Today I fulfilled one of my undebatable to do’s while being in Japan and went to a theater with live Rakugo performances.
And wow, this art form is just so impressive, one performer invoking a whole story. I think my favorite was one mimicking a guy drinking, chewing on Dango and getting drunk. You could virtually see the food entering his mouth (but he only had a folding fan to invoke chopsticks, no other props).
I recognized 3 of the 7 stories from anime that center around Rakugo, which was nice too. Most of them from Akane-Banashi which I love, but the way.
To get the comments rolling, here's my weekly pull list from Shonen Jump (Viz's US version):
Akane-Banashi
Blue Box
Ice-Head Gill
Jiangshi X (fortnightly)
Kagurabachi
MamaYuyu
Martial Master Asumi
Me and Roboco
Mission: Yozakura Family
My Hero Academia
One Piece
Sakamoto Days
Two on Ice
Witch Watch
There also a few non- Sunday drops that I also read including:
Chainsaw Man
Kaiju #8
Shojo Null
Spy X Family
Wild Strawberry
July 2, 2023 - #Jump Reading List:
Akane-baneshi
Blue Box
Do Retry
Fabricant 100
Ice-Head Gill
Jiantshi X
Martial Master Asumi
Mashle*
Me & Roboco
Mission: Yozakura Family
Sakamoto Days
Witch Watch
Akane-Banashi - Hikaru has finished and managed to capture the top spot. She had a perfect score from the online voting, but also very high marks from the judges.
Akane comes up next and it really is going to be a surprise. She's performing something that is new, unexpected for her, and a story that reminder her of her Dad.
This is either going to be amazing or a real challenge. Can't wait to see what's next.
June 26, 2023 - #Jump Reading List:
Akane-baneshi
Blue Box
Do Retry
Fabricant 100
Ice-Head Gill*
Martial Master Asumi
Mashle
Me & Roboco
Mission: Yozakura Family
My Hero Academia
Sakamoto Days
Spy X Family
Witch Watch
Akane-Banashi - Wow! Hikaru's performance is going over incredibly well. Her ability to transition between characters and completely change her voice is incredible.
And...it's all to beat Akane. I love how Akane is driving her & the two of them are going to have such an amazing rivalry.
Love it.
Also, I had to grab this screenshot. It captures the chapter & Hikaru / Akane's interactions so well.
June 11, 2023 - #Jump Reading List:
Akane-baneshi
Blue Box
Do Retry
Fabricant 100
Mashle
Me & Roboco
Mission: Yozakura Family
One Piece
Sakamoto Days
Spy X Family
Witch Watch
Akane-Banashi - Phew. Kaichi finished up and did a fantastic job earning high marks. While others seemed confused by it, Akane got it. Kaichi kept the audience in mind the entire time & it worked very well.
Hikaru is up next and she's already told Akane that her goal is to beat her. Period. Can't wait to see how she does next chapter!
May 21, 2023 - #Jump Reading List:
Akane-baneshi
Blue Box
Do Retry
Fabricant 100
Jiangshi X
Mashle
Me & Roboco
Mission: Yozakura Family
My Hero Academia
Nue's Exorcist
One Piece
Sakamoto Days
Tenmaku Cinema
Witch Watch
Akane-Banashi - The next stage of our competitive #rakugo tournament begins. The first competitor is fierce, but you learn through the chapter how things are scored.
There's weighting taken into account from streamers, people in person, and the judges. It's a wild system set up by Master Ikken, but it...actually sounds fair. It's just really hard to know how to tailor your performance to the scoring system with so many factors in play.
But, this will be interesting. Second performer is up next week and they should be great.
May 14, 2023 - #Jump Reading List:
Akane-baneshi
Beat and Motion
Blue Box
Do Retry
Fabricant 100
Mashle
Me & Roboco
Mission: Yozakura Family
My Hero Academia
Nue's Exorcist*
One Piece
Sakamoto Days
Spy X Family
Tenmaku Cinema
Witch Watch
Akane-Banashi - Akane decides she wants to learn more about her Dad as a person and an artist before performing. So she asks everyone who ever interacted with him including her Mom.
Not him, though.
It's sad, she still doesn't feel she can talk to him about his rakugo experience after everything he went through.
But, she learns a lot and next chapter - our tournament resumes!
May 7, 2023 - #Jump Reading List:
Akane-baneshi
Beat and Motion
Blue Box
Do Retry*
Fabricant 100
Mashle
Me & Roboco
Mission: Yozakura Family
My Hero Academia
One Piece
Sakamoto Days
Tenmaku Cinema
Witch Watch
Akane-Banashi - To truly learn the story she wants to tell in the upcoming showcase, Akane needs to learn what it is like to be drunk. Since she's underage and can't drink alcohol, that means running back to the restaurant to people watch while serving.
This also got her to ask the question - what kind of rakugoka is she? It's a good thing to consider and one she'll need to know as she continues to practice and hone her craft. Solid chapter.
April 23, 2023 - #Jump Reading List:
Akane-baneshi
Blue Box
Fabricant 100
Jiangshi X
Mashle
Me & Roboco
Mission: Yozakura Family
My Hero Academia
One Piece
Sakamoto Days
Tenmaku Cinema
Witch Watch
Akane-Banashi - Akane has her answer. Very quickly. She wants to learn the story her father used to teach, "Changing Time."
Now - how will she both embrace her Dad's interpretation of it and make it her own. It's a hard story, that much is clear. This will be interesting to see how she handles it.