Hello folks, and welcome back to Wrong Every Time. Today we’ve got a bittersweet spectacle ahead of us, as we journey through the final episode of Bocchi the Rock! I’m eager to see this last performance, but sad to say goodbye; Bocchi has been a delightful journey from start to finish, owing both to the inherent strength of its material and the inventive passion that Keichiro Saito and his team have brought to its adaptation.

Bocchi shines from pretty much whatever angle you choose to approach it. As a character-driven slice of life or situational comedy, the show possesses an uncommon understanding of anxiety’s variable manifestations, and realizes the halting, often circuitous process of acclimating yourself to social confidence and even performance with grace. But the show’s sensitivity of characterization isn’t limited to Bocchi herself; though they’re obviously given less screen time, her bandmates also come across as fully realized teenagers, convincing in both their oddball competencies and emotional blind spots.

Then there’s the show’s articulation of the music club scene: a quietly fading world of basement venues and found families, where weirdos who’ve found community in chord progressions assemble to bleed their hearts out on the stage. From the care taken in visually realizing these spaces to the tenderness with which characters attest to their worth, Bocchi the Rock serves as a loving tribute to local music scenes of all stripes, affirming how even those who have trouble speaking their feelings can feel at home strumming them on guitar.

And then, there’s of course Bocchi’s luxurious production merits, from its spacious, often thematically purposeful layouts to its countless stylistic digressions and animation flourishes. It seems like every moment spent with Bocchi offers some fresh reward, so while I’m loath to say goodbye, I’m thrilled we’re finishing on one last performance. Good luck up there, Bocchi!

Episode 12

We open as if we’re attempting to outrun the production’s ending, with Kita immediately counting us into the festival performance

As usual, nice fluidity to their body language during this performance. I appreciate how their movements betray their different confidence levels: Kita looks a bit stiff at the front, Bocchi’s looking down but swaying with the music, and Ryo’s bouncing in place, totally in her element

Also nice detail of Kita repeatedly glancing back at her fretboard, betraying her relative inexperience on the guitar through her need to visually affirm chord positioning

On stage, it’s easy to see how Bocchi’s bangs are essentially an extension of her tracksuit, shielding her from the world while she focuses on her guitar

I also like how the lyrics of this song attest to how, in spite of not making tons of friends and experiencing the “idyllic high school life” everyone dreams of, Bocchi has still accumulated countless vivid memories of her time here

Also just a plain solid song, with plenty of room for Bocchi to demonstrate her excellent lead guitar stylings. It’s nice to watch a music anime about music I might actually listen to on my own

Kikuri seems to notice something’s up with Bocchi

As expected, Nijika’s between-song rambling isn’t exactly the wittiest, but what she lacks in insight she makes up for in earnest enthusiasm. Look, most of us aren’t John Darnielle, we’re not going to have a perfectly crafted anecdote to furnish every song

My god, they really are excellent musicians. The next song opens with a call-and-response lead between Bocchi and Ryo, giving Ryo a chance to show off her own chops

And even Kita’s holding down the palm-slapped backing to their dueling leads. This band is going places!

Aw shit, Bocchi’s E string is out of tune

And now the peg for the B string’s fucked! It’s understandable given this is only her third live performance, but Bocchi, you gotta make sure your guitar’s in working shape before this, and generally should restring before any performance anyway

It makes perfect sense that her understanding of being a musician in a band would be wildly out of sync with her understanding of solo guitar play, but that doesn’t make this any less agonizing to watch

And Bocchi improvises, subbing a bottleneck for her pick in order to build a solo based on distorted chords rather than individual notes. Feels like a shot at Sonic Youth to essentially say their sound is like playing with a broken-string guitar on purpose

Another song whose lyrics attest to Bocchi’s journey, declaring her desire to shine alongside her bandmates as a constellation

All the sounds of the crowd fade away as Bocchi takes in their cheers. With just her own breathing ringing in her ears, she is fully in the moment, locked into precisely what her body is telling her. It’s a wild, electric feeling, to be up there in that rush of adrenaline, feeling somehow more comfortable and at home in your performance than anywhere else you could be

Kita, forever oblivious to the true magnitude of Bocchi’s insecurity, asks her to say a few words to the audience

At a loss for words, Bocchi remembers the glory of her mentor Kikuri, and attempts a stage dive directly into the auditorium floor. Oh, Bocchi

After the intense clutter of the auditorium, high-angle shots in the nurse’s office capture the blank walls and empty space around Bocchi, emphasizing the relative peace of this setting

With that atmosphere of intimacy established, Kita then relates some of her own anxieties, as she admits that she can’t do the kind of guitar performance that really draws in an audience. A top-down shot accentuates this acknowledgment of emotional distance with a depiction of the physical distance between them, the curtain rail providing a visual barrier

“I’m going to become good enough to support Hitori-chan!” I appreciate how well this show conveys both Kita’s good intentions, and how those good intentions can often lead to destructive ends through her failure to understand Bocchi

Bocchi is horrified to learn she is now known as “that crazy rocker chick” around school. But it’s everything you wanted, Bocchi!

Bocchi apologizes to her dad for breaking the guitar, but he just thinks it’s badass how she broke it mid-performance. I figured our visual accompaniment to this praise would be London Calling, but they actually go with the slightly deeper cut of Hendrix setting his guitar on fire

I suppose it shouldn’t be that unusual, but I’m glad this show about a rock band is actually invested in the history and mythology of rock. Some shows tend to treat rock as more of an aesthetic than a culture, which always rings inauthentic to me – unless, of course, the character being depicted is also all about aesthetics

Oh my god. It turns out her father has long since monetized her guitarhero videos, and so she’s actually got the cash for a new guitar

Lots of impressive manipulation of Bocchi’s tracksuit lineart as she lounges around her room. Feels like this production would demand a tracksuit animation specialist

Bocchi’s so amped up by the prospect of quitting her job that she immediately leaps to Super Bocchi Mark Two

She’s ultimately too anxious to actually follow through, which is definitely for the best. Whether she needs the money or not, working at Starry is crucial socialization for her

Kita idly asks why this area has so many music shops, and Ryo dives in with an expansive historical lesson. I continue to relate to Ryo more deeply than I’m comfortable admitting; I’m also indifferent-verging-on-hostile to socialization and idle conversation, but will dive in with a passion when the conversation arrives at something worth talking about

Excellent, highly expressive superdeformed Bocchis as she imagines being overwhelmed by a store clerk

Ryo is unsurprisingly one of those “customers” who goes into guitar shops in order to rock out and show off on the instruments, with no intention of actually buying anything

I like how many of this show’s background music tracks sound like a band either working out a new song or just tuning their guitars. Single isolated notes that still construct a pleasing, soothing melody

“Stop having a telepathic connection, you two!” It’s no surprise that Ryo is most frequently on Bocchi’s wavelength. The main difference between them is Ryo’s confidence, both in asserting her desires and remaining silent when she doesn’t want to speak

And so Bocchi sets off into the future, her new guitar at her side

And Done

Ah, what a delightful show that was! Thoughtful in its articulation of adolescent psychology (both anxious and otherwise), reverent in its celebration of rock club culture, snappy and imaginative in its gags, and absurdly generous in its art design and animation. A distinctive and remarkably well-realized show in every aspect, which through its careful realization of both Bocchi’s feelings and the magic of musical collaboration demonstrated art’s unique ability to bring us together, and drag us beyond our limiting conceptions of our potential. Bocchi and her friends all feel real and worth rooting for, and their trials served as a gripping testament to the power of music as culture, community, and performance. I’ll be first in line for your next show, Kessoku Band.

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