Kotaro Lives Alone (2022) s01e04 Episode Script

KOTARO LIVES ALONE
GOURMET?!/DODGER KOTARO
Can I help you?
Huh?
Pleased to meet you, madam.
I am currently attending
Shimizu Kindergarten.
I represent the Star class.
My name is Kotaro Sato.
I thank you for the invitation.
You must be Sir Kakeru's mother.
Please accept this small offering.
Oh, thank you so much. You're too sweet.
I'll take this for her,
but I'm not actually Kakeru's mother.
Hmm?
Kotaro! You're here.
Hurry up and get in here!
Aye. Please pardon me, ma'am.
What're you doing?
That's Ms. Yoshida's job.
Leave it there. Let's go!
Come on!
Are you Ms. Yoshida?
I sure am. I work here as the housekeeper.
And I keep an eye on Kakeru
while his parents are at work.
Ms. Yoshida,
where are the snacks?
And don't forget to put those toys away!
Coming!
KAKERU'S ROOM
Ta-da!
Th this is the legendary
He looks just like I thought.
You didn't tell me
you were a fan of Tonosaman too!
Yoshida, towel!
Coming!
I need another cup of juice now too.
Of course.
And my game controller
needs to be charged.
Okay.
A FEW DAYS LATER
Kotaro, are we there yet?
I feel like we've been walking forever.
We are almost there.
Fine, but give me a piggyback ride.
No, sir.
You need to do this all on your own.
At last, we have arrived.
Okay. So now what?
Now you learn
to fend for yourself by catching a fish.
What? But I don't know
the first thing about fishing!
We can make fishing rods
using chopsticks and string.
What? Y-you do it for me.
I-I can't make rod.
You must! It is time to grow up!
Uh
You've got a bite! Pull it in!
What do I do? What do I do?
Cease your screaming!
Just grab the crayfish by it's back!
Ow! He's got me!
- Kotaro, help me! He's got me!
- Sir Kakeru!
You must stop relying
so heavily on others.
This is not a bad haul
for your first time out.
What are we gonna do with them?
Cook them for our lunch.
I'm not eating those!
That's gross!
Crayfish happen to be a delicacy
enjoyed all over the world.
They are rich in protein
and have essential vitamins for growth.
How come you know so much stuff?
I have experience.
What?
We must make sure they are
properly cleaned before eating them.
For the sake of time,
I have some pre-washed ones ready to go.
This is just like a cooking show.
Let me think.
Since this is only your first time,
perhaps miso soup would be a good idea.
Why can't we eat them
without any cooking?
Promise me you will never attempt
to eat them raw.
Uh uh, sure. I-I promise.
I don't understand why we're doing this.
Let's go to the store and buy something.
Or we can ask Ms. Yoshida or my mom
to make us something to eat.
You are entirely missing
the point, my friend.
For we, as children,
are inherently quite weak.
We lack the basic knowledge
needed to survive on our own.
Imagine you were alone.
No adults. What would you do?
But I don't ever want to be all alone.
I couldn't do it.
But you can do it!
You can learn to be strong
and fend for yourself!
Yeah!
That's why we went fishing for crayfish!
Your house is pretty quiet.
Guess you're home alone a lot. Yeah?
Call me if you're ever lonely.
I'll go catch some crayfish with you!
I would be forever in your debt.
Uh
What's up with the tissues?
Nothing.
Pay these tissues no mind.
We were playing dodgeball
on the yard today,
and he wasn't clear
on the dodging part of the game.
That sounds about right.
I must learn
to master this game.
Therefore, I have a favor to ask of you.
Now, Sir Karino.
I need you to instruct me in mastering
the art of catching a dodgeball.
Why me?
Fine. Get ready for it.
Aye. I am ready.
Uh
Am I mistaken,
or are you taking it easy on me?
Uh, I don't think
this is a good idea.
This isn't working.
Maybe we should stop, yeah?
Do you have any words of advice for me?
Huh?
Uh, advice?
My old baseball coach used to say,
"Catching a ball
is like having a conversation."
"It's all in the eye contact."
It never really made much sense to me.
Let's practice something else,
like throwing.
What's wrong?
What the Was that the best you got?
I am not a thrower.
I specialize in catching.
You don't know
what you're saying.
Okay. Get ready for it!
Kotaro, you have to dodge!
Don't you know the rules?
Uh
Hey. Don't do that
I'm starting to think
Kotaro doesn't understand dodgeball.
I have failed you.
I could not catch a single ball.
I know what that means.
More training this afternoon.
I am thwarted.
Uh, no big deal.
Do you need to catch it?
I mean, you could just try
to get out of the way. Right?
Unacceptable.
Huh?
To dodge a ball
thrown by a friend
is to ignore that friend entirely.
What?
If throwing a ball
is like having a conversation,
imagine the pain
of throwing the ball to someone
who has no intention of catching it.
I get it.
And it may be painful to try,
but if you don't, you'll never know
what might have happened.
Look, I wasn't there,
but if you really made the effort,
I'm sure it was received.
Even if it wasn't always returned. Got it?
Get ready for it!
Hey! Kotaro caught it!
- Come on! Throw!
- I really did it.
Whoa. He caught it.
Hurry! Get out of the way!
That was way too easy to catch!
I can do this all day!
Indeed.
That was an excellent catch!
What? You're not supposed
to be happy about that.
Whose side are you on anyway?
I am
on everyone's side, of course!
Hanbe, my friend.
I wonder if you know
when your birthday is.
He's just a cat.
He doesn't know when his birthday is.
And what's up with the crown?
You trying out a new look or something?
We celebrated
a birthday party in class today.
The whole class got crowns.
Oh.
The party wasn't for you. Was it?
Indeed. 'Twas.
Did you say it's Kotaro's birthday?
What? Today is Kotaro's birthday?
Okay.
We have to have a party for him.
Let's do it!
My kindergarten class
already threw a party for me.
That doesn't mean
we can't throw one for you too.
Yeah. Celebrate as many times as you want.
A birthday party is a celebration?
Yep. A celebration of you
to show you just how thankful we are
that you were born.
Interesting.
I thought a birthday party
was simply about blowing out candles
and eating lots of cake.
Well, he's not wrong about that.
I understand now.
It never occurred to me
that me being born was a good thing.
If a birthday party
is a celebration of life,
we have much to prepare.
Did you know practicing daily
by breathing into a plastic bottle
can help double your lung capacity?
That makes sense,
but what are you practicing for?
Simply, to ensure
all of the wishes one makes come true,
one must blow out
all of their candles in a single breath.
Yeah?
But there won't be that many candles.
- You should be able
- Then there's the song.
Huh?
Happy birthday to you ♪
- Whoa. You are tone-deaf.
- Happy birthday ♪
Hmm.
Is this a sufficient number of candles?
Ta-da!
Wow.
That's astonishing.
Now all we need are the candles.
- Did you bring matches?
- I got 'em.
Oh, I almost forgot.
I got these too.
Now we all have to wear them.
Oh, good call. They're perfect!
I'm so great!
Okay. I think we're ready!
Huh?
He left?
And the cake's gone.
"My deepest apologies,
but I must borrow the cake
for a short while."
- Uh
- Why would he want to borrow the cake?
It is only fair
that all of my friends get to celebrate.
Ready?
Welcome to your very own
surprise birthday party.
I was not positive about your ages,
so I brought as many candles as I could.
Right. Then let the party begin.
I apologize
that I only have one cake to offer,
but we can all share.
Happy birthday to you ♪
Happy birthday to you ♪
Happy birthday dear ♪
Sir Hanbe, Sir Kanbe ♪
Sir Sakon, Sir Kojuro ♪
Happy birthday to you ♪
I did it all in one breath.
Today we celebrate all of your birthdays.
A party to honor each of you
because I am glad you were born.
Hmm?
Ah, I see.
I'm glad
that I can make all of you this happy.
The guest of honor is late.
Kotaro!
Here's the plan. We're running away!
Running away?
I can't take it anymore!
No matter what I do,
my mom keeps nagging.
"Get out of bed already!"
"Don't forget to flush!"
"Make sure you take out the trash!"
I've had it, so I'm running away!
Excuse me, Takuya.
What does one do
when they are "running away"?
Huh?
Uh
We'll go as far as we want.
And we'll be the ones in charge.
We'll get into trouble and stay up late!
I think that you should not
take your family for granted.
Oh, you don't get it.
They're taking us for granted.
If we run away,
they'll see how important we are.
If you say so.
Okay. That'll be 740 yen.
That'll show them.
My mom would never
let me buy this many snacks.
This is so cool!
Huh?
Here you are, dear madam.
Wait. You don't have a candy-buying limit?
- No.
- You're lucky.
You get to eat as much as you want.
Plus, you've got
all that extra money to spend too.
Takuya, sir.
So far we've only been
to the park and the convenience store.
I thought running away
entailed going much further.
I guess I don't know
how far you're supposed to go.
It's my first time running away.
Does it not involve riding on a train?
We're not supposed to.
My mom says it's not safe
for kids to ride a train all alone.
What happened
to "getting into trouble"?
I can't believe we're out this late.
Take that, Mom.
Are you not permitted to play at night?
You mean at your house you get to stay up
and play as long as you want to?
It has never been an issue.
Man, you are so lucky, Kotaro.
Takuya, sir.
You should not
envy my life.
It is not something I would wish for.
You don't even know how lucky you are.
Seriously, you just don't get it, Kotaro.
Ugh. Forget it. It's late.
I don't really wanna sleep
in the park tonight.
How about we just go to my house then?
Sorry for causing you trouble today.
I guess I was scared
to run away by myself.
On the bright side,
I bet your mom and dad are super worried.
You know,
'cause you were out so late at night.
- Worried?
- Sure.
The whole reason we ran away
was to make our parents worry about us.
The more they worry, the more
they realize how important we are.
Now your folks will fell that way too.
Kotaro,
where are your parents?
My parents are away
doing very important ninja training.
So, there is no one here
to worry about me when I am late.
Uh
Sorry, Kotaro.
I think I'm gonna go home.
Uh, I'm really sorry!
There is no one to worry for me.
Therefore,
it will never be possible
for me to run away.
Hey, you!
Where the heck have you been?
Do you know how worried we all were?
I went to the bathhouse three times
looking for you!
Sir Karino
Apologies! I did not mean to worry you!
I think he really means it.
Well, as long
as you're sorry, I guess it's fine.
However, Sir Karino,
it occurs to me that I did not make plans
to go to the bathhouse
Don't even
Behold! My magical ability!
Oh, again! That was amazing!
You really do have psychic abilities!
Whoo!
Another great show.
And, as always,
I've brought you this week's allowance.
As always, I am grateful.
Please accept this
along with my gratitude.
Another donation from a generous person?
Uh, yes, it is! You are correct.
Understood.
Made it through another week.
Tonosaman ♪
Lady Kobayashi,
are these performances enjoyable?
Of course they are!
I look forward to our visits!
You're the best!
Whoo!
Then please tell me,
Why do you always appear uncomfortable
and nervous whenever you are here?
Wha wha what are you saying?
I would like nothing more
than for you to be able to relax,
so that I may converse with the real you.
I fear there is something
that you are not telling me.
No. That's not the case. I promise!
I'm just an anxious person,
I guess.
No.
He can't find out.
I can't let him know that the money
is from his mother's insurance,
no matter what!
Huh? Who could that be?
I have a package
for Mr. Karino, your neighbor.
He doesn't seem to be home,
so can I leave it here with you?
I will accept this package
on behalf of Sir Karino.
Great! I'll leave it here. Thanks!
What is it?
Lady Kobayashi,
may I interest you in a beverage?
Huh? What? Is that a beer?
Yes. Please feel free
to have as many as you would like.
The perfect ratio of foam to beer.
But wait a minute.
Where did you even get this?
Do not worry yourself
about trivial things.
Uh, but
Look at this!
I haven't laughed like this
in such a long time!
Another one bites the dust!
Man, I gotta tell you,
I thought you were an alien
when I first met you.
Just 'cause you're so mature
and polite for a kindergartner.
Well, I guess you really are
just a weird little kid after all.
I mean, psychic spoon is clearly a toy.
And music shows? Kid, you are tone-deaf!
Indeed.
I am happy to see that you
are feeling free to be your true self.
Oh, yay! I love dancing!
Now that you're comfortable,
I would ask that you tell me
where that money really comes from.
Are you sure you wanna know?
Well, it comes from
an extremely kind and generous benefactor!
That's the truth. I swear.
Forgive me.
That's really the truth.
Sorry, sorry.
Truly.
- I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
- No need for tears, dear lady..
- Deepest apologies.
- I'm sorry.
I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
I'm so
I sincerely appreciate your efforts
to protect my feelings.
Hey. Did they deliver my package here? Uh
It's permanent marker!
I hope
you learned a lesson about drinking.
Who the heck is that?
And why is her shirt off?
Lady Kobayashi,
I look forward to seeing you next week.
It was our first PTA meeting.
He did not make
a good first impression at all.
Uh
That's Kotaro Sato's guardian?
He dressed like a slob
and showed no interest
in anything that was said at the meeting.
His lack of motivation was obvious.
He made no effort at all!
Hi, honey! How was school?
Man, I am beat.
Has the manga been keeping you up?
- Yeah. We got to
- Hey.
Did you see Kotaro's guardian,
that guy who looked like
he was in the yakuza,
and that girl who looked like she
was a hostess at the entrance ceremony?
Yeah. I saw them.
He's always wearing a gray sweatsuit.
He's not the real father, is he?
That poor kid's family life
must be a mess.
None of them are his actual parents.
That explains
why he's such a strange kid.
Poor Kotaro.
Yeah, seriously.
This is going to be a long year.
Today we only have one agenda item.
The summer festival, which will
be taking place at Shimizu kindergarten.
It's come to our attention that even if
the teachers help in hosting the booths,
we still don't have enough people
to run the festival.
We're asking for your help
to set up the day before
and clean up the day after the festival.
Uh
They won't even look at me.
Of course no one's going to go
out of their way to volunteer to help.
They have so much to do already.
Kids, work, and home life.
I can relate.
Maybe we can rethink some of the
Hang on. I can take care
of some of this stuff.
Uh?
I know it's asking
for several people to help out,
but I'm pretty sure
I can handle this by myself.
Huh?
Are you sure you don't mind?
You don't want help?
Yeah. I'm not all that worried about it.
Okay. Well, thank you!
I know the kids will be so excited.
I think you might have just saved
the whole festival.
It's no big deal.
I kinda just figured that's what
I'm supposed to do as a guardian
Oh.
Who wants some cotton candy?
What's this?
Lady Mizuki!
And Sir Tamaru!
Even the convenience store clerk.
And that's Sir Karino's editor!
This is so cool, Kotaro.
- Do you know everyone here?
- Mm-hmm.
- That's how he pulled it off.
- So, what should we do first?
- Mr. Karino.
- Hmm?
Thanks for your help.
Thought you might need this.
Oh, thank you.
- You know
- Hmm?
To be honest, I was pretty surprised
that you volunteered.
It didn't really seem like you.
Can I be honest?
This was a lot of work,
and I'm actually regretting this decision.
Yeah. I can understand that.
Huh?
Then again
Look at how happy he is.
Mr. Karino, I I just have to tell you
I think it's really sweet how much
Kotaro's happiness matters to all of you.
You do so much for him.
As a parent, I find that very moving.
- Sure, but
- Huh?
at the end of the day,
none of us are his parents.
Wouldn't he be happier
if they were, you know, here with him?
Oh.
Sir Karino! Thank you
for all of your work today!
Don't worry about it.
Just get back out there and try to have
fun with the rest of the kids. Okay?
Aye!
I don't know exactly
what their situation is,
but I think Kotaro is lucky
to have someone like Karino
as his guardian.