What Hana Kimura's death revealed about Terrace House - Vox

The tragic lie behind the beautiful dream of Terrace House ... juicy scenario that would shoot to the top of Reddit's Am I the Asshole? Skiptomaincontent clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile MidtermElections EvenBetter Recode TheGoods FuturePerfect TheHighlight Crossword Podcasts Video Explainers Covid Culture Politics&Policy Science&Health World Technology Energy&Environment Business&Finance ✕ ThetragicliebehindthebeautifuldreamofTerraceHouse ThehitJapaneseNetflixserieswonpraiseforitseverydayauthenticity.ThenHanaKimura’sdeathrevealedamorecomplextruth. By AjaRomano@ajaromano Jun5,2020,2:30pmEDT Sharethisstory SharethisonFacebook SharethisonTwitter Share Allsharingoptions Share Allsharingoptionsfor: ThetragicliebehindthebeautifuldreamofTerraceHouse Reddit Pocket Flipboard Email AdarkenedTerraceHouse. Netflix Inmanyways,TerraceHouse,thehitJapaneserealityshowwhere20-somethingstrangersmoveintoahousetogether(àlaTheRealWorld),isautopiandreamofwhatrealityTVcouldbeatitsbest.Sinceitbeganin2012,theshowhasforgonethetypicaltraitsthatdragdownthegenre—therearenomediarestrictions,contrivedtwists,interpersonalcompetitions,regrettablehookups,or$1millionprizes. Instead,thedenizensofthetitularswanky-but-not-too-swankyhousesimplysharealivingspace,whileremainingabletocomeandgoastheyplease,continuetheirusualroutines,andexitthehouseandshowaltogetherwhenevertheywant.Toitsobsessedinternationalfanbase,theappealofTerraceHouseliesinitsnaturalisticambianceandhowrelatable—evensoothing—thesenormal,unassumingpeopleareastheyjustlivetheirlives. ButtheillusionthatTerraceHouseisapeacefulretreatfromthetypicallysordiddramaofotherrealityTVshatteredlastmonth,withtheapparentsuicideofTerraceHouseresidentHanaKimura.Kimura,aprowrestler,hadenduredconstantharassmentonsocialmediasincejoiningthelatestseasonoftheshowinfall2019,andthatharassmentintensifiedfollowingarecentlyairedepisode,inwhichshearguedwithanotherhousemate. Kimura’sdeathbroughtswiftreactions:MembersoftheJapaneselegislaturevowedtoenactcyberbullyinglawsinresponse,whiletheproducersofTerraceHousequicklycanceledtherestofthe2019-’20season.TheshowhadalreadybeenonhiatusduetotheCovid-19pandemic,soproducerschosenottoairtherestofwhathadbeenfilmedsofar.It’sunclearwhethertheshowwillproducenewseasonsgoingforward. WhatisclearisthatTerraceHouse’sparticularbrandofstorytellingmightnotbesustainableinaworldwheresocialmediaisincreasinglytoxic.Buttounderstandwhy,wehavetounderstandhowTerraceHouseexperimentswiththerealityTVformat—andwhereitallwentwrong. TerraceHouseisashowwherenothinghappens.It’sahugehit. Thissoftlighting,orderedsymmetry,andgentleemotionalityareallTerraceHousespecialties. Netflix TerraceHousestartedin2012inJapanasasingleseries,withthesubheadTerraceHouse:BoysxGirlsNextDoor.TheshowimmediatelywonpraiseinJapanforitsauthenticityandnaturalism,andwhenitwasexportedinternationallyitwonfurtherpraiseasawindowintomodernJapaneseyouthculture.BoysxGirlsNextDoorwassopopular,itballoonedintoatotalofeightseasonsairedbetween2012and2014,alongwithamovie,ClosingDoors(2015). In2015,Netflixsteppedintoproducefourmoresub-series:TerraceHouse:Boys&GirlsintheCity;TerraceHouse:AlohaState(inwhichtheshowtriedrelocatingtoHawaii);TerraceHouse:OpeningNewDoors;andthemostrecentseries,TerraceHouse:Tokyo2019–2020.Witheachsubsequentseries,theshowhasonlyexpandeditsinternationalpopularity. Buttheshow’sappealisn’texactlyeasytoexplain.That’sbecauseveryfrequently,nothing“happens”ontheshow—atleastnotintheusualsenseofrealityshowdrama.Ithasnoneofthegenre’smelodramaticplottwists,suspensefullovetriangles,orconstantemotionalupheavals.Infact,theNewYorkTimesin2017calledit“staggeringlybanal.” ThesetupofTerraceHouseis,indeed,deceptivelysimple.Theshowprovidesparticipantswithaswankyhouse,whichcomeswithatitularterrace,andtwonicecarstosharebetweenthem.Theresidents—therearealwayssixofthem,threewomenandthreemen,allinitiallystrangers—goabouttheirlives,sharingmeals,goingshoppingtogether,hangingout,interacting,andoftenfallingforoneanotherastheweeksprogress.They’reconstantlyfilmedbycameras,placedstrategically(andwithameticulouseyeforsceniccomposition)aroundtheentirehouse. Cuttingthroughouteachepisode,asetofcamera-readypanelistswatchtheeditedfootageofthehousemates—thesamefootagewe’reseeing—anddeliversparkling,snarkycommentaryontheminiaturedramasplayingoutinthehouseeachweek.Thepanelistsmediatetheviewer’sreactionandexperienceforusaswewatchthemwatchingthehousemates—who,inturn,watchandreacttothemselvesonTVwhennewepisodesair,alongwiththerestoftheworld. Wethenwatchthepanelistswatchthehousemateswatchthemselvesonthenextepisode,inanendlessrefractorycycle. That’sit.That’sallthathappens. Exceptthat’sjustthestart. TerraceHousecombinesanaturalistic,evenliteraryaestheticwithlayeredmeta-commentaryontherealityTVgenre—andonitself TerraceHouse’sfocusonthemundaneaspectsoflifeis,somehow,immediatelyaddictive.TheTimesreviewer,AndrewRidker,calledit“hypnoticallyboring”rightbeforesayinghe’dinhaled46episodesinamonth.OneofmyfavoritereactionstoTerraceHouseconsistsofabaffledYouTuber,DerekFults,rattlingoffthingsheloves/hatesabouttheshowandthenbabbling,“Idon’tknowwhattodo!Idon’tknowwhattodoanymore!”—whichisexactlyhowatrueTVaddictioncanhityou,scramblingyourbrainandleavingyouunabletoconcentrateonanythingelse. Ahugeaspectoftheshow’sappealseemstobeasupplyofwholesomeauthenticity—oratleastasuccessfulsimulationofit.Oncamera,theshow’s“characters”arealmostunfailinglyniceandcaring,evenwhenthey’rearguingormakingeachothercry.WritingforPolygon,JustinMcElroypraisedTerraceHousefor“lettingactualhumansbedelightfully,heartbreakinglyhuman.”Whereotherrealityshowsbenefitfromtheiremotionalhighsandlows,here,asMcElroynotes,it’s“thelackofobviousstakes”thatmakethehousemates’minortensions“infinitelymorecompellingandrelatable.” Theshow’slackofhighstakescanmakeviewersfeelthewayDerektheYouTuberdid—intenselyinvestedinthesesmallconflicts.InonestoryarcfromBoysandGirlsintheCity,colloquiallyreferredtoas“TheMeatIncident,”awomancooksupherboyfriend’s$200-a-poundsteakwithoutaskinghim,anddoesn’tleavehimany.It’sthekindof(literally)juicyscenariothatwouldshoottothetopofReddit’sAmItheAsshole?—onlyitplaysoutovertworelativelyquietepisodesoftheshowthroughaseriesofcalmexchangesandfrustratedexpressions,andwhatstartsoutas“justmeat”becomesastand-inforlargerunderlyingtensionsandconflictsinthepair’sstill-newrelationship. Theshowdoesthistypeofmicro/macroexchangeagainandagain—like,forexample,whenoneofitsresidentstriestoaskanotheroneoutonlyforhertocontinuallyredirecthisattempttoinviteheronadateintotakingatriptoCostcoinstead.“Costco”isbothahilariouseuphemismforherlackofinterestandaweightyrepresentationofhisrejection—anditsomehowgetsbothfunnierandsadderasthesceneisdrawnout: ManyviewershavecomparedtheseriestothecasualnaturalismofaYouTubevlog,orevena“Let’sPlay”videogamestream—butasIwatchedTerraceHouseforthefirsttime,Ikeptbeingremindedoftwoiconicarthousefilms:JeanneDielman,ChantalAkerman’s1975filmaboutaslowlyunravelingsinglemom,andLouisMalle’sMyDinnerWithAndre(1981),inwhichWallaceShawnandAndreGregoryexchangeconversationrangingfromthemenialtotheprofoundoverthecourseofanevening. UnlikeTerraceHouse,whichclaimstobeentirelyunscripted,bothofthesefilmsarescripted—butwhatallthreehaveincommonisthatthey’realldrenchedintheself-awareartificeofpretendingnottobestaged.BothJeanneDielmanandAndreapproximatethefeelofimprovisation;theformerhaslongsequencesfilmedinrealtimewhilethelatterisessentiallyanentiremoviecomposedofasinglescene.LikeTerraceHouse,bothfilmsusetheircinematictechniquestoresistyourexpectationsforhowtheyshouldbeplayingout,forcingtheviewertosurrenderandsubmittotheirinternallogic.AsRidkerputit:“Istoppedexpectingshockingtwists,orrevelations,orotherrewardsformyattention.Istartedlivingon‘TerraceHouse’time.” TerraceHousealsodrawsonaJapanesecinematicaesthetic.Itshighlysymmetrical,carefullyframedscenesespeciallyinvitecomparisonstothefilmsofcinemamasterYasujiroOzu.Ozuisespeciallyknownforcreatingscenesofdeliberatelystagednaturalism,whichgainasenseoffraughttensionfromtheviewer’sencroachingawarenessthatitisstaged.OurawarenessofthatfalsenessbleedsintothestorythemesOzulikestoexplore—itmeanssomethingtothenarrativeitself. ApoignantdatefromTerraceHouse:Boys&GirlsintheCity Netflix ApoignanttableaufromOzu’sTokyoStory(1953) Criterion TheartificeofTerraceHousesimilarlyplaysahugepartinitsnarrative,eventhoughtheshowwantsyoutobelieveit’sallreal.Forinstance,the“unscripted”showisreportedlyhighlystagedandcarefullyeditedinthewayofallotherrealityshows,withsomeoftheunfoldingromanticrelationshipsbetweenresidentsbeingcalledintoquestionaswell.Andwhiletheshowinvitesusintowhat’ssupposedtobetheresidents’day-to-daylives,thatinvitationinvolvesafilmcrewshowinguptothehouseonceortwicedaily,andcomeswiththerequirementthattheresidentswatcheveryepisodeoftheirownlivesasthey’vebeeneditedfortelevision. Theshow,then,isaperpetualcommentaryonwhatitmeanstobeapublicfigurelivingan“authentic”lifeintheintenselyprivatespaceoftheTerraceHouse,nonethelessawareatalltimesthatyou’rebeingfilmed.Asthehouse’sresidentswatchtheshowonTV,theyfrequentlycringeatthemselvesandadjusttheirbehaviorweekafterweek,tryingtorecalibratetheirexpectationsofthemselvesandeachother,accordingtotheeditsonscreenandthesocialmediareactionsoftheshow’sviewers.WhereotherrealityTVshowsnormallysequestertheirstars,TerraceHousecraftsdramaticnarrativesforitsseasonsbydoingjusttheopposite.Itallowsresidentstointeractwiththeworldastheworldreactseachweektotheshow. Thismeta-layeringcreateswhatRidkercalled“genuineliteraryexcellence.”Butitalsomayhavecreatedaparasocialillusionofintimacythatwasalwaysdestinedtoblowup—thoughnotinawayanyonecouldhavepredicted,staged,orscripted. HanaKimuragotupsetonthelatestseasonofTerraceHouse.Theargumentturnedtheshow’sentirepremiseonitshead. HanaKimuraintheWomen’sPro-WrestlingStardom“CinderellaTournament”onMarch24,2020,inTokyo. MasashiHara/GettyImages OnMarch31,anepisodeofTerraceHouseairedinJapan,inwhichcastmemberandresidentHanaKimuragotmadatafellowhousemateforaccidentallywashingherexpensivewrestlingcostumes,worthseveralthousanddollarsandofgreatsentimentalvaluetoher.Aswith“themeatincident,”herfrustrationwasnotjustaboutthemonetarydamages,althoughKimuradidarguethatthehousematereliedtooheavilyonothersformoneyhehadnointentionofpayingback.ButthegreatersubtextoftheconversationisthatKimurafeelsheridentityasaprofessionalwrestlerisn’tbeingtakenseriouslyorrespected. IfKimurahadbeenabletogetoverherangerwithouttheaddedpressureofamediaspotlight,weprobablywouldn’tbetalkingaboutthismomentaryblow-up.ButKimura,visiblyupsetandunwillingtobepoliteaboutit,rejectedbothherhousemates’attemptstoplacateheraswellasmanyoftheunspokenconventionsofTerraceHouseitself.Onashowthatunfailinglyframesitsparticipantsaswholesome,unassuming,andlow-key,Kimuragotloudandangry,swearing,anddemanding.Inthesceneofherbreakdownalone,Kimurathoroughlypuncturedtheshow’sprimaryconceit—thatitrunsontheunforced,totallynaturalrelatabilityofitscast. It’sperhapssignificantthattheargumentthatgarneredKimurasomuchbacklashwasoverthedestructionofherwrestlingcostume,thechiefmediatorbetweenherauthenticrealselfandherpublicpersona.Withthecostumesoutofservice,theviewingpublicsawKimura’sunbridledangerforthefirsttime—andinresponse,Kimurareceivedadelugeofharassment. Andthisis,ofcourse,whereTerraceHousebreakswithitsarthousecinemaaestheticandslowreflectionsonthelayersofmeaninginatriptothesupermarket.BecauseTerraceHousereallyisarealityshow,withreportedlystageddrama,ateamofeditors,andaglobalviewingaudienceoffanswhoobsessovereachsmallconflict. Inthisartificialcontext,oneoftheshow’sonlyrequirements—thatitshouseresidentswatchthemselvesoncameraandinteractwiththeeditedversionofthemselvesbeingdistributedforpublicconsumption—becameahorriblepunishmentforKimura.OnMay23,Kimuradiedatage22.“Everyday,Ireceivenearly100honestopinionsandIcannotdenythatIgethurt,”shereportedlytweetedsoonbeforeherdeath. FollowingKimura’sdeath,othercurrentcastmatesandformerTerraceHousecastmemberspostedonsocialmedia,echoingherfeelingsabouttheharassmentthey’resubjectedto.“Honestlyspeaking,Ireceivelotsofslandereveryday,”formercastmateRyoTawatariwroteonInstagram.“Othermembersareinagonytoo.” “Wehavetoendthistrendwhereyoucansayanythingtoso-calledfamouspeople,”wrotecastmateEmikaMizukoshi,alsoonInstagram. Butatthispoint,endingsuchatrendwouldrequireendingtheinternetaltogether—andthis,perhaps,wastheprimaryTerraceHouseillusionshatteredbyKimura’sdeath:Theconceitthatnoneoftheshow’sstoriesweretakingplaceintherealworld,butratheranalternateversionwhereeveryonewasinherentlykind,andwheretheinternet,asmuchasitintrudesintothelivesshownonscreen,isaneutralpresence.Instead,thebrutaltruthisthatsocialmediacanencouragepeopletobecometheirworstselves.Ultimately,thatuglyaspectofrealityintrudedintotheshow’sutopianaestheticinawayitcouldn’tcontrolorcorral. There’snoofficialwordonwhethertheshowwillreturn,butitseemsunlikelythatitcanafterthishigh-profile,verypublicdeath—atleastnotinquitethesameway.Itwasn’treallyKimura’sdeaththatmayhavebroughtafinalendtoTerraceHouseaftersomuchsuccess.Itwas,rather,theconceitofTerraceHouseitself—apipedreamofrealitythatwasnevergoingtolast. WillyousupportVox’sexplanatoryjournalism? MillionsturntoVoxtounderstandwhat’shappeninginthenews.Ourmissionhasneverbeenmorevitalthanitisinthismoment:toempowerthroughunderstanding.Financialcontributionsfromourreadersareacriticalpartofsupportingourresource-intensiveworkandhelpuskeepourjournalismfreeforall.PleaseconsidermakingacontributiontoVoxtoday. NextUpIn Culture MostRead TheUSdeclaredvictoryoverpolioin1979.Now,it’shereagain. HowapoliocaseintheUSaffectsglobaleradicationefforts. 4chartsthatshowjusthowbigabortionwoninKansas MorepeopleturnedoutthaninanyprimaryinKansashistory—andthatcouldhappenelsewhere,too. 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