Most will know James May from the older seasons of Top Gear and their new Amazon version, The Grand Tour. Nevertheless, “Captain Slow” has also presented other programs over the years, one of my personal favorites being James May’s Toy Stories, in which he made huge versions of childhood toys, such as a real Lego home. May is always the most serious of the three at The Grand Tour and comes across as someone with a lot of knowledge. He made this new 6-part series for Amazon in which he travels through Japan with his film crew. It is a country he has visited many times, but here he saw places and did things that were new to him.
I received a screener to watch the first four episodes. James starts his journey in the north, on the cold island of Hokkaida, where he drives a dog sled, participates in a professional snowball fight and sees how a samurai sword is made. In the second episode he is in the Tohoku region, drives a huge robot, visits a J-Pop concert and is allowed to travel on one of the most luxurious trains there is. His visit to Tokyo in the third episode is a lot of fun to watch thanks to his translator and very enthusiastic but peculiar guide Yujiro, which also applies to the fourth episode. A section in which a small robot has to show him around is perhaps the funniest in the series as the little guid keeps calling him Bim.
I myself have always had a weakness for Japan and my visit to the country is still my favorite vacation. It is a country that is so different and that James May knows how to put into words. The unique culture is fascinating and with this series he shows various facets of the country in an entertaining way. The whole thing is more of a travel program than an informative series (just like Jonathan Ross’s Japanorama), but if you like May’s work in The Grand Tour, then you will also be able to enjoy yourself with Our Man in Japan.
James May: Our Man in Japan is available now through Amazon Prime Video
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