A surprising standout of the Fall 2022 season,Bocchi The Rock!is a slice-of-life anime with a dazzling cast of characters. It blendsa classic style with surrealist animation, similar toMob Psycho 100, and is a surprising, charming love letter to the music it’s about. Hardcore music fans will notice each instrument is modeled after a real-life counterpart - like Ryo’s Fender Player Series P-Bass, and Bocchi’s Gibson Les Paul 68 Custom Ebony Ultra Light Aged.
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The series follows ‘Bocchi’ (real name Hitori Gotoh), a frighteningly relatable, anxiety-ridden guitarist with no idea how to navigate the world. After years of being unable to attract friends, extroverted Nijika Ijichi finds her alone in a park and begs her to join her band. Unable to say no, Bocchi is swept into thehigh-stress world of rock music.Bocchi The Rock!is a refreshing take on the high school music genre, and is an absolute must-watch for any anime fan.
16-17
156cm/5'1"
15-16
April 21
4Drummer and Leader Nijika Ijichi
Nijika Ijichi, named afterASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION’s drummer Kiyoshi Ijichi, isthe leader, founder, and drummer of Kessoku Band. Kind, energetic, and with seemingly endless patience for the hijinks of her band, Nijika has great admiration for band culture and live music. Having been raised by her older sister, she grew to admire the music scene she was always surrounded by and made it her goal to make her sisters club, STARRY, a famous and renowned music space.
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Along with her best friend Ryo Yamada, she started Kessoku Band in order to one day generate more publicity for the club, and to be a part of the scene she grew up in. She seems to be the most sensible of the group, and the one to calm things down or comfort her members when things go wrong.
3Ladykiller Bassist Ryō Yamada
Ryo Yamada is Kessoku’s bassist. As well as playing the bass, she writes music to go with Bocchi’s lyrics. She’s also the one that came up with the name ‘Kessoku Band’ (Kessoku meaning zip-tie, something she thought was very funny). Ryo is one of the most popular characters to come out of the show, thanks to the fact that all of her members seem to be a little bit in love with her.
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Ryomay have a cool exterior, but her friends know her to be a caring and eccentric character with strange tastes and habits (for example, she will eat weeds for weeks after spending all her money on a new bass). Nijika, while seemingly her opposite, is her closest friend, and the reason she decided to give music another chance after the failure of her previous band. She’s named after ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION’s bass player and backing vocalist Takahiro Yamada and plays a Fender Player Series P-Bass PF Polar White.
2Runaway Guitarist Ikuyo Kita
Lovestruck by Ryo’s androgynous charm, the extroverted Kita jumps at the chance to join Kessoku Band as their lead singer/guitarist. The issue, however, is that she can’t play the guitar. She ends up feeling so humiliated that she runs away from the band, only to be dragged back by Bocchi to serve as her own replacement. Luckily for the band, Kita ends up sticking with them, and becomes their guitarist, lead singer, and social media manager!
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She acts as a foil to Bocchi, with a distinctly extroverted charm that only draws attention to Bocchi’s misgivings. Her borderline obsessive love of Ryo serves as a major motivator for her to stick with the band, but she also forms a close connection with Bocchi as she teaches her how to actually play the guitar. Her name comes from Kensuke Kita, ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION’s lead guitarist, and backup singer.
1The Titular Bocchi!
Hitori ‘Bocchi’ Gotoh isan extremely socially anxious introvertand the titular protagonist of the show. She’s also the lead guitarist and songwriter for Kessoku Band! Her complete lack of social skills prevented her from joining a band in middle school, and it seemed as though she wouldn’t make it in high school either. Luckily for her, they’re also responsible for her joining Kessoku Band - she was just too nervous and awkward to say no to Nijika. While she’s a very talented guitarist, she has trouble keeping in time with the rest of the band both socially and musically.
Bocchi’s extreme shyness isthe driving force of most of the comedyinBocchi The Rock, though other characters have their moments as well. Her anxiety is laced throughout the show, from surrealist fantasies to genuinely heartfelt moments about her progress as a person with mental health issues. Like the rest of the band, her name is inspired by an ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION band member, the songwriter and rhythm guitarist Masafumi Gotoh.
