Not going to lie that I’m a little nervous to talk about Akane Banashi manga on my blog.

Is it because people are going to flag me for talking about a manga that contains adult content on my blog?

Nope, it’s not that. I can assure you that the story in Akane Banashi is as clean as you can get.

Rather, it has more to do with me recommending the manga only to find out that the manga ends prematurely after that.

If you’ve been reading Shonen Jump manga on MANGA Plus, you know that the fear is real.

No matter how much you enjoy reading the manga, it will get axed if it doesn’t do well in the reader survey.

So, it makes sense why I’ll be this anxious whenever I talk about the ongoing Shonen Jump manga on my blog.

You just don’t know when the axe will hit the manga, even if you thought that the manga does well.

I even expressed the same thing when I recommended Mission: Yozakura Family and The Elusive Samurai on my blog back then.

It’s hard to shake this feeling away despite knowing how much people love the manga.

While that holds true for most Shonen Jump manga, that doesn’t seem to be the case for Akane Banashi manga, though.

For one, people love this manga judging from the comments that they left on each chapter of this manga.

Another thing that makes the manga here to stay? It’s the fact that the manga already has more than 100 chapters and gets an anime adaptation.

And the story is getting more interesting as the story is progressing too.

Even if things are going well for this manga, I still hope that the manga will have a satisfactory ending.

But judging from the story, I have a feeling that the ending will certainly be a satisfactory one if the manga chooses to end someday.

What Akane Banashi manga is all about

Here’s the description that I got from MANGA Plus.

Rakugo–the ultimate form of storytelling, where everything in a story is expressed with just your body and words. Shinta and his daughter Akane have been seduced by this wonderful form of classical entertainment. Having observed her father strive to pass the shin’uchi rakugo test, Akane will take her own steps into this unique world!

What got me to read the manga

Just like everyone else who reads manga on MANGA Plus, I read the manga because it was right there on MANGA Plus.

And it was a brand new manga at that time too. So, my curiosity got the better of me.

What makes Akane Banashi manga worth reading

For many of us, the manga Descending Stories comes to mind when it comes to the story that revolves around rakugo.

In case you’re wondering, that’s Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu for those who are more familiar with the Japanese title.

While the story in Descending Stories is mostly about life as a rakugoka from one generation to another, Akane Banashi, on the other hand, takes a different approach when it comes to portraying life as a rakugoka.

Sure, the manga is still about Akane working her way to becoming a rakugoka since that’s the bread and butter of this manga.

But what makes it different from Descending Stories is that the manga goes deeper into the technical aspect of rakugo.

Things like the hierarchy in rakugo that Akane has to go through before she’s qualified enough to become a full-fledged rakugoka.

And how people get started in rakugo.

Of course, you can always wake up one day and say that you want to do rakugo for a living.

But there’s a formal way of becoming one. And this manga shows you how you can do that through Akane’s lens.

Unlike in Descending Stories, where you don’t see much about Yotaro progressing from one level to another, you’ll get to see Akane starting from below the rank, refining her performance as she works to the highest rank in rakugo instead.

If you enjoy Descending Stories and you want to see another side of the rakugo that doesn’t get highlighted in the manga, then Akane Banashi is your best bet.

What I didn’t expect when I read the manga

Here’s the strange part when I read this manga. For some reason, I can’t help but feel that this manga somehow reminds me a lot about Act-Age, vibe-wise.

Okay, what’s so strange about it having a similar vibe to Act-Age? Isn’t that supposed to be a good thing?

Well, you’re right that I should take it as a good sign since Act-Age is indeed an amazing manga nonetheless.

But the thing is I’ve never read the manga before, not even the first chapter. The fact that this manga reminds me of Act-Age is something that I find strange since I’ve never read the manga before.

Yes, I get that Akane Banashi isn’t the same as Act-Age.

As some of you are already aware, Act-Age is about acting, whereas Akane Banashi is about rakugo.

But hey, I can’t help but notice the parallel between Akane Banashi and Act-Age, vibe-wise.

Who should read the manga?

If you enjoy a story that revolves around rakugo like the one in Descending Stories, then you’re certainly going to enjoy reading this manga.

But what if you’ve never read Descending Stories before or if you find the story in Descending Stories not up to your liking?

Should you give this manga a try as well?

Well, I will say that you should, since the story in Akane Banashi isn’t as character-driven as the one in Descending Stories.

Yes, the story will still be about Akane wanting to be a rakugoka. That part will never change.

But the fact that the manga offers an in-depth view of the world of rakugo makes Akane Banashi a far more interesting read than Descending Stories.

Where to buy Akane Banashi manga

The good news is you can read the manga online on MANGA Plus. But you will need to upgrade to any of the paid subscriptions if you want to read the chapters in between.

Otherwise, you can only read the first three and the most recent chapters with their Basic plan.

In the event that the manga has already ended, you will have to upgrade to their Deluxe plan, though, since it’s the only plan that allows you to read completed manga.

The Standard plan only allows you to read the chapters in between for the ongoing manga.

Interested in giving this manga a try? You can take a look at the manga right here on MANGA Plus:

Read Akane Banashi manga on MANGA Plus

Want to buy the manga in print and digital? You can get the manga in digital or print format right here on Amazon:

Buy Akane Banashi manga in English on Amazon

Prefer to read the manga in Japanese? You can buy the print version of the manga right here at CDJapan:

Buy the Japanese version of Akane Banashi manga on CDJapan

Over to you

What do you think about the Akane Banashi manga? Are you interested in reading the manga after reading about it on my blog?

Let me know in the comments.

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