Do you know “Shibuyameltdown”? It was an account that appeared sometime in the 2010s, randomly posting photos of drunk people passed out in Shibuya. The drinking culture in Japan is still one of those Japanese things I can’t fully explain.

Weekend Shibuya used to feel like the symbol of young people getting completely wasted. There were definitely young salarymen, and also people totally fucked up after partying all night at clubs.

Japan is often seen as a very polite and restrictive society, and I agree with that. So this is one side of Japan that feels wild, and I find it pretty strange too. I don’t think that itself is necessarily a bad thing, because people need a chance to let it out. But as you said, when it mixes with toxic work culture, it becomes the worst.

Because of the pandemic, our Gen Z generation got away from those stupid mandatory drinking parties (飲み会 nomikai), so even after entering the workforce, a lot of people still refuse them. Some older people are mad about that, but we don’t really care.

Apparently, many people from older generations secretly hated them too, so that part is gradually changing. It’s starting to feel like even inviting your junior out for drinks can be seen as harassment.

Japan is very strict about drugs, so drug abuse is not nearly as widespread a problem here so far. But I do think alcoholism is a problem, and so is the spread of anti-anxiety meds among some younger people. I’m planning to write about that at some point.

Anyway, I grew up seeing this “meltdown” stuff as a teenager, so it definitely made me think, “okay, maybe I should be careful about drinking too much” 🐈😅