Original subtitles

It's no good.

Why does it turn out like this?

I thought the dough turned out well.

Damn.

Manpei-san...

Damn!

Manpei-san...

Manpuku

♫Marumatteru senakani ni morai naki ♫I get infectious weeping looking at your stooped shoulders

It Will Soon Be Complete?!

Week 18

♫Haji datte issho ni ♫We'll share the humiliation too

♫Hikoukigumo bonyari nagamu ♫Gazing absentmindedly at contrails

♫Kokoro kokoni arazu ♫Here in body, but not in spirit

♫Nenkan totaru moshi shitara ♫If I was to calculate an annual total

♫Tsukiau watashi sugoi? ♫Aren't I amazing for keeping you company?

♫Toboketeru mayuge ni morai warai ♫ I get infectious laughter looking at your comical eyebrows

♫Tere datta nandatte ♫Be it embarrassment or whatever

♫Morai naki morai warai morai ikari ♫Infectious weeping, infectious laughter, infectious anger

♫Moraippaji don to koi! ♫Infectious embarrassment. Bring them on!

♫Seiten mo donten mo hekireki mo ♫Sunny days, cloudy days, thunderous days too

Manpei-san's trial and error continued.

He tried using different kinds of flour, tried different resting time for the dough,

and tried all kinds of different methods.

- See you later! - Okay, have a good day.

Then one month after the noodle making began...

This is it.

Fukuko! I did it, Fukuko!

There was a proper amount of salt and lye water to make dough for noodles.

So there's a proper amount of salt and lye water to make noodles,

and when I added soup in the amount that didn't go over that threshold limit,

look, it turned into these beautiful noodles.

In any case, this is great, Manpei-san!

We're going to boil this right away.

Get a bowl ready for me.

- Swish, swish, right? - Yes.

Oh, maybe not.

Huh? Wait...

No, no, no, no, no, no... Huh~?

- Actually... Manpei-san? - What?

If you boil it like this, wouldn't you lose the taste of the soup in the noodles?

Actually, since we're boiling it...

In any case, let's give it a try.

Yes, let's do that.

Chopsticks.

- Do you think it's ready? - I think so.

Bowl.

I'll pour hot water over it.

Okay.

At least it looks like noodles.

Yes, it is.

- They're noodles. - Yes, they're noodles, indeed.

But it lacks firmness and it doesn't have much taste either.

Manpei-san.

What am I supposed to do?

It won't go well right away.

Anyway, just the fact that you got the noodles made is a step forward.

- A step forward? - Yes, that's right. It will be soon be complete.

- I don't hardly think it's going to be soon. - I guess not.

It may not be soon, but you're inching closer to completion.

If anyone can do it, you can, Manpei-san.

I'll think of a different method.

I'll think about it too.

Noodles have to be boiled.

But they lose flavor when they're boiled.

How can they be boiled without losing flavor?

What if you boil them in soup?

Boil them in soup, not hot water. Then maybe they'll retain the flavor...

Okay, let's give it a try.

It should be ready, huh?

- Can I? - Yeah.

There's no taste.

How come?

So even when they're boiled in soup, the noodles lose their flavor

when you do the swish, swish.

If you pour soup, not hot water, over it...

That would just be regular ramen. I'm sorry.

Argh! What am I supposed to do.

You should rest a while. How many days have you gone without sleep?

No, I'm going to think about it.

Argh! This won't work.

You are rice curry. Okay.

Is Manpei-san struggling? You guys are helping with the ramen making, aren't you?

We haven't been allowed to help after boiling down the soup part.

President's trying to do it on his own. With the Madam's help once in a while.

- Which reminds me what Grandma was saying. - Grandma?

- I'm talking about the Great Madam. - Oh...

She keeps on talking about how Manpei-san's noodles were awful.

You won't believe how awful it was. It wasn't even edible.

I can't imagine President struggling so much.

I still don't see how you can get ramen

just by pouring hot water over it.

I wish I could help too.

Were you all working at Tachibana-san's place?

We used to make Daneihon together.

Right now, all three of us are working for the same food manufacturer.

Although we're no longer making Daneihon.

So that's why you know Fuku-chan well.

Things were slow at work today so we snuck out and came to see her.

It's too bad she's off today.

I told her to take some time off once in a while.

She's been coming in everyday lately.

- Everyday? - Since Manpei-san's been absorbed in making ramen,

Madam's working hard figuring she has to be the breadwinner.

Here's your rice curry.

- Woah, it looks good. - Of course it's good.

It's the taste that beat out America, you know.

Here, have some Fukujinzuke too.

Thanks.

Ah~ how long has it been since I last had rice curry.

Grandma doesn't like it, so it's never served at home.

- Grandma? - He means the Great Madam.

To tell you the truth, I find it hard to go home.

How come?

Taka-chan's waiting for you, isn't she? With your unborn baby.

There's a woman who comes everyday to model for Tadahiko-san's painting.

and there's a sense of disquiet in the air.

Sense of disquiet?

Good night, Sensei.

- See you tomorrow. - Good night.

What?

- Glared? - That woman glared at me as she was leaving.

She flirts with you, but gives me that attitude. Who does she think she is?

- I don't know what to say. - Don't let her in this house anymore.

- What are you talking about? - I don't like that model.

I'm not done yet with the painting, you know.

Don't tell me...you have something going on with her.

- Don't be ridiculous. - Why are you being so defensive?

You're the one who's being defensive.

Humph. I can't take this anymore!

Hey.

Taka is curiously short-tempered lately too.

You're more interested in Uncle Manpei, aren't you?

I told you, that's not true.

Why is Taka-chan being like that?

You know how they say pregnant women become emotionally unstable.

How does he know that kind of things?

They do, indeed.

Did you get emotionally unstable too, Shinobu-san?

I did every time I got pregnant.

- You had six kids, you know. - That's why I was that way the whole time.

- Really? I just thought you had a nasty personality.

What are you talking about now?

Manpei-san.

Are you drinking sake?

I ran out of charcoal.

Please come back to the house. You'll catch a cold.

Manpei-san.

Come on.

It's hopeless.

Why...

Damn it.

You found out that it didn't work, so that's a good thing, isn't it?

You took one step forward.

You know very well the agony of coming up with something new, don't you?

One step, one step. And while taking one step back at times, take one step forward again.

That's how you overcame your struggles in the past

and that's why you were able to make quality products.

I have faith that

Manpei-san will become the No. 1 ramen maker in Japan.

- No. 1 in Japan? - Yes!

Cheer up.

It didn't work because I added unnecessary ingredients in the dough.

Kneading in the soup was a mistake.

But if you don't do that...

Everything's nixed.

- Huh? - I'm starting over from the beginning.

This is it!

Tempura is it, Fukuko.

Week 19 "We're Moving Forward by 10 and 20 Steps!"

It's a divorce crisis!

I really like Tadahiko Sensei.

I drew a picture of Hideko's passion.

That's what people call delusion.

Uncle Manpei's making ramen at the ice shop over there.

I've never met a cute girl like her.

- That's right. - That's love at first sight.

Marriage meeting?

W-who are you!