"That makes me... hungry."
"Regardless of time or society, when someone indulges in satisfying his hunger, he will become selfish and liberated for a moment. Without being disturbed by anyone, to eat freely is an act of aloofness. This act is the best comfort given equally to every man."
— Opening narration
Kodoku no Gurume (孤独のグルメ, "The Solitary Gourmet") is an ongoing Japanese live-action TV series based on the Seinen manga series written by Masayuki Qusumi, currently broadcasted on TV Tokyo.
Goro Inogashira (portrayed by Yutaka Matsushige) is a travelling salesman and importer. While he happens to be a man of simple tastes, he has one great passion: eating. Every episode follows a similar formula: Following a meeting with a client, Goro's appetite strikes him without fail. After a few minutes exploring the town or city he's visiting, he will chance upon a real restaurant or eatery, where he will spend the remainder of the episode trying out and mentally evaluating the dishes. (And sometimes he has snack breaks preceding, or even following, the main event.)
Afterwards, a smaller segment follows Kodoku no Gurume's author, Masayuki Qusumi, as he tries out the same eatery himself, while speaking with the actual serving staff.
This show provides examples of:
- Artistic License – Gun Safety: Surprisingly, yes, even in a foodie show. One of Goro's deliveries was a case with a revolver, and it is unclear whether it is supposed to be a model or real (Japan's gun laws not withstanding). The first thing the recipient does is take the gun out, quote Dirty Harry, and then point it at Goro, who meekly holds up his hands in surrender, before his client laughs it off as a joke. It's likely the Japanese showrunners weren't well-versed in the rules of gun safety, and thought it'd be good for a laugh, but its still a shocking display.
- Big Eater: Goro usually has several dishes per meal — he has to feature the restaurant's offerings, somehow! The appetite Goro has for his thin frame gets Lampshaded every once in a while, particularly when he shocks a restaurant owner who thought he was asking for the bill and found out he was instead asking for more food.
- The Cameo: Certain episodes cast Japanese celebrities, and the original manga's author, Masayuki Qusumi, also cameos outside of his own segments in various episodes. Goro's trips to South Korea and Taiwan also has him share the screen with the actors who portray his equivalents of those countries' Kodoku no Gurume adaptations.
- Dream Sequence: A few episodes begin with one, including a New Year's episode where his getting burned by hot tea turns out to be his leg straying too close to a nearby heater.
- Extra-Long Episode: Certain New Year's Eve episodes run for an hour, and typically Goro visits two or more different restaurants.
- Exact Words: In the 2021 New Year's Eve special, Goro is asked to bring a "mini-size" package back to Tokyo. After agreeing, he finds out that he's actually going to be bringing back a MINI Cooper.
- Food Porn: Very definitely. All of the food and cooking get loving close ups, and then Goro gets to ecstatically describe the pleasure of eating them.
- Funny Background Event: Once, when Goro is eating at a katsudon restaurant, he gets so taken aback by the size of the cuts that he takes a miniature tape measure he had on him to check the pork's dimensions. One waitress in the background takes one look and has to stifle a laugh.
- Greasy Spoon: The show has no restaurant "too unrefined" to show. Goro has visited hole-in-the-wall joints and diners frequented by blue-collar workers and drivers. One, to his amusement, he notes can only be called a restaurant because it has paper napkin holders.
- Idiosyncratic Episode Naming: The episodes aren't too bizarrely named, but they are consistently titled "<Dish of the week> in <Place in Japan>".
- Instant Web Hit: During the 2022 New Year's special episode, Goro travels cross-country to deliver a crab decoration to a new restaurant. Given the size of the thing, he has to tie it to the top of his car, which winds up catching the attention of passers-by wherever he goes. Despite his consternation at all the people snapping pictures of it, he winds up drumming up interest in the restaurant by people tracking his progress across the internet, leading to an eager crowd waiting at his destination, along with a grateful restaurant owner happy for the impromptu advertising stunt.
- Internal Monologue: Goro's inner thoughts are made audible, and integrates rather seamlessly with a show about a man who eats by himself.
- Iyashikei: The show has a calm and relaxing pace, and Goro's problems are, at worst, just comedically troublesome clients he'll deal with for a few minutes. The rest of the episodes involve his complete satisfaction at restaurants filled with polite and friendly staff and patrons.
- Japanese Politeness: Goro is the quintessential Japanese businessman, who is too polite to voice any objections. Often the show has fun at his expense by putting him in uncomfortable situations he'd like to get out of, but stolidly puts up with smiles, excuses and deflections. On the other hand, when he gets hungry, he can't help but try and rush his way out of a meeting with hurried farewells.
- Limited Lyrics Song: The song that plays during the show's credits consist of two words: the character's name."Go-ro~ (x3) / I-no-ga-shi-ra~!"
- Long Runner: It began airing at the beginning of 2012, and is still going today at 10 seasons.
- Once per Episode: Goro's ruminations after a client meeting will always end with him declaring he's hungry (practically his Catchphrase), followed by a Staggered Zoom outwards of his recognizable vacant stare. Then he starts running around town in search of a place that matches his desired dish, accompanied by the same leitmotif each time.
- Road Trip Plot:
- In the 2021 New Year's special episode, Goro has to deliver a classic MINI Cooper from Maizuru in Kyoto Prefecture to Tokyo, which means driving it cross-country. Naturally, this means an hour and half of trying restaurants along the way.
- The 2022 New Year's special episode is similar, with Goro again driving a MINI Cooper, this time to deliver a crab decoration for a new restaurant.
- Real Life Writes the Plot: The 2019 New Year's episode, as well as Seasons 9 and 10 show Japan under the effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic. Face masks are prevalent, and during the New Year's episode, Goro internally bemoans the poor business he's had recently, while background conversations in the restaurants he visits mention how few customers have turned up.
- Serious Business: Finding the right restaurant and the right dishes. Goro always makes sure he finds a restaurant that has what he wants, and then looks over the menu for several minutes before ordering, all of it accompanied by his Internal Monologue as he scrutinizes his options.
- Slice of Life: The everyday life of an ordinary Japanese importer, whose greatest obstacle is finding a good place to eat after work.
- Staggered Zoom: The show could trademark this shot, given how much it uses it. In general, it does three outward shots to mark when Goro's hunger strikes him, though sometimes it is Played for Laughs by continuing to zoom out several more times, just to highlight the absurdity of him doing his "hunger pose" in the places he is at.
- Strictly Formula: The show rarely breaks from formula. Goro visits a client, gets hungry in the same way Once per Episode, finds something to eat, and caps it off with Masayuki Qusumi's segment.
- The Teetotaler: Goro refuses alcohol, and orders tea, even when he's eating at bars. It's an oddity that's even Lampshaded in-universe, as most assume he would readily order a beer, like most other Japanese white-collar workers do.
- Trademark Favorite Food: Downplayed, but Goro tends to check if his dishes can be accompanied by rice.
- Vacation Episode: More like "Business Trip Episode", but Goro has been to Taiwan and South Korea (and eaten the local food) for his work on different episodes.
