BUU8800 Posted November 18, 2016 Share Posted November 18, 2016 MAL Synopsis: Yotarou is a former yakuza member fresh out of prison and fixated on just one thing: rather than return to a life of crime, the young man aspires to take to the stage of Rakugo, a traditional Japanese form of comedic storytelling. Inspired during his incarceration by the performance of distinguished practitioner Yakumo Yuurakutei, he sets his mind on meeting the man who changed his life. After hearing Yotarou's desperate appeal for his mentorship, Yakumo is left with no choice but to accept his very first apprentice. As he eagerly begins his training, Yotarou meets Konatsu, an abrasive young woman who has been under Yakumo's care ever since her beloved father Sukeroku Yuurakutei, another prolific Rakugo performer, passed away. Through her hidden passion, Yotarou is drawn to Sukeroku's unique style of Rakugo despite learning under contrasting techniques. Upon seeing this, old memories and feelings return to Yakumo who reminisces about a much earlier time when he made a promise with his greatest rival. Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu is a story set in both the past and present, depicting the art of Rakugo, the relationships it creates, and the lives and hearts of those dedicated to keeping the unique form of storytelling alive. Season 2 Begins January 6 One of 2016's best series returns with a concluding season this winter, can't wait! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EyeOfPain Posted November 18, 2016 Share Posted November 18, 2016 I'm looking forward to the second season, since it will surely have more Konatsu. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUU8800 Posted November 18, 2016 Author Share Posted November 18, 2016 I'm looking forward to the second season, since it will surely have more Konatsu. Agreed, I so wanted to see more of her and maybe even her do rakugo, though that doesn't seem likely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EyeOfPain Posted November 18, 2016 Share Posted November 18, 2016 Agreed, I so wanted to see more of her and maybe even her do rakugo, though that doesn't seem likely. As long as there's one performance with Miyuki Sawashiro doing sultry Rakugo, I will be satisfied. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
granzchesta Posted November 19, 2016 Share Posted November 19, 2016 I can't wait for the second season! I remember being so down on it in the middle of the first season because I didn't think the flashback would take this long. And now I already miss Sukeroku (and Miyokichi to a much lesser extent). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUU8800 Posted November 25, 2016 Author Share Posted November 25, 2016 More Information Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EyeOfPain Posted November 25, 2016 Share Posted November 25, 2016 Yu KobayashiI must be going crazy, or deaf. I could have sworn Konatsu was played by Miyuki Sawashiro. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUU8800 Posted November 26, 2016 Author Share Posted November 26, 2016 I must be going crazy, or deaf. I could have sworn Konatsu was played by Miyuki Sawashiro. Yeah I checked that on MAL after your previous post but didn't say anything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EyeOfPain Posted November 26, 2016 Share Posted November 26, 2016 Yeah I checked that on MAL after your previous post but didn't say anything. I am very disappointed in myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUU8800 Posted November 26, 2016 Author Share Posted November 26, 2016 I am very disappointed in myself. We all are. ....naw I can't even leave it with that obvious joke we all love ya Pain! :-* Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUU8800 Posted December 31, 2016 Author Share Posted December 31, 2016 It's bumpin' time! We're less than a week away now from Season 2! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
granzchesta Posted December 31, 2016 Share Posted December 31, 2016 my body is ready Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gina Szanboti Posted January 1, 2017 Share Posted January 1, 2017 I'm excited. I'm still betting that the story Kiku told wasn't entirely truthful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EyeOfPain Posted January 1, 2017 Share Posted January 1, 2017 I'm excited. I'm still betting that the story Kiku told wasn't entirely truthful. He is a master storyteller, after all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUU8800 Posted January 6, 2017 Author Share Posted January 6, 2017 We're back at last! Nice re-introduction episode and intro. Feels good to get a taste of those rakugo scenes again. Yotaro seems to be doing pretty well all things considered. Taking Sukeroku's name, wooing Konatsu...kinda, and focusing on a goal: ensuring rakugo lives on in the new age. Konatsu is still the character who interests me the most, though it's too early to speculate how her part will play out. Well, that's all for now I guess. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EyeOfPain Posted January 7, 2017 Share Posted January 7, 2017 We're back at last! Nice re-introduction episode and intro. Feels good to get a taste of those rakugo scenes again. Yotaro seems to be doing pretty well all things considered. Taking Sukeroku's name, wooing Konatsu...kinda, and focusing on a goal: ensuring rakugo lives on in the new age. Konatsu is still the character who interests me the most, though it's too early to speculate how her part will play out. Well, that's all for now I guess. They'll need to allow female rakugo performers eventually, I just wonder if Konatsu will be the one to break that barrier, making this the prequel to Joshiraku. It's definitely cute how bashful is around Yota, and that big grin of his is infectious. I do wonder if Kiku intentionally narrowed the world of Rakugo in order to distill it and prepare it to survive a new era, or if he really did want to kill it, but had a momentary lapse when meeting Yota. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUU8800 Posted January 7, 2017 Author Share Posted January 7, 2017 God I hope she does rakugo. I wanted it from episode 1 but remain skeptic it'll happen. Hard to say about Kiku, but I tend to think it was the latter...for now anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hidden Posted January 12, 2017 Share Posted January 12, 2017 konatsu and that short hair tho. and that baby...whaaat. i missed the rakugo. and like last season, i am enraptured enough by the show that the episodes seem to end in 5 minutes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EyeOfPain Posted January 12, 2017 Share Posted January 12, 2017 konatsu and that short hair tho. and that baby...whaaat. i missed the rakugo. and like last season, i am enraptured enough by the show that the episodes seem to end in 5 minutes. Same here. The episode went by in a flash, and I just wanted to spend more time with these people. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUU8800 Posted January 12, 2017 Author Share Posted January 12, 2017 Same here. The episode went by in a flash, and I just wanted to spend more time with these people. Then good news! It's nearly Friday! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUU8800 Posted January 13, 2017 Author Share Posted January 13, 2017 Oof! Now that was a painful episode. Right from the op, which itself seemed to give off a melancholic tone. The overcast skies were certainly gloomy as Yotaro's past began catching up with him. I remember an episode of a certain series I watched last year where the big twist revolved around a hidden yakuza tattoo and getting angry over it, how it implied the sins of the past could never be forgiven. Some similar sentiments swelled up within me here. And seeing Yotaro's pained performance, his sweating and twitching, it was difficult to sit through. He's got a long way to go. And that's not even mentioning Konatsu! Who was she with at the end there? Her baby's father? More on that next week no doubt, but after their opening scene together it has certainly left me troubled. And just to add one more bit of gloom we got her tearful sleep and promise of murder towards Yakumo, who just wants to be put out of his misery. Sheesh...well, at least the kid was cute! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUU8800 Posted January 20, 2017 Author Share Posted January 20, 2017 Well as I expected we had a confrontation with the father of Konatsu's child this week. And to think it was the boss responsible for sending Yotaro to prison! That's gotta be painful, but Yotaro handled it like a champ. Refusing to back down and using his rakugo to express his feelings. I loved how this tied in to his inability to understand the meaning behind the rant performance, as well as Konatsu's fear of winding up like her mother. It certainly seemed as if that was a distinct possibility without Yotaro's intervention. I'd like to say this matter is resolved for good now, but we have lots of episodes left so it wouldn't surprise me if it got revisited. Still, that end scene of Konatsu calling Yotaro daddy to her, or rather their, son was an encouraging sign. This episode really flew by and had me deeply invested throughout. Probably the best of the three so far. Also, while I knew it wouldn't happen and wouldn't make any sense, just to show how wrapped up I got in this when I saw Yotaro get roughed up a bit I really wanted Yakumo to burst in with a group of hired rakugo goons to beat the everloving shit out of that boss. > Also, also nearly didn't mention this but I'll throw it out there. Konatsu in the preview has me worried she has no plan to perform rakugo herself anymore...which I hope isn't the case. Well we'll hafta see... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EyeOfPain Posted January 21, 2017 Share Posted January 21, 2017 Also, also nearly didn't mention this but I'll throw it out there. Konatsu in the preview has me worried she has no plan to perform rakugo herself anymore...which I hope isn't the case. Well we'll hafta see... She'll be working in the theater. I can't see that as anything but progress towards her inevitable debut as zenza. Was he really the father? Feels like there was some implication that Yota might have been a bit mistaken... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUU8800 Posted January 21, 2017 Author Share Posted January 21, 2017 She'll be working in the theater. I can't see that as anything but progress towards her inevitable debut as zenza. Was he really the father? Feels like there was some implication that Yota might have been a bit mistaken... As a music lady. Regardless YOU BETTER BE FUCKING RIGHT OR BUU EAT YOU! Someone on MAL suggested he wasn't the dad too but if it means we're done with daddy drama, which like I said we probably aren't, then I really hope he was. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
granzchesta Posted January 22, 2017 Share Posted January 22, 2017 It's been driving me crazy that the kid's name hasn't even been brought up at all (if he has one). Maybe the next episode will clear that up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EyeOfPain Posted January 23, 2017 Share Posted January 23, 2017 It's been driving me crazy that the kid's name hasn't even been brought up at all (if he has one). Maybe the next episode will clear that up. I thought someone said "Shin-chan"? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUU8800 Posted January 23, 2017 Author Share Posted January 23, 2017 I definitely don't know his name either way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
granzchesta Posted January 23, 2017 Share Posted January 23, 2017 I thought someone said "Shin-chan"? If that's it, I completely missed it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUU8800 Posted January 27, 2017 Author Share Posted January 27, 2017 Yep, he's named Shin, and with this week's timeskip he's a darling. Holy fuck, the thing I wanted since the very first episode of season one happened this week: Konatsu did rakugo! It was to kindergartners but I'll take it! As I feared she was planning to just play music, but my man Yotaro...err Sukeroku wasn't having that. And she was wonderful and that tearful embrace after was wonderful and gah! It was so beautiful! And he was quick to call her on her BS reasoning for not doing anymore after too, but more on that later...I hope! This was the best episode of the entire series so far! And we have 8 left! Yota and Konatsu and Shin seem to be doing wonderfully so...from where will the remaining conflict bud? Well I suspect Yakumo, who still seems determined to see rakugo die, and looked a bit out of it in that preview...or maybe it was just part of his performance. We'll see but, god...just...so good! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EyeOfPain Posted January 29, 2017 Share Posted January 29, 2017 Yep, he's named Shin, and with this week's timeskip he's a darling. Holy fuck, the thing I wanted since the very first episode of season one happened this week: Konatsu did rakugo! It was to kindergartners but I'll take it! As I feared she was planning to just play music, but my man Yotaro...err Sukeroku wasn't having that. And she was wonderful and that tearful embrace after was wonderful and gah! It was so beautiful! And he was quick to call her on her BS reasoning for not doing anymore after too, but more on that later...I hope! This was the best episode of the entire series so far! And we have 8 left! Yota and Konatsu and Shin seem to be doing wonderfully so...from where will the remaining conflict bud? Well I suspect Yakumo, who still seems determined to see rakugo die, and looked a bit out of it in that preview...or maybe it was just part of his performance. We'll see but, god...just...so good! Pretty much my thoughts. But every week, I'm still amazed Matsuda is still around. I thought he was an old man back in the '50s. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUU8800 Posted February 3, 2017 Author Share Posted February 3, 2017 I was right to be concerned about Yakumo in the preview for this week's episode. From that hint of him not eating I figured something was gonna happen. I don't think he's dead, but with the purple backdrop(my favorite color btw) and eerie incense created specter of Miyokichi, that was quite the unsettling performance either way. Shoulda aired around Halloween. No surprise he saw Miyokichi in Konatsu. And that Sukeroku cliffhanger certainly leaves his fate ambiguous. Doesn't help that he wasn't in the preview at all either. I feel like that room with the candles was referencing something, besides hell or whathaveyou, but I'm not sure. I vaguely recall a story from season one involving death and candles, but again I'm not sure. Maybe it tied into this week's story. Otherwise such a pleasant episode too, with Yotaro Konatsu and Shin being adorable together. Plus his finished tattoo! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
granzchesta Posted February 5, 2017 Share Posted February 5, 2017 I can't help but feel that the preview is just gonna be misleading. Such a cliffhanger!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUU8800 Posted February 11, 2017 Author Share Posted February 11, 2017 I'm a bit late this week, but no surprise this was another very strong episode. My goodness, the mental fortitude it must have taken Yotaro to give such an outstanding performance while unsure of his master's life! My god those tears at the end of it! And in the car with little Shin asking why they were crying...such a good boy. That and their tearful reaction at seeing Yakumo wake up at the end really tug at the heartstrings. So they're trying to close down the old rakugo hall eh? I couldn't help but compare the hall to Yakumo himself in that scene, aged and in danger of dying. Well next week looks to be even more emotional with another trip down memory lane due to this Sukeroku video recording. For Konatsu and Yakumo both if he sees it most likely. Finally, I don't really want to bring this up because frankly I'd prefer if the matter was already settled, but...considering Konatsu's reaction to that guy's "Finally looked my way" line I'm wondering if we've found Shin's actual biological father...or if I'm just being paranoid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUU8800 Posted February 17, 2017 Author Share Posted February 17, 2017 Holy fuck show! For what was mostly a low-key trip down memory lane episode they dropped an enormous bomb on us: The true happenings leading to Sukeroku and Miyokichi's deaths. What the hell...why did she stab him? She's even more of a monster after this revelation, and she was already pretty damn awful. Watching their fabricated ending from season one again would definitely help. I remember it was played off with pure dumb luck, bad luck, just as Miyokichi was about to make an earnest effort to change her ways. Well that's all out the window...no pun intended. And Konatsu...still ignorant of her role I assume. Yotaro's tearful hug was certainly deserved, but...he can't possibly tell her now...right? And oh god Yakumo, shouldering all that burden. Christ, I vaguely remember some speculation back in season one that something like this might happen but...still, that was a massive punch to the gut. It almost seems quaint to bother mentioning this now after all that, but I did notice too that the images of Miyokichi on the record changed in the opening this week. I don't remember seeing those images in previous episodes anyway, could be wrong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gina Szanboti Posted February 18, 2017 Share Posted February 18, 2017 I'm still betting that the story Kiku told wasn't entirely truthful. I knew it. Buu, you're right, the images of Miyo on the record were different this time. Did you also catch that Sukeroku's eyes were red when he opens Kiku's kimono to show his skeleton the week before last? It was really weird looking. I'm looking forward to finding out the rest of the story about that night, like what precipitated the whole thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUU8800 Posted February 18, 2017 Author Share Posted February 18, 2017 No, I missed that. Frankly I'm wondering/not sure if we'll get the details behind said precipitation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
granzchesta Posted February 19, 2017 Share Posted February 19, 2017 I thought the opening did seem different. I really feel like I need to watch that entire episode in season 1 now. Holy crap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUU8800 Posted February 24, 2017 Author Share Posted February 24, 2017 How Yakumo got his groove back: the episode. Or at least it was certainly shaping up that way before that surprise ending. If the mob boss' conversation in the rain earlier in the episode with Yakumo was supposed to be foreshadowing, some sort of acknowledgment that he expected this arrest to happen, it completely flew over my head. I feel bad for those around him like that older woman whose name I don't know, and Yakumo of course. There were plenty of sweet moments this episode before then though. Yotaro and Konatsu under the bridge, that women flinging the retreating Yakumo into the lion's den, and of course Yotaro performing Sukeroku's story. Konatsu's tearful scene with Yakumo on the bridge and Shin asking him how Sukeroku died certainly took on different meanings after last week's revelation. And well...that's all until next week, I guess. Not sure where we go from here but...did I see Yotaro in a prison outfit in that preview? Please god tell me that's a flashback if so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gina Szanboti Posted March 3, 2017 Share Posted March 3, 2017 I'm guessing it's a flashback too. I hope. Too bad the cops couldn't wait a little longer to come bustin' in. I'm thinking that the merchant's story is supposed to be instructive or in contrast to (not sure which yet) the lies Yakumo told Konatsu. In the story, the lie made their lives better, and the truth yielded forgiveness. Not sure if that's also the case for Konatsu. Did it make her life better? Instead of coping with it, she ended up hating her surrogate father and becoming bitter. Will the truth now allow her to forgive him? Even in Yakumo's version, he took the blame for everyone's misery, if not the deaths. The other interesting tie-in is the story about the Inari brothel, where the three characters were bound so that they had to leave together. Miyokichi and Sukeroku can't move on until Yakumo is ready to go, and he can't go until they're at peace (see Sukeroku barring his path to the gate before sending him back), which I think will only happen when the whole story comes out. Neat Catch-22... I really felt bad for Yakumo though - over and over and over he kept getting hit with finding out what everyone has been doing behind his back. That totally sucks. And the scene on the bridge was just devastating. And omg is Akira Ishida giving the performances of his life week after week. This show... ::sigh:: On a lighter note, if you're also watching Gintama, a couple of weeks ago they did a gag with several of the main characters (including Ishida's Katsura) repeatedy spitting on another one. There was just something ineffably sublime about going directly from Ishida's exquisite performance in Rakugo to his gleeful impersonation of a snarky llama in Gintama. And the week after that in Classicaloid, hearing him as Pad-kun cussing up a storm at a bird that just shit on him. The man is definitely showing his range this season! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUU8800 Posted March 3, 2017 Author Share Posted March 3, 2017 I am watching Gintama, but am only at episode 62 so if the character you're referencing has appeared by then I still don't recognize the voice. Although Inspector Megure from Detective Conan just recently showed up. Anywho... First, thank goodness Yotaro in prison really was just a flashback. That whole setup of prison rakugo made me think of Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison. Yakumo's performance was pretty brutal, and the spurned lover committing suicide with the guilt and despair accompanying the living partner certainly drew parallels with his own treatment of and by Miyokichi. Speaking of this episode really seemed to be going into Yakumo's death march mode until the very end. Complete with one last Shinigami performance with the shinigami appearing as Sukeroku. I honestly expected Yakumo to die with all that setup/buildup. But, Yotaro stepped up big again. And while the rakugo hall is gone, Yakumo decided to cling to life for those he cares about. It's kinda sweet, in a sense, and everyone certainly looks pretty darn happy in that preview. So...with 3 episodes to go what's left? Anymore misdirection? Things left unresolved? Has Yakumo found peace? And what of the future of rakugo? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gina Szanboti Posted March 3, 2017 Share Posted March 3, 2017 What's left? Finding out what happened before Matsuda and Konatsu showed up is the biggest thing. Konatsu finding out the truth and the fallout of that. There's lots left to do! I was afraid he was burning down the house during his Shinigami, and then he actually does it. OO Especially with all the "goodbye for good" noises he was making up to that point. Although the fan might've been a subconscious plea for Yotaro to come stop him. I loved the scene in the bath! Yakumo and Shin are just too adorable together. <3 Also Shin's "gotta take my book bag everywhere now" bit. I have to wonder if they let Yotaro in with his yakuza tats because of Yakumo or because he's respected in his own right now. Or if they just didn't care in that time and neighborhood. Man, it just creeps me right the fuck out whenever Sukeroku shows up in the OP with his shinigami eyes. Yikes. Oh, and yes, Katsura has been in Gintama since episode 5. He's the guy with the long hair that hangs out with Elizabeth the white duck/penguin/whatever thing with the signs. He's always trying to overthrow the government. People call him Zura, and he always responds with "Zura ja nai, Katsura da!" no matter what else is going on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUU8800 Posted March 4, 2017 Author Share Posted March 4, 2017 What's left? Finding out what happened before Matsuda and Konatsu showed up is the biggest thing. Konatsu finding out the truth and the fallout of that. Again, I don't think we're getting the first of these. And I actively don't want the second...which is unfortunately why I think we'll get it. Bath scene was cute I agree. He's Katsura!?! Yakumo? :o :o :o Well I don't hear it. He was huge in the Benizakara Arc I just finished less than 2 days ago too! I mean Katsura isn't one of my favorites anyway so maybe that's why? I'll hafta listen closer next episode he's in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gina Szanboti Posted March 4, 2017 Share Posted March 4, 2017 Why do you think we're not going to get it? The whole series has revolved around that moment. There's no way they'll leave it dark. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUU8800 Posted March 4, 2017 Author Share Posted March 4, 2017 I just...never got that impression? Whatever, at this point you're probably correct unfortunately but let's see! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gina Szanboti Posted March 4, 2017 Share Posted March 4, 2017 Unfortunately? Don't you want to know the full story? oO Btw, Ishida also voices Gaara in Naruto. : ) And a fuckton of other characters. (spoilered so the links don't overwhelm the page) The audio on this one sucks, but it has a lot more roles and more of his earlier work. Neither of those have Yakumo though, nor Cho Hakkai from Saiyuki, which for me is his signature role, since it's probably the first thing I heard him in. After that, whenever I'd watch something, I'd be all, "Hey, that's Hakkai!" (and yea! he's coming back for that role in the new Saiyuki) Kinda like Blum and Bebop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUU8800 Posted March 5, 2017 Author Share Posted March 5, 2017 Sure, unless it requires Konatsu to find out too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUU8800 Posted March 10, 2017 Author Share Posted March 10, 2017 Oh for fuck's sake show you did NOT just pull that ending on me! Please tell me you did not just pull that ending on me! You know, I literally had tears of joy in my eyes and a big dumb grin on my face for the last 3 - 5 minutes of the episode before that ending. It was pretty damn near perfect! Konatsu pregnant with Yotaro's child, implied to begin doing rakugo in earnest, coming to peace with Yakumo and receiving his blessing, Yotaro finding some radio success with the continued intent of helping Konatsu do rakugo, Shin implied to be a worthy heir someday, etc....etc....etc....and then that! It was so freaking perfect that, even though I knew we had 12 episodes, for a bit I honestly thought I'd made a mistake, that there was only 10 episodes after all, and was thoroughly satisfied with that ending. Damnit show! I mean, I'll admit I did suspect once or twice Yakumo might be dead on that chair but each time he'd smile or say something to ensure me that wasn't the case...and then that! So IS he dead? Is our final 2 episodes just gonna be Yakumo in the land of the dead and possibly an epilogue? Gah! Don't leave me hanging like this show! Also, for a brief second I thought we were gonna go the route where this entire episode was one giant fantasy. That Yakumo really died in the rakugo hall, Yotaro failing to save him. Oh I was gonna be so pissed if that was true...but the burn around his eye and the patch lead me moreso to believe he probably died on that chair at the end, if he did die. Which still sucks mind you but at least it wouldn't throw out all the good stuff this episode had! Damnit, it's gonna be a long week and that preview was no help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
granzchesta Posted March 10, 2017 Share Posted March 10, 2017 The same for me. As soon as that scene started, I was like "No no no no please tell me everything before this moment actually happened!" Until that moment, I felt that this was such a perfect episode and a great way to gain closure for Yakumo. I especially felt ecstatic when he began to chuckle during the radio program. What a nice touch! But if what seems to be happening is true, I'm glad that it's like this at least. It was a long time coming. I might have to bump this back up to number one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gina Szanboti Posted March 11, 2017 Share Posted March 11, 2017 I don't think he's dead yet. Hard to tell just from that little bit, but the lack of Miyokichi tells me he can't go yet, since I still think the Inari brothel rakugo implies that they all have to move on together. I do believe the Sukeroku that met him is the "real" one, and not the Shinigami one. But I think he's going to send him back, probably because of the unfinished business about the night of the deaths. Maybe Miyokichi needs that to be known, before she can move on. >.> The other thing that makes me think he's not permanently dead is the end of the OP, where the candle flame flickers to life rather than going out as it does in the previous episodes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUU8800 Posted March 17, 2017 Author Share Posted March 17, 2017 Huh...well alright then. I guess they decided to play it straight. Yakumo has died and spends this episode catching up with Sukeroku and Miyokichi before moving on. It was certainly a fitting sendoff for him, and another strong episode, but it failed to reach the emotional heights of the previous episode for me. No tears flowed this time, though I did get choked up a couple times. It bothered me that Yotaro was the only one seemingly left out of seeing Yakumo's final performance so when he got the nod during it I smiled, and Matsuda rowing him away was a very nice touch. So yeah, again I'll say it was a very good episode, just...not the best, or even second best this season for me which feels kinda strange since it served as the central character's sendoff. I guess it's a microcosm of my general feelings regarding this series as a whole. Which I was gonna save until next week but guess I'll mention now. Basically my primary interest when starting this series was seeing if Konatsu would do rakugo. It was the original piece of the plot synopsis which grabbed my attention enough to give it a try. And while the series as a whole has undoubtedly been excellent and season one was important, I definitely enjoyed this second season more because it focused more on her, and Yotaro. It was Yakumo's connection to them and their stories that interested me more than the past with Sukeroku and Miyokichi. In the present in Konatsu's case, I admit she has overlap between the two. And it seems like this episode was Yakumo making peace and saying goodbye to the season one regulars, whereas the previous episode was him doing the same with this season's...even if I didn't know it at the time. So I guess it makes sense then that I connected much more powerfully with the previous episode's events over these. With all that said I am glad we have one final episode to check up on those Yakumo left behind in the world of the living. Seems we'll be getting quite the time skip too if the two in the preview are who I think they are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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