October 13, 2014

  • Massan Plot Summaries - Week 3

    #13    Massan and Ellie convey their thanks to the Tanakas, Daisaku and Kayo his wife, and begin their new life in a rented home with the help of a lady named Katherine. There was some trouble over finding a place to move into, since the owner of the place that M & E had planned to move into did not want to rent to a foreigner. They stop in at a local eatery run by a fellow named Haru, who helps them find a place to rent. They also meet a woman named Katherine. Massan throws himself into making whiskey and Ellie throws herself into cooking rice. Yuko comes for a visit...

    Today's episode was dumb. Massan and Ellie make arrangements to rent a lovely Western style house. For a person in danger of loosing his job this looks like a very posh place. The landlord, who is holding a Western poodle comes out and declares that he will not rent his Western style building to a Westerner. How stupid is that? If some bumpkin of a landlord does not want to rent to a foreigner who might be unfamiliar with the ins and outs of a Japanese neighborhood I could understand, but this scenario was just dumb. Massan and Ellie stop in for lunch at a Greasy Chopstick and they comment on how well the rice is cooked. The owner of the GC hears Massan's Hiroshima accent and announces that he is from Hiroshima, too. He recommends a place in the neighborhood that is for rent, and Massan and Ellie move in. One of the nosy neighbors, Katherine, offers her bossy (yes, BOSSY) assistance in pidgin English. Ellie's cooking does not quite measure up to that of the GC. She is having a problem in the kitchen with the rice to water ratio and ends up making rice soup. She will get the hang of it eventually. Meanwhile, Yuko shows up at the door looking unhappy. Hey, M & E have just moved in, so how does Yuko know where they live?

    #14    Yuko shows up at M & E's new home, says that she will give up on marrying Massan and leaves. Massan wants to start his whiskey making experiments, but is told coldly by the brewery manager Yaguchi that he must submit concrete plans in writing. (Sounds reasonable to me...) Ellie runs into Katherine at church and finds out that K is also married to a foreigner, and the two become bosom buddies. Their new life in Japan really begins as Massan works hard at his experiments and Ellie faithfully awaits his return from work.

    Yuko comes over with a set of two rice bowls for the newlyweds and says that her father um, helped her to understand all that Ellie gave up to come to Japan. Could it be that father has grown a spine? Yuko says that she will give up on Massan. Ellie asks Yuko about how to make proper rice but Yuko is not ready to be nice yet. A local policeman, who is making the rounds to see who lives in the neighborhood suggests that Ellie go and meet Katherine, who happens to be giving a music lesson to children in a church building. Katherine is married to a foreigner, too, but her husband is conveniently back in England for a bit, so they don't have to hire another foreign actor. Bossy Katherine is very happy to see Ellie again and teaches her some Japanese. Ellie is not so crazy about the idea that in Japanese husband is king and wife is housemaid. Massan starts his attempts at making whiskey, but the financial person in the company, Yaguchi says that if Massan wants to make whiskey that he has a week to submit a written plan to the company if he wants funding. Massan gets home late to a dinner of attempted rice. Ellie tells Massan she loves him and wants to hear it back, but Massan's response is rather halfhearted. Ellie complains that he declared his love from the rooftops in Scotland, but Massan tells her that is not done in Japan. Tell me about it. LOL

    #15    Kamoi pays an early morning visit and starts out by taking advantage of Ellie's hugginess. He has brought the newlyweds a large good luck tiger and a couple bottles of perfume. Kamoi asks Ellie which she prefers and E says that she likes the scent of perfume A and the bottle of perfume B she gets them both. Remember bottle B, folks. Ellie gives Massan a big hug as he leaves for work, and the neighbors run for cover. (This is getting old.) She still can't manage cooking rice and asks Yuko for help. Yuko shows Ellie how to the proper timing for adjusting the heat in the wood stove and the perfect pot of rice is born! Yuko says that she is envious of Ellie's "freedom" and wonders if she really wants to spend her life in the shadow of whatever husband her parents pick for her. Massan continues his whiskey experiments at work.

    #16     Massan submits his written plans for making whiskey. He is told that since whiskey has to be stored for at least five years before it can be sold, the plan might as well be written in red ink. The plan must go back to the drawing board to reduce the budget. Meanwhile, Yuko is shown perusing at a formal portrait of a potential arranged husband, but she does not seem impressed with the prospects, as the fellow works for the bank with which her father's company has dealings. The marriage will be good for the company, but Yuko does not know if it will be good for her. On the home front, Katherine helps Ellie get acquainted with the neighbors. They all taste test Ellie's rice and agree that she has now mastered the art. (Can't we get past this rice thing, already?) Ellie is not thrilled that Massan is late at work every night and waits supper for him, falling asleep over uneaten meals for two. Tonight, as Massan is about to head for home sweet home, the boss suddenly drags him out to a restaurant to meet the head of a bank. This fellow has leverage over whether Massan's company will get the loan required for whiskey manufacture and must be treated with care. Mr. Bank also has leverage over Yuko's potential husband. Mr. Bank tells Massan to drink up and enjoy the little party. Massan tries to beg off saying that his wife is waiting at home with dinner on the table and that he promised that he would be home early, but that flies like a rock. For starters, he is told to down a flask of sake and sing standing on his head. The boss holds him up, but Massan, Bossman and the folding screen behind them all topple just as Kamoi walks in with a couple of party girls on his arm. Massan finally makes it home as far as the front door, but collapses in a drunken stupor. Ellie is not amused. Ah, the ins and outs of business in Japan.... And stay tuned for huggy trouble tomorrow!

    #17     Ellie complains to Massan about his working late every night, but is it not doing much good. Ellie pays a visit to Kamoi and is happy that he has used to her preference about bottle design for a new product. Massan is revising his plan and finally finds a craftsman willing to make him a pot distilling apparatus. He returns happily home only to find Ellie and Kamoi hugging. (For Ellie hugging is natural, but she has had enough experience now and should know that hugs are not for one and all in Japan. Kamoi seems to be taking lecherous advantage of Ellie's ignorance. Massan and anyone else can see it for what it is. Ellie really needs to get a clue. I think Massan is going to give her one.)

    After several attempts Ellie finally gets Massan out of bed after his big night out with Bossmann and Mr. Bank, and Massan rushes out to work without even a glance at the perfect rice that she is now able to cook up. She is angry that he broke his promise to come home early to go out drinking, and Massan tells her that the drinking was part of work. Newbie Ellie doesn't get it, and horror of horrors, Massan runs out the door without giving her a hug. Ellie remembers Yuko's job description of a Japanese wife: keep the house running well and support your husband while he does whatever he wants. She decides to take her tears out for a walk to Kamoi's shop to ask the facts of work in Japan. She tries to ask directions on the street, but everyone either gawps or runs away. Just as more tears are about to fall, Kamoi shows up and invites her into the shop after a public hug. (That is gonna set the rumor mills in motion...) Ellie spots a bottle the same as her perfume bottle B only bigger. Kamoi says that he has decided to use that design for bottling juice because Ellie chose it for the perfume. Ellie is happy and brings out a boxed lunch that contains the rice that Massan did not have time to eat. (Oh no, sharing Massan's rice with another man! This is another definite no-no!) Kamoi assures Ellie that drinking really is part of work and that Massan is working very hard and that she needs to cut him some slack. Cut over to a scene in Bossmann's office. Mrs. Bossmann is not happy with Massan's plan because it is too expensive and she worries about the future of their company. Meanwhile Massan spends the entire day cajoling a metal craftsman into making him a pot still. The craftsman is good at making teakettles, but does not really want to try making anything so large, but finally relents, since it will be used for distilling the first real Japanese whiskey. He might even become famous! Massan returns home early as promised and filled with joy at his success only to find Ellie and Kamoi hugging at the front door. It is about to hit the fan, folks.

    #18    Massan comes home and finds Ellie and Kamoi hugging, and in a fit of jealousy starts a fight that the entire neighborhood can hear. Ellie gets Katherine's take on the situation, and Katherine tells her to file for divorce. Massan complains to Mr. Bossmann about the trials of being married to a foreigner. Yuko gives him the what for and tells Massan that he is the only one in Japan that Ellie can really depend on. Massan realizes his mistakes and promises to be more dependable.

    Here is my take on today's episode. Massan comes home and sees Kamoi and Ellie locked in a lingering public hug. Massan is angry and says that he has clearly explained the huggy thing (Can't we get past the stereotypical hugging?) and that she should not be dallying with another man, and Ellie asks him if he is jealous. M asks E why she went to see Kamoi (who has conveniently disappeared from the scene with no comeuppance) and she says it was because she is lonely and asks that question dreaded by the male half of the world, "Which is more important, work or ME?" She doesn't like being the maid for a king who does what he pleases. Here she goes through all the trouble to make the perfect bowl of rice, and he can't even bother to come home to eat it. (Can't we PLEASE get past the stereotypical rice thing? Man does not live by rice alone, either. There are fish to be grilled and veggies to be boiled. Why keep harping on rice? At least Ellie seems to be able to manage chopsticks by now.) Massan counters with, "If you don't like it, go back to Scotland!" There are some things you say and some things you don't say. A burly neighbor comes to complain about the noise, and since M has his adrenaline running, things get very physical and a neighborhood brawl ensues. (Totally unnecessary, more bad scenario writing. For a drama to be good it has to be believable. Action does not equal plot.) Katherine appears on the scene and tells Ellie that she has tried enough and that she is entitled to return to Scotland, and Ellie goes to the church building with Katherine and spends corny time playing Home Sweet Home on the organ. Massan, with nary a bruise or scrape is next seen having a miserable beer at Mr. Bossmann's house and Mr. B tells M that this marriage may indeed have no chance for success, but Yuko comes in rooting for Ellie. The scales fall from Massan's eyes and he runs back to an empty house. He then runs all over the city screaming Ellie's name, and finally finds her at the corny organ and apologizes. Next morning he embraces her as they both stand romantically before a steaming pot of rice. This is getting dumb. Do I really want to keep watching it?

usalapinhazzer