Father's Back
- I want this one. - Thank you.
- One for me, too. - Thank you.
Oizumi Yo
Tsukamoto Takashi
Oh, it's Minato!
Minato, did you bring the new snack?
Tanaka Kanau
Yup. It's finally ready!
- Ta-dah! - Oh? !
- Give me some! - I want some, too!
- I want to try some, too! - Me too!
Tanaka Tetsushi
- How does it taste? - Delicious!
Tastes of corn soup!
It took my father a month to complete this snack.
- Tastes good! Just awesome! - The pizza-flavored one was great too, though.
Your father's amazing! The genius of snacks!
Then, rate it. How many points out of 10?
- 9 points. - I give it 9 points, too.
100 points!
- 100 points! - 100?!
- Great! - Delicious!
Really? Then, kids, I want you to tell me which one you like best.
Could you write your impressions? Here, take these.
By the way, for the package of this snack
we're going to use a picture of a space rocket named "Saturn 5".
This one!
- Oh? ! - Cool!
The five engines on its first stage produced 160,000,000 horsepower.
It's the biggest rocket in the world,
and thanks to it men got to land on the Moon for the first time.
If you eat this snack, you'll become strong and brave.
- How much will it cost? - I wish I could say 10 yen, but maybe it'll be 30 yen.
After all dagashi have to be cheap.
(Inexpensive sweets and snacks)
Silly boy! It's not dagashi. Call them "snacks for children".
- Give us more! - Sure!
Here you go!
Share them with everyone. Don't quarrel.
My father researches into snacks.
Snacks for children.
Dad's snacks have many flavors,
and I think they're the best in Japan.
subs: maboroshinohikari
Oyaji no Senaka
Father's Back
Da
ga
shi
(Harube)
This is "Cornfield", launched by Sugimoto Snacks last year.
It's corn soup flavored like ours but its spices are different.
Ah, the one with the raffle ticket, right?
It tastes of potatoes, not like corn.
Right? They chose the wrong flavoring.
The ones I made tasted of corn, didn't they?
Yup. Everybody praised you.
And they rated it 9 and up.
Takeru said "Just like your dad!".
Looks like we can make it this time.
It'll be on sale in every Japanese dagashi shop, right?
That might be a tad difficult.
We should start from Kanto for the time being.
- Do you think we can launch it also in Nagano? - Mm?
I'm sure Mom will be glad to see this snack on sale.
Living in Nagano must be boring,
she'll feel like coming back when she eats this.
Mm? well, your mother
must be busy looking after Grandma.
I doubt she'll come back...
Grandma, huh?
Hey, it's time for cram school now.
I pumped up the tires of your bike.
Okay.
Takeru told me this.
"Your father is the genius of snacks."
That made me happy.
Dad works as a salesman for a big company named Star Snacks,
one of the five best confectioneries in Japan.
Where are you going, sir?
I work at Star Snacks.
I'm going to Sun Industries.
Ah, these boxes contain snacks.
I'll leave them in their office,
and they will pay only what they eat at a later date. It's a very useful system.
No, no, no, no. Salesmen are not allowed to enter.
Well then, I'll talk with someone of the General Affairs Department...
Please come back after making an appointment.
Oh, but there's also emergency food, in case of earthquakes and calamities. They're excellent products...
- Please leave? - How about the janitor's room, then?
You'll be able to buy our chocolate for 100 yen, it's a very...
I said you can't, you can't!
You're heartless!
I heard you sent our Planning Department a note
quibbling about our best product.
I didn't quibble about anything.
I only suggested that the reason
our new "Sugal" is not selling well might be some kind of problem with the flavoring.
You suggested? Whenever were you assigned to the Planning Department?!
On top of that, you submitted a plan to launch this stuff!
"Saturn go". What the heck is that!
(5 is "go" in Japanese)
- It's "Saturn five". - Who gives a damn about that!
In this month's in-house newsletter the president encouraged us to be active and enterprising, regardless of our ranks.
Listen, you're a permatemp.
You work for the Sales Office.
Nobody asked you to make snacks.
Still, I'm confident it tastes good.
Also, the package will feature a story
inspiring kids to have dreams...
Don't get the wrong idea!
We don't make stuff for dagashi shops.
When you worked at Toho Chocolates,
you pestered them with your cheap projects and incurred their displeasure, right?
Have you not learned your lesson?
I did not incur their displeasure.
They really appreciated my projects. And they also marketed a few of them.
Why did they fire you, then?!
They did not fire me. I resigned.
Look, if you have enough leisure to think about such worthless projects,
go and increase our sales. The head office told me off.
Try to put yourself in my shoes!
Is my project that worthless?
Of course it is, just like dagashi.
What's wrong with dagashi?
They don't fit the company style!
There was a stupid chief like you also at my previous workplace.
- What?! - Go to hell!
See ya!
Watch it, you moron!
- Got a problem with me? - What?!
Don't sleep on the floor!
Don't worry. I'm clear-headed.
Ah? you even promised me you'd never get drunk again.
- Did I promise that? - You did. You always get into a fight
and come home covered with mud.
And you stink. I can't look after you any more.
Whoever asked you to look after me?
Preparing the bath is your duty, Dad.
So is washing the dishes.
And so is ironing. At this rate, I'll have to do it all.
Not that I mind...
Minato...
I'm going to resign.
I'll have to look for a new job again.
Do you get it?
I'll have to find another company.
What will become of "Saturn 5"?
Well, we'll put it off for a while.
I told Takeru and the others it'd be on sale soon.
Minato, I think you should live with Mom in Nagano.
I'm wretched now.
I make you wash the dishes and do the ironing,
and I do nothing but resign.
I fail as a father.
Your mother has found a job over there,
and she's always wanted you to live with her.
She'll be glad if you go.
'Kay? You should go.
I'll be at ease too.
Mm?you want a carefree life?
Of course I do.
The old lady at the dagashi shop told me this.
"When I had a dog, I always had to take it for a walk."
"I did think it was a pain,"
"but now that it's dead, I feel lonely."
You'll be lonely if I leave.
Mom has Grandma and her brothers,
and she told me I should stay with you, anyway.
- When did she tell you so? - On the day before she went to Nagano.
Anyways, about our "Saturn 5"...
My friends said it tastes good,
but I think a roasted corn flavor would be the best.
Why?
As it is now, I think it's pretty similar to "Corn Boy" and other snacks.
Is it really similar to "Corn Boy"?
Furaneol...
Methional...
Dimethyl sulfide...
Roasted corn, huh...
How about Hokuto Milk Industries?
Shigeta-san, I don't want to make coffee-milk.
Ah... how about Haneda Snacks, then?
Ah, we're on the right track.
It's a small company, so they're probably more open to their employees' opinions.
Yeah, but their main product is chocolate, isn't it?
Not exactly my cup of tea...
So, what is your cup of tea?
Please try this.
I make potato snacks,
so I need to work for a company that has a dedicated production line.
- Try some. - No, I am working.
Help yourself...
Dad was having a hard time finding a new job.
Ah, hello.
Your turn, Uncle.
OK, here I go...
All right, I'll go with Nuzzle.
- Please... - There!
Your Eevee is paralyzed now!
What? that move was unfair!
- Hey! - Hi...
I couldn't get through to you, so I called you at work and found out you quit.
Who did you quarrel with, this time?
I guess that company wasn't interested in your beloved dagashi, huh...
I knew you wouldn't last long.
It's not "dagashi".
You call them "snacks for children".
Oh, I beg your pardon. Looks like I win, huh?
I'll turn on the washing machine.
So he does the cleaning and washing.
Motherless kids get dependable.
Maybe it was the same for us?
Why are you here?
Mm...
It seems...
Dad's heart's in a pretty bad condition.
And our company has hit rock bottom.
It grew big selling energy drinks during the economic bubble,
but it was just a paper tiger, after all.
And now its founder's in a serious condition.
The executives are in utter confusion.
They have you, don't they.
I'm just a naive greenhorn anyway.
I'm unable to lead a company.
That's what they think of me.
So, Dad said... you should manage the General Affairs under my supervision.
- Oh, please... - I know.
I told him clearly.
A wandering snack-maker who never attended a college of pharmacy,
and who's obsessed with dagashi,
could never lead our company.
Tell me if I'm wrong.
You're not.
Dad... feels remorse for what he did.
He put Mom to so much trouble, and she died young.
He said it was probably his own fault that you had a bad upbringing.
- So he wants you back at the company? - My life's none of his business.
But I understand how he feels.
You're no longer young, your dumped you,
you're still clinging to those worthless dagashi...
I'm just a worthless man anyway!
I'm obsessed with my worthless dagashi!
So, nothing will go as Dad hopes.
Go home and tell him so.
Leave already!
Just leave!
As short-tempered as ever, huh...
Well, give me a call if you change your mind.
1985
Harube
Tadashi (10 years old)
- I'm home! - Oh, welcome back. My younger son.
Oh, your son! Have you just returned?
I heard he entered the best new school in Kanto. Good job!
You fool, that's my first son. You're early.
Well, today is my birthday.
Ah, yeah. We were supposed to dine out, right?
Sorry but we can't, I have an important business to attend to.
I got you a Famicom.
(Nintendo Entertainment System, an 8-bit video game console initially released in Japan in 1983 as Family Computer, or Famicom)
But you promised me we'd dine out.
I'm sorry, kid.
Here. Go to the department store and eat something you like.
- All right, let's go. - Okay.
- Oh, it's Tadashi! - You kept us waiting!
- Hi. - You're damn late.
I got the 2nd prize.
- One for me, too. - A raffle ticket, please.
I hope you'll win.
I want this one.
Ah?
I see. Today is you birthday, Tadashi-kun.
- Yeah. - How old are you now?
- I'm 10. - That's great.
Happy birthday.
For you.
Dad?
I'm off to cram school, hang out the laundry.
Sure.
Minato.
Do you have 10 more minutes?
Yup.
I've collected these snacks in the last month.
Which one's the best to you?
Huh? I have to taste and compare them?
Yup. Except for the ones you've already tried.
Okay, here I go!
Mm?
After all it's "Fried Jaguar".
I think it's the best.
So do I.
Right?
Hashiba Snacks?
In Itabashi, huh...
You're not busy tomorrow, right?
Won't you go with me? To this company.
Wow, so cool!
- I am Harube. - What can I do for you?
Well, I would like to see the president and tell him my honest opinion about your "Fried Jaguar".
- To president Hashiba? - Yes.
Ah...
- What is it? - This person wants to talk to you.
- Are you the president? - I'm Hashiba.
This is a snack I have made.
I would like you to taste it, if you please.
I think your "Fried Jaguar" is a wonderful snack.
Yet it kind of leaves an oily taste in the mouth.
I believe you use palm oil.
To make the most of potato's original texture.
I think you should add some rice oil and make it a little bit lighter.
- And? - If you put to use my technical know-how
"Fried Jaguar" will improve dramatically.
I am sure it could defeat the best-seller "Kiddies' Chips".
I don't think "Fried Jaguar" is inferior to "Kiddies' Chips".
We've stuck to this flavor since my father founded the company.
We are proud of that. I do not intend to revise our recipe.
Get inside. Good-bye.
Please don't be offended and try this. It won't disappoint you!
No snack could taste better than this!
Please let me work here. I will do my best to be useful to you.
Sir!
Are you his wife, ma'am? I would like you to try this.
I would like you to recommend it to your husband.
I will give you my CV. Could you hand it to him?
Please don't. We can barely manage.
Please, I'm begging you.
You heard my husband. I cannot do anything for you.
- Please! - Please leave.
Do you like soccer?
What's your favorite team?
Manchester United.
Same as mine!
Dad! Give me our "Saturn 5".
- Why? - Hurry!
Wait at the bus stop.
Hey! Can you juggle?
I can.
- Show me. - Sure.
Look at me.
Want some?
Minato...
Your Grandpa in Tokorozawa... has just passed away.
I'm going to Tokorozawa straight away. You go back home first.
Tadashi!
I heard you've been skipping cram school to hang out at the dagashi shop.
If you keep eating cheap stuff, you'll become a worthless man!
I'll give you as much pocket money as you want.
Eat decent food and get into a good school like your brother!
Now that he's gone, I think I kind of understand how he felt.
In the end, you can only rely on your family.
It might not be the right time to say this.
But... won't your reconsider joining our company?
In the end, your being obsessed with dagashi
was probably just a way to spite Dad.
He treated you coldly 'cause you were a bad student.
But he wanted you by his side before dying.
Forgive him.
I followed Dad's example and underestimated you.
I'm sorry.
I'm in a risky situation.
All of the executives knew Dad since he founded the company.
Now that he's dead, I'm just a figurehead.
I'll teach you anything you can't do.
And you'll have the company shares.
Anyhow, I'd like you to be by my side.
I'm not asking you 'cause it was Dad's last wish.
It's just what I truly want.
I can only confide in you now.
I've realized that today.
Please.
- I'm home. - Welcome back.
- Did you turn on the rice cooker? - It'll be done soon.
I'll go back to Tokorozawa after dinner.
You'll come along. Get ready.
What are you looking for?
The prayer beads.
They're inside the right drawer of the bureau.
Minato.
When was this delivered?
They want to know whether you'll attend the cram school summer camp.
Yeah.
And the deadline for submissions has already passed.
You won't be able to join in.
This year Mom's not here.
You'd have trouble if I stayed away for a week, right?
- What trouble? - This and that.
- What is "this and that"? - Doing the housework and so on.
I'll do just fine even if you're not around.
You haven't been working...
Going to the camp would be expensive.
You don't need to worry about that!
I know we're broke.
My cell phone got suspended once...
That was... only because I forgot to...
I am worried!
Who cares about the camp.
Anyways, we're leaving, right?
You should hurry up and get ready.
Go to the camp!
You can just leave me alone!
Your mourning dress.
You picked it up at the laundry
and left in the other closet since then.
Anything else?
Your grades have been dropping lately.
I'm not asking you to get 100 points on your tests.
But they've been dropping more and more.
We've reached breaking point.
That's it.
Let's give up "Saturn 5".
I'll work at Grandpa's company.
They have a Health Food Department
and asked me to make some protein-fortified jelly.
Well, I think that might be fine.
Jellies are snacks, too.
I've already decided
where we'll place "Saturn 5" at the old dagashi shop.
I've already chosen a good spot.
And yet you...
The kids who hang out there are all waiting! Fumiya and Takeru, too!
They'll think I'm a liar.
I'll go to the camp!
I'll study hard, so don't give up!
You see...
To be honest,
I got tired.
If I work at the company, we'll have an ordinary life.
And your mother might even come back.
Let's live a life of ease!
You'll make snacks for grownups...
Forever?
Exactly.
Dad looked like a different person to me.
- So good! - Delicious!
- Tastes of corn soup! - Really?
They'll be on sale in every Japanese dagashi shop, right?
"Your father is the genius of snacks."
That made me happy.
I'll go to the camp!
I'll study hard, so don't give up!
Yes?
This is Hashiba Kotaro, from Hashiba Snacks.
Ah...
I am sorry about this morning.
My son had a match at a nearby soccer field today.
I dropped by because I wanted to say hi and apologize.
I see...
Actually, after you left,
my child urged me to try your snack.
He said enthusiastically that your chips were better than ours.
I got annoyed and tried one.
And then... I got even more annoyed.
Because it was truly delicious.
It's incredible how you managed to make it on your own.
You're amazing.
I'll wait for you in the car.
'Kay.
Um... Harube-san, could you please visit us again
when it is convenient for you?
My father tried your snack too and would like to meet you.
Now it's my turn to manage the company,
and there are many things I'll have to change.
I would very much like to talk with you again.
I'll be waiting.
Yes...
I'll see you, then.
Goodbye!
Dad! Give me our "Saturn 5".
Hurry!
Wait at the bus stop!
I've already decided where we'll place "Saturn 5" at the old dagashi shop.
I've already chosen a good spot.
- Good evening. - Welcome.
Let's see...
- I'll take this. - It's 800 yen.
The kid from Hashiba Snacks came over a while ago.
With his father.
But they left soon, since you weren't home.
Want to go again next week?
To Hashiba Snacks.
We'll bring our "Saturn 5"...
Yep!
Let me light it.
My father has come back.
Which one will last longer?
Mine. Oh, they have the same color.