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"I'm not sci-fi, I'm non-fiction!"
Who knew the base of Mount Fuji was a Hot Spot for alien and paranormal activity? In a seemingly quiet town, four middle-aged school friends had their boring lives given a tiny shot of excitement when they made the acquaintance of an unassuming alien working at the local hotel.
Kiyomi works at the Lake Hotel and one night discovers there’s more to her co-worker than meets the eye. Unable to keep a secret she fills her friends in on Takahashi’s alter ego. Before long the 54-year-old alien is being asked to do trivial and even illegal tasks for the women. Somehow, he always manages to thwart crimes and do good regardless of the random requests. When the hotel and the town itself are in danger, it will take not only Takahashi, but nearly a village of women to right the wrongs being committed.
I enjoyed the laid-back alien tale with some of the other interesting reveals. Takahashi showed that aliens could be heroic and kind, stubborn, grumpy, and prideful---just like humans. While I liked the small town vibes and inane excitement related to specimen cups and volleyballs, there were times the women’s behavior troubled me. Kiyomi catered to an older guest at the hotel hoping to be put into his will. She also promised to keep Takahashi’s secret but took every opportunity to share it. She was unwilling to switch shifts with him so that he could rejuvenate after doing a good deed because it would have mildly inconvenienced her. The women could be terribly self-absorbed when Takahashi shared his hidden pain or when he risked being exposed or arrested for them. On the positive side, the women eased the alien’s loneliness even if he had to call them on their rude behavior at times.
The drama had an episodic feel to it as each episode had a problem to be solved with the overarching theme of the importance of the hotel and friendship regardless of family heredity. The humor was gentle and subtle. As they grew more accustomed to each other, the women became less oblivious and more in tuned to not only Takahashi but the world around them. They also discovered that their small town might be home to more than one unusual resident.
9 April 2025
Kiyomi works at the Lake Hotel and one night discovers there’s more to her co-worker than meets the eye. Unable to keep a secret she fills her friends in on Takahashi’s alter ego. Before long the 54-year-old alien is being asked to do trivial and even illegal tasks for the women. Somehow, he always manages to thwart crimes and do good regardless of the random requests. When the hotel and the town itself are in danger, it will take not only Takahashi, but nearly a village of women to right the wrongs being committed.
I enjoyed the laid-back alien tale with some of the other interesting reveals. Takahashi showed that aliens could be heroic and kind, stubborn, grumpy, and prideful---just like humans. While I liked the small town vibes and inane excitement related to specimen cups and volleyballs, there were times the women’s behavior troubled me. Kiyomi catered to an older guest at the hotel hoping to be put into his will. She also promised to keep Takahashi’s secret but took every opportunity to share it. She was unwilling to switch shifts with him so that he could rejuvenate after doing a good deed because it would have mildly inconvenienced her. The women could be terribly self-absorbed when Takahashi shared his hidden pain or when he risked being exposed or arrested for them. On the positive side, the women eased the alien’s loneliness even if he had to call them on their rude behavior at times.
The drama had an episodic feel to it as each episode had a problem to be solved with the overarching theme of the importance of the hotel and friendship regardless of family heredity. The humor was gentle and subtle. As they grew more accustomed to each other, the women became less oblivious and more in tuned to not only Takahashi but the world around them. They also discovered that their small town might be home to more than one unusual resident.
9 April 2025
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