Shōwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjū

Episode 13

Well, I have to applaud Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju's continued ability to buck expectations by always taking the subtler, more emotionally complex narrative choice. After last week's literal cliffhanger ending, we cut forward several days to right after Sukeroku and Miyokichi's cremation. Making up a sort of funeral procession, Matsuda is despondent, Kikuhiko stone-faced, and Konatsu visibly angry. She glares at Kikuhiko, the man whose entry into her life triggered the series of events that killed her parents. Now acting as her caretaker, Kikuhiko acts coldly towards her. It's probably a defense mechanism against his own pain, considering what we know about him, but that doesn't matter in terms of how it affects Konatsu – they develop an antagonistic relationship with one another that will extend into her adulthood.

As a parent, Kikuhiko continues to discourage Konatsu's rakugo. This is probably a reflection of his own gender conditioning. (“You can't be a dancer because you're a boy!”) He's also provoking an antagonistic relationship with her because she reminds him of the forces that took Sukeroku away from him. (Miyokichi's pregnancy, Sukeroku's domestic responsibilities. and Kikuhiko's own personal failures.) On top of that, Konatsu harbors shades of her parents' personalities – Sukeroku's disregard for social convention alongside Miyokichi's tenacity – that Kikuhiko finds painful to see. So he averts his eyes, deliberately alienating her so that she won't try to connect with him.

It's especially a shame because – prior to Sukeroku's death – he was becoming a good daddy. Sure, he was strict and sometimes coy, but never dismissive like he is now. Sometimes he's even mean to his newly acquired ward. C'mon dude, you're raising this child. Show her an ounce of kindness. Previously, Kikuhiko and Konatsu shared a number of tender, happy moments. Now, it looks like those kinds of moments will never come again. Part of the second season's focus will probably be the reparation of their relationship. While it's doubtful that Kiku-san ends up being a good parent, we know that he does care about Konatsu underneath his mountain of baggage.

Ironically, Kikuhiko's fallen into the same depressive state as Sukeroku after his expulsion. When they lost the objects of their attachment (in Sukeroku's case, the idea that he could save rakugo, in Kikuhiko's, Sukeroku himself), they gave up on life and all other possibilities for happiness. Unable to take care of themselves, they also stop caring about others – meaning Konatsu.

Back in Tokyo, Kikuhiko meets up with the head of the Rakugo Association. He reveals that Kikuhiko, as the only shin'uchi who isn't already an old man, bears the burden of making sure that rakugo survives the next generation. Kikuhiko tears up, remembering Sukeroku's ambition and their promise to keep rakugo alive together. Now he bears that burden alone. It doesn't help that the head of the Rakugo Association – a stand in for the entire organization – seems content with just waiting around to die. You sure are piling a lot of responsibility onto Kiku's shoulders, dude. Are you sure there's nothing you can do in the meantime?

Some time later, we cut to a languid-looking Kikuhiko. He walks on stage for the first time under his new name, muttering in voiceover: "My name is Yurakutei Yakumo. I have long forgotten my real name." Kikuhiko has lost himself at last.

Cut back to the 1970s. It's very sudden. No transition or anything. Our old friend, the formerly convicted puppy man Yotaro, has just been promoted into a shin'uchi. Later that day, he arrives back home, where he encounters the adult Konatsu. They share a quiet moment together, drinking to celebrate Yotaro's promotion. She then demands that he perform Nozarashi, the routine that Sukeroku and Kikuhiko did for her during the two daddies episode. When Yotaro reaches the point where he's singing Su-chara-ka-chan! (the point where Sukeroku burst into the performance, if you remember), Konatsu starts crying and makes the sudden announcement that she's pregnant. Yotaro freaks out. (And I'm right there with him!) Konatsu says that Kikuhiko already knows and doesn't care. She refuses to say who the father is and wants to raise the baby herself – all to sustain Sukeroku's legacy, of course. After a moment, Yotaro counters with his own suggestion – that he could be the kid's father! To us, the romantic tension between Yotaro and Konatsu has been obvious since day one (look at the awkward pauses and body language while they were drinking), but Konatsu flips out. She storms out of the house, while Yotaro yells at her to consider his offer.

This leads us to the episode's final scene. Kikuhiko – now Yakumo – is washing the Yurakutei family grave. He and Matsuda are reminiscing about their lives and responsibilities. Kiku is now head of the Rakugo Association. He claims that while his position keeps changing, he personally doesn't change at all. Judging by the temporal abridgement of twenty years, I think we are to assume that nothing too important happened in that time. Both five-year-old and twenty-something Konatsu appear to have the same dynamic with their foster father. Is that true, or is the show withholding knowledge from us again?

In the end, Kikuhiko is greeted by a vision of Sukeroku, staring him down tranquilly. Kikuhiko interrogates it, asking what it wants. It doesn't respond. Suddenly confrontational, Kikuhiko projects his own feelings onto Sukeroku's smile. He asks if the spirit is angry at him for “what he's done” to Konatsu and rakugo. Again, no response. This exchange shows that, no matter how content Kikuhiko claims to be in his isolation, he is still a deeply tortured person. He's not happy in his solitude. It's just that, more than anything, he's afraid of change. This is probably because, from the beginning of his life, change has meant abandonment. Growing close to others has meant watching them disappear from your life. However, as Sukeroku's spectre fades, Yotaro walks through the smoke to replace him. This time, the figure is real. Yotaro, as a reformed criminal, functions as the embodiment of change. He's come to pray at the Yurakutei family grave, as well as request something of Kikuhiko – he wants permission to inherit the name Sukeroku. The episode ends on Kikuhiko's response – an expression of shock that fades into Sukeroku's placid face. He may have been hiding from it, but it looks like change has finally found Kiku-san.

And that's it for season one of Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju! It's nice that this episode's release coincided with the announcement of a second season, because this sure isn't a conclusion. It looks like these first thirteen episodes were dedicated to Kikuhiko's rise as a performer and transformation into the sad old curmudgeon he needed to be for the 1970s timeline. While this season is about Kikuhiko (and rakugo as an institution) failing to adapt to life's flow, the next season will probably be about his reparation, how he re-discovers himself in his old age. We'll also probably see rakugo embrace nontraditional performers like Yotaro and (hopefully) Konatsu. As I imagine it, the perfect ending would be Yotaro and Konatsu as married performers who respectively adopt the names Sukeroku and Yakumo. Thus, the long-awaited symbolic intergenerational marriage can be complete. Plus, we're treated to the further adventures of Puppy Man and (soon-to-be) Cool Mom. We won't know for a while yet, but if that's really how it ends, you heard it here first, folks.

So yeah, Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju is fantastic. It's a rare show that comes along where thousands of words (I've written approximately 15,000) don't even scratch the surface of all the story has to say. The only show like that I've gotten to review week-by-week before was Yurikuma Arashi, so I'm glad that it has a companion. Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju is deserving of extensive analysis from a wide variety of approaches, be they cultural, historical, queer, directorial, musical, etc. The comments section on these articles has always been buzzing. I'll take this time to say that it's been a joy to read everyone's takes on the show each week. This work is so dense that deciphering it becomes a group effort, and it's so emotional that different takes only enhance the experience. Thank you for all you've done, and I look forward to another season with you!

Beyond that, Rakugo Shinjuu is also just an entertaining, relatable, intensely emotional story. Despite the obscure subject matter, the barrier of entry is otherwise low. You don't need to be a Japanese history buff going in (although it helps). It's a truly complex prestige series for all audiences like Mad Men – another portrait of an era through representative character studies.

Studio DEEN even pulled out their A-game to make this the best production I've even seen from them. Considering that DEEN shows aren't known for their visual splendor, this counts as a minor miracle. This show never had a ton of animation, and there was frequent off-model wonkiness, but the direction, art design, vocal performances, and sound design made up for that at all times. You can tell that the people behind this admired the material and tried to make the best show possible out of it. The last marriage of strong raw material, adaptational savvy, and sheer effort that I've seen on this level was last year's Blood Blockade Battlefront (although that resulted in an entirely different type of show).

It's only halfway complete, but Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju already stands among the best that anime has to offer. I will make a quick note that I have learned a little bit about what happens going forward, and if you were put off by some tone problems at the end of the previous episode, those WILL get addressed. But for now, it's time for the long intermission.

Grade: A

Shōwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjū is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

Gabriella Ekens studies film and literature at a US university. Follow her on twitter.