After getting into the STARRY live-house’s line-up for the upcoming event, Hitori and the other Kessoku Band members are faced with all kinds of preparation leading up to the event. First up on the agenda: official band T-shirts, and other kinds of merch.
They agree to meet up at Hitori’s house for their brainstorming; however, it turns out that this is the first time ever that Hitori has had real friends over, a fact which brings all kinds of hijinks and comedy to the episode. The seventh episode ofBocchi The Rock!is funand shows the next step in the band’s formation ahead of their first real performance.
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First Time?
The episode begins with Kita and Nijika walking towards the location of an important Kessoku Band meet-up leading up to their first real performance which will be hosted at STARRY’s upcoming live event. On their way, they give exposition for their objective for this episode, while laying out some interesting details in their conversations that give more about the relationships within Kessoku Band.
Ryō is unable to join them at Hitori’s house for their meeting, the main objective of which is to create an eye-catching design for band T-shirts that they will wear during their performance. Having a unified look is important for them to come across as an actual band, and T-shirts are the most accessible kind of accessory or band apparel that is commonly associated with rock or punk. When Kita and Nijika arrive at Bocchi’s place, they’re stunned by the huge banner draped over the house’s front wallswelcoming members of Kessoku Bandto… something.
At the door, Bocchi greets the two in a hilarious set of star-shaped sunglasses, and a fake mustache surprising them with party streamers and all kinds of decoration. The exact purpose of the band’s meeting is completely lost amidst Bocchi’s anxiety and over-emphasis on the event, the reason for which is simply the fact that she’d never had friends or visitors over before, and she wanted to make a good impression.
She mulls over inconsequential details like whether barley tea is “trendy” enough for her friends, perhaps indicating that Bocchi does not yet consider herself to be on the same social level as her closest associates. While she nervously prepares snacks and drinks for her guests, Bocchi’s five-year-old little sister, Futari, infiltrates the gathering and quickly befriends her older sister’s band members.Unlike her older sister, Futari can hold her own in conversations and appears to be very confident, but she is also brutally honest about Bocchi’s difficulties with social interaction.
Impossible!
A recurring plot device and comedic element inBocchi The Rock!that makes use of the character’s immense difficulty with social interaction is the fact that she is that way regardless of the context or situation. Whether she’s at school, at band practice or at home, Hitori Gotо̄ is going to be delightfully awkward, easily overwhelmed by mundane aspects of social interaction and convention, and tends to retreat into her highly colorful inner world at the drop of a hat.
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Her little sister Futari’s blunt descriptions of her older sister’s total lack of a social life consistently hangs on the verge of bullying, but seeing how Bocchi’s parents, upon returning from the supermarket, also react with genuine surprise and disbelief at the idea that she has friends (real, flesh-and-bone ones that actually exist),her little sister’s innocent insensitivityregarding the elder’s difficulties isn’t too surprising. Overall; however, Bocchi’s family is simply very excited that she has finally achieved this milestone as it seemed to be something that would always be impossible for her, and their honesty regarding the extent of their disbelief is one ofBocchi The Rock!episode 7’s funnier moments.
A Hearty Welcome
Bocchi’s parents welcome Nijika and Kita with a big meal to show their excitement at their eldest daughter finally bringing home real friends. While dressed up in comedic overtones, the extent of her parents' concern over her difficulties with making friends and standing out have brought their expectations of her (or lack thereof) into somewhat delusional territory as they were so surprised at Hitori’s rapid change over the course of a few months that they had “rational” explanations for her changed behaviour over that time. Bocchi finds it difficult to engage, despite being right at home, andher anxiety gets the best of heron various occasions in this episode, spawning several “Bocchi Time” moments in which her thoughts go on rapid, highly absorbing journeys of intense catastrophization.
After eating lunch and playing games with Bocchi’s family, the Kessoku Band meeting finally begins having veered way off course due to Bocchi’s family’s excitement. However, with things a lot less tense than they were at first, the group can get thinking about T-shirt designs. Bocchi comes up with an edgy text-heavy design that she is very proud of, but doesn’t quite hit the right notes with the other two, so they continue brainstorming. Ryo, who is absent from the meeting because her grandmother’s condition has taken a turn for the worst (as it often does when she does not want to have to attend something), sends them design ideas via text. The tackiness of Bocchi’s design leads the conversation towards her fashion sense, or lack thereof, and when she reveals that she doesn’t actually pick out her own clothes, Kita and Nijika become immensely curious in what kinds of Bocchican be freed from her wardrobe. The intensity of having friends cycle her through various outfits while squealing about how cute she looks proved to be too intense for Bocchi to handle.
The Uniform Arrives
At the next band practice, Nijika, with help from her model Ryō, present the first line of Kessoku Band merchandise: the official T-shirt. This also proves to be the Kessoku Band logo reveal, both of which Nijika designed herself, much to some of her bandmates' chagrin.
The logo features the band name in silver stylized Katakana font, with a silver loop design incorporated into the text splashed across a black T-shirt. The presentation of their T-shirts solidifies everything in Bocchi’s mind: she’s really in a band. However, before they can get too excited, word of a looming typhoon threatens their upcoming live performance, so Bocchi suggests that they createteru teru bōzu;handmade dolls of white paper or cloth believed tobring about good weatherand prevent rainy days. Unfortunately for Kessoku Band, the loop logo is apt as the tropical cyclone makes its landing.
