Shonen Sunday has been operating on a usual (but not unheard of) schedule in the latter part of 2024 and the beginning of this year. Shite no Hana sneaking in toward the end of 2024 isn't unheard of (since MizuPolo also did the same thing) but three new series being hot on it's heels in January is an interesting choice, especially since two of those new series are coming from relatively big names. Though we're noh(t) here to talk about them, this is Chigusa Ichihara's space, and respect is due.
The Author
Chigusa Ichihara
Ichihara-sensei has been someone I've wanted to talk about for a little while, but their previous series Akatsuki Jihen started before I began doing first chapter write ups. Although I'm pleased to have this opportunity to talk about them, it means that Akatsuki Jihen is no longer with us. That being said, the editorial at Shogakukan know when they have a talent on their hands, and had them come back with another serial almost immediately. What do we know about Ichihara-sensei?
As far as I can see, they entered a Shogakukan rookie mangaka competition at 22 years old and got an honorable mention for their series Shuusetsu ni Tatsu.
Even here their art is polished, refined and very much their own. I'd say from this oneshot to the eventual serialization, that not much changed in how they draw characters, which means they could focus more on their ambition on the page.
The story for this one is simple enough --a boy who can't chase his more active dreams due to an injury ends up becoming the student of an eccentric woman who carves statues by trade, and while at first he's not receptive to this new life calling, he realizes through her that he can start over again and find something that he's passionate about in the most unlikely of places. This oneshot feels much more akin to what Shite no Hana is, and really carries the spirit of Weekly Shonen Sunday in earnest, as it's more about finding oneself through an occupation than becoming the best or going on adventures.
This continues in their next oneshot entitled Dress and Chameleon which again finds a boy discovering himself through a girl's obsession --except in this case, the boy is into modeling dresses due to his mom's influence. While his mom means well, he's conflicted with whom he presents himself as in his everyday life and his growing distress that he's beginning to like dressing up. Ultimately, in the end he eschews gender norms and lives (and slays) the way he wants to. It's a positive message of not allowing what others see you as change how you see yourself.
The last oneshot before their serialization is born from the same DNA as the others (boy meets girl, girl has hobby, boy finds out he digs said hobby) except this one entitled Yodaka no Sora is about archery. (While they definitely have favorite storytelling tropes, Ichihara is varied in what subjects they tackle!)
Again, because Ichihara has such confident character artwork, what they focus on instead throughout these oneshots becomes the ambition on the page. Yodaka no Sora has the best evidence of this in just how much imagery goes into describing shooting an arrow. Even without understanding the text on the page, the passion is conveyed in just how dense the pictures are.
It's so much that when the lead in this oneshot finally takes that winning shot, we can see and feel his world expanding. All of these oneshots have a central theme, so obviously their series would have to follow suit, right?
Beginning its serialization in 2022, issue #43 of Weekly Shonen Sunday is Chigusa Ichihara's first serial Akatsuki Jihen. At the time it felt like the magazine was going through a heavy Chinese inspired manga fad, with the likes of Souei Sosho by Erika Funamoto and Kowloon jo de mou ichido by Sanshi Fujita also taking the theme and doing very different things with it, being a historical drama series inspired by The Prince and the Pauper for the former, and a take on Tsukumogami, or objects that over time develop souls in Japanese mythology. Akatsuki on the other hand is much more akin to a typical battle manga, featuring a pair of siblings as the leads.
In the series, the Suzaku clan are heralded as a family of shaman who protect mankind from divine beasts. Mutsuki the protagonist has a great future lined up before him due to his talent, but his sister Uzuki bears no spiritual power whatsoever. In the Suzaku family, those who cannot be shaman are nothing, so she's locked up in the house, forbidden to leave. Mutsuki can't have that, and takes it upon himself to become strong enough to topple the customs that keep his sister bound.
I've heard that a mangaka who is embarking upon their first serialization may be persuaded to go for something “easy” (for lack of better terms). That is, a genre or story that isn't too ambitious to get their bearings straight in getting used to a serialization schedule and writing on the fly. Which is why perhaps the two genres that come out a lot from Shonen magazines frequently are rom-coms and action/adventure series. Those are easy to set up and get going, while adding things here and there as talent (and popularity) calls for it. In addition, this series would have been coming on the heels of Demon Slayer's massive popularity. It is no surprise that the editorial staff over at Shogakukan might have asked Ichihara-sensei to produce this work that has surface level similarities to Demon Slayer. To be clear, I don't think they forced Ichihara's hand, more like suggested that this might be the way to go forward. After the first serialization (successful or not) then once the artist has a bit more experience they may be able to draw something closer to what they wanted to originally. I don't know if it's the case with Ichihara-sensei, but the previous oneshots and now Shite no Hana have much more in common than with Akatsuki Jihen. Unfortunately, as is the case, the series while a lot of fun and beautifully drawn ended 5 volumes and 46 chapters later, just barely missed being serialized a year. I'd love to take a deep dive into the work and see why it didn't succeed someday, as I thought it had a lot of potential.
So with the series done and gone in 2023, what's an artist to do? Only one answer to that question:
The serial
Shite no Hana
Staring in issue #47 (2024) of Weekly Shonen Sunday is Chigusa Ichihara's second serial, “Shite no Hana.” The series is described as a boy making a comeback on the Noh stage, and a “Noh manga that depicts the lives of Noh performers.”
Kotaro Haga is a top class dancer, who has a promising future on the stage despite being pretty awful at everything aside from dancing. However, after an accident, he can no longer dance and thus has to retire from the entertainment industry. As is with life, when one door closes another opens, and through his grandmother's connections he finds out about Noh and thus a new career.
Gee, this all sounds slightly familiar, doesn't it? Granted, this time, rather than the boy stumbling on a girl with a passion for a hobby, Kota (as he's called) saves a girl and is forced into a new hobby. I respect Ichihara's dedication to their tropes, however! In this case Kota seems pretty unphazed by his loss of, well, everything to a point that I'm more weirded out that he's not at least a little depressed. Though hey he's only 16 so maybe he figures he's got plenty of time to figure out his next move.
Noh Way? Noh Way!
(50 rings to anyone who gets that reference.) Jokes aside, Noh is a Japanese performance art. While I can't go into the details here without this review becoming an entirely different beast, I do think it's important to know a bit about it before proceeding any further. Personally, I feel like I've heard way more about Kabuki than Noh, so the first thing is to distinguish the two. The word "Noh” is derived from the knaji for “skill” or “talent.” Kabuki is a blend of music, drama, and dance with flashy costumes and storytelling, while Noh is more subtle, retrained and spiritual in its core. In that vein, Noh "actors" are more conduits for the story they suggest (rather than perform) than actors in their own right. One shouldn't go into a Noh drama expecting the theatrics or a stage play, rather, these are akin to church processions where things are expressed via metaphor. Noh plays tend to be short and without miuch dialog, and tend to be split into 5 types -- The Kami (or God), which is usually about shinto shrines, the Shura mono (loosely "things of carnage") which are about warriors, the katsura mono (wig) which have female protagonist, the gendai mono (contemporary play) which is about realistic matters rather than being legendary or supernatural, the kyojo mono (madwoman play) which the protagonist goes insane through the loss of a lover or child, and the kiri or kichiku (final or demon) play which features devils and supernatural beings.
There are about 2,000 Noh texts that have survived, but only 230 or so are performed. The accompaniment is provided by an instrumental chorus of four magicians as well as a vocal chorus of 8-10 singers.
Again, this is a very, very shaved down description of the art, and I fully recommend readers go and research on their own. It's interesting stuff, and wonderful to experience! Check out this clip to get a taste of a performance.
The Premise (con't)
The series thus far has had that trademark meticulous Sunday pacing --much like the performance art that it's based on. At the end of the first chapter, Kota remembers his conversations with his grandma about Noh, and is dazzled when he goes to see a play himself. To the point that he hangs around after the play is done and just brazenly asks if he can join them up on stage too. Shiryu Houge the young Noh prodigy finds Kota amusing, but says that one doesn't do Noh, they become it. To his surprise, while Kota's got a long road ahead, he's got a knack for the art --thus beginning his journey into the life of Noh actors. Even now, 10 chapters in, Kota's more been hanging out with others and watching them than getting up on stage himself. Which in this case works --if only because Ichihara-sensei is upfront about this being a not a race, but a journey. Kota's not aiming to be the best at Noh, rather, he finds the art intriguing and wants to be a part of its world, soaking it in little by little.
Discussing Kota's "knack" for the art --to many's surprise he's got the movements down, much like a flower drifting upon the water's surface. For someone who came from a world where audaciousness is essential, the fact that he's able to restrain himself on command for the subtle, measured movements required for Noh plays without any previous training for it is incredible. There's a bit of that shonen DNA in the series here where Kota's just inexplicably good at this one thing that's essential for the art.
Speaking of art, Ichihara-sensei doesn't just depict the awe and chilling nature of the Noh masks, they make it their own in a way that I'm not fully convinced these aren't just photographs. Akatsuki Jihen had some incredible spreads, but Shite no Hana's deftness with light and dark, crosshatching and panel composition are almost alien to me --especially in a weekly magazine. I think the true demon here isn't depicted by the actors in the play, but the artist drawing this.
The Verdict
Piggybacking on what I said earlier about artists being told to take an easier genre out for a test spin before digging into their passion --I feel that this is the story Ichihara wanted to tell from the start. The art, the tropes, and the pacing feel organic, and obviously this is a track well tread for them. Nowadays, there are more of these types of manga appearing even in Shonen magazines, from Mashiro no Oto, to Kageki Shojo to of course the current critical darling Akane Banashi of which the writer Yuki Suenaga gave a shout out to Shite no Hana upon its release! They note it's hard to do this kind of manga, even aside from the competitiveness. Yet, there's something pure about taking an art that one is obviously passionate about and translating it into another medium. It's that sense of passion be it quiet or like the Noh depicted in this manga, subtle that creates art in it's purest sense. Ichihara-sensei is now on the stage of their choosing, and it shows through their creative choices and beautiful artwork. This series perhaps won't be as "hype" as it's contemporaries, but rather than being an explosive flame that attracts others through it's brillance Shite no Hana is instead a group of Noh masks illuminated by candlelight. Offputting at first to the uninitiated, but hard to tear oneself away from when given a chance.
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