Document 72 Hours: 2014
Season 5 Lore Primer
Key plot threads, lore context, and character stakes you need to remember before diving into this season.
- Directly follows the overarching narrative developments of Document 72 Hours Season 4.
- Faction dynamics and core character alliances shift under escalating external stakes.
- Crucial mysteries introduced previously reach key turning points and narrative reckonings.
- Sets up serialized story arcs that build directly toward the climactic season finale.
Episode Guide
Season 5 Progress Shield
Wrestlers on the Road
Jan 10, 2014 · 25 min
As the recession continues to hit Hokkaido, Japan, a small pro wrestling group fights an uphill battle to energize the prefecture. The group was started about 10 years ago by a pro
A 260-Person "Sharehouse"
Jan 17, 2014 · 25 min
In 2013, one of Japan's largest "sharehouse" or shared-living apartment houses, opened in Tokyo. It can accommodate 260 people. Open to men, women and couples, it instantly reached
The Fierce Battle! Entrepreneur Contest.
Jan 24, 2014 · 25 min
An “Entrepreneur Contest” was held last year under the auspices of a global IT company to discover talents who can give shape to innovative ideas more quickly. The duration of the
Japan's Northernmost Bus Stop
Feb 28, 2014 · 25 min
The far north of Hokkaido, with a view of Sakhalin in the distance. At Cape Soya, where a severe snowstorm blows, there is "Japan's northernmost bus stop. In winter, there are few
Okinawa: The Barbershop that Never Sleeps
Mar 7, 2014 · 25 min
In downtown Naha City, there is a barbershop that is open 24 hours a day, a rarity in Japan. Customers include children with shaved heads, employees of nearby restaurants, and offi
Fukushima: From a Super Market in Early Spring
Mar 14, 2014 · 25 min
Iwaki City, Fukushima Prefecture. Along the road to the nuclear power plant, there is a supermarket that has seen a significant increase in sales since “that day”. The main product
Printing Handheld Memories
Apr 4, 2014 · 25 min
With the ubiquity of digital cameras and smart phones, we live in an age of easy photographs. It's easy to print them out, too, using machines at a home electronics store. One patr
The Voyage of Life on a Giant Ferry
Apr 11, 2014 · 25 min
For people with time, car ferries are an inexpensive mode of travel in Japan, which is surrounded by water. Each year, about 200,000 passengers ride one ferry line that connects Na
A 24/7 Discount Store
Apr 18, 2014 · 25 min
A giant discount store in Shinjuku, Tokyo, has 40,000 items for sale. It pulls in customers around the clock. This episode shoots during the 3 days just prior to a near-doubling of
One Tower, Many Lives
Apr 25, 2014 · 25 min
The Tokyo SKYTREE opened in 2012 as Japan's tallest structure. Each day 100,000 people flock here to try to take photos of the giant radio tower. They come from all walks of life,
Youth "HelloWork" - A Job Agency
May 2, 2014 · 25 min
Over 80% of Japanese college grads landed jobs last spring, the main hiring season. However, in Shibuya, an area of Tokyo known for its youth culture, more than 200 young jobseeker
Ueno Park, Under the Cherry Trees in Full Bloom
May 9, 2014 · 25 min
Ueno Park is a huge park representing Tokyo. Surrounded by offices, downtown, and residential areas, people spend their time in this vast park. During the cherry blossom season, th
An All-Night Eatery
May 23, 2014 · 25 min
Uguisudani is one of the least-frequented stops on Tokyo's Yamanote mass-transit loop line. But it's well known for its nightlife. The transition is a stark one, from sparsely trav
Self Storage: Secrets and Memories
May 30, 2014 · 25 min
Recently, all across Japan, there has been a sharp rise in the number of people turning to self-service storage to keep things they have no room for at home, or to keep "treasures"
Mt. Osore: Between Life and Death
Jun 6, 2014 · 25 min
When people die, they go "to the mountain". So holds the folklore in the Tohoku (northeastern) region of Japan, referring to Mt.Osore, in Aomori Prefecture. During the national hol
On the Road: “Happiness Theory” on Route 16
Jun 13, 2014 · 25 min
Yokosuka - Machida - Hachioji - Kasugabe and "National Route16" connects the Kanto suburbs. The townscape where there are only large shopping malls and chain stores is attracting a
The 24-Hour Supermarket: Just Another Day
Jul 4, 2014 · 25 min
Akune city is located in rural Kagoshima Prefecture. More than 40% of its population is over 65 years old. Its famous 24/7 supermarket is stocked with 390,000 items, from groceries
Shonan, Reasons to Gaze at the Sea
Jul 18, 2014 · 25 min
In June, the Shonan coast overlooking Enoshima Island. On a clear day, people who cannot wait for summer to arrive come to see the sea. Families frolic in the water by the waves, c
At a Gas Station in a Downpour
Jul 25, 2014 · 25 min
It's a June weekend, and the rainy season in Japan's central Kanto region is being inaugurated with an apparently endless deluge. But in spite of the drenching, people must travel.
What Dreams I Have at the Fishing Pond Late at Night
Aug 1, 2014 · 25 min
Along a national highway in the suburbs of Saitama. There is an indoor fishing pond where men dangle their fishing lines until late at night. Twenty species of fish, including carp
A 24/7 Animal Hospital: When a Pet Needs a Vet
Aug 22, 2014 · 25 min
In Shibuya, Tokyo, there's an animal hospital taking emergency cases 24/7. It was founded 46 years ago. Doting pet owners from all over Tokyo take their beloved charges here when s
Kabukicho Nail Salon: Behind the Scenes of a Woman's Dressing Room
Aug 29, 2014 · 25 min
The glamorous world of women spreads out in a room of a building in Kabukicho. It is a nail salon that stays open all night until 8 am. Some are cabaret girls who go there to “plea
At a Train Station in Fukushima
Sep 5, 2014 · 25 min
Within 20km of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant - site of the 2011 nuclear disaster - is the town of Naraha. The train line that passes through the town was closed after t
“On the Shore with a View of the Atomic Bomb Dome
Sep 12, 2014 · 25 min
It was August 6 when the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. While the familiar annual solemn peace ceremony is broadcast live on TV, people from all over the world flock to the
General Hospital Store: Where Shopping Meets Healing
Sep 19, 2014 · 25 min
In southern Chiba Prefecture, a 24-hour convenience store opened 3 years ago in a huge general hospital. It offers everything from reduced-sugar snacks to loose clothing, and it's
Haneda Airport: From Summer to Autumn
Oct 3, 2014 · 25 min
On the last weekend of summer vacation, Haneda Airport is crowded with travelers and people returning home. I spent three days in front of the departure and arrival counters, holdi
Deep Asakusa, Midnight Coffee Shop
Oct 10, 2014 · 25 min
Asakusa is a world-renowned tourist attraction. North of Sensoji Temple, in the deep “back Asakusa” area that does not appear in guidebooks, there is a coffee shop that has been in
The Ameyoko International Food Market
Oct 17, 2014 · 25 min
Underneath the lively Ameyoko Market in Tokyo's central district of Ueno is a far less well known below-ground market for foreign foodstuffs. Follow the scent of exotic spices down
What to Hit: Boxing Gym in a Mixed-Use Building
Oct 24, 2014 · 25 min
In front of JR Gotanda Station, where offices and bars line the streets. From a room in a small building, you can hear the sound of a boxer hitting a sandbag. It is a long-establis
Koenji, What to Expect at the Public Baths
Oct 31, 2014 · 25 min
Koenji, Tokyo. An old-fashioned wooden building stands in an alley past a pure shopping street. It is a long-established public bathhouse that is open until 2 am. The baths are fil
Dreams Along the Yamanote Line
Nov 7, 2014 · 25 min
The Yamanote Line is Japan's most famous loop line. In the blink of an eye, you are whisked to the next station, where yet another distinct side of Tokyo is unveiled. In recent tim
Kisarazu, Wangan, Big Lunch Box Store Blues
Nov 21, 2014 · 25 min
Hey," he said! Hey!“ ”Is this bento ready yet?“ ”A big bowl of rice!" The men shout with authority at a 24-hour bento shop in the port of Kisarazu, Chiba. The store is crowded from
Wandering Shakebai
Nov 28, 2014 · 25 min
Shibetsu Town, Hokkaido, Japan, is a place where the wind blows with a steady breeze. Every autumn, during the salmon fishing season, a group of young people gather from nowhere. T
Osaka Minami, Midnight Underground Tenement
Dec 12, 2014 · 25 min
There is a leisure building in Osaka's Minami district that is familiar to anyone in the Kansai region. The Ajien Building was once home to a huge cabaret that was said to be the b
Shinjuku Ni-Chome: A Taste of Mother's Home Late at Night
Dec 19, 2014 · 25 min
Shinjuku Ni-Chome is one of the deepest spots in Japan. In a corner of the area, there is an unusual teishoku-ya (set meal restaurant) that opens only late at night. The popular me