 Synopsis Hitori Gotou is a high school girl who's starting to learn to play the guitar because she dreams of being in a band, but she's so shy that she hasn't made a single friend. However, her dream might come true after she meets Nijika Ijichi, a girl who plays drums and is looking for a new guitarist for her band. Information Type: TV Episodes: Unknown Status: Not yet aired Aired: Oct 9, 2022 to ? Premiered: Fall 2022 Broadcast: Sundays at 00:00 (JST) Producers: None found, add some Licensors: None found, add some Studios: CloverWorks Source: 4-koma manga Genres: Comedy, Slice of Life Themes: CGDCT, Music |
| This show has been great to watch as Bocchi's social awkwardness antics are really cute even if they are a pain for the other band members to put up with, though this is the right place for her seeing that the others all experience social problems as well. The production values are excellent for a show like this, and in all it's a very fun show to watch. I'm certainly looking forward to watching more of this. Episode 3 And the band is whole as Kita is the vocalist who used to be part of the band, but left seeing that Kita just wanted to get close to Ryo. She was lacking as a guitarist, but she's somebody who had a bond with the band and Bocchi made her realize that. She's also socially awkward, but in a much different way. That scene with what could have been mistaken for an series ending eyecatch was pretty hilarious. This show just continues to be so much fun as the girls are great. Just need a whole case full of Moffster Hamagy drinks to keep on going. |
| Episode 4 While the band had its members, there's still quite a lot of work that needs to be done if the girls even want to stand a chance. First of all, Kita can sing, but not when she's playing. And then Bocchi is in charge of writing lyrics, but is coming up blank. She perfected her autograph, but not this. And then the girls go out to take a promo picture, and come up with a jump shot, but the problem is Bocchi can't do it properly. So with the need to write lyrics, it's Ryo who saves the day helping spark Bocchi's mind, and the lyrics are in. It wasn't easy, but she got it done, and that was great to see it all going down. |
| Episode 5 While 10k yen seems like a lot for a kid, that's noting compared to the expenses of running a band that just keep on piling up. So, Ryo comes up with an idea to showcase their growth but dressing like mafia men isn't exactly a fitting way to do so. A lot is riding on their audition seeing that it's pass or go home. They have their audition and while their techniques still need a lot of refinement, Nijika's sister likes what she sees and thinks that with more practice, they will be great. That was just so dam good, pun intended as those pictures of dams after their audition was pretty amusing. Next order of business is to sell tickets, and it's a pretty low quota seeing that they are just getting started and don't have the money to perform at anything bigger than the club they are in right now, and it should be interesting to see how that goes. |
| Episode 5 Obviously Bocchi being ridiculous is the best part of the show. But I'm increasingly irritated that it's stretching out her friends' ignorance of her online guitar channel. I have trouble believing Bocchi wouldn't just show them her videos. Social anxiety can only do so much for a story. |
| I love him who is ashamed when the dice fall in his favour and who then asks: Am I then a cheat? – for he wants to perish. |
| I didn't even give this the time of day on day 1, but it is now one of my favorite shows this season |
| Episode 6 Bocchi has a foot in the door, but now comes the next step that's only a problem for her as she needs to sell five tickets. She can't just sell them all to her family. But a chance encounter with a college-age girl who is also a rookie rocker changed all that. She drinks and in her drunk state, asks Bocchi to put on a street performance together in hoping to get a person or two to buy tickets to her concert, and she does just that. Though getting her bandmates to believe that she did sell her tickets, that's another problem entirely. Pretty amusing stuff once again as Bocchi's expressions continue to be cute, all while her imagination is really something. |
| I was thinking alcoholic girl was ble haired bassist's sister, but not sure names match |
curr0001 said: either that or they were in that band the blue haired one mentioned in a previous eps . Or she replaced her. Never heard of a band with 2 bassists |
The steam sales meme... |
| That was kind of an odd episode. I got the impression it was made by some other director and animated by a different studio or something. |
| Cursive is the future. - Nate Bargatze |
| Episode 7 For the first time ever, Bocchi brought over friends to her house, and she went crazy in her preparations, from greeting her with a party popper to spinning lights in her room. But Nijika and Kita came by to talk t-shirt designs, and they were having a lot of trouble trying to design one that it's lame, and in the end a simple design is what they went with. And then Bocchi wears something other than her tracksuit for a change. With that, everything is set to go, but then an unexpected turn happens with the typhoon as getting to the venue is going to be treacherous. |
| The animation/direction team pulled out all the stops in this episode. Dang Bocchi's parents were brutal with that question about rental friends. |
| Episode 8 Bocchi made some fans there. The typhoon really affected the audience and while the performance was nothing to write home about, Bocchi’s enthusiasm is known. Great to see the band coming together as they started out being a ragtag bunch and needed a lot of practice to make it happen. |
| Episode 9 With summer break in full swing fresh off the band's first gig, the girls ends up going to Enoshima. And once again, Bocchi's reactions are really hilarious, especially after getting attacked by a flock of birds. And that trip ought to have changed Bocchi, except that it didn't as she's still as unmotivated as ever to go to school. The band's next performance is just around the corner with the Shuka Festival, and this season should end with that performance, so it will be interesting to see if they can take things to the next level. And also, a new ending theme song. |
| Slept on this one; catching up. 6 eps. in and it's absolutely fantastic. If it keeps up the quality, I'm not sure whether or not I'll prefer this to K-On... |
| Away from the things of man, my love, away from the things of man. |
| Up to ep.8 now. I gave this one my rare mid-season bumps from an 8 to a solid 9. Usually shows decline over the course of a season as the animation quality dips and/or the plot loses its way. Among other things, it manages to pull off 2 very impressive feats: 1. The animation of the girls playing their instruments doesn't look rotoscoped (think Yuki in Haruhi playing the guitar riff in "God Knows"). It somehow looks totally convincing AND blends seamlessly with the "regular" animation. 2. The director knows EXACTLY how to structure the concert/musical sequences in order to maximize the investment put into the labor-intensive playing cuts. The framing of the shots of the girls where their instruments are out of view is always done in such a way that it conveys something about the scene in question. In other words, it's not immediately obvious where all the time and money went in each episode. Everything is consistently fluid and emotionally resonant. |
boldulyssesDec 6, 2022 8:08 PM
| Away from the things of man, my love, away from the things of man. |
| Episodes 1-3 So I thought this was going to be a wanna be K-On!, and I had passed on giving it a shot. After seeing a couple surprising recommendations though I changed my tune. It may have some cute girls doing music things, but this show quickly shows a passion and desire to stand all by itself. The characterization feels strong and personal right from the start. I liked that Bocchi would quickly compare herself to others in similarities, and then immediately and sharply flip to believing they're nothing alike. It's believable, human, and funny. I hope that she can come to realize that she was actually right in both directions, and that she does share common interests and fears with her band mates that kind of just goes with being human separate from the funny. And on that note, I find this show already seeming to take its direction of humor differently than some other shows dealing with anxiety or introversion. Komi Can't Communicate, which I dropped about 5 episodes in, seemed to look at the humor that could be created first, and then worked back to how people could be weird. Bocchi the Rock!, while it is definitely tagged a comedy show, seems to concern itself with character foremost, and then uses some atmosphere or fun animation to share something many might relate to in a humorous way. I think that may be the key difference in my enjoyment. And then there was another Bocchi, a Hitoribocchi even, who in spite of having some heart and fun characters for a comedy, kept revolving around a premise that slowly eroded away my enjoyment of it. (Thanks for Aru-Aru beam though.) So far with Bocchi the Rock!, however, just the simple idea that a girl like Bocchi can try to find herself through rock music, and as luck would have it, some kind band mates, makes perfect sense to me. Personally, I think I'm more of a Ryou, and while I don't think I'd actually come through the door munching weeds, it's totally something I'd imagine. |
| Formerly Shenseiken on CR Forums |
| Episode 10 Culture festival is coming, and Bocchi's class is doing a maid cafe, which is not exactly what Bocchi was hoping for seeing that she'd have to wear the maid uniform and serve customers face-to-face. Bocchi wants the band to perform at the festival, but she collapsed on the way to the student council room and ended up in the nurse's office, all while Kita turned in the form herself. Seeing that Bocchi is having second thoughts that they take a trip to Shinjuku to watch Hiroi and Sick Hack perform. Seeing that Hiroi used to be a misfit like Bocchi is that it provides some inspiration for her. So in the end, they go forward with the performance. But there's just one problem in that Bocchi has gone missing on the day of the festival. It was great to see Sick Hack performing and they are quite good, something that Kessoku can feed off of when they perform. Now, they just need to gather themselves, which is quite a problem. |
| All caught up now. I watched yesterday's episode before I watched the latest Spy x Family, which is saying something. Felt like the revelations and reactions in this episode were a bit clichéd, but the show was as fundamentally solid as it has been. |
| Away from the things of man, my love, away from the things of man. |
MenchiK1 said: Honestly haven't been too impressed with the shows music so far. What happened to Bocchi's secret being revealed? Did they just forget that plot reveal? Their first original song is OK, but the second one is much better imo. Do you mean her being 'guitar hero?' They covered that a few episodes ago I thought. |
| Cursive is the future. - Nate Bargatze |
zkeleton said: MenchiK1 said: Honestly haven't been too impressed with the shows music so far. What happened to Bocchi's secret being revealed? Did they just forget that plot reveal? Their first original song is OK, but the second one is much better imo. Do you mean her being 'guitar hero?' They covered that a few episodes ago I thought. They covered it but haven't followed up with the revelation. I don't know how much of a difference it would make, though; Bocchi's bandmates know she's good already... Agree about the original songs. "That Band" is fire. |
| Away from the things of man, my love, away from the things of man. |
| I've decided I wish Ya Boy Kongming had been more like Bocchi. In other words, I wish the earlier show had been better about choosing which cuts to focus its time and energy on, and the direction had been more skilled in such a way that it wasn't obvious. In Kongming, it was very obvious and distracting when they had run out of time and just had to show a performance montage or some such... Bocchi, by contrast, gets it exactly right. I've rewatched Kessoku Band's first performance several times now, and the way the whole event is showcased is just flawless. |
| Away from the things of man, my love, away from the things of man. |
| Episode 11 Bocchi went into hiding after changing into her maid getup, and she's fretting over her Youtube channel seeing that she hasn't posted anything there lately. But her bandmates found her and Bocchi is fulfilling her duty at the maid cafe. She meets a couple of hooligans, and they were surprisingly respectful. The cafe was quite a hit even though the omrice was just those frozen meals. After the first day, it's time to prepare for the concert as this could very well lead them to a record deal someday. Bocchi's imagination is really something once again, especially with that record deal, and while it's something to strive for, that's extremely unlikely to happen after this performance. One more episode left to go as the band puts on their performance at the culture festival. |
| What was with Bocchi's reaction to Kita? Foreshadowing of something happening to Kita during the performance? Or just Bocchi dazzled by Kita's perkiness/optimism? |
| Away from the things of man, my love, away from the things of man. |
| Bocchi was very cute in that maid uniform. Part of that may just be because she normally dresses so blah though. I really prefer the uniforms like that where the top is open even without showing any kind of cleavage. The ones that are closed up are just too puritanical and stuffy looking, especially when they're just plain black and white like that. Pretty funny when they were talking about what kind of place they would find her in. |
| Cursive is the future. - Nate Bargatze |
| Episode 12 (Finale) It's showtime, and while the performance was energetic, not so much with Bocchi as she's too focused on her E string that's out of tune, and then the B string snaps. And before the last song, she's put on the spot and responds by diving into the crowd and faceplanting. Needing a new guitar, Bocchi gets the money she needs as thanks to all the views her Youtube channel is getting that came from her family's account. This was something that was kept hidden from her until the right moment not realizing that what was supposed to be something done for fun was getting monetized. So she's off to buy a new guitar with her friends helping her out, and with that, the band is ready to take the stage again. I had a feeling something was bound to go wrong, but the band made the best of a bad situation. Bocchi still has anxiety holding her back, but at least she's starting to be more open. Pretty nice way to end thing. Final Thoughts While this show appears to be just another one of those cute girls doing cute things with shows about rock bands being done time and again, the concept of having it centered on an introvert is a fresh new idea that this show pulls off to perfection. The characters are great, the animation is another great effort by CloverWorks, especially with the parts showcasing Bocchi's mind with the use of CGI and live action shots to depict it, and the music is especially great, while at the same time down to earth to reflect the band's amateurism. In all, it's the show's concept and production values that has it standing out against other shows like this. Just about the only major issue this show has it that it totally overdoes it with the anxiety part and at times that can get annoying. In any case, it's a well-done show that's more than deserving of an encore. Grade: A (9/10) |
| You can tell their songs are written by a bassist. That Constellation song was very Bass heavy. To think I nearly skipped this show and didn't even start watching until a week or 2 later. It might end up my favorite show of the season. I'll have to watch Beck again, but as a plot, this might be better than Beck. The dub music in Beck was really good though. I don't think another season is likely, but I'd like one 9/10 for me |
| That was fantastic. What a great finale, with the same seamless animation and godlike direction we've seen so far. Standout moments included the camera panning around Kita's improvised solo and Bocchi's hair falling down her shoulder when she realized the extent of her guitar crisis. The wide angle shots as the festival wound down were great also. Bocchi somehow manages to be simultaneously the most annoying and most endearing anime character I've seen in a long time. The verdict is in: I like this better than K-On. It's funnier, and it has more "bite." And the songs are better. Fight me. 9.5/10, rounded down to a 9/10 on MAL. I honestly don't know what it would have to do to bump up to a 10, but for some reason I can't quite give it my third 10/10 ever. Definitely my favorite show of the season, and probably the year. HOOfan_1 said: I don't think another season is likely, but I'd like one Same. It'll be interesting to see if this gets a dub. |
| Away from the things of man, my love, away from the things of man. |
| She should use some of that money to have that Gibson cleaned up and repaired. That was Kita chan's fault. She should've known better than to stick a microphone in her face like that. I'm surprised she didn't apologize after. |
| Cursive is the future. - Nate Bargatze |
| Well I'm glad I didn't sleep on this one. I don't think it'll be the next K-On!. Maybe this will do really well though, and it'll get the time it would need for that. It's kind of interesting that both of the shows started out as a 4-panel manga story, and both of them have done well to adapt themselves to normal length anime. I'd still say K-On! did more to reinvent itself, and Bocchi the Rock! might have to really go beyond the manga boundaries to touch it. This is still a great show for a youthful startup music band I think. And a pretty good show about dealing with anxiety. This show also made me think of Tomoko from WataMote. I think both are good shows. Bocchi sure is a lot more grounded than Tomoko. At least in that she accepts her oddities and social standing is her doing. Even if she likes to fantasize otherwise. WataMote did a better job prodding the audience though. I remember stopping to pause the show many times before continuing. On Bocchi's side of things, while I appreciate the fantastic and perhaps even experimental animations around her problems, it definitely leaned towards comedy and kind of making her even adorable at times. I'm not sure how I feel about that. It was fun though less impactful. I do realize this show is aiming a lot more at music for its main draw. I'd like to shoot back a reason why Bocchi would wait so long to tell anyone, her band mates, and even her parents that she was Guitar Hero. The show even seemed to throw back to it some here at the end I think. To her, her Youtube channel was a place where she was someone special. It was an escape from the awkwardness of all her usual interactions. Most of which she'd probably rather not have. It doesn't surprise me at all that she did nothing towards bringing those two worlds together. I quite appreciate the studio's attention to detail in catching the visuals and interaction in band music making, and all the Bocchi creativity. I think I give it a somewhat generous 8/10. |
| Formerly Shenseiken on CR Forums |
| OK I've figured out what would have pushed this further toward a 10 for me (and incidentally, it's the same issue I have with K-On): No real focus on the actual music itself. Aside from a bit of back-and-forth between Ryo and Bocchi when they collaborated on their song, there's no insight whatsoever into the songs themselves. What's Kessoku Band's message? What are they trying to communicate with their music? As catchy as they are, it pains me to concede that all the songs are just generic "J-rock girl band songs." I get that the focus was primarily on Bocchi and her battle against her insecurities / anxieties, but a more thorough connection with the music would have made the show even stronger. |
| Away from the things of man, my love, away from the things of man. |
Nick_Reigns said: On Bocchi's side of things, while I appreciate the fantastic and perhaps even experimental animations around her problems, it definitely leaned towards comedy and kind of making her even adorable at times. I'm not sure how I feel about that. It was fun though less impactful. I do realize this show is aiming a lot more at music for its main draw. . I thought the animation was a bigger draw than the music, there were no shortage of little Easter eggs from the animators throughout the show  Crazy this show is now the #13th ranked show on MAL |
MenchiK1Dec 29, 2022 3:14 PM
MenchiK1 said: I'll agree. The claims of above and beyond needed animation, and passion by the studio to elevate this work was both my reason to pick up the show and a big reason why I stayed. But you don't really list those things as a genre or show description. It might be missing my tastes, but the music was just kind of good for me. It's something I'd probably only revisit if watching the show - unlike HTT's Don't Say Lazy, or the pure fun and almost embarrassingly cute Gohan wa Okazu. Although at least once Bocchi the Rock! was trying not to be good like at the start of their first live performance. So unlike K-On!'s out of nowhere EDs, maybe baby steps in music is intentional just like with Bocchi's personal struggles. Although to her, playing in front of her school is probably a flying leap.I thought the animation was a bigger draw than the music, there were no shortage of little Easter eggs from the animators throughout the show And as references go, the Yamcha pose is kind of becoming anime's Wilhelm scream. Though I don't tire of it. This moment stood out to me, and the show even breaks the 4th wall.  It reminds of this although I can't be sure. Talk about being dramatic. |
| Formerly Shenseiken on CR Forums |
boldulysses said: My guess is that no one on the crew is knowledgeable enough about music to do that. Japan is also extremely strict on Copyrights, so my guess is trying to put too much work into music for the show would have probably been a copyright headache. Beck is the most musically oriented anime I can recall. I guess Ya Boy Kongming was close.OK I've figured out what would have pushed this further toward a 10 for me (and incidentally, it's the same issue I have with K-On): No real focus on the actual music itself. Aside from a bit of back-and-forth between Ryo and Bocchi when they collaborated on their song, there's no insight whatsoever into the songs themselves. What's Kessoku Band's message? What are they trying to communicate with their music? As catchy as they are, it pains me to concede that all the songs are just generic "J-rock girl band songs." I get that the focus was primarily on Bocchi and her battle against her insecurities / anxieties, but a more thorough connection with the music would have made the show even stronger. |
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