So the premise of Terrace House is much the same as Jersey Shore - let's take three guys and three girls, stick them in a house together, and see what happens. This show, however, is Japanese, so in terms of what actually happens it's basically the opposite of Jersey Shore.
Instead of lots of yelling, fights, and sex everywhere, everyone is relatively quiet, polite, and nice to each other. I actually like watching Jersey Shore with my wife, because the people there are so far away from anything I could ever be, that it's actually really interesting. This show is also interesting because it includes a look at a different culture and how they act and deal with each other; the people also seem much more my speed because of the lack of fistfights and clubs and all that. Despite that this would normally be classified as a "reality show" (with all the fakeness that tends to go into such things), I'm actually mostly convinced that they were not given scripts or "suggested" things they should do - particularly by one event that I don't want to spoil right near the end of the series. So from what I gathered, the show has run in Japan before, and this is a"sequel" of sorts that was put on by Netflix - Netflix has recently added quite a number of Asian series and TV shows, so I imagine this is continuing the trend. Anyway, the show has 6 hosts as well, who butt in at the start and in the middle of each episode to give their thoughts and talk about it. Jersey Shore has no such equivalent, and I actually rather like it, as they all give different perspectives on it and you get some new thoughts besides your own. One other thing is that people come and go rather frequently in the house, and so you have something of a rotating cast of characters; but it doesn't bother me at all.
So for the most part, most of them are there (from what they say) because they think it would be an interesting and exciting experience. Most also have no significant other, so if they happen to stumble onto some kind of relationship along the way, that's just a nice plus, although a few were obviously hoping for something to happen for them. There's enough tension and conflict going on to keep you interested even if the cultural aspect doesn't do it for you, and obviously you end up rooting for some and scorning others (much like the hosts, though in a more neutral way).
Anyway, it's a show I've liked quite a bit, and I'm now watching the Netflix sequel to this one; which is subtitled "Aloha State" - with a primarily Japanese cast still, but just in Hawaii instead of Japan.
