I recently had a revelation. There have been popular anime with or around Rakugo before, the first one coming to mind being Show Genroku Rakugo Shinju that aired several years ago. I could never really get into these types of shows because the concept of Rakugo never really appealed to me. A person telling you a story with nothing but their voice and their body language? No theater or video to go along with it and not even anyone to bounce off of? That cannot be all that fun to watch, right? Anyway, let me show you this clip of Brennan Lee Mulligan monologuing as several different characters in a single scene by using nothing but his voice and… oh, I get it now.
Akane’s father was her idol, performing Rakugo in their spare room while he practiced his craft. Akane would always peek into the room to see him, and be transported into the stories he told. When Akane’s father went up for a promotion performance, they all went to go and watch it, and the results were heartbreaking. A legend in the industry from the same broader school as Akane’s father, Arakawa Issho, is the one judging and not only does he not promote any of the performers present for that test, the expels all of them on the spot, making it so they can no longer be a part of the Arakawa school of Rakugo. Although Arakawa Shiguma – brother of Arakawa Issho – pleads for his students’ case, the older brother will not budge. Thus Akane’s father is forced to quit his Rakugo dreams and get a regular job to provide for his family. This not only results in Akane no longer seeing his Rakugo performances, but due to work demanding a lot from her father, he’s absent a lot for work trips. All of these injustices have lit a fire in Akane as she now studies under Arakawa Shiguma to become such a good Rakugoka that she will prove that her father was unjustly expelled. That is where our story picks up.
Akane is talented, we know this from the very start, but there are still a lot of things she can still learn from the more experienced Rakugoka that train under Shiguma. She only becomes an official member of the school towards the end of her High School life, and even requires her teacher to be convinced, which is a great way to put in a character that is just as clueless about the world of Rakugo as some of us viewers might be. Also, the teacher is very attractive. That. That is all. No more questions.
Throughout the first season we meet a couple of interesting characters including the aforementioned Shiguma and Issho who each have their own individual school within the Arakawa branch. Issho has a promising pupil who meets Akane early on and although he is set up to be somewhat antagonistic, the two get along relatively well. Akane also meets her elder disciples in Guriko, Koguma, Maikeru and Kyoji. She learns something from each of them – except Maikeru but surely he’ll play a role of sorts in the second season that will arrive next year. The first season focuses on the journey Akane takes as a beginner in the world of Rakugo and ends with a confrontation that will leave you wanting for more.
One major complaint I’ve seen online – that I have to agree with – is that the actual Rakugo stories could require more time in the anime. The final one we see is a bit more extended due to how much is focused on the material of Jugemo, but they rarely give us enough time as an audience to feel fully invested in a story. It’s more about everything that happens around it. I think it could be good if some of the performances – obviously not all of them – were given in their complete form so that we as viewers can get a proper insight into what Rakugo is like.
All in all, this series reminds me a lot of Chihayafuru with an interesting female lead, a somewhat obscure – at least here in the west – game or art form and enough competition to make you feel like you’re watching a battle shonen even though no one is getting beat up. The animation is fine, it does what it needs to do and although it doesn’t blow anyone away, it’s still sufficient. The music is also good and the character designs are great and instantly memorable. If you’re looking for a fun series you can give this one a watch without really knowing what Rakugo is. And honestly I just wanted to use that title, which is the main reason why I wrote this review. Thanks for reading.
Opal Kaharis 