Last fall saw a new anime series based on a four-panel manga arrived with Bocchi the Rock. The official site set an October 8th, 2022 debut and it had a solid run with Crunchyroll simulcasting it. We learned in May 2023 that a compilation film of the series is set for a spring 2024 debut and they’ve dropped a promo and key visual for it that you can see below. Recently, a live-stream event revealed that it’ll be a two-part compilation film with them arriving in the spring and summer.
We learned previously that the titles for the films with Bocchi the Rock! Re: and Bocchi the Rock! Re:Re:, which I’ll assume works within the context of the show itself. With the first film set for a June 7th, 2024 premiere and the second set for August 9th, 2024, the latest update is on some additional international distribution. With Crunchyroll handling the North American release, the films have now set an Australian release date as well with a planned October 17th, 2024 release scheduled.
The series was directed by Keiichiro Saito and based on the series composition by Erika Yoshida. Kerorira is on board as the character designer with CloverWorks handling the animation production.
The Japanese cast includes:
- Yoshino Aoyama as Hitori “Bocchi-chan” Gotō
- Sayumi Suzushiro as Nijika Ijichi
- Saku Mizuno as Ryo Yamada
- Ikumi Hasegawa as Ikuyo Kita
The manga by Aki Hamaji began in 2017 and has three volumes out as of the end of 2021.
Check out the official site and Twitter.
Plot Concept: Hitori Gotoh, “Bocchi-chan,” is a girl who’s so introverted and shy around people that she’d always start her conversations with “Ah…”
During her middle school years, she started playing the guitar, wanting to join a band because she thought it could be an opportunity for even someone shy like her to also shine. But because she had no friends, she ended up practicing guitar for six hours every day all by herself.
After becoming a skilled guitar player, she uploaded videos of herself playing the guitar to the internet under the name “Guitar Hero” and fantasized about performing at her school’s cultural festival concert. But not only could she not find any bandmates, before she knew it, she was in high school and still wasn’t able to make a single friend!
She was really close to becoming a shut-in, but one day, Nijika Ijichi, the drummer in Kessoku Band, reached out to her. And because of that, her everyday life started to change little by little…
2nd film promos and visuals:
1st film promos and visuals:
