"Ikoku Nikki" (Foreign Country Diary), a TV anime based on the manga by Tomoko Yamashita, has been airing on ABC TV, TOKYO MX, and other channels since January. While it doesn't have the flashy appeal to dominate social media trends, it's quietly resonating with viewers. This article will explain the charm of the series and the unique animation techniques used.
◇It's okay not to understand
"Ikoku Nikki" is a manga serialized in "FEEL YOUNG" (Shodensha) from 2017 to 2023. Makio Kodai, a shy novelist, impulsively takes in his niece, Asa Takumi, who lost her parents at her sister and brother-in-law's funeral. Makio prefers solitude, while Asa is friendly and straightforward, so the two, with completely different personalities and values, begin an awkward life together.
This is not simply a story about an aunt and niece living together. Its distinguishing feature is its portrayal of the lonely reality that we can never fully understand each other, not as despair, but as "respect." They acknowledge each other as different individuals, maintain an appropriate distance, and build a bond different from that of family.
Makio and Asa are completely different in personality, age, and background. A wall always exists between them, but the story doesn't depict any easy catharsis or empathy where their hearts connect as they spend time together.
Even when we suffer from not being able to understand others, this work offers a glimmer of hope that "it's okay not to understand." Its appeal lies in its refusal to resort to easy empathy, but rather in its stance of empathizing with the loneliness of people living in modern times.
◇Things that could only be expressed through animation
The anime meticulously depicts everyday life, highlighting the characters' subtle emotions and psychology. Scenes of eating and cooking are also portrayed with great detail, and this realism brings the characters' lives to life vividly.
This is the directorial debut of Miyuki Oshiro, who is directing the series. When I interviewed Director Oshiro, she said that she was "trying to create visuals that are close to live-action." The series has also been made into a live-action film starring Yui Aragaki and Ikoi Hayase, so when the anime adaptation was announced, I did wonder, "What's the point of making it into an anime?" However, once the anime started airing, those doubts vanished.
Director Oshiro said, "From the planning stage, people were saying things like, 'It's more suited to live-action,' and 'What's the point of making it into an anime?' While that's certainly true, it's originally a manga, so it has a high affinity with animation. The original work contains psychological descriptions that evoke images of deserts and oases. I thought from the beginning that these couldn't be expressed in any other way. By making it into an anime, we can express the image of the original work as is, and we should be able to make expressions that are unique to animation."
The unique pacing, tempo, and evocative imagery—techniques only possible in animation—elevate the delicate worldview to a deeper level.
"Ikoku Nikki" (Diary of a Different Country) is not a story of dramatic miracles, but it quietly affirms individual loneliness. It stands apart from the SNS-driven consumption of "topics," "trends," "excitement," "emotion," and "unexpected plot twists," and is a work that continues to resonate with the hearts of each individual. (Manami Anima/MANTANWEB)
