History of Japan / Korea

For Japan, recently the TV series that won a lot of Emmys is Shogun, it is on Hulu/Disney+, but also I would recommend Daiga series which usually are high quality and put out by NHK - they tend to be long though.

For Korea, I heard good things about Pachinko, which is on Apple TV. A lot of Korean dramas are also on Netflix.

A different view, of the part of Korea that you will NOT be visiting: Last night, our local PBS station showed a film from 2018, a documentary presented by Michael Palin from Monty Python, called North Korea from the Inside (with Michael Palin). He’s not joking around or being silly, and has government-appointed guides showing him around, but he goes into North and South Korean history a bit, delves into some differences between the two Koreas, visits some places with stunning scenery, and finds that everyday people are very hesitant to say anything about their North Korean supreme leaders other than how magnificent they were/are, yet the looks on their faces belie their actual feelings. I had no idea that North Korea spends 25% of their GDP on military and weapons, ostensibly because of a constant threat from America. And there have been past problems with severe food shortages, but the people that Palin meets go out of their way to show how abundant food can be in North Korea, and that things are better now. He genuinely liked the people he met, although I bet if he had to live in one of the Koreas, it’d be South.

I do hope you find good resources for Japan.

I’m the one being silly now, but there have been a lot of Godzilla movies … I don’t suppose that any of those would make for suitable viewing? :)

I took an adult “kid” to Japan a few years back. We watched a Godzilla movie before departure. Of course, it was for fun, but good preparation for exploring the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku!

Boston, if you listen to podcasts, there are some good ones for Japan. “A History of Japan” and “History of Japan”. I found these during Covid lockdown when I was taking long walks for exercise and stress relief. I found one or two for Korea as well.

I would recommend the movie "Memoirs of a Geisha," which is a film (based on the book) about a young girl who is sold by her poor family to a geisha house in pre-WWII Japan. I loved the book but especially loved the movie, which was a beautiful look at the geisha world, coupled with the plight of an impoverished people. There was some controversy about the movie when it came out, but I think it is worth watching.

Cyn

I watch a lot of content about North Korea and may have seen the PBS programming that you are referring to.

And you are so right. I will not be visiting North Korea but I wish they would open up to outsiders and treat their people better.

Mardee

I my have seen the movie or I saw a similar movie.

And it was very good

Seininya

I only have Prime and Paramount Plus but I believe that Shogun or something similar is on one of the two.

I will check out some of the other content.

Thank you for all your responses.

Will be trying to find some of the suggestions made. Could be wrong but I don't think I am a Godzilla person

ORDtraveler

Thank you for your suggestions.

I like visuals so stick to movies, series and docs

One problem with Korean and Japanese series is that they often have many many episodes like well over 20 episodes. There are many of these series on Prime but I am not about to binge 36 episodes.

But I think that I can go to youtube and search History of Japan and History of Korea.

I have actually never seen a Godzilla movie but the advertising does not attract me..

"Could be wrong but I don't think I am a Godzilla person"

Surprisingly you might be.

I found the original Godzilla movie had done a joint US/Japan remake using the American actor, Raymond Burr. It was so strange to see "Perry Mason" doing Godzilla. It was made in the 50s with footage of Japan at that time.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godzilla,_King_of_the_Monsters! (the exclamation point isn't getting in the link)

[snip]
It is a heavily re-edited American localization, or "Americanization", of the 1954 Japanese film Godzilla.[9] The film was a Japanese-American co-production, with the original footage produced by Toho Co., Ltd., and the new footage produced by Jewell Enterprises. The film stars Raymond Burr... In the film, an American reporter covers a giant reptilian monster's attack on Japan.