Description: A 24 October 2026 Japanese breakfast-TV recap revealed why actor Rinrin apologised a second time after arriving nearly two hours late. The punchline involved the show's closing shout and a folding mobile phone.
The second apology was triggered by a missed sign-off, not a second late arrival. On the 24 October edition of TBS's Saturday programme Yoake no Love It!, previously unseen footage from the 19 October weekday broadcast showed actor Rinrin being questioned about whether he had joined the show's final shout of “Love It!”
First, the extraordinary late arrival
Love It! is a live Japanese morning variety show beginning at 8 a.m. Rinrin, who plays Zhou in the drama VIVANT, had been booked alongside fellow cast member Ryu Kohata. Oversleeping and traffic delayed him until close to the end. Japanese coverage rounded the delay to one hour and fifty minutes.
He arrived with his hair closely shaved to match his character, repeatedly apologised and even joked that the fictional hacker Blue Walker had interfered with his phone alarm. The hacker explanation was a joke inside a comedy programme, not a verified account of a technical failure.
What the Saturday footage added
Yoake no Love It! collects highlights and after-show conversations that weekday viewers did not see. Rinrin explained that his alarm had been set for 4:30 a.m., but he woke at 7. He said he had been preparing excitedly for the appearance until roughly 2 a.m.
Comedian Arakawa of the duo Elf then asked whether he had shouted the programme's name at the very end. Her comic argument was that a truly apologetic guest should give the sign-off everything. Rinrin admitted he had not said it and bowed to the floor once more. The apology had acquired an unexpected second examination: participation in the closing ritual.
Why did the host compare him to a flip phone?
Host Akira Kawashima said Rinrin had bowed like a “garakei,” a Japanese term for an old-style folding mobile phone. Imagine an open clamshell handset snapping shut: that is the visual shape of a person folding deeply at the waist.
Arakawa turned a tiny omission into a stern interrogation; Kawashima transformed the man's earnest bow into an instantly recognisable object. That contrast is the joke. Japanese variety programmes often build humour through a tsukkomi, a pointed reaction to somebody else's behaviour. Here, a sincere apology and an absurdly precise visual comparison shared the same moment.
Why did the story return on 24 October?
The original incident happened on Monday 19 October. The Saturday recap supplied new after-show detail, and the programme had already announced that Rinrin would return on Monday 26 October alongside VIVANT actors Yusuke Hirayama and Ryo Tamaki. The announced appearance is not proof of what happened in that later live broadcast.
Bottom line
Rinrin did not miss another appointment. He missed the communal “Love It!” shout, was challenged about it and bowed again. The folding-phone image turned an awkward apology into a memorable punchline. This account uses TBS programme listings and subsequent reporting; it does not claim firsthand viewing of the full footage.
References (5)
- TBS 2026-10-24: https://www.tbs.co.jp/tv/20261024_C23E.html
- MANTANWEB 2026-10-24: https://mantan-web.jp/article/20261024dog00m200004000a.html
- MANTANWEB 2026-10-19: https://mantan-web.jp/article/20261019dog00m200005000a.html
- TBS 2026-10-26: https://www.tbs.co.jp/tv/20261026_C28E.html
- MANTANWEB 2026-10-23: https://mantan-web.jp/article/20261023dog00m200007000a.html
