Japanese TV, long derided by newcomers to the country, has really hit its stride in the age of social media. An old show, repackaged for Netflix, underlines why.
“Hajimete no Otsukai” has popped up intermittently on Nippon TV since 1991, and it’s a local favorite. The premise is simple: A toddler is sent out on an errand by themselves — buying a cake, delivering something to a neighbor — and a camera crew films (and assists when needed) from close by. The parents look on, watching their child take their first wobbly steps into being a responsible person and almost always tearing up.
The show has been a hit on YouTube for years, and was inspired by a web series hosted by Singapore’s CNA. But that’s nothing compared to the Netflix bump, which brought “Friends,” “The Office” and another Japanese favorite, “Terrace House,” into the streaming diets of Generation Z. Netflix has repackaged it as “Old Enough!,” removed the between-segment banter from Japanese TV personalities and chopped its typical three-hour run time down to 10-minute-long clips that focus on just the kids, albeit with a studio audience laugh track intact.