The Tale of the Train Man, and his Hermes

How true is this story, where a hapless geeky guy likes this young and beautiful lady, and decides to change himself for the better in order to woo her? What a touching premise right? :)


Densha Otoko (The Train Man), is the tale of a young, geeky salaryman (Yamada Tsuyoshi, aged 23) who suddenly finds his life changed when he meets the beautiful Aoyama Saori (acted out by the amazing Itoh Misaki) in a train. In his attempt to stop a drunken old man from harassing her, he earns her gratitude and she gives her thanks by sending him a pair of Hermes cup. Touched, he is encouraged by his online friends (From an online forum no less!) to ask her out and to get to know her better...


So thus began a heart-warming tale where the lovable 'loser' (actually he is not, just that the rest of the society don't treat him nicely at all) began to groom himself and learn to interact with members of the opposite sex calmly. Initially he is beset by so much bad luck, then things began to pick up from there.

However, there are many obstacles he has to overcome, from improving his self-confidence, to grooming, to even dealing with Saori's friends and family. He even had to overcome his over-dependence on the advices of his online friends because when it comes to the crunch, he must stand up and make decisions by himself.

Why do I like the show? Although I am only halfway done with the series (There are 11 episodes, the other half I will try to borrow from Eugene), each episodes have its good point. Witness the shameless usage of the Star Wars Imperial music to announce the arrival of Saori's 'evil' best friend. Or his adventure into Shibuya. Or even the funny scene where he tries to learn how to surf (Saori thinks he is into surfing when he meant web-surfing)


See what I mean? Hehe...

It's an inspiring show. I realises that in a way, each of us have obstacles to overcome. Whether it is a fear of women (-_-;;) or fear of commitment (Haha) or even lack of self-confidence, we have our own Waterloos to fight. I know that somehow the story is too good to be true, but who knows.. maybe it will encourage some of us to take that crucial step forward. :)

Rating: 8/10