Good and pure is not normally how you would describe an unscripted show involving six attractive twenty-somethings living in a house together, but that’s exactly what Terrace House is. What The Great British Bake Off is to cooking competitions, Terrace House is to reality TV. Produced by Japan’s Fuji TV and Netflix, the show has a refreshing banality to it that is the exact opposite American-produced shows of the same ilk. Terrace House does away with confessionals and doesn’t bother trying to create drama, and instead, simply documents the pretty ordinary lives of six strangers, none of whom know one another.

And that’s pretty much it. The cast is provided with a very nice house (the current house literally has an onsen-style bathroom) and a couple of cars. Other than that, they simply live their lives and make friendships and possibly find love along the way. They go out shopping together, they go to work, they hang out, and it’s all very low-key. The pacing of the show can be described as somewhat glacial at times, but that’s part of its charm; it’s a show without ulterior motives.

But even though Terrace House has something of a cult following internationally, it originally was only broadcast in Japan and is, at its core, a very Japanese show. And even while its audience is growing outside of Japan, it doesn’t always feel the need to explain itself to us outsiders, so here are 10 things most international fans don’t know about the show.

10. Boy & Girls in the City is not the first installment of the show.

The very first installment of Terrace House on Netflix is Boys & Girls In the City, set in Tokyo and is the setting for the infamous moment known to fans as the “Meat Incident,” but that’s not actually the beginning of the show. Before Netflix got on board, Terrace House was produced solely by Fuji TV and Terrace House: Boys x Girls Next Door aired from October 2012 to September 2014. There was even a feature film to serve as the finale called Closing Door.

9. The commentators are actually very well-known celebrities in Japan.

As those of you who watch Terrace House know, a big part of the show is the panel of commentators who say everything that we, as the audience, are thinking, but don’t want to say, because the show is So Nice. There’s never much of anything in the form of introductions when it comes to these folks, because for a Japanese audience, they’re recognizable faces.

First, you have TV personality Yukiko Ehara, more commonly known as You. She always has something thoughtful to say, but is also always down to jump into a scene with comedian Yoshimi Tokui, who enjoys acting out what he thinks the cast members might be thinking. Then there’s Reina Triendl, fashion model and resident episode recapper, who can deliver even the harshest of comments with grace and poise. Comedians Azusa Babazono and Ryota Yamasato round out the rest of the regular commentators. The former has her occasional sharp and hilarious comments, the latter is always entertaining with his gleeful love of scandals and drama. There’s also the flavor-of-the-month young actor, but they generally don’t make a big impact on the commentary. They are, however, always very cute.

8. Taylor Swift sings the theme songs for the Japanese broadcasts.

While most of us are conditioned to think of Terrace House as soon as we hear the “Oh ooh-oh, ooh-oh oh oh” of “Slow Down” by Lights Follow, if you catch the show on Japanese Netflix, it’s Taylor Swift’s voice that you’ll hear over the introduction montage. She’s provided the theme songs for all the various installments, from “We Are Never Getting Back Together” for Next Door to “New Romantics” for In the City and the installment-that-shall-not-be named and “...Ready for It?” for the current installment, Opening New Doors.

And while I enjoy the occasional T Swift tune, I’m a fan of the international songs. The upbeat tempo and the encouraging lyrics of both “Slow Down” and “Trying” just fit the tone of this refreshing and so very pure show. I can’t imagine any other songs serving as the theme.

7. Japan gets each episode week-by-week.

Binge watching has become somewhat synonymous with Netflix, but for the Japanese audience, they actually don’t get the same kind of episode dump we do. To stay true to its origins as a broadcast show, Netflix Japan releases episodes weekly. According to an interview with (sigh) Aloha State cast member Lauren Tsai, episodes would air about a month after the filming, at which point cast members are actually able to view the episodes even while still living in the house. Apparently, they’d all watch the episodes together, which… seems like a pretty terrible idea.

6. The current season takes place in Nagano Prefecture.

Opening New Doors has a very different feel to it compared to the previous installments, possibly because instead of being set near any sort of bustling city, the cast is practically living in a cabin in the woods. The city of Karuizawa is in Nagano Prefecture, probably most well-known for having hosted the 1998 Winter Olympics. Its mascot also just happens to be a green bear with wearing an apple hat named Arukuma who, according to his profile, enjoys wearing various hats and weighs “approximately 70 apples.”

It’s a nice change of pace to see the cast in less of an urban environment. It showcases parts of Japan that a lot of people probably have never visited or even thought about visiting. More importantly, though, the fact that winter sports are so prominent in the area has given fans the uplifting sports storyline we didn’t think we needed. All hail Tsubasa.

5. Seina is the undeniable queen of Terrace House.

To international audiences, Seina Shimabukuro is probably most well-known as the member of Opening New Doors who gives off the ultimate wine aunt vibes and had to deal with a super awkward confession of love in a church. In reality, she’s one of the OG Terrace House members. She was on Next Door and actually left for a time before coming back. She’s subsequently made cameos on the second and third installments of the show before coming back as a full cast member on Opening New Doors.

Seina is the only person to ever return to the show and it’s clear why; she’s incredibly fun to watch. She could easily become a villain-type character with her tendency toward the dramatic, but she remains very likable. Her ability to read people makes her good at pushing people into action, which adds a little bit of excitement to an otherwise low-key show. Also, that shot of her sitting at the dining room by herself table twirling wine is a Big Mood.

4. Han-san is still the perfect man.

While Seina may be the reigning queen of Terrace House, I think everyone can agree that Han-san is still the best of us. He’s probably one of the only people in Terrace House history who came on the show with legitimately no intention of looking for romance and man, was he just so cool about everything. He was everyone’s dad friend while he was there, and I’m happy to report that it seems like he’s still working toward his dreams. He’s part of a company called Delicious Company that specializes in graphic design, architecture, and videos. Glad you’re still being the best of us, Han-san.

3. Being able to “read the air” is an important part of Terrace House.

There is a common Japanese phrase that comes up a lot in Terrace House, and that’s the phrase, “kuuki yomenai,” which directly translates to being “unable to read the air.” Oftentimes, it’s translated as not being able to read between the line or read the room, but these don’t quite touch on the nuance behind the phrase. It’s sort of a catch-all phrase for a lot of things, including not being intuitive or being oblivious to a situation or the subtext of a conversation, and all of these things are important skills to have on a show like Terrace House.

There is so much subtext in a quiet show like this. So much of it is built on little conversations and little moments between people who aren’t always saying exactly what they’re feeling. If you’re not able to “read the air” (looking at you, Yuudai), well, it’s going to be a difficult few weeks.

2. There will be a Part 6 of Opening New Doors.

Rejoice, Terrace House fans! Part 6 of Opening New Doors is currently underway in Japan. According to the official site, Week 44 was just released on Christmas Day. Netflix drops parts in eight-episode increments, which means one month to finish filming. There's usually a bit of a lag after the episodes finish airing, so we're probably looking at a late February release.

1. You can apply to be on the show! (Sort of.)

On the Fuji TV page for the show, there’s actually a link to apply as a member. The button to the link claims they’re taking applications worldwide! That being said, there are a few hurdles. First, the application is entirely in Japanese. If you can't read it, no dice. Second, if you're accepted, you are expected to speak Japanese. Aloha State had some moments where people slipped into English, but the main language is still Japanese. Still, if you fit the bill, it's not out of the realm of possibility!

Some fun tidbits about the application: some of the yes or no questions include whether or not you drink, if you can drive, and if you have any cooking abilities. The application also asks whether or not you have a significant other, and what you look for in a romantic partner.