of that person. Where in Japan, it would be equivalent to have a box of a random stranger on a video not putting any useful input beside the 3 words they keep repeating that doesn't have any substance to the actual content

[@lawrencian]

@@arifgunawan9329 if you don't know who someone is, they're a stranger.

[@Gonkers20XX]

@@arifgunawan9329 This guy actually thinks Pewdiepie is his best friend.

[@Droid15243Z]

@@Gonkers20XX What made you think that?

[@Marina.F3918]

The people reacting on Japanese TV are celebrities

[@porcorosso4330]

Before the whole reaction genre on the internet, reaction boxes are quite unique to Japanese TV. If we are looking at only TV, it is still quite unique to Japan.

[@jasanpahaf]

Yuta seems to be confusing the reasons why chris doesnt watch Japanese TV (vs YT), very ironic considering he himself admits to not watching TV a lot, but does like to watch YT. Yuta also seems to blend the reasons for being unique to Japan. IMO, chris summarizes everything very well, and the time invested shows. I still dont think i gained much knowledge of Japanese TV from this reaction video, but it helps to reinforce Chris's points.

[@bromax360]

Reaction boxes when it comes to TV don’t really exist in the West. But I see your point when it comes to Streams and KZbin etc.

[@stuka78]

Chris’ edamame shot reminds me of the whiskey adv in the movie “lost in translation”, endless shots with the actor not understanding director’s intention

[@-TK-]

I dont watch British tv but i assume they wouldn't make a 40 minute segment comparing fancy food to a boring forzen food in the first place. The most reasonable scenario i can think if is maybe someone like Gordon Ramsey tasting it, describing it in one sentence, then cooking it or something.

[@totaldramagamer5521]

"This is a box." *opens box -- fin --

[@ThreadBomb]

It obviously wasn't actually going to be a 40 minute segment - that was exaggeration.

[@capitalb5889]

There are a lot of food programmes in the UK. Not as many as Japan, however. Also, they have more variety. As well as some "how to cook" programmes, you had the original kitchen nightmares, Masterchef, Come Dine With me which all take different angles beyond "oishiiiii"

[@SuperSkinnyK]

This reaction feels more like a defense rebuttal.

[@jimbobur]

My question was, why is a man who in the first few minutes explains that he doesn't watch TV, giving his opinion on it?

[@sm1purplmurderedme583]

@@patrickmulopo7957 soodkssks

[@Menion98]

*doesnt watch Japanese television, presumably for a variety of reasons (many of which were stated)* *still defends it*

[@sanethoughtspreader]

Yeaaaaaa his inability to distinguish between criticism of an aspect of culture and an attack on culture itself :( Sad.

[@mygetawayart]

"they call that a debate but it's more like a shouting match, you know...who can shout louder, who can shout loud enough so that nobody can hear the other person's voice" That's absolutely not a reference to recent events.......

[@tiihtu2507]

Also one thing to point out, the political debates in the UK are nothing like in the United States. People do actually have some kind of manners.

[@ChristianPerrotta]

wow, something caught Yuta's attention at 21:51 he suddenly widens his eyes and looks to his right... I'm curious

[@namshimaru]

LOL

[@ruaahassan8387]

Omg same..

[@vivvy_0]

it's a ghhooOOoooOoost

[@JAPANquickies]

I thought he was talking to guests in the room. 😂

[@1polyron1]

His producer told him to wrap it up

[@cadoon1139]

I just want to say, thank you for actually adding your own input and experiences instead of just sitting there and occasionally making a comment too many reaction channels do that today.

[@LunaLove87]

Before Twitch and game streaming, you NEVER saw reaction boxes on any American programming 😂 Not even the Hispanic tv shows my grandmother used to watch. We only ever saw text on the screen and reaction boxes when we watched the Korean or Japanese channels 😊

[@Fadamor]

I think the difference with Ramsay's "Kitchen Nightmares" is the restaurant owners actually ASK Ramsay's production crew to come to their place.

[@millennialchicken]

Now I want to see Chris react to this in some strange video within a video within a video setup.

[@shoeski9399]

Chris and Natsuki!

[@CyrussNP]

Yes!

[@laterreurrouge1917]

@@shoeski9399 ... and then they get "reacted to" ( aka "judged by" ) Ryotaro !

[@shoeski9399]

@@laterreurrouge1917 And Sharla, and Joey the anime man (Dr Jelly!)

[@primalconvoy]

Yo dawg, i heard you like inception...

[@tumainitiger4655]

You watch 10 seconds of a video then go on a ramble about how what he said is wrong or something before watching the next 10 seconds where he clarifies that it's wrong 🤣

[@catsilversundae4411]

I find this video difficult to watch, because it feels like he totally missed the jokes he was making and taking them too literally.

[@Nopi9]

I just fell like British sarcasm doesn’t hit right in Japan I’ve seen Titan miss it in few other videos as well

[@Lovebug3003]

I feel like you’re taking chris’ content way too seriously.

[@rajpreetsehra2760]

this needs to be higher up lol

[@darthrevan1225]

I think someone is taking yuta's content way too seriously...

[@19andy91x]

He’s definitely missing the sarcasm that’s for sure

[@jUQMtDmf]

Yeah, this video from Yuta felt so weird to watch. Maybe the British sarcasm & banter doesn't translate well across the world.

[@sigurdtheblue]

@@jUQMtDmf I feel like he might understand the sarcasm. In fact, I think there was more exaggeration than anything and he was receptive to that. But i think the thought process behind the reaction video is to give educational information rather than add to the entertainment. Yuta's main goal as a content creator is to create videos that are informative on Japanese culture and this is supposed to be a response that would add the Japanese perspective on what is being discussed.

[@fizhbing]

Takeshi's Castle is famous outside Japan.

[@hiropon2985]

Takeshi no Chōsenjō is famous and takeshi himself for being so WILDIN

[@nick876]

Takeshi's Castle was literally my childhood lol. It was so funny

[@domdidomdidomdidom]

IKR?!!! ME TOO!!! 😂😂😂

[@funkyfranx]

Seems like everyone has seen Takeshi's Castle except for Japanese people ha

[@kukuhpringgo]

a japanese that never watched takashi castle? 😵😱😱

[@eikooowiesnowyowlchannels1921]

😆😆😆😆😆😆😆😆😆

[@labyrintheneapolitan1302]

Mine too :)

[@SQUAD012]

Yuta, i think because you don't watch a lot of tv shows and you're a native Japanese might hinders your view a bit about japanese tv. You might see it as normal but trust me, all those excessive thing that chris said is very unique to your country tv shows. We in Malaysia, or other South east asian country don't even use the same tv format as yours, only some but rarely. I've also watched a lot of western tv shows and i can say their format are really different than the japanese format. Even the evidence can seen on some of the japanese youtubers that mainly targets japanese audience. Also, you shouldn't compare a tv show that were done by big corporation for a major tv network with some small independent content creator, because the range of freedom for indie content creator are much more fluid than a major network. It's not surprised to see, some youtubers/twitch following the same format as the japanese or other culture format because they have the free range to do so unlike a nation corporate network. I'm not saying your format is bad but even for me, it's quite excessive. I'm like, could you chill for a while japanese tv 😂

[@30oOwOo03]

I as a Malaysian agree to this comment✨😂

[@chunsun5042]

agreed

[@サリミさん]

Indeed

[@greggiggle]

Those reaction boxes are absolutely a characteristic feature of Japanese TV - they were there long before they showed up in KZbin or Twitch.

[@noonefromnowhere99]

I will disagree with you on your point about reaction boxes. KZbin & Livestreaming is not the same as television media and comparing them is apples and oranges for a lot of reasons. Reaction boxes therefore is something that is pretty unique to Japanese television compared to American television.

[@aprilbennett4161]

To be fair, Ramsay has an on/off switch with his frank and intimidating behavior. When he is traveling the world and dealing with locals (often as a guest chef in kitchens), he is very polite, almost quiet. On the other hand, he often bares his fangs on cooking competitions and Kitchen Nightmares. Regarding competitions, he's usually dealing with people who went to culinary school(s). He seems to have very high expectations for those people who were professionally trained. When the competitors are self-taught, he is softer. Kitchen Nightmares is an interesting context. For that, by contract with restaurant owners, he is tasked with evaluating failing restaurants in hopes of improving the fortunes of the businesses. He does not hold back his critiques, as he is there to be brutally honest and potentially fix what he isn't pleased with.

[@rsmith02]

Truthfully Kitchen Nightmares is a formula and he applies it uniformly in the American version. The food has to be terrible at first. The place has to need a makeover. There has to be internal resistance to change to be overcome (usually with a firing or family fight). Then the big opening event where he swamps the kitchen for drama. The UK version was a little less relentless in the approach and you see it as a bit more of an honest critique than just a pure performance. In both I wish he had more than a week with the place to actually do what it needed to do to turn it around. Would have been a lot more honest.

[@thorbergson]

Funny how Yuta tries to be reasoned but gets all defensive, down to getting all protective of the sum of Takeshi's Castle prize 😅

[@AppIeTime]

I agree, this video was really difficult to watch. And to address his rebuttal regarding the money value. 1 million Japanese yen from 1986 is equivalent to 1,193,960.3 yen in 2020 inflation adjusted. (With average Japanese inflation rate being 0,51% during the time period of 1986-2020) This corresponds to around 9400 euros or around 11400 USD. And for additional context, the average yearly salary of a Japanese and American in the 1985 were 3 163 000 JPY and 15 239 USD respectively. Usind the historical USD/JPY exchange rate in 1985, the average Japanese salary was 13 300 USD. So not a stark contrast in the standard of living.

[@sanethoughtspreader]

Yea definitely. He also skipped a fair bit and misunderstood a few things. (But that could be language based, and that's fair enough). But Yuta's tone was very defensive and not the most logical.

[@_zurr]

Man Yuta's plugs for his Japanese lessons are always so smooth. Never see it coming.

[@GPTDavid]

Its hard to talk about TV when you don't watch enough of it in the first place. Its like trying to talk about painting when you have no painting experience aside from look at random portraits in offices and homes. I give you props for trying. $8000 dollars was 17,000 dollars in 1989 so, even if it was considered a lot of money back then it wasn't nearly as much as a broken back or permanent damage due to injury during this type of game. If you ask me... the contestants got cheated for just participating and the winners got cheated HARD.

[@davidjohnston1374]

Hi Yuta, I was able to spend 6 weeks last Month (July & August) in Japan and watched a lot of Japanese TV. I'm Australian, wife Japanese, now of course I couldn't understand all that writing and the constant machine gun talking on those Comedy shows where some of the Comedians have weird funny Haircuts and much of it's kind of slap stick comedy and they have funny digs at each other but it really looks like as a comedy team that they're really having fun. Also those food shows where everything is Oishii or Umai but the shows that I did like even although I didn't understand the dialog, were when the TV crew find this property somewhere in the middle of nowhere in the Mountains and introduce themselves and it's usually very elderly people who work on little farms or make produce and show the History of where they are and what they do. The Elderly not afraid to tell their age, some almost 90 and can almost climb mountains, I found that incredible. It was done like a Documentary style. My favourite Japanese shows are those Samurai dramas.

[@Marina.F3918]

That show of houses in the middle of nowhere in case you forgotten the name is ポッツンと一軒家

[@TKnightcrawler]

The reaction box happened way earlier on Japanese TV than it did on KZbin. And AFAIK, reaction boxes still isn't really a thing on American TV. BTW Gordon Ramsay DOES have a TV show where he relentlessly and harshly criticizes chefs and restaurants. SOMETIMES he will be positive, but not usually.

[@shophet125]

5:26 Fun Takeshi-jo was also re-edited and redubbed into MXC. Because of the format of the show, it was easy to reshape it into a very successful comedy, with two very funny voice actors dubbing over the original dialogue. The shows were also cut apart and then pasted back together to tell hilarious stories between differing "sides".

[@MillywiggZ]

“Eeeeehhhhhhhhhhhh?” All Japanese TV

[@Kool212]

It sounds like he was just talking about daytime tv, which sucks in every country,

[@Heightren]

I'd argue about the comparison between streamers and the reaction boxes isn't quite correct. Streamers and KZbinrs are people (in most part) who are directly engaged and reacting to what's happening on screen and add to the enjoyment. Ok the other hand, the reaction boxes don't add to the enjoyment because they are not personally involved with the material shown or the things they do don't add anything meaningful. It could be seen less unnecessary if some dialogue came through or a fun joke was made while they are shown, but from my impression is just trying to get these people screen time.

[@Heightren]

This was written at 3am so it can be very messy

[@albumkosong]

And they just "eeeeehhhhhhhh?" with pog face

[@MarSprite]

I can't believe you made it to the end of the video before plugging your Japanese lessons! My college may be cutting the JPN 004 class I was going to take next semester, so I might look into your materials soonish.

[@octazentai1592]

Yuta: I've never watched that show ever! Takeshi's castle: I'm I a joke to you!?

[@RiggyNihon]

You eventually got to the point for the reaction box part. He’s specifically talking about broadcast television, not online content production. We in the west have taken notes from the Japanese on how to keep people’s attention, but major syndicated broadcasting networks don’t really have reaction boxes even now. It’s specifically an internet culture thing which Japan was doing before internet culture.

[@morriganrenfield8240]

Why did you compare Japanese TELEVISION to Western KZbin videos? They are entirely different things.... Lol

[@medusa.v.odalisque]

because he only knows KZbin culture

[@Droid15243Z]

He didn't watch much TV, he went with what he knew.

[@morriganrenfield8240]

@@Droid15243Z again, they are totally different and not comparable. What tv station says thanks for liking and subscribing it's yo boy GF GBF V GO BE BB BY YYY TO G. Everytime you watch lol

[@medusa.v.odalisque]

@@morriganrenfield8240 yea we know but he doesn’t know tv culture. japanese ppl are kinda biased like that

[@morriganrenfield8240]

@@medusa.v.odalisque he likely should have done research then.

[@adiabd1]

7:17 I actually searched for that, and I found that even in 1987, 1 mil yen equal just about 1.19 mil yen today, which only equals $11.400. It's still too cheap i think

[@Chaooo]

24:25 Oh my poor, innocent Yuta. You would be surprised. There's a reason why "Karen" is a giant meme. :D

[@ShakerNL]

Kitchen Nightmares was also aired in the UK, and you could easily note the difference. The USA version was so overdramatised and used many sound effects, while the UK version is much more calm and neutral.

[@XSpImmaLion]

I think a lot of the confusion between what Chris is saying and Yuta is saying goes down to the measure of truth in reporting in certain types of show, and what the general audience of certain categories of TV content expect to find. Outsiders perspective here, I don't live in Japan, nor in the US or England, but I have seen a bit of TV in all of them... xD And I'll include some comments on what goes on in my own country, it's own kind of hell. :P So, for lots of western countries, there is this constant conflict between truth and fabrication when it comes to shows that either feel closer to documentaries or to reporting, as in news reporting. There's an expectation, to varied levels depending on the show, that there should be some level of truth to it instead of getting the exact same reactions all the time everytime. This is also why for western people using stuff like sound effects, those tiny reaction boxes, and a few other resources can feel a bit jarring depending on content... it's like an inherent cultural scale between authenticity and artificiality for purposes ranging from trying to make something look nice, or it being a disguised advertisement. I think it's part a reflection of culture too. See, I think Yuta gets this from having lived in other countries, but perhaps he didn't experienced it so much - because he was a foreigner. In the west, people really tend to be more straight about what they think of something in front of the TV, or even in real life. I know this is kind of a rare situation in Japan, but people in the west do tend to be more straightforward about stuff like food and whatnot, which is why it's so jarring to see the same reaction over and over again. But I'm not really talking about Gordon Ramsey, Iron Chef, and shows like those that are in the other side of the spectrum, often being overly critical on the tiniest things to cause commotion and rile some people up... it is conceivable in western reports and docs that people will just straight up say "I can't really tell the difference, sorry". It's almost expected. When you see claims like this being the king of something having a completely different taste and being superior to the standard thing, what people tend to expect from shows that takes people there to taste and see, is honest reporting - because otherwise it'll be labeled as straight up advertising. Another point, I think the... well, weirdness we feel, or stigma there is about the format - lots of big flashing text, reaction boxes, busy screens in general, on japanese variety shows, is not exactly the same thing as Yuta is talking about reaction videos on KZbin or game streaming in general. See, TV is considered a totally different and separate thing in comparison to streaming media here, particularly KZbin which can be basically anything. Not only japanese variety shows have been doing this for way longer than streaming video portals, because I think it predates the Internet overall, but also it's about the whole exaggeration of CG thing. For western sensitivies, it's too busy. Western media tends to follow a rule of focus - TV is supposed to lead the watching crowd gaze towards something, so adding lots of extra stuff that stays there robbing attention is kind of a no-no for most TV shows, with a few exceptions. We have to go a bit back in time to see the difference in Internet based media. NicoNicoDouga used to have... still have? that comment scrolling thing over videos in a way KZbin never considered doing, remember? I think therein lies some of the cultural difference. Comments, subtitles, extra info is supposed to be separate, not interfere with the "main content". Exceptions for newscasting to aggregate infographics, or live updates. Now, about brazilian TV. It changed almost nothing ever since I was a kid. In fact, some presenters, actors and actresses, news anchors, and formats are still the same with few differences. The most different shows we tend to have are poor copies of variety shows that started in other countries. This is public open TV I'm talking about, cable and streaming is a different beast. I personally stopped watching open TV when I was a kid, aside from occasional news, but as my mom and several relatives still watch it almost religiously, I always get to beggrugingly check the state of it. Brazilian TV is news, soap operas, and a few variety shows. Oh, and of course, sports sports sports. News is blood and corruption mostly, some channels are more bloody than others, and some are more focused on local stuff while others are more national. Some news are all about crime... car accidents, robberies, swindlers, etc etc, all day everyday. Oh, and sports, more specifically football/soccer. Half of most TV news are entirely dedicated to it, plus shows dedicated entirely to it, live transmissions, commenting shows, etc. They occasionally put something about another type of sport there for variety's sake, like 1% of the time. Soap operas, from the 90s onwards, could all be seen as the exact same thing with very little changes. It's always about love conflicts, betrayals, family based drama and shouting contests, a very superficial and very one sided treatment about polemic themes of the day, drama drama drama, and some incredibly stupid and unbelievably bad characters, usually with a black and white narrative - the good guys, the bad guys, blah blah. Little room for any intelligent theme, deeper discussions, real controversies. You watch one of them, you watched all of them. The comedy is the same, sitcom style but more based around scandals and gossip style crap. Oh yeah, sex, lots of sex, lots of kissing, lots of slapping, lots of shouting at each other, lots and lots of relationship based drama. I fucking hate it, if you didn't notice. :P The absolute vast majority of soap operas is about middle to upper class families living in Rio de Janeiro, because the studios are there, the writters are from there, the actors are from there - it's their reality. But they try to vary this part a bit - time, location, social class - the backdrop. So, for instance, it can be a period piece. It can be an immigrant family from... India. It can be a poor family from northern states. But it's always about relationship drama, and the subject always revolves around sex, relationships, betrayals, and again, that gossiping stuff. Variety shows are almost all copies from american shows. So, we had tons of reality crap for years, we have cooking shows, we have game shows, we have celebrities dancing shows, we have amateur talent shows, and on and on - so called canned imports. This is usually on weekends. Documentaries these days either follow the format of, or actually are straight imported BBC shows. And then movies, usually older Hollywood movies, and older american TV series, very late at night. But it's super inconsistent what you get, all dubbed. The other thing about open brazilian TV is that aside from 2 or 3 channels, the entire rest of it got bought by evangelical churches. We used to have a bigger variety of content back in the 80s, but nowadays over half of brazilian channels have direct religious content, because churches here are ultra rich, to the point of contaminating everything from TV, politics, and other sectors. It's pretty bad. Extremely rare to see content related to science, technogy, national sci-fi almost doesn't exist at all, high concept fiction in general doesn't exist here. And then music... oh boy, music, how much of a downfall it took since the 80s on public TV. We had pretty good protest music coming from dictatorship times, nowadays it's on the level of soap operas, but dumber. Almost all of it, no ageism or nostalgic judgements here, it's pretty flagrant, you just have to read the lyrics. So there ya go, wrote too much already. xD

[@XSpImmaLion]

@@arifgunawan9329 I don't get what you are trying to say. Medium has always been a huge influence on what type of content gets created, it's not a matter of one being superior to the other. It's kinda obvious if anyone thinks about it. Content is influenced by creator, audience, producer, parent company when there is one, advertiser or financer relationships, time allocation if there are limits, period of the day it gets published if there is a limitation, plus a whole ton of other stuff - be it consciously or not. Open TV networks are pretty limited in that sense. In most countries, afaik, the number of people watching a certain show is a big factor on whether it stays on air or not. You only have 24hrs in a day, and even less when it comes to prime time, or time most people are watching stuff. It needs to target the largest portion of the population it can, because air time is super expensive, and the success of a show is determined by reach. KZbin is almost the opposite in several of those aspects. Not that is better by default, but more like KZbin likely has everything from content that is several times worse than what you get on open TV networks, content that almost mirrors what open TV networks have, up to content that is demonstrably better - for any given topic and taste. It's a difference in numbers. Every single minute 500 hours of videos are uploaded to KZbin. Again, every single minute. That's almost a century of video per day, whereas open TV networks are still limited to 24 hours a day, closer to 16 with significant audience. So yes, open TV networks really is very different than what you might find on streaming services. More like, open TV network type of content is almost a subset of what you can find in streaming networks. But this does not mean you are better or worse for watching one or the other, because ultimately, that's entirely subjective. It's about what you are looking for in the content you watch. If it's purely entertainment, it doesn't really matter... crap material can be as entertainment as huge productions. One thing remains true though - you do have far more choice in streaming networks. Reason why I made the switch. I was tired of the content on open TV networks. Once you understand the constraints they operate with, the limits gets to you, and you start wanting to see what else is out there. So there you go. But don't take it from me, ask any KZbinr who once worked in big TV networks. They'll tell you how different it is creating content for these mediums. I had limited contact with both, being a journalist.

[@thecharlieramirez]

Tl, dr

[@SebastianSeanCrow]

4:25 sounds like one of those things made for you turning on the Telly to have as background noise while you do other things

[@JapaneseEmichannel]

12:41 I'm Japanese 😏we are used to sounds effect ! I feel bored without sounds effect hahaha yeah I noticed foreigner KZbinr tend to not use sounds but, when I make video I always make video with sounds effect 😏😏😏✨

[@KarolYuuki]

In my country they used sound effects when I was a kid, but now we don't use anymore. Many people think is tacky haha

[@fleurmal7648]

I found it funny that Yuta said foreigners like Takeshi's Castle because it is understood wothout knowing the language, because the American version I grew up on (called MXC -most extreme elimination challenge) was enjoyed partly because it was a joke unabridged version, basically the dub lines were a total meme, the lines had nothing to do with the original language.

[@pickthestickup]

Granted this video was for comedic purposes but Chris's channel is really great

[@petergarcia8225]

Chris is a great teacher...he has his own way of teaching techniques. He has an animated attitude which is kind of important in learning language.

[@matthias8122]

Many of my Japanese friends, especially older, parent-aged ones who have moved abroad, also think Japanese tv is odd. Especially the variety shows. Someone I know also doesn’t let their kids watch them because she thinks they condone bullying, which I can understand. Asadora are good and children’s news is an excellent idea though.

[@sujoyteslesl]

料理の鉄人　きんちゃんのこそーだいしょう　どっちの料理ショー　　ショムニ　and so many more just served as the sort of escapism that TV was always meant to be. I loved my time in Japan just watching shows that I couldn't understand but could still appreciate the tone that was set by them. グルメリポーターshows were consistently enjoyable. I miss being there. Awesome video, Yuta!

[@porcorosso4330]

Actually Japan was so rich in the early 90s (before the dot com bust) that a million yen might not be considered much. In a way, a million yen actually might be worth more now than it did back then. Maybe not in absolute buying power, but in relative wealth.

[@rsmith02]

Takeshi's Castle wasn't just shared on the internet- pre-internet it was distributed as is on TV (I saw it on regular German TV in 2001) and rebranded/reskinned for broadcast in the US ("Most Extreme Elimination Challenge.")

[@sigurdtheblue]

Yeah, I never actually heard people talk about it online, but my brother used to watch it and Ninja Warrior a lot. I hated those shows personally.

[@rijaja]

From my experience, on French TV, some shows do have reaction boxes too (not all the time, just when it matters) but I think Chris's point is about the reaction, which is a honest reaction in France but an act in Japan.

[@ohshanana2397]

13:20 that’s the same for me. whenever I watch african tv shows or african youtubers (especially comedy) people always ask why there are so many sound effects but I never notice because i’m so used to it

[@EriksBlue]

Kitchen knightmares started in the UK, he was a lot more polite on those seasons.

[@capitalb5889]

It was far better. And he didn't over-react in disgust when trying the food.

[@zakuma22]

In Peru, we had the chance to watch a science program broadcasted by NHK. Top quality content. As a matter of fact, many Japanese programs abroad were quite good.

[@nemothenowhereman]

I personally love watching Super Sentai, Kamen Rider, Doctor X, and Trick.

[@EricNeuls]

two of my favorite youtubers on screen together! COLLAB WHEN?

[@bluesdealer]

I worked for a guy who once went on the American reality show Wife Swap. He said the whole “reality” TV industry is just as fake as any fictional program you watch. They give you lines to say. They reshoot scenes that didn’t turn out well and tell you things like, “Well, doesn’t this line sound like something you WOULD say in this situation?” And, they try to manufacture and instigate conflict to make things more interesting. I also agree with your take on 24/7 news network “debates.” They just parrot talking points and fight with each other. It’s not a real debate in the academic sense. Cable news has become an entertainment product, not real unbiased news. I grok where Chris is coming from, though. He is interested in authenticity. I just don’t think TV ANYWHERE will offer that. It’s all a manufactured product.

[@SuLokify]

Hey Yuta! I've been watching your videos for a while, and often make suggestions for content (which, coincidentally, often end up in later videos). It's great to see you experimenting with new formats and subject matter and achieving a level of success from it. Thanks for making such interesting and informative videos, and I look forward to seeing more!

[@numero9]

Takeshi's Castle was popular before the internet, Yuta. A channel in America and I assume the UK and other places, dubbed the few spoken lines and it aired in the 90s when people still were using dial-up modems to access the internet and there was no possible way to share video. It was picked up by a channel most people got at the time (TBS here in America which is basic cable, something most Americans had by that time) and people just liked it because we didn't have anything over here like that (yet -- everyone went on to copy the idea) and it was just fun for both kids and adults. Getting the rights to Japanese shows was a big thing as cable television emerged in the late 80s-early 90s, as they were cheap. A lot of shows that kids born around Chris's time (mid-late 80s) saw a lot of Japanese cartoons on Nickelodeon just overdubbed and weren't anime, but they were bought by Nickelodeon because cable TV channels had little budgets and the rights to these shows were really cheap (our primary kid's network until Cartoon Network came along in America). Most of us earlier millennials grew up on something obscure that probably flopped in your country. Just as Chris doesn't understand or exaggerate certain things, you've got to understand his outsider's perspective too. Trying to dub Japanese "intelligent" shows relies heavily nuanced translation and frankly foreigners care more about gender relations in their own country over Japan, as most Western countries still see Japan and most of Asia behind as far as women's rights and other issues. No one cares about that, we just want to see someone slide in mud and get whacked by a padded foam paddle. We just don't have any need for cartoon sound effects, they're viewed mostly as an Asian thing here -- China and Korea use them too. Latin America TV doesn't seem to use them. We are told reaction shots and sound effects are used to help guide the viewer along with the program as these countries and audiences tend to be collectivist -- they'll wait until someone else laughs. So showing part of the panel laugh or a 'boing-yoing-yoing" sound means laugh. We used "canned laughter" if it isn't filmed live in front of a studio audience. Even then the live studio audience, has to be in the mood to laugh before watching a TV show being filmed so there is a comedian that hypes up the crowd and lightens the mood. This is not shown on TV but how some comedians (like stand-up comedy) get their start or pay their bills besides being waiters or bartenders. Reaction boxes existed and were well known part of Japanese and Asian TV well before the internet, we never used them ever on TV. It's used on the internet but I do not think it's actively adopted or done on-purpose to mimic Asian TV. By all Western accounts, who have never used the boxes either, we're just told it's to help the viewer give the appropriate reaction. You're comparing a lot of very modern internet stuff with things that have existed in US and UK TV since the 50s-60s and just part of our tradition carried down. There is also a sign to applause, so if you want Jimmy Fallon or Jimmy Kimmel or our "late show" talk show hosts, they will get the crowd the applaud just by lighting the sign. These have been in practice since the inception of TV. It's difficult for a non-collectivist society to act fake happy or enthusiasm all the time like you see on game shows like "The Price is Right" where everyone seems so supper happy and enthusiastic; they are told to act that way by the producers in hopes they are picked. Sometimes the funniest part of the show is some lone audience member making a funny laugh at something he found funny and they keep it in, honestly. US TV does appear more "real" than Asian TV by and large but not as real as some of British TV which has started to mirror US TV more and become less "real" over time. For example, Gordon Ramsey was told by FOX in the US to increase his anger and swearing to get viewers at first since he was an unknown in the US. In the UK, he was known somewhat already and had some documentaries and worked hard on getting his Michelin stars and being known as a world-class chef (something most Americans at that time didn't care about, now we care a bit more about Michelin stars and accolades, especially if you're in a city). On the same program titles like Kitchen Nightmares, the Gordon Ramsay in the UK is far nicer because he was already established. Now in America, he doesn't swear or get angry as much but he also has become kind of a character we expect that from, so he is far more irritable on purpose in the US and in the UK, you'll see him give more constructive criticism. America also used suspense like cutting to a commercial break before something big was about to happen and playing background music that made it seem like something bad was coming. In the UK, they don't do this unless it's on their cable. In the UK, adverts have to be clearly listed within shows too like it will say "advert" in the corner, in America they can sneak them in. The UK has a totally different TV system compared to the US, which I think is more similar to Japan, but in America, you have three options: 1) Network TV - ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX and if you don't pay a cable company you can get those over an antenna along with some other stations that don't have much, local, or if you're in an ethnic area, shows news and programming from that country's language either dubbed, subbed, or none. 2) You pay for cable or a satellite dish - then you get pick a package of stations (like Basic package is 100 channels which include the most popular, the 200 with some and rarers ones, and finally something like 350 where you get almost any station that could broadcast in America). You don't buy a license here for TV, you buy cable or an antenna. Network TV tends to be more rigid to rules about swearing and is safer, cable was the place you could get away with more. Some cable stations like HBO and Showtime aired nudity, violence, and no censorship of cursing, but you had to pay extra for those TV stations that played movies primarily and boxing was popular in the 90s if there was a big event (like Mike Tyson). The FCC is the department that creates the rules for American TV. It should be noted channels that have a reputation one might hear like Fox News, our heavily conservative TV channel, is not a news channel but entertainment by the FCC and is not part of network TV. CNN, MSNBC, CBS News, NBC News, ABC News networks are all not network, so you're not going to see them with an antenna. Our department FCC determines all the rules for TV, radio, and internet. Anyway, the point is moot as option 3 comes in and where most people are going, most people in America have high-speed internet and now there is more bandwidth so TV has been trying to move to the internet. They either run services like Disney+ or Hulu or HBONow, it's kind of a mess as we're still in the early stages of cable channels trying to compete with Hulu who used to Fox and NBC with other material, each company wants a slice of the pie so now we are getting too many streaming TV platforms. Most people use Netflix still but they have more competition than ever as companies continue to break free from them as movie and TV companies want to make more money on their own platforms instead of paying Netflix. So the big media conglomerates are all trying to launch streaming services for their companies' shows but it is no longer on just 1-2 platforms. Plus more people watch KZbin now. I think overall since the 90s, TV his its peak and now less people are actually watching it like they used to and now you can get find whatever show you want to watch. The internet definitely changed how TV is watched and how the companies here are scrambling to make money off of it with their material and many are late to the game or some have been complete failures. Hope that sheds some light on the American system, you never have to buy TV/antenna/cable/satellite dish if you don't want to, mostly everything is moving to being online, and how things operate for the most part. Internet, TV, and home phone (now that last part is starting to disappear more as people just use their cell phones) are often all bundled together. It's hard to just get internet without the cable company wanting you to bundle and get a TV package as well. Most people buy their internet through massive companies that change their name every few years that bundle internet in with TV or now cell service through specific carriers even. Often these deals are good up until 2 years the contract changes, but most people I know still buy at least TV and internet through the same provider since most areas use cable modems. Satellite companies are similar and use DSL modems it seems. Getting solely internet is possible but it's not a readily available thing without having to decline TV and phone bundle packages first. There are not a lot options to choose with cable companies as they are regional, so one might be the most popular in a city everyone uses or the area is semi-rural so only one or two companies can even access your cables. It's a shame, the city of San Francisco has an entire fiber optic network underground not being used. We're really trailing behind on internet speeds here in America. They're okay but a lot of countries have us beat for cheaper prices even. Finally, unlike Japan and UK, "variety shows" that are popular there are not popular here at all when they are attempted modernly, they do not do well. UK and Japan do variety shows different (the UK doesn't have facial reactions in the corner from the panel, etc.) but the concepts are similar.

[@TransPaladin]

Two of my favorite Japanese channels together? This is amazing.

[@Joie-du-sang]

Canned laughter is _much_ less common American sitcoms now than it was 20-30 years ago. The old multi-camera style typically had canned laughter, but over the past 20 years or so single camera shows have become much more popular and common. For example Modern Family, The Office, and Parks & Recreation were all quite popular single camera shows. That said, there have still been multi camera shows in that time period as well, like Big Bang Theory and How I Met Your Mother. I can't stand the canned laughter myself, though.

[@Србомбоница86]

Never heard about those shows ,USA is known only known for their annoying canned laughter ,so fucking fake omg

[@geensloth911]

@@Србомбоница86 yeah that hasn't really been popular in the US for about 20 years. Shows like Malcolm in the Middle, Arrested Development, and Scrubs were some of the early sitcoms that stopped using the canned laughter. I'm curious which shows you are referring to that you found annoying?

[@GenerationNextNextNext]

I think children's networks are the only ones still using canned laughter.

[@russellhamer8690]

I'm sooopleased thier is Now a Channel run by a Japanese guy that Gives a clear insight into culture,humour... LIKED N SUBSCRIBED

[@bbypink9844]

I love watching Japanese people react to “Abroad in Japan” videos! I dunno, it adds more reality to his vids IMO… plus it’s funny because oftentimes the brit’s jokes go over their heads XD the comedic barriers that come with cultural differences is hilarious

[@thejumperkin]

I find it interesting that one of the first shows you specifically mention you watched when growing up as a Japenese person is the very much British TV show "Dragon's Den", while Chris (who is obviously British) is talking about watching Japanese shows when he was growing up...