Terrace House: Tokyo 2019–2020

This rating is based on the first half of the season.

The Tokyo 2019–2020 edition was clearly positioned as a return to Tokyo with an eye on the Olympics, and the casting reflected that. A number of housemates had international backgrounds, which fit that framing. But like so many things tied to 2020, the season ended in disaster. In the worst case, it may even have marked the end of the entire series.

Before the pandemic interruption, I liked this season a great deal. The cast felt vivid and distinct. Shohei and Kaori both had that unmistakable artistic air. Ruka, despite being the kind of useless-but-pretty guy who could easily have become a joke, came across with a sincerity that made him oddly moving. Haruka also fit the "green tea" type, but in a way that still felt human rather than flat or cartoonish. The show paused for a while because of COVID, and I was genuinely curious how it would continue filming after that.

What happened instead was shocking. Hana Kimura’s death by suicide after online abuse brought the season to an abrupt end, and the fallout was devastating. Not long afterward, reports and allegations about production interference and manipulated storylines severely damaged the show’s reputation.

There is still no final consensus on whether production manipulation directly contributed to Hana Kimura’s death, and people continue to argue about it. But it seems obvious that the production team did guide pacing and progression to some degree; the only real question is how far that control went. Even so, the people on screen still felt quite real. If there really was a script, they all performed it remarkably well, especially considering that most of them were not actors at all. And if it had all been fully staged, it still would have been an extremely polished and widely praised soap opera.

The problem is that when something is presented as reality television, audience judgment of the "character" gets directed at the real person. At that point, it becomes a matter of what kind of persona the producers want to construct for you.

From a technical standpoint, the show remained exemplary. The sound recording, camera work, and editing were all highly professional. It was also excellent material for listening practice in natural spoken Japanese. For that reason, I still find myself hoping Terrace House could have another season someday. But if that were ever to happen, the production side would need to offer a real apology and seriously rethink how the show should be made.

Terrace House: Aloha State

This season had too many participants connected to film, television, or advertising. A lot of them seemed to be there at least partly to increase their visibility. And apart from all the surfing, there was not actually much that felt deeply connected to Hawaii itself. In that sense, it often came off more like a travel program than a season grounded in its setting.

Language also shaped the atmosphere in a noticeable way. The dynamic between locally rooted Japanese Americans and newcomers did not always feel balanced. Compared with the Japan-based seasons, the women here generally seemed much more mature and independent than the men, which gave the season a different energy and a more Western feel.

If I had to pick a favorite from this cast, it would probably be Guy. He could sound a little slow or goofy when he spoke, but underneath that he actually seemed very clear about what he wanted. His professional success also strengthened that impression. He gave off the sense of someone wiser than he first appeared.

Yusuke was also very endearing. He really did just seem like a high school kid. It felt like the best thing for him would be to get his career in order first and leave romance for later. Even in the 2020 era of Terrace House, his love life still went badly, but the production team clearly loved him. They gave him a lot of memorable close-ups, including that painful but effective moment when he watched fireworks alone after being stood up.