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On the last day of Golden Week, I saw "Rohan Kishibe Goes to the Louvre" trending on social media. It's a spin-off of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure — a mysterious story about the "darkest, most evil painting" hidden deep beneath the Louvre Museum.
The protagonist, Rohan Kishibe, is a manga artist who can read people's memories like a book. He travels to Paris chasing a tale of darkness and obsession.
Meanwhile, I was at a Hakata ramen shop. Ordering my second round of extra noodles.
There's something strangely parallel about the two of us. Rohan chases the world's most sinister painting. I chase the world's most dangerous bowl of ramen — the kind that pulls you back for one more round of noodles even when your stomach is already at 95%.
We both have no self-control when it comes to our obsessions. The difference is that Rohan's takes him to Paris. Mine takes me to the counter stool of a tiny ramen shop on a Sunday afternoon.
Hakata-style ramen hits different when you're in your 50s. You know it's going to cost you the next day. You know the sodium will make your ankles swell. And yet — there you are, slurping that tonkotsu broth at full speed, ordering the extra noodles with zero hesitation.
That's the sinful beauty of it. No curse, no dark painting required.
I did eventually watch a clip of the Rohan anime later that evening. It looked beautiful. Atmospheric. The kind of thing you appreciate more as you get older — when you realize that the dark, complicated things in life often hold the most meaning.
But right at that moment? I was more grateful for the bowl I'd had at noon. Simple, hot, a little too much — and completely worth it.
Golden Week ends. The ramen shop closes for the night. The trending posts fade. But the warm feeling in my chest — that stays.
Rohan, if you ever tire of hunting evil paintings in Paris, there's a bowl of tonkotsu waiting for you here in Japan. I think you'd appreciate it.
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