Uči no šišó wa šippo ga nai

I really came to like rakugo when I saw Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu in 2016, and I still fondly remember this series. It showed me what’s great about rakugo and why it deserves to be admired. I was quite looking forward to another anime dealing with this theme, expecting to have a great time. Unfortunately, My Master Has No Tail is not of such a high quality, and if I had watched it on its own, it probably wouldn't have inspired much love for rakugo in me. There are a few performances in the series, along with explanations of the individual stories as a bonus at the end of each episode to give the viewer more insight, but it tragically fails in making the performances themselves engaging enough, and showing what is so wonderful and great about rakugu – work with expressions and, above all, one’s voice. Take Bunko, for instance. She’s one of the best narrators according to the show, and only gives one decent performance here, and that's only in the very last episode, where we finally see her make some effort with her voice. The rest of the performances, not just hers unfortunately, are just quickly narrated monologues with minimal emotion and virtually no expression. For me, the magic of the stories just isn't there, and the authors' efforts to visualize them doesn’t help much, either. Even the likes of Akira Ishida, who gave an absolutely superb vocal performance in Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu, only gives what I consider to be an absolutely mediocre performance here. Add to that virtually zero facial expression, and my conclusion is that the series is not a great advertisement for rakugo. Even in terms of animation and music, it is mediocre, maybe even below average. Well, leaving aside my annoyance at the bad performances, what am I left with? A fairly ordinary story about how an irresponsible, energetic, and quite nice girl/tanuki is introduced to rakugo and the people around it, which helps her move on in life a little, find her purpose in life, overcome some obstacles, some of which seem quite interesting, others (like the very last one) a little silly, like a drama for drama's sake. I learned a few things about the other characters (more or less interesting) and their hardships, which was all tied back to rakugo. After all, it’s mainly about human stories. This was quite a good parallel. The main characters were nicely portrayed, and I gradually grew to like them, so I was interested in their journey and their mutual relationship. My overall impression is sort of in the middle. Some things were great and intriguing, but others didn't impress me much. Plus, I also feel some disappointment with this show... 5/10 (23.12.2022)