Bocchi the Rock!

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Japanese: ぼっち・ざ・ろっく!

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Information

Type: Manga

Volumes: Unknown

Chapters: Unknown

Status: Publishing

Published: Dec 19, 2017 to ?

Genre: Comedy

Themes: CGDCT, Music

Serialization: Manga Time Kirara MAX

Authors: Hamaji, Aki (Story & Art)

Statistics

Score: 8.29¹ (scored by 6,591 users)

¹ indicates a weighted score.

Ranked: #322²

² based on the top manga page. Please note that 'R18+' titles are excluded.

Popularity: #790

Members: 24,356

Favorites: 953

Resources

Wikipedia

8.29

Ranked #322Popularity #790Members 24,356

MangaManga Time Kirara MAXHamaji, Aki (Story & Art)

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Synopsis

High school student Hitori "Bocchi" Gotou has no social life or any friends—unless you count her guitar. She dreams of creating a school band in the hopes that using her instrument will elevate her social standing. However, despite spending the last two years diligently practicing guitar, she is no closer to her goal.

Although she has gained a following online for her guitar covers of popular songs, Bocchi's lack of social skills means that her dream may ultimately be impossible. But one day, drummer Nijika Ijichi spots Bocchi with her guitar alone in a park. Desperately in need of a guitarist, Nijika quickly recruits Bocchi to the band that Nijika has formed with bassist Ryou Yamada—Kessoku Band. Though overwhelmed and left floundering at the sudden social interaction, Bocchi realizes this may be the start of something bigger.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

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Background

Bocchi the Rock! ranked eighth in the Best Printed Manga category at the fifth Tsugi ni Kuru Manga Awards in 2019.

Kessoku Band is inspired by the J-rock band Asian Kung-Fu Generation, where the characters share surnames and instrument roles with their counterparts.

The series has been published in English by Yen Press since October 17, 2023.

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Characters

Gotou, Hitori

Main

Yamada, Ryou

Main

Ijichi, Nijika

Main

Kita, Ikuyo

Main

Hiroi, Kikuri

Supporting

PA-san

Supporting

Ijichi, Seika

Supporting

Gotou, Futari

Supporting

Gotou, Naoki

Supporting

Gotou, Michiyo

Supporting

Reviews

Oct 28, 2022

OG_Otaku

Recommended

Preliminary (7/? eps)

The new CloverWorks anime Bocchi the Rock! is a hit.

The original source is a 4-koma or four-panel comic strip collected into magazine "volumes" by Manga Time Kirara MAX. There is no official English translation that I can find, and English translations can be found on the usual websites.

I am not a fan of the 4-koma type of manga. The format looks like a cheap web 'toon or a story meant to be read on your smart phone. The four panel style limits the amount of information that can be included. It is a stripped down or spare manga. This is just my personal ...

Open

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Oct 14, 2023

baragon_enjoyer

Recommended

Preliminary (52/? eps)

*the mildest of spoilers for an early character's introduction scene, a different early character's primary motivation, and an off-hand mention to what chapter number a major arc ends on*

you ever watch a show on like, paleontology or something, dinosaurs, and the dude takes some animal’s partial skeleton, like just a small skull fragment, and half a jaw bone, and then somehow uses that to completely extrapolate an entire animal out of that? like full skeleton, muscle structure, organs, even like, behaviors and such?

“oh yeah, because it’s skull was shaped like this, we can figure out that it ate this and that and probably lived ...

Open

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Oct 29, 2022

East

Recommended

Preliminary (25/? eps)

Spoiler

(Contains spoilers for Chapter 1 and 2 only)
Bocchi the Rock is one of the most refreshing and unconventional CGDCT manga of the past several years. Tackling the importance of self-identity, motivation and impure dreams, in an age where everyone may find it easier to fit in to what the world wants them to be, this series explores Hitori Gotou's journey towards being true to herself and others as she tackles her inner desire for stardom — a struggle that all lonely introverts will deeply resonate in, especially those who are deeply passionate about their main hobby. It has its own special way of giving you ... that brutal dose of reality without bringing it in too heavy. Since this series is published by Kirara, it still has that core essence of hope that's prevalent throughout other comics within the Kirara family that gives a majority of their works their well-deserved highly revered reputation amongst people who read 4-koma. You would think that with a protagonist like Hitori (who I will be referring to as Bocchi from now on) this sort of ethos would clash way too much with the pessimistic and sensitive personality she has, but personally, it's exactly what the formula was missing for so long.

That's because, more importantly than anything, this is a coming-of-age manga. A very funny, well-grounded and honest one, at that.

Bocchi is a complete shut-in introvert and an incredibly talented guitarist who goes under the alias guitarhero online, uploading guitar covers of popular songs to great success. She finds it to be her only real form of self-validation as she desperately tries to make friends in real life, with each attempt failing just as bad as the other throughout her entire life. However, now that she's in high school, she finally gets the chance to slowly break out of her shell under the most absurd circumstances. After a chance encounter with a sociable drummer girl she met at a park for literally two minutes, she was basically kidnapped to perform at a live house in the most scuffed effort possible. This is where we meet the other two main characters: Nijika, the drummer, and Ryou, the bassist, the founding members of Kessoku Band. Their chemistry as a band was bad, barely making a performance worth noting, and they acknowledge this bluntly. However, by the end, they all find it oddly redeeming.

A lot of Bocchi's core traits are brought out in just these first two chapters alone; she's both selfish and selfless, she's empathetic, she spaces out into the world of her imagination often which leads her into self-indulgent tangents, she has a hard time refusing things when she really wants to, loves receiving praise for her talent and good will, and apologizes way too much due to her record low self-esteem. This perfectly clashes with the optimistic and enthusiastic aura of Nijika and the overconfident, albeit stoic demeanor of Ryou, which allows for some of the most absurd, creative and hilarious comedy as well as the most deep, contemplative and interesting philosophies about life that I've read in any 4-koma manga. A few chapters after the first two you'll meet Ikuyo for the first time, who is like the extraverted foil to Bocchi. As the story goes on, Bocchi realizes that she has people in her life aside from her family who genuinely care about her and want to see her succeed, which becomes her driving force to improve and be honest about her desires and who she really is on the inside. Nijika, Ryou and Kita all have their own words of wisdom for Bocchi that allow her to see the world in a new way somehow; from individualism to sanguinity, alongside all the hilarity. They all exchange their values with each other and slowly mature.

It should be obvious enough but music manga are made by people who LOVE music. If you are in any way familiar with the J-rock and Yakousei scene in Japan, you will recognize many of the tributes at the beginning of every chapter and references to bands and songs scattered throughout. I'm not saying you won't enjoy it just because you don't have knowledge of the music this series references though, because once again, Bocchi the Rock is smart about this and keeps it at a minimum to focus on the plotline, all while also introducing you to the indie music scene that's rocked Japan these past few years, while both satirizing it and keeping it realistic — a tone that's consistent throughout basically the entire story. It's like the mangaka is recommending you the bands referenced while you learn more about the circumstances and expectations of being a musician in the modern age. It tackles this topic in a super easy-to-understand manner, giving you the ins-and-outs of everything, from how music clubs/live houses operate, band advertising and live performance funding, to music bloggers and getting signed to record labels as well as how broad and unique the people who play music in the Japanese indie scene are. This is very interwoven with Kessoku Band's bumpy road to success and Bocchi's interactions with the people she meets outside of her own band, with every new encounter bringing out different parts of herself that help her improve as a person.

4-koma pacing can be a bit overwhelming to some people, but as someone who has read a lot of this manga format, this is actually very consistent and comfortable. Bocchi the Rock's anime adaptation is already a massive hit and by proxy, I hope the manga will be just as successful. The writing is sublime, the comedic punchlines are golden, all four of the main characters are super believable and easy to relate to. You can tell that Hamaji Aki, the mangaka for this series, loves her characters and what she's making right from the start.

Bocchi the Rock is a love letter to introversion, to music, to friendship, and to growing up. You never know when your passion will pay off, but if you keep persisting, maybe a beautiful set of opportunities or coincidences may also come your way over time and you'll find yourself challenging your own expectations. You may find people who you never thought you'd be making friends with, and you might end up feeling more true to who you are and who you want to be. The youth we all experience never truly fades away.

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Poll: Bocchi the Rock! Chapter 83 Discussion Dumb - Jan 7	0 replies	by Dumb »» Jan 7, 1:31 PM
Poll: Bocchi the Rock! Chapter 82 Discussion TheSelleri - Oct 30, 2024	3 replies	by Dumb »» Nov 1, 2024 7:18 AM
worth reading? manalishi - Aug 8, 2023	16 replies	by Dumb »» Oct 19, 2024 7:42 PM
Poll: Bocchi the Rock! Chapter 81 Discussion TheSelleri - Sep 29, 2024	1 replies	by Dumb »» Sep 30, 2024 3:37 AM
Poll: Bocchi the Rock! Chapter 80 Discussion mshfqtny - Aug 24, 2024	2 replies	by _Us3f »» Aug 25, 2024 11:21 PM

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