“Sugoi desu ne” – Abroad in Japan Review
Chris Broad, otherwise known through his YouTube channel Abroad in Japan, is a self-confessed “British Guy making videos in Japan. Officially better than Simply Red.” It’s a simple but effective tagline for Broad’s snarky, sarcastic, and above all, British humour. As of writing, his YouTube channel is approaching 3 million subscribers, nearly 3 times the population of the Yamagata prefecture Broad moved to a decade ago. The title “YouTuber” has become a bit of a stain for many, especially in Japan thanks to the escapades of Logan Paul. But Broad has a clear enthusiasm for the medium.
His videos are far exceeding the quality of most videos on the platform (although still prone to the inescapable surprised expressions on the thumbnail). A documentary on the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, detailing the effects it had on the local population near the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant Disaster. 2019’s 25-minute-long documentary where Broad spent a week with one of Japan’s biggest Rockstars – Hyde – before their residency at Zepp, Tokyo. Journey Across Japan, which has now undergone several sequel series since its debut in 2018, in which Broad cycled around Japan. This is a far but exhaustive list of the premier Japan content featured on the channel. The next logical step, if any, for Broad to take would surely be a full-length documentary film right? Probably. But evidently, Broad has instead turned his hand a writing a book. And it’s a bloody good one.
When Broad landed in a rural town in Northern Japan, he wasn’t thinking of writing a book or even YouTube. With no knowledge of the Japanese language, a very superficial understanding of the culture and zero teaching experience, Broad had done the only logical thing after graduating. Signing up to the JET Programme to teach English in Japan. His mission was simply to avoid being the worst English teacher in Japan.
His mission started in the small town of Sakata, in the Yamagata prefecture. Here, somehow, he not only avoided being fired but navigated the culture shock and called the town home for two years. About two-thirds of the book is dedicated to delving into the three years of teaching in Sakata. Arguably, this was the most interesting part of the book, with an insight into his time before his videos. Initially, almost every month and its many weird experiences of culture shock are documented with Broad’s quintessential humour that has made him so successful online. As he becomes more acclimatised to the culture, the jumps in time from chapter to chapter grows.
Speaking of growing, towards the end of his third year teaching, Abroad in Japan was born and quickly reached adolescence. A semi-viral video of Chris teaching his Japanese friends British expletives helped demonstrate there was a life beyond teaching in Japan. And so, our unconventional titular hero leaves Sakata and devotes himself to his YouTube channel. The book charts the remaining decade of Japan.
A decade well-spent, I would argue. From the northernmost tundra of Hokkaido to its southern counterpart Kagoshima, and the remaining 45 Japanese prefectures of Japan in-between. Self-plagiarism would have been understandable if Broad had instead named this book “Journey Across Japan”. The anecdotes are endless. Full-blown virality after a dreary rant caused by being awoken with a J-Alert, warning residents of an imminent bomb from North Korea. A simultaneously laugh-out-loud and cringe-inducing experience in a love hotel. And a week spent with Japan’s most famous export – Ken Watanabe. A simplistic description of this book’s content would be “From tranquil rice field to bustling Tokyo”. But this book is more than a superficial glance at Japan. A better description of its contents would be “From neon-soaked Osaka to the perpetually varied Sendai”.
Broad, in his time in Japan, has mastered translation. His fluency in the language and (a lot of) the 2,000 kanji characters is impressive. More so is his ability to translate his humour across mediums. Instantaneously, it became apparent that Broad had managed to distil his personality into every paragraph. Many of his stories are invariably funny. A speech in front of a packed auditorium confessing his love of K-Mart fried chicken. Climbing Mount Fuji overnight practically in shorts and a hoodie. Presenting a documentary film about Japan’s cat obsession. Despite the stories’ deeply personal nature, their humour is boundless respective of who or how these unique anecdotes are retold. But it is Broad’s appreciation of, and ability to find comedy in, every small detail that differentiates his videos, and this book.
Abroad in Japan is a testament to our unconventional, titular “Fried-Chicken-Addicted-Bear” hero. His endless wit and truly one-of-a-kind anecdotes are the logical hooks. But it is Broad’s genuine, personable, and respectful charisma that makes Abroad in Japan, regardless of medium, “Sugoi desu ne”.
Abroad in Japan is available at most bookstore retailing for £16.99. You can watch Chris Broad’s videos via his YouTube channel of the same name.
