(CR) Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju

[Guardian Enzo]

Originally Posted by Dop

I was totally unaware about the male geisha thing. Who said anime couldn't be educational?

Not only that, but the role of the taikomochi - the male geisha - eventually became effectively early rakugo performers. Their job was mainly to tell stories and entertain their lords and their companions.

There's a lot of misunderstanding about geisha in the West. Geisha are not prostitutes by any stretch - that's not to say there was never any sex, but the geisha's role in society was and is far more complex than that.

[Anh_Minh]

Does Kiku crave... femininity? Is that his deal?

[BBOvenGuy]

Originally Posted by Anh_Minh

Does Kiku crave... femininity? Is that his deal?

"Masculine" and "feminine" are social constructs. The fact is that all human beings have a mix of traits that their societies consider "masculine" or "feminine." Some have traits that lean more heavily one way, some lean more heavily the other way, and some are more in the middle.

Sukeroku has a very masculine nature, and his rakugo reflects that. Kiku has more traits that are generally considered feminine, and he needed to give himself permission to let those out.

[James Rye]

Dayum, did Kiku became good! So different compared with his first rakugo! Dude was sexy and funny. I could see myself sitting there and enjoying myself by listening to his lover suicide story which didn't quite became that yet. XD

[TinyRedLeaf]

Nice to see Kikuhiko finding his "voice" as an artist. It may seem the most obvious thing in the world, but it's not actually easy to find a way to express oneself honestly through art. There's a fine line between artifice and insight, and it takes mysterious inspiration to find the right path.

At this point, I find myself wondering about Kikuhiko and Miyokichi's relationship. Or, to be sure, it's mainly Miyokichi that I'm suspicious about. I'm not very convinced that she's romantically attracted to Kikuhiko. It seems more like a casual dalliance on her part. And the fact that artifice is part and parcel of her trade makes me question her motives even more.

I noticed for example her mix of pleasure and discomfort during Kikuhiko's performance of Shinagawa Shinju. Could it be that some parts of the skit hit too close to home? It's a comedy about a geisha who wasn't purposely deceitful, but nonetheless managed to use her feminine wiles to almost trick a fool to his death. Was there a parallel here that she didn't like?

Judging by the preview, a major fallout between her and Kiku seems to be in store. I'll have to wait and see how close my guess got.

[Benigmatica]

Episode 6:
Finally, someone noticed Kikihiko's brand of rakugo on this episode and I'm glad that he did captivate the crowd with his sexy voice and storytelling! Well, gotta say that Sukeroku's advice turned out well for Kiku-san. However, I feel uncertain on what's gonna happen on the next episode.

On the other hand, I wonder if Studio DEEN will adapt the ending from the manga?

[Nachtwandler]

On the other hand, I wonder if Studio DEEN will adapt the ending from the manga?

No. Judging by the tempo they'll end the season soon after the end of flashback. Causer they add a lot of additional scenes. This ep for example had about 75% of them.

[revive4563]

Originally Posted by Nachtwandler

No. Judging by the tempo they'll end the season soon after the end of flashback. Causer they add a lot of additional scenes. This ep for example had about 75% of them.

Yeah, according to author KUMOTA Haruko's newest tweet, this 1st season of anime covers only 5 volumes of comics. So she's going to do an advertising BDs desperately for next season, she said.
Though I have no worries about sales of this. Since the quality anime for female sell like hot cakes always. (e.g. monstrous sales of Osomatsu-san)

[kuromitsu]

Yeah, I haven't seen the latest episode yet but at this rate it's going to end with the flashback and a glimpse of the rest, which really not good news. :/ I guess they thought this is the part that everyone would care about, after all?

I'm kind of bitter because I really like Yota and I think the post-flashback part of the story is leagues more interesting than the flashback (which is well-written and everything, but has a bunch of tropes I'm not crazy about and in the end it's not really a particularly interesting story in and of itself), even with the parts that I'm not a fan of.

Originally Posted by revive4563

Since the quality anime for female sell like hot cakes always. (e.g. monstrous sales of Osomatsu-san)

Osomatsu-san is not and has never been an anime "for females", though... That show has a very wide appeal, and I'm not sure why everyone is surprised that it's popular with women, it's not like women can't enjoy this kind of comedy. In fact, this is exactly the sort of comedy that tends to be popular with both male and female audiences. (The BL shipping aspect is just a side dish for most everyone.)

[gdpetti]

Originally Posted by TinyRedLeaf

At this point, I find myself wondering about Kikuhiko and Miyokichi's relationship. Or, to be sure, it's mainly Miyokichi that I'm suspicious about. I'm not very convinced that she's romantically attracted to Kikuhiko. It seems more like a casual dalliance on her part. And the fact that artifice is part and parcel of her trade makes me question her motives even more.

It seems that that dude is suspicious himself, especially growing up in a geisha house. It could be that he is her only real outlet, with everyone else, she's 'on'.. acting a part, with him, perhaps she can at least slip out of that role occassionally and test the limits. This would depend upon the social pressures of the day... or at least close to it from the perspective of the writer in today's society looking back.

[revive4563]

Originally Posted by kuromitsu

Osomatsu-san is not and has never been an anime "for females", though... That show has a very wide appeal, and I'm not sure why everyone is surprised that it's popular with women, it's not like women can't enjoy this kind of comedy. In fact, this is exactly the sort of comedy that tends to be popular with both male and female audiences. (The BL shipping aspect is just a side dish for most everyone.)

Initially, they must have targeted for the general gag anime fans. But obviously they changed the target somewhere along the way.
In fact, BL factor of Osomatsu-san created a tremendous buzz by BL fangirls in SNS. Well...fujoshi is piece of cakes.

[kuromitsu]

Off-topic, but...

Originally Posted by revive4563

Initially, they must have targeted for the general gag anime fans. But obviously they changed the target somewhere along the way.
In fact, BL factor of Osomatsu-san created a tremendous buzz by BL fangirls in SNS. Well...fujoshi is piece of cakes.

I'm aware of the buzz, I watch the show. But that's not how it works... Like, how did they change any target with the actual show? There was only one episode in the 19 that aired so far that contained straight-up acknowledgement and shipping fodder (and even though it's the most popular couple it's not something that everyone on the BL side of the fandom enjoys :P), and even that could and have been taken as the usual "lol homo" gag by those not into that kind of thing. Just because something gains a BL fandom doesn't mean it's targeting that segment of viewers, that's like saying that Fullmetal Alchemist was also targeting BL fans because well, look at all the BL fanwork. (Not to mention that not every woman is into BL, and even those who are may or may not be into it in every show they watch...)

[GDiddy]

I"m kind of surprised that Miyokicchi and Kiku haven't slept together yet since the show seemed to have been heading into that direction....


Kiku is a sexy thing.

[GDiddy]

Originally Posted by revive4563

Initially, they must have targeted for the general gag anime fans. But obviously they changed the target somewhere along the way.
In fact, BL factor of Osomatsu-san created a tremendous buzz by BL fangirls in SNS. Well...fujoshi is piece of cakes.

Because every show that has a female fanbase must be BL AMIRITE

[BBOvenGuy]

Originally Posted by GDiddy

I"m kind of surprised that Miyokicchi and Kiku haven't slept together yet since the show seemed to have been heading into that direction....

Kiku strikes me as being aromatic. At first I thought he might be gay, but he hasn't shown interest in any men, either.

That's not to say he'd never sleep with Miyokicchi, but it's not at the top of his priority list.

[Stark700]

Episode 7:

Damn...I just want to give Miyokichi a hug this episode. It seems she genuinely cares about Kiku and wants to spend more time with him.

Kiku's rakugo skills will probably improve more throughout this series. Also, I think his relationship with with Hatsutaro was kinda interesting, especially in the second half.

[AC-Phoenix]

@ Preview at the end of the episode:

Spoiler for Theory according to the preview at episode 7s end:

Just strengthens my believe that the Geisha girl is actually Shin's wife. - His daugthers eyes and hers look far too similar imho.

[blakstealth]

I wonder why Master asked about Miyokichi.

[Kismet-chan]

I felt so bad for Miyokichi. Poor thing.

[BBOvenGuy]

Originally Posted by blakstealth

I wonder why Master asked about Miyokichi.

Wasn't she originally introduced as his mistress? Or did I misunderstand? I got a sense that he felt like his turf was threatened or something male chauvinist like that.