Thermae Romae

Roman bath architect Lucius Modestus has run out of ideas and fears his career is collapsing. During a visit to a public bath, he is unexpectedly pulled through the water and emerges in a modern Japanese bathhouse, a place whose unfamiliar fixtures look to him like impossibly advanced inventions.

Each accidental trip to Japan gives Lucius a new idea to recreate in ancient Rome, from bathing comforts to public leisure. His crude imitations are enough to amaze Roman clients and restore his reputation, even though Lucius remains convinced that the mysterious "flat-faced people" must belong to a civilization far superior to his own.