Inktober 2017 – Day 19: Dear Old Friend

Okay so, this one might be confusing or even creepy unless you’ve watched or read Genroku Showa Rakugo Shinjuu – but I’ll see if I can explain the gist of it without spoilers:

This features Kikuhiko (the elderly man) and Sukeroku (the ghost), two men who as children were both adopted in the showa era to become apprentices for Rakugo – the traditional Japanese art of storytelling. They were childhood friends, like brothers, but also rivals.

I won’t say why or how, but Sukeroku dies a tragic early death. Kikuhiko feels intense guilt for the rest of his life (and that’s putting it lightly), even as decades pass and their generations continue. He sometimes he sees an apparition of his old friend, Sukeroku; which could either be 1) an actual apparition or 2) a metaphoric representation of him being haunted by his guilt.

However, I don’t believe Sukeroku would have held a grudge against Kikuhiko, so maybe he’s there to offer comfort (in my picture)… but with Kikuhiko complains instead. (A completely normal occurrence for them.)

…Have I intrigued anybody enough to watch this hidden gem yet?? :P It’s not a popular genre but it’s very interesting, full of drama, mystery, historic facts, romance and quality storytelling. It follows from the showa era to modern times, and how the art of Rakugo changes. It’s available on on Crunchyroll if anyone’s interested~

I personally wish I had watched it sooner. I put it off for maybe a year, and I watched it slowly because it dealt with dark subject matter such as death. But by the time I finished it, it had become a favourite of mine, and I wish other people would give it a chance too.

ARTWORK, Fan Art, Inktober 2017, Traditional