Bocchi the Rock! - Tome 03

ぼっち・ざ・ろっく! [Bocchi the Rock!] #3

by Aki Hamazi

陰キャならロックをやれ！！！ 陰キャギタリスト・後藤ひとりは、10代限定の音楽フェス「未確認ライオット」出演を目指し、結束バンドの皆と本格的に音楽活動をスタート！ 各メンバーもレベルアップして、目指せグランプリ！令和の世に舞い降りた音楽マンガの新定番！ 待望の第3巻がついに発売！

Genres: Manga, Fiction, Humor, Slice Of Life, Graphic Novels, Comedy, Music

120 pages, Paperback

First published February 25, 2021

About the author

はまじあき

Reviews

[Mark]

Kessoku Band continues to gain popularity in their local area, but branching out beyond that may be complicated. Meanwhile, Kita has a crisis from being the normal one, while Bocchi has her usual crises from being the anxious one.

I find nothing harder to review than 4-koma manga, minus Monthly Girls’ Nozaki-kun, but I know a good series when I read it and this gets a lot more right than it doesn’t.

While I maintain that the anime gives this a life the manga doesn’t quite approach, it’s still worth seeing what we have yet to see there because even without the voices and music, this is still fun.

The series drags a toe along the truly bizarre sometimes and I appreciate it going over that line for some fairly daft jokes, like Bocchi’s face being peeled off by a rollercoaster or her soul being left behind during the ride.

Its general love of music, those parody chapter openings are fun even without the context, carries over to its incredibly funny penchant for fake bands/singers that have no business existing. This really pays off in the volume’s best storyline, when the girls venture outside of Starry to play a gig that’s a real mishmash of genres.

Before we even get there, we also get the metal band, Sideros, who seems poised to be rivals, except their lead singer, Ohtsuki, can’t manage to do anything without coming across like Kessoku Band’s biggest fan.

This leads to some wild tsundere behaviour that might be a bit of a retread, but it’s a great one with an abundance of fresh jokes. The constant goofing on how poor Kessoku Band actually is makes me laugh every time too - their wristbands being nothing more than zip ties is kind of wonderful.

With that wonderful addition to the cast, the rest of the crew isn’t neglected at all and everybody gets something to do this time out. Lots of wavering confidence in songwriting, playing, and singing.

Kita gets the biggest chunk of this when she tries to sort out her (perceived) lack of singing ability, although I especially loved Ryou’s because of the resolution that shows everybody coming together. That’ll be super fun if it gets animated.

Bocchi’s stuff is fine, but they’re running out of ways to iterate on how anxious she can be and it’s smart to branch things out with the focus on everybody else as well. Yeah, Bocchi overcoming her trials is almost always satisfying, but it’s becoming a bit worn at this point (although some jokes are still very solid).

So, a satisfying volume. You’ll get your money’s worth and, if you like the series already, it’s still doing a great job. It gets everybody back in the mix, including the underage reporter who was a highlight last time, and adds in some fun new characters as well.

4 stars - the best jokes are real good and there’s some welcome branching out from its central conceit to keep it from getting stale. Neatly done.

[Albert Sr.]

(english copy from my instagram @agamundisr_escritor / @leyendoconalice)

Konnichiwa, dear readers🌸

Today I'm bringing you my review of the third volume of Bocchi the Rock!.

📀This volume broadens the story's focus to center on Kessoku Band as a musical project. Beyond Bocchi's insecurities, the manga explores the challenges of finding a place in an environment where countless bands compete for the same opportunities.

📀The preparation for Mikakunin Riot reflects the reality of the artistic world very well. Talent alone is not always enough; visibility, support, and opportunities to prove yourself are equally important. The series shows how many projects end up depending on the opportunities provided by the people around them in order to keep moving forward.

📀Another interesting aspect is the difference between online popularity and real-world recognition. Having followers does not guarantee a career or an audience willing to support you beyond social media, an idea the manga presents in a simple yet effective way that remains highly relevant today.

📀The relationships between Bocchi, Kita, Ryo, and Nijika continue to grow stronger. As they get to know each other better, the band becomes more united and begins to develop its own identity, something just as important as improving technically or finding a unique voice that sets them apart from others.

📀The humor remains one of the manga's greatest strengths. Its absurd situations and exaggerated expressions keep the tone light while still leaving room for reflections on music, creativity, and the fear of failure that accompanies many artists.

🌸Conclusion: A volume about the search for identity, the difficulty of standing out in a saturated market, and the importance of finding people with whom you can share a dream and grow together.

Rating: 5🌸

Arigato gozaimasu for your time🌸

[Jack Reickel]

The clearly strongest of the first three volumes, which is the right direction. I still enjoyed the bassist side story a bit more but the main series, and the main band, are improving together in a fun, light-hearted way.

[N Dorville]

Bocchi's rollercoaster of faces and states of matter alone is what makes this one of my favourites

[Adrien]

Juste trop mignon et drôle, mon coup de cœur de début d'année ce manga. Je me suis grave attaché aux personnages en seulement trois tomes, c'est fou

[Eressea]

新角色出現好多
但該怎麼說呢
不覺得好看，也不覺得難看
之後應該就是KOBO 555湊不滿時
買一本來湊，慢慢這樣買齊吧

[Linda]

3.5

[Emily]

I'm so excited to see the conclusion of the festival arc!

[Reese]

I love these girls so much

[RN_Hpesoj]

This series is so funny. I'm enjoying the newly introduced characters, and I liked how there were a bunch of scenes with the main characters unsure of themselves and growing through it.

[William]

Really fun to see the band and especially Bocchi grow and develop, as they challenge themselves to take part in a song competition, which naturally brings in other bands as we are introduced to Sideros which does a nice bit of worldbuilding. It's also nice to see them take to the streets and start street performances. Ryou is pretty fun in this volume, and it's nice that we get to see her place.

[Dony Grayman]

Otro tomo finito pero muy divertido y en gran formato.