Uchi no Shishou wa Shippo ga Nai

The beginning of the Taishou era spelled the end of the tanuki's tricks. These raccoon dogs, who are able to transform into human beings, used to love fooling humans until advanced technology rendered their endeavors futile. However, Mameda, a young tanuki girl, has not given up on this tradition, and—resolved to follow in her father's footsteps—travels to Osaka in hopes of duping people.

As others in her village predicted, Mameda fails to deceive a single person, and she is even hunted down by an angry crowd. After finding refuge in a theater, she stumbles upon a rakugo performance given by a master of the art, Bunko Daikokutei. Fascinated by the vivid images created by the rakugoka's acting, Mameda becomes enamored with this style of storytelling and decides to become Bunko's apprentice!

Despite her initial reluctance to take a disciple, Bunko begins to teach Mameda rakugo after witnessing the young tanuki's perseverance. Between undertaking a taiko apprenticeship, handling her work at the theater, and memorizing plays, Mameda needs to give her all if she ever plans to master the only art that still has a chance to fool people.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

Daikokutei, Bunko Main

Yamamura, Hibiku Japanese

Mameda Main

Ichimichi, Mao Japanese

Koito Supporting

Hasegawa, Ikumi Japanese

Omatsu Supporting

Aikawa, Natsuki Japanese

Daikokutei, Bunchou Supporting

Suwabe, Junichi Japanese

Mameda's Father Supporting

Enoki, Junya Japanese

En'u Supporting

Tsumugi, Risa Japanese

Ebisuya, Utaroku Supporting

Ishida, Akira Japanese

Tenjin-chan Supporting

Oono, Yuuko Japanese

Rakuda Supporting

Umehara, Yuuichirou Japanese

Kamei, Hiroshi Producer

Itou, Hirofumi Producer

Watanabe, Yuuki Producer

Hieda, Kouki Producer

Reviews

Mar 1, 2023

UnknownGhost5

Recommended

My knowledge on rakugo is pretty limited, so I can't say how good of a job this anime does at it, but what I can say is that I really enjoyed watching it.

The plot is simple. It mostly revolves around a tanuki who wants to master rakugo in order to trick humans. We follow her (mis)adventures as she aims to fulfill her goal of becoming a Rakugoka. On the way she meets a lot of interesting people and dwells more into the world of rakugo.

The rakugo itself is really interesting to listen to, altough I don't find it particularly funny, but honestly I don't ... view that as a negative thing. Because of the cultural differences and the fact that I'm reading the translation of rakugo, and not the real thing I'm completely fine with not finding it funny most of the time.

I also love the "No Tail Tales" that shows up after the ED and explains the rakugo. Most of the time I can understand the story, but sometimes I can't really seem to figure it out so the "No Tail Tales" is really helpful in that regard.

The animation is pretty decent. It's not spectacular like in some other anime that we got this season, but it's unique and I really like it. The character design is also very well done.

To me this was one of the better anime of this season, and I'd highly recommend that you watch it. It's kinda sad that it's so underrated.

Reviewer’s Rating: 8

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Dec 23, 2022

KANLen09

Mixed Feelings

Another Rakugo show? I know that that's a bit of a fair niche just like manzai a.k.a Japanese stand-up comedy, but while the understanding to appeal to Japan is there to be the difference, over in the West, there's just a miniscule size of anime otakus being history buffs. And having said that, this show gets lost in translation, but how so does it fare against the come-and-gone contemporaries?

It's been said in Japanese folklore that the raccoon a.k.a tanuki does have a rather malevolent past. The oldest and earliest tales and legends speak not only of the possession of humans but also of shapeshifting. One ... of the most famous myths surrounding the tanuki is its ability to shape-shift into the form of a beautiful woman with which it plays mischievous tricks on passersby. Despite transforming itself, the tanuki can also transform certain things, such as turning pebbles into gold, or faeces into food. and a common image of this magical, malevolent creature is one with a leaf on its forehead, as this is believed to be the source of its power. With time, the malevolent tanuki evolved into a much tamer one, while still using their illusionary magic, they were rather seen as a mild annoyance than an actual danger, known for bothering travelers, hunters, or monks with harmless tricks.

And this is what describes the racooon girl Mameda in a nutshell. Having been birthed and grown up in the Taisho era where the traditional trickery of the tanuki is rendered obsolete, with her racooon tribe declaring that the ways of the old are no longer effective against the new breed of evolving humans, she is the one that stubbornly refuses to let go of tradition despite being bullied over and over by fellow tanuki. In the hopes that she can master the art of trickery just like her father did, the trip to Osaka would become Mameda's defining moment in resourcefulness of trying old habits that just fail hard and earn the ire of people, to learning new things that would entice her to keep the tradition alive. In this case, it's the art of Rakugo a.k.a Japanese verbal storytelling.

For one, Mameda is an interesting character, no doubt. Being the pickled young tanuki that she is with the entire raccoon village already free of the burden of trickery, she tries so hard to convince to the masses that raccoons should follow their ancestral tradition, but in the process, it appealed to no one, almost forcing her to be expelled out of the village. It's in this state that in Osaka, she meets a well-renowned Rakugo-ka by the name of Bunko Daikokutei, but she's no ordinary human either. Bunko is what is known as the kitsune a.k.a nine-tailed fox, also carved from tradition, but there're good and bad foxes, and she is of the Zenko (or benevolent) celestial fox that's associated with the god Inari. They are sometimes simply called Inari foxes. Even if they do not have nine tails, these kitsune are always depicted as being white in color, have the power to ward off evil, and they sometimes serve as guardian spirits. Besides protecting Inari shrines, they also protect the local villages from the evil kitsune and other malevolent Japanese foxes. Mameda being a try-hard, she approaches Bunko for help in mastering the art of trickery, and Bunko's answer is through Rakugo, which she slowly entices Mameda to see it for herself. The journey is set for the tanuki to learn a new form of tricks from the nine-tailed fox, and it takes a buttload of confidence and will to perform as Mameda learns the ropes and becomes a full-fledged Rakugo-ka.

This is how mangaka TNSK envisions the manga to be in the English official translation: My Master Has No Tail, meaning that Mameda's master Bunko has shapeshifted into a human (meaning she no tail), saved by her former master when people stopped praying to her and wrecked both her home and life with injustice, and her source of trickery is through Rakugo, which in the presence of Mameda, decides that she's worth the one shot to spread her name even further. And just for context, masters pick their apprentices very carefully, esepcially in Rakugo, because a lot is at stake here: the reception of the student in inheriting the name of his/her master, and the reputation built afterwards. Thankfully, Mameda is not alone in this regard, as there're other characters that intersect along her lines of also becoming a Rakugo-ka, such is the case for Shirara Tsubaki. Her father is Byakudanji Tsubaki, one of the greats in the world of Rakugo, albeit his sloppy, debt-ridden image gave him a reputation that doesn't bode well with the people. And being the daughter of such a father, she cannot take it any longer, and lik Mameda, uses Rakugo as her learning curve to help her father tide off all of his debts. And I can tell you that becoming a Rakugo-ka is NOT as easy as it looks, it takes a lot of skill, talent and on-the-fly thinking to ever make it to the finish line: the audience having fun and laughing at the jokes imposed from the many Rakugo stories. All in all, while the characters are all diverse, they certainly help Mameda in fulfilling her dream to be in Bunko's shoes, and that's a tall order in and of itself.

Certainly, the most surprising aspect, is that Liden Films, the studio that's used to the overhaul workforce to pump no more than 3 shows per season, does a 180 on its fold of overworking its staff members in preparation for next season's continuation of Tokyo Revengers. Because let's be honest: in recent years, the production values were decent, but at least consistent towards whatever the sources were to take a breather, and in the overworked anime industry, any kind of rest is a luxury to have, and under Strike the Blood director Hideyo Yamamoto, it looks just fine.

Music artistes have come and gone, and so is the prevalence for GARNiDELiA, with her OP song being low-key catchy and an intended fun reference to the series overall, but like with Taishou Otome Otogibanashi, the quality has dropped significantly. However, Hinano's ED is calm that it gives you the exact sense of episodes' end and relieves all of the drama unfolded for a nice contrast with the apprentice-master duo Mameda and Bunko. Also, the after-credits of Shippona no Shippo a.k.a No Tail Tales where Maneda (in her tanuki form) explains the context of the episodes' Rakugo stories, it's honestly a nice touch for people who don't really understand to be given full detail on the story, it deserves recognition, appreciation and the effort behind it, even if it isn't interesting.

No doubt that this tale of trickery is a good one to come, but at the cost of explanation, and ultimately equalling all that down to enjoyment, which this show feels like a mixed bag of sorts. Rakugo is a very niche aspect, but unlike manzai comedy (which every country in the world has sone imitation or form to it), it's purely a Japan-only feature that complements to those who understand, or those that are wanting to learn more about it.

Regardless of how you see this show, unless you're in for a learning lesson about Rakugo, then it's gonna give you boredom. It's slow, but it has heart, and for that I can appreciate this anime for what it is. It's a decent show overall.

Reviewer’s Rating: 6

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Dec 23, 2022

4lucc

Not Recommended

Spoiler

(Texto em PT/BR no final)

Uchi no Shishou wa Shippo ga Nai was a work that in the first instance did not prove to be a big deal, creating any kind of expectation for the work seemed crazy, but the first episode managed to change that view a little, presenting an immersive or illustrative rakugo depending on the moment, thus creating a strong connection with the stories told by both the characters and the spectator. Rakugo has a very functional comedy and a highlight that makes it the great icing on the cake of the work, but this also puts Uchi no Shishou wa Shippo ga ... Nai in a situation of monotomy, since the other proposals of the work do not even reach the foot of the work done on top of rakugo.

The fact that Mameda is a tanuki can sometimes be well used by the work, as in episode 05 where she transforms into a shamisen to replace the one that had broken, thus allowing Koito to follow up, but this is a rare occasion, since even the residents' treatment of the existence of a tanuki in the city becomes frivolous over time. On the one hand, this demonstrates that Mameda managed to infiltrate society, but on the other hand, its differential starts to lose prominence.

The narrative of Uchi no Shishou wa Shippo ga Nai is weak and does not show great depth at almost any moment, making it very dependent on the presentations for the work to be interesting, episode 10 where Mameda passes the Enshi test it is the only one where the narrative manages to gain prominence. Mameda's relationship with the other tanukis was constantly shown, so that she was out of the group, when Mameda decides to go to the forest in order to be able to concentrate to decorate the Jugemu, the memories that had been forgotten for a while return. When asked why she was so concerned about the name Daikokutei, Mameda replied that this was the only place where she belonged, the idea of belonging is also brought about by Enshi's relationship with her last name and her relationship with Bunchou, making this the deepest moment of the series.

The advancement of civilization was very present at first (after all, it was forgotten over time), and this created a depth in the universe, the tricks of the tanukis no longer worked with humans, after all, with all the technological advances, the deceptions of the tanukis became they made something small compared to what had already been created, causing the existence of the tanuki to be forgotten and they needed to live like common animals. Despite the tricks no longer being effective, the desire to deceive from the tanuki and the desire to be deceived from the humans still existed and created a connection between them, so much so that the best scene in the work is when Mameda, to escape from the humans, throws herself a tower and lands on Bunko's boat, causing the humans who previously ran after her in a rage to start laughing. The only moment where this idea ends up being rescued is when Bunko and Mameda start to deceive people so they don't have to pay a debt that wasn't theirs, despite working as a comedy, it doesn't have enough development to be memorable and add something to it. series.

In conclusion, Uchi no Shishou wa Shippo ga Nai has a very efficient rakugo, immersively giving life to the experience of the stories told, and when the anecdotes were not told in full, they received their attention in the post-credits, sometimes even providing information that covered the knowledge on the topic. Despite the comedy working, mainly through rakugo, the narrative does not have enough content to support the work, thus it becomes monotonous and shallow.

(Sorry for any mistakes, the text was translated by Google Translate)
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Uchi no Shishou wa Shippo ga Nai era uma obra que em primeira instância não demonstrava ser nada demais, criar qualquer tipo de expectativa para a obra parecia maluquice, porém o primeiro episódio conseguiu mudar um pouco essa visão, apresentando um rakugo imersivo ou ilustrativo dependendo do momento, criando assim uma forte conexão com as histórias contadas tanto por parte dos personagens, quanto do espectador. O rakugo possui uma comédia muito funcional e um destaque que o torna a grande cereja no bolo da obra, porém isso também coloca Uchi no Shishou wa Shippo ga Nai em uma situação de monotomia, já que as outras propostas da obra não chegarão nem aos pés do trabalho feito em cima do rakugo.

O fato da Mameda ser um tanuki consegue por vezes ser bem utilizado pela obra, como no episódio 05 onde ela se transforma em um shamisen para substituir aquele que havia quebrado, permitindo assim que a Koito fizesse o acompanhamento, mas essa é uma rara ocasião, já que até mesmo o tratamento dos moradores perante a existência de um tanuki na cidade passa a ser leviana com o tempo. Por um lado isso demonstra que a Mameda conseguiu se infiltrar na sociedade, mas por outro lado o diferencial dela passa a perder destaque.

A narrativa de Uchi no Shishou wa Shippo ga Nai é fraca e não demonstra grande profundidade em quase nenhum momento, fazendo com que exista uma dependência muito grande das apresentações para a obra se mostrar interessante, o episódio 10 onde a Mameda passa pelo teste da Enshi é o único onde a narrativa consegue ganhar destaque. Constantemente era mostrada a relação da Mameda com os outros tanukis, de forma que ela ficava deslocada do grupo, quando a Mameda decide ir para a floresta com o intuito de conseguir se concentrar para decorar o Jugemu, as lembranças que por um tempo haviam sido esquecidas retornam. Ao ser questionada do motivo de se preocupar tanto com o nome Daikokutei, Mameda responde que esse era o único lugar onde pertencia, a ideia de pertencimento é trazida também pela relação da Enshi com seu sobrenome e a relação dela com o Bunchou, tornando esse o momento mais profundo da série.

O avanço da civilização foi muito presente em um primeiro momento (afinal foi esquecida com o tempo), e isso criou uma profundidade no universo, os truques dos tanukis não funcionavam mais com os humanos, afinal com todo o avanço tecnológico as enganações dos tanukis se tornavam algo pequeno perante ao que já havia sido criado, fazendo com que a existência dos tanukis pudesse ser esquecida e elas precisassem viver como animais comuns. Apesar dos truques não serem mais eficazes, a vontade de enganar provinda dos tanukis e a vontade de ser enganado dos humanos ainda existiam e criavam uma conexão entre eles, tanto que a melhor cena da obra é quando a Mameda para fugir dos humanos se joga de uma torre e cai no barco da Bunko, fazendo com que os humanos que antes corriam atrás dela enfurecidos começassem a rir. O único momento onde essa ideia acaba por ser resgatada é quando a Bunko e a Mameda começam a enganar as pessoas para não precisar pagar uma dívida que não era delas, apesar de funcionar como comédia, não possui desenvolvimento suficiente para ser memorável e acrescentar algo a série.

Concluindo, Uchi no Shishou wa Shippo ga Nai possui um rakugo muito eficiente, de forma imersiva dando vida a experiência das histórias contadas, e quando as anedotas não eram contadas por inteiro recebiam sua atenção no pós-créditos fornecendo por vezes até informações que abrangiam o conhecimento sobre o tema. Apesar da comédia funcionar, principalmente pelo rakugo, a narrativa não possui conteúdo suficiente para sustentar a obra, dessa forma ela se torna monótoma e rasa.

Reviewer’s Rating: 4

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	Poll: Uchi no Shishou wa Shippo ga Nai Episode 1 Discussion ( 1 2 ) Stark700 - Sep 30, 2022	79 replies	by Niveen_Sleem »» Oct 23, 1:15 AM
	Poll: Uchi no Shishou wa Shippo ga Nai Episode 13 Discussion Stark700 - Dec 23, 2022	23 replies	by James_xeno »» Jan 17, 12:41 PM
	Is it just me or are the rakugo not that funny? RealNath - Jan 13, 2023	13 replies	by ATOMICEMPEROR »» Jun 22, 2023 4:29 AM
	Poll: Uchi no Shishou wa Shippo ga Nai Episode 2 Discussion Stark700 - Oct 7, 2022	31 replies	by Dawizz »» May 25, 2023 1:48 AM
	Poll: Uchi no Shishou wa Shippo ga Nai Episode 12 Discussion Stark700 - Dec 16, 2022	12 replies	by YudiYusantoS »» Jan 20, 2023 6:49 AM