Bocchi the Rock!

HeroAca and Blue Lock? Sorry...I don't do Shonen stuff. Spy x Family? Even though I have a family, I don't fall into that category. Mob Psycho 100? Great conclusion from the manga that's finally translated to the anime, but I'm not all that psychic to begin with. Bleach: Sennen Kessen-hen a.k.a Thousand-Year Blood War? I'll let you have your moment of glory just right behind Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. Do It Yourself!!, Yama no Susume? We can be buddies in the same theme, just doing different things! Chainsaw Man? OVERTAKEN and DETHRONED. LIKE A GLORIFIED MIC DROP. The Fall 2022 season has really seen its fair share of past and new juggernautglories: from Tite Kubo's Bleach's decade-long wait for a triumphant return still being one of the Big 3, to the much-anticipated Tatsuki Fujimoto's Chainsaw Man being studio MAPPA's massively high-profile equivalent to Ufotable's Demon Slayer in terms of story and animation prowess. However, there are certain shows that as humble as they come initially being an afterthought, to then unexpectedly and shockingly take the sweeping crown, those are the shows that we the anime community can call it special to begin with. It's more impressive even, when such a stacked season as this manages to live up to the hype, that it gets overshadowed by the mainstream being a hidden diamond gem in the works. And my friends, that show is mangaka Aki Hamaji's Bocchi the Rock!, easily the most anticipated of CloverWorks's produced shows of the year when the initial teaser trailer dropped to leave a vague message of its 2022 release in December last year, only to leave us hanging in nerve-wrecking-ness until the PV's release just right before the Fall season started rolling. Before I dive deep into this unexpected, hype-deserved acclaim of a masterpiece show that deserves more than being reduced to an excellent adaptation, I feel like I need to clarify something which the anime community has more often than not, got some facts wrong. Despite Bocchi the Rock! being serialized in publishing company Houbunsha's Manga Time Kirara magazine (that's where all of the 4-koma manga come from) promoting its CGDCT theme, it is NOT considered as a genre, but rather a SUB-genre of Slice-of-Life, the same as how Isekai is a subgenre of Fantasy. It's actually more of a motif or theme because it uses a set of tropes and archetypes that separate it from other Slice-of-Life shows that makes it distinct, but thanks to the modern anime community that we have these days (and so much so that I'm a victim of it because I REALLY love CGDCT shows, albeit specifically), we sort of treat it as its own unofficial distinct genre: the human fault we call recency bias. And to be clear, Bocchi! the Rock! is not necessarily a CGDCT anime, but rather, a parody of both the CGDCT theme and the SoL genre, since it's given genre of comedy reflects it as such: a culmination of traits already done and perfected by other SoL and CGDCT anime. But still, you can't deny that the show pays an homage to one of the greatest CGDCT anime of all time: the legendary monumental classic and moe-blob phenomenon that is K-On!, serving the same SoL genre for the anime community, both past and present respectively. So figuratively, while we can call Bocchi the Rock! the GOAT CGDCT of the modern day, as a collective whole, I feel that there're better CGDCT shows than this: say this season's Do It Yourself!!, and while not quite moe-blob as one trait that defined SoL, is still very enjoyable. CGDCT fans are really eating REAL GOOD in 2022, especially considering that it's CloverWorks leading the charge, from the likes of Winter's Akebi-chan no Sailor-fuku a.k.a Akebi's Sailor Uniform that unfortunately had the confirmation bias of "animation carried the show" to Spring's Kunoichi Tsubaki no Mune no Uchi a.k.a In the Heart of Kunoichi Tsubaki which turned out decent, along with other returning classics like Machikado Mazoku a.k.a. The Demon Girl Next Door, Yuru Camp△ the Movie (which is arguably the best of the series yet) and Yama no Susume a.k.a Encouragement of Climb. Let's be real: social anxiety IS a thing, and it culminates in the form of Social Anxiety disorder (SAD) a.k.a social phobia, characterized by sentiments of fear and anxiety in social situations, causing considerable distress and impaired ability to function in at least some aspects of daily life. These fears can be triggered by perceived or actual scrutiny from others. Individuals with social anxiety disorder fear negative evaluations from other people. And this is what exactly happens to a certain pink-haired Hitori "Bocchi" Gotoh trying her best not to shit herself socially, but from the outset, her growing-up life has been met with nothing but insecurities: from the lone effort of making friends to being a ghostly outcast in school, so much so that she becomes a closed closet Hikikomori a.k.a acute social withdrawal, referring to both the phenomenon in general and the recluses themselves: described as loners or "modern-day hermits", regarding themsleves as being totally withdrawn from society and seeking extreme degrees of social isolation and confinement, which in the real-life context of Japan, is a seriously grave issue, especially if you have seen Spring 2019's Hitoribocchi no Marumaru Seikatsu, being the show with the most acute similarity. To counteract from being a Hikikomori, Hitori engages in the online spectrum hoping to find friends there in the veins of YouTube being the illusive ever-so-slightly-named alias "guitarhero" that amasses a respectable subscriber fanbase for her guitar plays that are uploaded every once so often to satisate her followers. That is, until Hitori steps out into the real world where and she is submitted to the harshness of reality slapping her face in both directions, as much as she herself wants to get out of this rut and at least make a life-changing decision for herself. That decision comes in the form of a person: the blonde-haired Nijika Ijichi, who saw Bocchi juat lazing with her guitar and without words of explanation, forcefully dragged her to the underground livehouse that is STARRY as a last-minute replacement for the guitarist that abruptly left the group before their performance. And together with Nijika and the blue-haired bassist bandmate Ryo Yamada, the performance might have been a total wrecking ball of a complete poor failure, and at the very least Hitori knows that both are fans of her "guitarhero" YouTube persona, but with her social anxiety preventing any further conversation and ultimately withdrawing into the same recluse as she was before. Sure, Hitori might've gained her "Bocchi" nickname not because it rhymes with the "hitoribocchi" a.k.a All Alone pun, but it's a sign that at least acknowledged her presence more than anything. This is further cemented with Ikuyo Kita, the vocalist-cum-guitarist and initally Bocchi's classmate, when the latter requests her help to improve on her guitar playing skills, and the deal is struck since the former has an overwhelming infatuation on Ryo. Thereby, which was learnt later that Kita was the one that Nijika had Bocchi hurriedly filled in at the very last minute because she was not being honest with her feelings and fled the "crime scene" after the realization that Kita's guitar playing was not up to snuff. Together, the 4 girls make up Kessoku (lit. Zip Tie) Band: the center band of the series, and their endeavours together are a sight to behold, other than the highlight that is Bocchi's exaggerated, over-the-top, visual medium crossovers of her inner thoughts exemplified at the highest, most extreme degrees of insanity that exudes overflowing creativity of nonchalant acerbity that's some one-of-a-kind talent that you don't normally see in AniManga, let alone the manga chapters that if you read alongside the anime, each and every chapter title page paying homage to famous bands and their songs' music video. Also, there're tons of references plastered throughout the anime, even more than Chainsaw Man's OP, and that's saying quite a lot. So have fun in figuring out this too! To really understand how much Bocchi the Rock! got all of this deserved hype that we're only seeing right now, we have to go back in time to even before the anime was ever a thing: The year was 2019, and mangaka Aki Hamaji's work was just 2 years old at this point with only Volume 1 being released and Volume 2 set to be released the very next year. The debut chief animation director and character designer that was a nobody at the time, Kiyoki Rikuta a.k.a Kerorira was just about in the anime industry for little over a year or two doing key animations for a large variety of shows, most of which was under CloverWorks about months since the separation of the studio from A-1 Pictures, that still is under the Aniplex brand. Normally when an anime project is announced, the director or producers will be pushing forth and calling people up for the task, but in the case for Bocchi the Rock!, it was the key animator himself who pushed for the project, so much that it’s worth noting that it wasn’t a particularly shocking reveal. Since being open about his love for the series, Kerorira has gushed to the point of sharing short, animated clips of it on social media a.k.a Japanese Twitter. And when it came time to find people to helm the project, he went to the long-time veteran producer Shouta Umehara requesting people that he'd like to work with, such is the case for a certain Keiichiro Saito, that like Kerorira, he is also working in key animation and has become quite the veteran for years, that with this show, marks his official debut has series director. But if you know anything about the anime industry, especially when it comes to freelance works, it's talent and drive that makes the shows work, and without the help of Shouta Umehara and his exceptional scouting abilities, plus the boldness to bet on fresh, young and unproven talent while managing Aniplex's woeful corporation slavery management, Bocchi the Rock! really wouldn't have turned out the way it is today. Even I have to admit, it is a HUGE RISK betting shows on unproven talent. And speaking of Keiichiro Saito, his experience as a key animator whether in theme songs or episodes, these don't often typically give opportunities for people to train to be better as the grind of seasonal shows gleam along with none the wiser. It's only until Saito-san himself has an opportunity to work with the legendary director Shingo Natsume on his own experimental creation in the form of Summer 2021's Sonny Boy, that he is given the chance to learn the ropes and showcase his indomitable idiosyncrasy's worth of talent, such as the case where he contributed a lot to the anime for Episode 8. Back to Bocchi the Rock!, when Saito-san was offered the chance to read Aki Hamaji's manga with its only premiere volume out, by the time he'd finished reading it, his impression had changed, and found it to be a smart work in many ways: succeeding at both humor as a slice-of-life comedy and depicting its characters as a coming-of-age drama, with sharp jokes. This immaculate delivery would just not work based on one person's effort alone, and this is where scriptwriter and series composer Erika Yoshida steps in to help him visualize the vision that despite Bocchi the Rock! not being a fundamentally transformative adaptation, simply tweaking the orignal work with Yoshida-san's help certainly was a match made in heaven, most presumably when anime detracts out of its medium to do a 4th wall breaking on animation prowess that includes some live-action footage, because the hell why not, while focusing his directorial efforts on enhancing the themes that the original work could never develop. An amusing gag series about a lonely girl is now animating loneliness, giving the original work a whole new layer of emotional resonance to it while maintaining its original fun that's only possible in the hands of an exceptional animation team like the one that has surrounded this core team, and with promises such as the fully 2D live performances that involve 3D-ish rotoscoping (as an example) used to its maximum potential. For an unproven team of supposedly misfits, Bocchi the Rock!'s shining moments are with its staff team, and it certainly can't be imitated outright on this kind of insane magnitude. One key phrase that Keiichiro Saito shared is that starting out as a key animator, his eye for craftsmanship on how people and objects move elevates the anime by giving it massive attention for its many poses. As an example, there’s a scene after their first live performance where Hitori creeps up closer to the others (this is in Episode 1 of the anime), and where Hitori is moving in an eccentric manner, how can the staff team make it funnier and bring out more of her personality? He spent a lot of time thinking about how it could be made funny in animated form, and not forgetting that for the performance scenes, using footage of real-life actors performing as the base for the animation, and solely requesting them to keep in mind the characterization, as well as replicating the performance itself. Even more so regarding the orignal source's 4-koma format, there is a lot to fill in along the lines, and along the way, both Saito-san and Erika Yoshida found out that by inserting realism into the anime, it loses the gloss and charms of the original work. So, by adding in methods and approaches exclusive to animation, as well as adding supplementary gags for connecting scenes with help from the manga staff, it helps give the anime a life of its own that doesn't discredit where it came from. Truly, all of this sounds like a passion project, and yes, it is. It's talent that you only see once in a blue moon, and for that it is commendable. Easily the character on note, Hitori "Bocchi" Gotoh is the one that everyone in the production staff team is looking out for, being the weird oddball that's different from everyone else. Of course, trying to manage expectations on how to be sure on animating Bocchi's 1001 expressions is no easy task, so a balance is necessary, because while Bocchi inflicts us the audience being oh-so-freakishly relatable with her poor communication skills, making sure not to come off too strong or otherwise, making those watching feel bad. One thing about Hitori is that she also possesses extraordinary skills, so Saito-san and his team strived to depict both her positive and negative traits as a character in a memorable way, making the audience laugh when she does something weird, but also make her especially captivating when she shows off her cool side from time to time. This is especially for Kerorira, making his debut as both character designer animation director, that the obscene fan of the manga has a lot on his plate to consider as well. It's not just the extreme introvert herself that he has to contend with, but also considering the others as well (Ryo, Nijika and Kita) in their unique expressions as well. One thing that Geoff Thew of Mother's Basement actually captured when it comes to character designs, comes with the characters' hair positions that tell us something about them: Nijika’s antenna, for example, is a simple triangle, and Hitori’s tied-up hair isn’t actually connected. This is due in part to depicting anime-like designs that aren’t possible in reality and was a major necessity to create character designs that look appealing at first sight than those that conform to reality. But Bocchi the Rock! isn't so much about Hitori herself, it's the others that help Bocchi be a better girl that as socially inept as she is, it's a growing journry that fits the confines of a coming-of-age melodrama in the most hilarious way possible. Starting with Nijika Ijichi herself, the founder of Kessoku Band and the group's drummer, she stands as one of the most understanding and caring members of the group being the general extrovert, and always constantly holds Bocchi together in helping her deal with her social anxiety. It helps that her older sister Seika is also coincidentally the manager-cum-owner of the livehouse located in Shimokitazawa, so the livehouse is actually treated like their main home when gigs are always in abundance. For the band's bassist Ryo Yamada, other than the requirement not to date the 3Bs of "Bassist, bassist, bassist", Ryo may seem like an introvert, but she is in fact a loner by choice (get the distinction right, folks). The aloof, quiet and mischievous girl with a cool demeanor and a bisexual appearance, she is the epitome of cheap molasses, as everything in life is served to her palate, be it food or allowance money, even to the point of eating weeds just to survive. Last but not least, the band's vocalist-cum-(formerly) guitarist Ikuyo Kita herself, the extreme extrovery with her oh-so-gleaming "Kita~aura" that it's hard to resist her claims, especially when shoved towards Bocchi's face. But her real reason of escapism from Kessoku Band because of her infatuation with the bisexual-looking Ryo and the general expectations from people to promise them like a people-pleaser, man it just hits hard when even Kita herself is vulnerable to the human conforming mindset that really, no character is 100% perfect, and each and every member's SWOT Analyses are what band the rag-tag group together as they aim for stardom. Oh, and for the eagle-eyed of you who are into Anisong, did you notice something striking? Just look into the family names of the 4 girls, and you'll soon realize that they're derived from one of the legendary J-Rock bands of all time: AKFG a.k.a Asian Kung-Fu Generation, with their instrumental roles being an obvious match: Hitori like Masagumi Gotoh on rhythm guitar, Nijika like Kiyoshi Ijichi on drums, Ryo like Takahiro Yamada on bass, and Ikuyo like Kensuke Kita on lead guitar, but also being lead vocals. A special mention would be the side characters, most particularly Kikuri Hiroi: the alcoholic who spends her money on booze (or beer as is known elsewhere), encountering Bocchi and striking out a deal with her to do a live, impromptu performance out on the streets, taking a chance for the extreme Hikikomori herself to overcome her fears in front of the general public. What you may not know is that the psychedelic rock band SICK HACK's lead bassist and vocalist herself, like Bocchi an the rest, they do share their last names with another real-life band: 88Kasyo Junrei a.k.a 88Kasyo, with Kikuri herself being like Margaret Hiroi, adjectively described as "the bassist, singer and the gang's mastermind". Not to be outdone, Hitori's family shold be given credit here as well for their role in bringing up the once-labelled Hikikomori herself: father Naoki, mother Michiyo, younger sister Futari (which means two people) and the pet dog JimiHen. If you have to start a comedy somewhere, why not from the family itself? Futari is easily a savage character in front of her Onee-san, and as much as she wants to gush of Hitori's greatness, it comes at the cost of the older sister's warped mentality to respond to things that she doesn't mean literally. CloverWorks has done a fair few SoL shows in that regard (see Slow Start and this year's CGDCT offerings), but Bocchi the Rock! has got to be the studio's biggest undertaking since its separation from A-1 Pictures, and even then, it's only on the cusps of people relations and knowing who to find and perfect this ordinary looking 4-koma manga adaptation. I've already gushed at how utterly and brillantly magnificent are the production team's efforts at elevating Aki Hamaji's manga, and for the first-time debuts like Keiichiro Saito and Kerorira, if not for producer Shouta Umehara having that fine level of trust that young-uns can make it into the industry (a level that was once had for the controversial Wonder Egg Priority) with relative experience under their belt, it's like the adage of "nothing ventured, nothing gained". It's a risk, but a risk that while the reception in Japan is lukewarm to say the least, it bombed everywhere else outside of Japan. In a glorifyingly great way to end 2022 as THE golden year for CGDCT anime. The one oddity is that while series director Keiichiro Saito's team has full creative control of the anime, the OST is where things could've gone awry. And especially since this is an Aniplex-produced show, tensions run high since the music production falls into the hands of Aniplex themselves, and Saito-san had to be careful with his consultation with the music team on what works and what doesn't. Because even such a minor slip-up can cause the biggest of headaches that potentially could detract the viewing experience, and hearing this from producer Shouta Umehara himself, the biggest issue with the completely separated entity was whether the musical direction that the mangaka Aki Hamaji had envisioned for Bocchi the Rock! and Kessoku Band could be carried out, and thankfully that’s one area in which Aniplex really gave it their all. And it sounds absolutely fantastic, from the OP/ED theme songs and even the insert songs when Kessoku Band is called to enact performances. A few ways to really describe Bocchi the Rock!'s overall stupefying quality is of these examples: - It’s like they gave K-On! to someone who adored Hitoribocchi, coupled with stupidly good animation, and a dash of Pop Team Epic sensibilities, combining animation with live action settings and other forms of mixed media. - Hitoribocchi no Marumaru Seikatsu is a much better comparison. Komi-san wa, Comyushou Desu. a.k.a Komi Can't Communicate's Shoko Komi's introversion is so over the top to the point where it's no longer even believable. Especially since everyone simps for Komi just for existing. But in Hitoribocchi, Hitori Bocchi is a loner, but wants to make friends and break out of her shell. Hitori Gotou in Bocchi the Rock! is the exact same way. But if there's one takeaway about Bocchi the Rock!, something to really drill in the mind is that in the typical/average project, you would probably expect someone in such a position to draw less than 100 cuts of key animation, but Kerorira’s in charge of somewhere between 500 and 600 cuts, an incredible amount for a key animator that has been in the business now for 2-3 years and growing, now being a monumental figure of the staff team itself. We can say that Kerorira single-handedly carried the anime due to his love and passion that has grown from just social sharings to a full-blown anime production with support from the people he had hoped to work with. His dream is finally realized, and not a lot of people have that tenure of grace to ever be in a totally completely complete directive control of their own anime, say Akane Kazuki with his own created series Hoshiai no Sora a.k.a Stars Align that got the axe at the eleventh hour. Everything else, as they say, is akin to the phrase "Having the world at your feet". A simple-as-molasses story, ceremoniously hoisted to the impeccable degree with absolute precision and sophistication. Bocchi the Rock! is not just a marvel of how far CGDCT anime have come thus far, but now a symbol/icon of a gold standard in resourcefulness, dedication and passion, just like the other shows in the Fall 2022 season that got their growing reputations respectively. Truly a hidden gem that has long awaited to rise up towards reaching out for the masterpiece medal, and it clinched with many hurdles to overcome, but it eventually did while reaching its intended finish line, cementing itself as the Pinnacle of the Best CGDCT of all time (if by MAL scores alone). Anime of the Season and Year material? ABSOLUTELY. Even better than Chainsaw Man? YOU BETCHA.

ANIME OF THE SEASON, if not THE YEAR. Words cannot express how much this show has grown into me. Like Hitori "Bocchi" Gotou is literally the most relatable character FR FR. I'm guessing you have heard of the show by now, whether through memes, screenshots, recommendations from others, or simply by chance while looking for shows to watch. With that said, what makes this show stand out from the crowd is its sudden surge in popularity, whether you like it or not? Point 1: Bocchi is literally me. (Insert Literally Me copypasta) I'm sure you're wondering who Bocchi is and what makes her so special and uniquethat she stands out from the crowd. First and foremost, she is someone who suffers from social anxiety, as evidenced by her inability to make a single friend throughout her youth until one fateful day. Her internal monologues are hilarious to watch and allow us to get a better understanding of Bocchi's world, thoughts, and so on. Everything about her just seems relatable. Oh, and don't forget how well the VAs are portraying the characters they are assigned to, particularly Bocchi, as I'll explain in my next point. Point 2: Excellent quality sounds and superb voice acting. Sound quality can't really go wrong as this is a music show. The title "Bocchi the Rock!" implies that some of their songs incorporate some form of rock, which they did. Returning to the point, the show's OP is extremely addictive, with its rhythmic beat complementing the vibe and mood of the show. The accompanying visual is also remarkably good and entertaining to watch, fitting in with the overall tone of the show. The EDs have their own unique charm. The visuals don't have to be flashy as long as they complement the music well. Their songs are the real bangers here, fitting for their band and the title of the show. Basically, if you like rock or music in general, you'll love them. As for the VAs, I'd like to reiterate on how well they did their job, most especially that of Bocchi's VA. The transition from one mood to another was well done from one scene to the next, demonstrating how invested these VAs are in how they express the characters they play. One example is the supposed "Cyberpunk 2077" meme scene in which Bocchi is seen lying on the ground undergoing "cyberpsychosis" and screaming at the top of her lungs. One would think that the sound in this scene would be generated by a computer since it would be very taxing on someone's larynx or voice box, especially someone who spends countless hours doing voice-overs in presenting a character, but it was entirely voiced by Bocchi's VA, echoing my thoughts on how dedicated these VAs are. Not to mention that they are accompanied by eye-catching and unique visuals, which brings me to my next point. Point 3: Art is visually appealing and distinct, with a good blend of different art styles. (CloverWorks never fails to impress in this regard.) Art styles and animation, which are normally a source of complaint to viewers on a different themed or genre show, are a source of praise in this show. The animators' humor includes art style changes and mixed media, which highlights their creativity. CloverWorks did an excellent job of improving the overall viewer experience. One example of this again is the "Cyberpunk 2077" meme scene, in which the usual art style was shifted to a 2D paint-like style, which was praised by many viewers for its distinct and unexpected turn of events. This is one of many scenes where the randomness really adds extra spice; the animators did a very good job animating the show. Point 4: It is appropriate for all audiences, regardless of whether you are a Slice of Life CGDCT fan or not. The premise is actually quite simple, as with almost any other SoL CGDCT show. This show is simply about Bocchi's desire to make friends and make the most of her "seishun" or youth, which is why she began playing guitar in the first place. She was invited to join Kessoku Band after a chance encounter, and that's where it all started. It is nothing out of the ordinary, but it is surprisingly entertaining to watch, and you can't help but want more. Even after only watching one episode, I sensed something special about this show. The show is intended to be wholesome, family-friendly, and heartwarming, with no "deep" plot. It is directed for us to reminisce about our "seishun" days, and it did a good job of portraying the themes that the show is aimed to portray. As evidenced by the Kessoku Band and their excellent group dynamic, the characters each have their own personality and complement one another extremely well. Even the supporting characters are memorable and well-written, and you can't help but be drawn to them. There is never a dull moment in this show. *Also, I'd like to point out that the names of the main cast have meaning / purpose, with their last name referencing Asian Kung-Fu Generation. There are other real-life Japanese band references, but this is just one of many. Another interesting fact is that Hitori (one person) has one small strand of hair sticking out of her head, whereas Futari (two people) has two small strands of hair sticking out of her head. Everything in Bocchi the Rock! is well-thought-out, and there isn't much to complain about. If you're reading this and haven't watched the show yet, I strongly urge you to do so as soon as possible. It is one of your turn off your brain shows that you can watch whenever you want. And for those who have finished watching or are currently watching the show, I'm sure you feel the same way I do. My only gripe is that no sequel has been announced. Despite a stacked lineup this season, Bocchi the Rock! did not fall short of standing out from the crowd.

At the end of the first episode of *Bocchi the Rock!*, Kessoku Band has more or less bombed their first performance. Bocchi (née Gotou Hitori), who had been ready to announce her presence to the world as Kessoku Band’s last-minute fill-in guitarist, anxiously retreated into a mango box, hidden within it as the band lurches and stumbles their way through their music. But in the aftermath as her bandmates Nijika and Ryou remark on the atrociousness they just played, Bocchi throws the box off herself and stumbles her way down frame in a fish-eye lens style camera shot. She stands before the two and declaresthat she’ll muster the courage to talk to her classmates, which Nijika smiles at…and then Bocchi immediately heads out since she’s drained her socially anxious battery for the day, but still resolving to improve herself for their sakes. If any scene could encapsulate what makes *Bocchi the Rock!* such a creatively-rich series, it’s this. This whole sequence is but the tip of the show’s iceberg. There is a chaotic beauty in the show’s reckless abandon, able to radically swing between whatever style it chooses to adopt at any given moment. And within it all, anxiety is presented as both comedic fuel and as a sincere obstacle towards one’s sense of personal development. But perhaps I’m getting ahead of myself, so let’s step back for a minute: headed by Saitou Keiichirou in the director’s chair, he was afforded the rare opportunity to more or less have any ideas that came to him be given the green light to work their way into the material itself. From a certain perspective, he was the perfect mind to entrust with such freedoms – with small involvement on *Heike Monogatari* and *Wonder Egg Priority* as a key animator, along with several larger credits for *Sonny Boy,* his 2021 was spent with some of the medium’s most artistically-interesting properties. Though each had its own distinctly visual-acoustic identity, the one thread that unifies all these projects is risk. Considering *Bocchi the Rock!’s* origin as a four-panel manga, he must have realized that great risks would need to be taken to make this project work in anime format. And it starts with taking the generally-understood limitations of anime and throwing them away, both from the actual animation and the storyboarding standpoint. The show has visual styles aplenty, including the incorporation of live-action sequences, photographs, and deliberately-bad CGI. Evidently, the animators were given such a sandbox to play in that Christmas seemed to come a few months early. The impact of such an idea is that it creates a sense of unpredictability, that the series could reach into a metaphorical bag of tricks to pull out something new, seemingly at random. Whether it rest in stark colors or allowing the camera to step back and allow the depth of space to fill the frame, the off-kilter presentation itself becomes a feature of the viewing experience. But a chaotic presentation is simply directionless and eye-candy without something to properly anchor it all. In *Bocchi the Rock!,* there is no greater person to serve that purpose that the titular Bocchi herself, as we’re brought into the lonelier world she resides in. Even if it can be said that she goes to class and spends a little time with her family, her realm is a small space in the corner of her house, a dark closet home only to her and the small recording equipment and software she has for her YouTube audience under the “guitarhero” moniker. All her aspirations to make friends and become more popular through her guitar playing have hit the impregnable wall of social anxiety she shoulders. As she takes her first steps into the larger world and she dwells on her anxious flights, many are tinged with an underlying dark comedy that punctuates itself with the visual styling. Stark colors, postcard memories-esque stillshots (Dezaki would be proud), and highly-expressive deliveries from Bocchi’s seiyuu Aoyama Yoshino make these moments land with hilarity, be they disbelieving shrieks or quiet laconicism. Let us not kid ourselves, though; on the immediate surface, this treatment of anxiety appears distasteful. Anxiety is indeed a real problem for some people that, even now, we sometimes do not do the best job of properly navigating as either a conceptual issue or something being experienced in real-time. It’s by far the material’s greatest gamble, and a fumbling at any point may catastrophically collapse the entirety. However, Keiichirou takes great underlying care in how these moments are portrayed. Bocchi is always presented in a sympathetic light; when we laugh at an episode’s joke at her expense or see her wild catastrophizing, there always is a proper counter to any possible maliciousness or sleight, which ironically makes laughter one of the show’s primary vehicles for forming sympathy. The intended path for every gag or event that takes place throughout the series has always been to allow Bocchi’s world to gradually get bigger and more confident, even if her social tendencies or way of seeing doesn’t get remedied right away. But remedy herself she gradually does, and with the show’s brand of delightfully-chaotic tone, it should come as no surprise that the people who help her on her personal journey are themselves part of a motley crew. Roped into performing at Starry Club with the exaggerative Ryou and the cheerful Nijika, and eventually joined by the bubbly and highly-encouraging Kita, Bocchi is thrust into the deep end of social interaction. She got her wish to be in a band and interact more, but she’s now part of an active group that all have a prior history. Bocchi is the oddball out, especially given that the other three girls have their own personal histories with one another. Yet it doesn’t matter whether their reasons for being in Kessoku Band are, be they for sentimentality or for pettiness. By every weird measure, the reality is that they came together in the here-and-now, and Bocchi is among them. Each member realizes in their own way that Bocchi needs encouragement of some sort, and all are given an appropriate spotlight to show not only how much Bocchi’s presence in the band is valued, but also that Bocchi herself can overcome the various worries that a band must wrestle with, even under the veneer of comedy. The apprehensions are in and of themselves perfectly understandable and relatable. The fear of performing poorly and having everyone watch you, having your band members replace you, needing to sell tickets for a gig, and the like are all thoughts that most people who have been in or teach the arts (particularly music) inherently wrestle with on a consistent basis. Especially since Bocchi has been within the shell of herself and her own anxieties for so long, it makes the triumphs all the more worth striving for and to see pay off in the end. And nowhere else is this captured more eloquently than in the performances. When the moments arrive for Bocchi to step on that stage and play the first chord, we see how, even in the incremental ways she has changed, this is not the same Bocchi that we witnessed initially. Similarly, this is not the same Kessoku Band that we first saw that played so poorly. Bocchi has grown, and this is a band that has also grown. Both in and outside of practice, they worked and bonded in tandem. Each has evolved beyond the confines of what they once were, even if the gradual changes undergone don’t completely rewrite who they are now. But with these changes nevertheless visible, one cannot help but smile and want to stand in the crowd with the others, bouncing along or turning the gaze upward to the girl who has started to come into her own. Beneath all its style, verve, comedy, anxiety-laden dread, and rockin’ music, *Bocchi the Rock!* is ultimately sweet. Life-affirming and charming, it demonstrates the ability for a skilled director to walk the fine line between having anxiety as a comedic device while also showing how human it is as well. Rock on, Bocchi! You won’t be lonely with your guitar on that blue planet forever!

[Originally posted on December 27th, 2022.] I think little SingleH here is coming to a calm, slow, natural conclusion. I think little SingleH here is becoming too much of a so-called “normie” to write like themselves anymore, or at least that of them you’ve come to know. I think little SingleH here is getting too much of a life, and I think that if left to continue on present course, the writing produced by this profile will increasingly lean towards the modern-day Hideaki Anno-style preaching and condescension. The writing output of an individual who was depressed and hyper-relatable at one point, but who got out of itand who, as a result, became out-of-touch and…I don’t know…old, for lack of a better term? Granted, I definitely continue to be depressed out of my fucking mind—no worries there, plus the fucking alcohol—but I’m still living WAY too much. I’m making too many real friends; I’m having to much success at work; I’m making too many connections; I’m having too much casual sex; I’m fucking around with things and aspects of people and society that, barely a few years ago, I couldn’t have ever possibly imagined. I don’t even know what I’m doing anymore, and as of the day in which I’m writing this, I hugged someone. A friend. Having a real, in-the-flesh “friend” is already fucking bizarre enough, but that I would be able to platonically and emotionally hug her??? Where the fuck am I? WHO the fuck am I??? She asked if I needed a hug during my lunch, and I just straight-up took it as a joke. When I was walking away to clock back in, I turned around and said, “You would hug me?” And she just laughed. Later, when I was getting ready to leave, she tells me to “check back in” with her before I left, and I was like, “Okay…? Am I in trouble?” To which the answer was no. She just wanted to have another impromptu therapy session to make sure I wasn’t collapsing completely, but at the end, I said, “Also, I take it back from earlier. Can I have a hug?” She puts on this big, stupid smile, and then we hugged, for like, a while. These past few nights I’ve been religiously watching this trash, this gutter filth, perhaps the literal polar opposite of Bocchi the Rock!. It’s just twenty-year-olds, I mean totally teenage actors engagingly in endless sex and drugs. Sheer trash. Euphoria on HBO. But I like watching it at, I don’t know, what time is it? 3:37am? And the reason I do so is the same reasoning I gave for enjoying Kanojo, Okrishimasu. “I love allowing myself to get invested in trash like this just so it can frustrate me and force my cold, dead, icy heart to feel literally anything other than passivity and dejection.” And the scene I watched just a second ago, of this character texting her boyfriend while she was drunk? The manner in which her phone autocorrected certain typos and not others? That was EACTLY me. That scene, in this fucking braindead retard schlock teen melodrama, was without dialogue or music, deeply relatable. Ask any of these poor motherfuckers who talk to me via Discord regularly and who know how I type when I’m drunk, because that shit was precise. However, as much as I respect Bocchi the Rock!, and as little as I respect Euphoria, I’m fairly certain I can’t say anything like that about the former. This isn’t a disconnect exclusive to cute girl anime either. Like, if I were to throw on K-On!, a show to which this has seen much comparison, then I don’t think I would be saying this about any of their particular interactions. I don’t think I could see any of their particular moments and memories and think anything to the effect of, “I can’t see real girls doing this.” Because that was always the appeal of K-On! in the first place, their eccentricity almost paradoxically juxtaposed with the series’ realism. Maybe it was Yamada Naoko’s direction, maybe it was the super naturalistic color design, maybe it was something I can’t even put into words. But whatever it was, K-On! had it, and Bocchi the Rock! doesn’t. You want a show about four or five cute moe girls with multicolored hair, multicolored eyes, and multicolored personalities? Because the anime community has a fucking ocean of options for you to choose from in that department. Some might argue a landfill to be a much more fitting analogy though, because, after all, quantity doesn’t always equal quality. There’s a lot of unexceptional sewage that flows through every season and every genre of anime, and Bocchi the Rock! is miles above any of that, but I’m quite positive we are not witnessing a modern classic in the making. The visual direction is impressive outright—no surprise considering the director’s association with Shingo Natsume, one of the industry’s currently active creative geniuses—but while it may be just enough to carry the series’ more unexceptional elements, it’s nowhere near enough to elevate it…which is kind of a picky distinction to make, but a distinction I would argue is more than a little necessary considering the wildly high mean score Bocchi the Rock! boasts as of time of writing. I apologize for failing to escape comparison, but keep in mind that from where I’m standing, you people started it, not me. You people were the ones talking about “the K-On! of our generation,” not me, and when I read proclamations such as these, I have certain expectations in mind, because the last time I heard such proclamations was in winter of 2018. A Place Further Than The Universe was a special anime. It had powerful performances, fantastic direction, a satisfying sense of progression and growth, and a heartrending emotional arc; it had a more-or-less high-quality production, a plethora of fantastic insert songs, and simply beautiful imagery. It at the same time, however, failed to hit that level of sheer believability and down-to-Earth realism that a K-On!-class masterpiece would, and if you ask me, Bocchi the Rock! falls even shorter. “Wow, my latest video already has so many comments. [giggles] I’ve been racking up the views lately, too, and people are telling me I’m good… Yeah, maybe it’s okay if I can’t handle real life? There are tons of people cheering for me online!” There’s a lot of blatantly obvious reasons why I, of all fucking people, would be compelled to call this series and specifically this character “relatable,” but relating to her isn’t my problem. My problem is believing in her. In winter of 2018, some anons on /a/ were criticizing a scene in A Place Further Than The Universe which they felt to have been a shameless rip-off of a scene from K-On!, and whether or not I agreed with their cynical assessment or not, I couldn’t help but entertain the comparison. The scene was in one of the earlier episodes, when the girls were training and first spending a night together outdoors, sleeping in a tent. As they laid back and tried to sleep, they kept each other awake with silly small-talk and dumb jokes, and this thread on /a/ had completely convinced themselves that the scene was attempting to directly mimic the scene from the Kyoto trip in K-On!, the scene after the pillow fight where Ritsu keeps trying to prod at Mio, scare her, and make Yui and Mugi laugh. If you read a text summary of both those scenes, they would seem to be fundamentally identical, but when you actually sit down and watch them, one feels ever so slightly fake (or perhaps “forced” is a better word), while the other feels deeply real. Bocchi the Rock! has cute character designs and good voice acting; it has a surprisingly consistent and well-balanced production considering the studio behind it; it has a clear sense of inspiration and emotion spearheaded by an up-and-coming director who clearly learned all the right lessons from mentors past; and it has dialogue, monologue, and audiovisual expression that will 100% make you feel at times emotional, be it for a second, a minute, or a while. It does not, however, have a scene of Tainaka Ritsu saying goofy shit to keep her best friends from falling asleep on their trip to Kyoto, because she loves them and doesn’t want the moment to end. Of all the human, real-life person things I’ve been newly dabbling in lately, by far the most profound and telling has been my willingness and desire to take pictures. You see, I’ve never taken or had pictures. Pictures are friends, family, loved ones, memories. None of which I’ve ever had. But now that I think I’m starting to have them, I want to save these moments, these jokes, these things to think about later, to tell other friends about some other time, smiling, laughing, or simply reminiscing. The sense of belonging I feel when I see someone who missed out on something, turn my phone to face them, and see a smile on their face is one that I still haven’t comprehended enough to fully express the feeling of catharsis from which I receive. Memories I have of K-On! can stand emotionally on par with memories I now seem to be making at an increasingly rapid pace, whereas memories I have of this show and many others will likely not survive the alcohol, let alone the passing time. I would be very impressed with myself if I was still writing as SingleH this time next year, because I don’t see any of what I’m currently building crashing and burning anytime soon. I’ve fallen in love with these people, and I’ve grown addicted to the warmth they make me feel, even in this weather. It is fourteen fucking degrees fucking Fahrenheit in fucking Dallas right now, and as corny and stupid as it sounds, I’d say Bocchi the Rock! provided me with about as much warmth as this glass of Aberlour. I obviously first turned to my beloved rum to find some solace, but when it failed to do the trick and soothe my freezing body, I figured the time to stop being a dainty little bitch had finally come, and only the spice of whiskey could truly warm me up, but I appear to have underestimated the diversity of my options. The warmth of Bocchi the Rock! didn’t even need to be spicy either. It just needed to be warm. Like that hug from Ali. Thinking back, I could hear her heartbeat. Hopefully she couldn’t hear mine… Thank you for reading.

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