Shounen can be good! Who woulda thunk

[fitia]

I don't have the brain for long, effortposting at the moment, but I've just caught up with the manga Akane-banashi, which I've been enjoying so much that it deserves a recommendation! The story follows an impulsive, headstrong, single-minded young woman named Akane and her journey into becoming a fully fledged rakugoka (practitioner of rakugo, Japanese oral storytelling). She gained the love of the art from her father, who was unfortunately expelled from the school he practiced under, and her goal is to confront the head of that school in order to understand what led to that expulsion.

The series has a very colourful and endearing ensemble cast, but the standout is definitely its protagonist, Akane, who is basically all anyone would want if they're being frequently let-down by most women written in manga featured in the Weekly Shounen Jump magazine. Her growth throughout the series has been incredible so far, and she's such a sweetheart! But most importantly, she's taken as seriously as she deserves. Which is bare minimum, but if you're into the shounen recipe and like women, then I really suggest you meet her.

As for the story, it's a very fun immersion into the world of rakugo, which I was entirely unfamiliar with before I started it. The story is supervised by rakugoka, and at the end of each volume they offer trivia as insight into how the art functions. There are a lot of compelling threads in the story, about how to build yourself as an artist, how to build an audience, how to keep a more traditional art alive in the modern day, the shackles that tradition necessarily imply, etc etc. All within a beautifully drawn and immersive artstyle, that has all the expressiveness and humour I love in manga. 

I do have a lot more thoughts on this story, on where it's at, what I feel it's missing and what I hope to see next, but my brain isn't cooperating with me at the moment so I mostly want more people reading it!! It has an anime coming out right now, too, if that's more your thing. Give it a chance. Do it for Akane. There's yuri potential in there too if it sweetens the deal.

Comments

[elyusion]

It sounds really cool! I've seen manga covers for this around and I've always thought Akane is really cute, but I never would've guessed she wants to do rakugo. For some reason I thought she was maybe playing a card game like Chihayafuru... I will be adding this to the backlog ✍🏾

[fitia]

YAYYY the more the merrier!