Holiday Review #2: AKANE-BANASHI

 Of course, Viz's domination of the shonen manga scene via Weekly Shonen Jump continued as always.  There's been a handful of promising new series to emerge this year, but this one was by far one of the most intriguing.

AKANE-BANASHI, written by Yuki Suenaga with art by Takamasu Moue.  First published in 2022 and first published in North America in 2023.

PLOT:

Akane Osaki loves her dad.  He's an up-and-coming rakugoka, well on his way to becoming a headliner.  Alas, his career in rakugo comes to an end when the resident master expels all the applicants without warning or explanation.  Young Akane is absolutely furious at this injustice, and is determined to prove to the old man that her father's form of rakugo is more than worthy.  She already spent her childhood watching and imitating her father, and now she's spent years taking secret lessons from his old teacher.  Will it be enough when it's her turn to take to the stage for the first time?

STORY:

I got give Akane-Banashi credit for turning something as stuffy and old-fashioned as rakugo into a hot-blooded competition.  It's definitely a very different take on it compared to, say, Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju.  That being said, I can see why this series has taken off with WSJ readers here beyond the mere novelty of its subject matter.

In many ways, Akane-Banashi is operating on a lot of tried and true shonen manga tropes.  You've got a heroine who not only wants to Be The Very Best Like No One Ever Was, but also sets forth on her quest as a way to redeem the honor of her father and his art.  She trains with an old master, finds some early success, encounters a rival along the way, and joins a team of wacky supporting characters.  Unless you are absolutely new to the world of shonen manga, you have read at least one variation on this sort of story before.

I'm surprised how little Akane's gender plays into things thus far.  It's true that women are allowed to be rakugoka now in Japan, but they are still very uncommon and there are still those who chafe at the idea of women in what had been a traditionally masculine form of stage comedy.  Meanwhile, nobody bats an eye at Akane's desire to become a rakugo master.  It seems like they might be setting the stage for it to come up in later volumes via her designated rival, Kaisei Arakawa.  His specialty is performing as female characters, whereas Akane's style is more aggressive and masculine since it's based on her father's.  Will there be tension over him performing femininity better than she can?  It's hard to say at this point, since Akane is still working on the basics and learning to put some nuance in her performances.

I do think the choice to focus on rakugo itself was inspired.  The ranking system of performers is just enough to give Akane some concrete goals to work towards, but the individual nature of the actual performances allows for her, her teachers, and even her rival to show off their stuff in interesting ways.  While I suspect that WSJ greenlit this in part to replace another, tragically cancelled series about a young woman competing through stagecraft, it more than justifies its place in the magazine.

ART:

As interesting as the story might be, it's the art that really distinguishes Akane-Banashi.  There's a charm to Moue's character designs that's hard to pin down - there's so much personality in their faces, off and on-stage, but there's just enough restraint to keep them from turning into straight cartoon characters.    In particular, I really like Akane's look (even if she bears a suspicious resemblance to SSSS Gridman's Rikka).  I think it's those dyed tips, which lends her a modern, feminine touch even when she's in her performance mode.  

Moue really puts their all into making the rakugo performances come alive on the page.  It's more over the top than what Haruko Kumota was doing in Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju, but it's quite effective.  I rather like the touch that when the rakugo stories are visualized, it's done in an ukiyo-esque style that reflects their age.  The whole volume just has a lively, irresistible visual energy that cannot be restrained and draws the reader in.

RATING:

Akane-Banashi makes for a stunning debut.  Even though its creators are relative newcomers, they make a splash here by combing shonen manga basics with an engagingly novel focus, an excellent heroine, and playful artwork.  I can only hope that like Akane, it continues to entertain audiences and earn its way to the top of the rankings.

This series is published by Viz.  This series is ongoing in Japan with 8 volumes available.  2 volumes have been released and are currently in print.  The series is also serialized digitally through the Shonen Jump app.

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