(Includes a reaction to the Bocchi The Rock series and recap movies, Re: and Re: Re: – so yes, there be spoilers ahead!)
If pink is your favourite colour, and you like J-Rock/city pop music, and you’re an anime fan, then you’re probably already celebrating all things Bocchi this month. Bocchi The Rock, that is.
This time two years ago, an anime series called Bocchi The Rock was unleashed to the world. Now, two years later, Part 2 of the Bocchi The Rock recap movie – titled Re: Re: – is making its run in cinemas here. Plus, as part of their current promotion, Yamaha is also having a Bocchi The Rock campaign at all their outlets, with a section of their Plaza Singapore branch being carved out for Bocchi and Kessoku Band. You can get Bocchi folders, Bocchi guitar plectrums, and if you’re at Plaza Singapura, you get to see the famous Yamaha Pacifica guitar that’s straight out of the anime.
TBH, I’d never heard of Bocchi The Rock until this year, when I visited Japan and chanced upon these ads for the show. They were really for the first of a 2-part anime movie called Bocchi The Rock: Re:. At first, I didn’t give it much thought. I like some anime, but I’m not a massive anime/manga fan, especially not of “cute girls doing cute things” storylines.
But when I came back to Singapore, I started seeing the movie ads in cinema websites here. A friend suggested that I watch the series – and I’m glad I did.
The Bocchi The Rock anime series is based on a 4-koma manga (like a comic strip with stories told in four panels) by Aki Hamizi, and tells the story of Hitori Gotoh (nicknamed Bocchi), a guitarist who’s well-liked online but nobody knows who she is irl.
This is because she has social anxiety, and doesn’t know how to talk to others, even though she desperately wants to make friends. One day, she’s asked by drummer Nijika Ichiji to sub for a concert and together with bassist Ryo Yamada, they form the core of J-rock/city pop outfit, Kessoku Band. They later add singer Kita Ikuyo to the mix and the band begins their musical journey.
The personalities are quickly established:
Bocchi – the quiet one; has social anxiety, doesn’t know how to make friends; prone to indulging in inner monologues; expert guitarist
Nijika – enthusiastic and practical; sees the best in people but not afraid to call them out when they err; the balanced one who keeps the beat on the drums
Ryo – quirky introvert; expert bassist; knowledgeable about music; not opposed to taking advantage of others for her own purposes
Kita – perky extrovert but can try too hard; good singer, amateur guitarist but willing to upskill; loves meeting people; loves Ryo; loathes her name
As the anime progresses, we see how the girls deal with Bocchi’s insecurities and how they grow, not only as a band but as friends. Many fans have already mentioned why they love the series, but here’s my quick take:
It’s Funny! At its core, this is a comedy. Yes, there’s music, but most of the show thrives on humour. Much of it comes from Bocchi’s wild fantasies (not unlike what JD does in Scrubs), which usually are end-of-the-world scenarios. Her reactions are extreme and ridiculous but this is anime, and which anime isn’t OTT? (that’s Gen X speak for “over the top” kids).
It’s not all Bocchi. Of the other characters, bassist Ryo is the funniest. Her deadpan humour and readiness to take advantage of Bocchi is off the charts. In Ep 4, Ryo invites Bocchi to meet at a restaurant, ostensibly to discuss songwriting, but really so that Bocchi can pay for her meal.
Ryo also loves puns. She came up with the band’s name Kessoku Band: “kessoku” means “cable tie” but also, “unity” or “band” (as in banding together, which kinda means the band’s name is “Band Band”). Yes, it’s a dad joke-level, but that’s Ryo.
The references & attention to detail! Anyone who’s a pop culture nerd will love the deluge of references in this anime: from Bocchi’s pet dog being named Jimihen (after Hendrix), to the numerous parody music posters seen referencing bands like Kana Boon, Radwimps and Sigur Ros. Most of the episode titles are references to Asian Kung-Fu Generation songs, and they even cover one of my favourite AKFG tracks.
There are other Japanese pop culture and anime references, with many different animation styles used to great effect. And the attention to detail is incredible. For instance, early in the series, Kita, who’s just learnt to play guitar, is shown with stiff arm movements – the kind you see in learners. But a few episodes later, her playing is much smoother. Like I said, it’s a field day.
The music rocks! Nearly every song featured in the series is a banger, including the OP (“Seishun Complex”), and there are four different EDs (songs played over the end credits). All the Kessoku Band vocals are performed by their respective voice actors: Ikumi Hasegawa (Kita), gets the lion’s share; but Sayumi Suzushiro (Nijika), Saku Mizuno (Ryo), and Yoshino Aoyama (Bocchi) get one song each.
I feel seen! I don’t think I’ve seen any other anime character where I’ve thought: “omg, that’s so me!” that many times. I may not have the same extreme level of social anxiety as Bocchi, but I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve made the same dumb decisions – just like her.
Are the movies as good as the series? Both Re: and Re:Re: recap the anime, so how do you translate a 12-episode anime into a two-part movie? The movie makers decided to end each part on the anime’s high notes: Re: ends with the gig at the live house Starry, while Re: Re: centres around the gig at the Shuka Cultural Festival.
But in the series, the Starry gig happens in Ep.8. Which leaves only 4 episodes for Re:Re:. To compress the story to fit Re:’s 90-minute runtime, a lot of the comedic bits were strung together in music montages featuring new songs recorded specifically for those bits. Also, a couple of scenes were rearranged to provide a more “movie” narrative.
In Re:Re:, I thought I saw a couple of new scenes, possibly added to beef up the run time although it still clocks in at only 75 minutes. Again, they turned many mirthful moments into music montages, making both movies more music-centric than funny.
However, this means a lot of what made the series so engaging to me is lost. Sure, some of the Bocchi fantasies got a bit tired in the later episodes, but they served to show the severity of Bocchi’s anxieties and provide context for her actions or reactions. You have no idea what could trigger Bocchi.
For example, those who’ve only seen the movies may probably wonder why the mention of going to the beach would result in Bocchi going into a comatose state.
In the series, it’s shown that her bandmates excluded her from their activities during the summer holidays, so Bocchi became more isolated and spent her days watching science documentaries online, cutting herself from the real world. The idea of heading to somewhere as open as the beach makes Bocchi collapse. In the movie, that segment is turned into a music montage, so you don’t see the full extent of her downward spiral.
If so, the idea of the recap movies – which I assume were made to either cash in on the anime success and/or to have a movie such that you needn’t see anime – doesn’t work. Especially if you need to watch the anime to fully appreciate the movies.
That said, both movies did incredibly well. Re: shot to #1 in Japan’s box office – a first for a compilation movie. Re:Re: was fairly successful in Japan too. In Singapore, both movies sold out pretty quickly at fan screenings. The limited runs have been less favourable, but that’s another story.
Speaking of other stories, Bocchi The Rock has also been adapted into a stage musical. Like the recap movies, the musical has been split into two parts, with Part 1 staged in 2023 using the Starry gig storyline.
That has been restaged to coincide with Part 2, which ran in September and uses the Shuka Festival storyline. Both feature new music written for the stage show, but more or less keep the same beats as the movies.
Meanwhile, fans are clamouring for a new season. The series adapted material from Vol. 1 of the manga and there are more volumes to go. Whether those can be translated into more seasons of our favourite socially anxious guitar hero – while the fervour is still there – remains to be seen.
But if it happens, when it happens, I’ll definitely watch it.
