This digital ARC was obtainable via NetGalley for an honest review!

I absolutely loved this. "Akane-banashi, vol. 2" throws you in to the World of Rakugo. Prior to this manga series, I had never heard of this art style. This manga isn't your typical story and Akane isn't your typical girl. "Akane-banashi" describes this unique and rich culture in such a great way that I truly didn't want this volume to end. I cannot wait to see what happens next!

This was SUCH a good continuation of the first volume. The characters are all distinct and real. I love how their passion for rakugo transforms them and also pushes them to want to be better in their art. I love the spirit in Akane, how she is willing to work HARD for her goals and how she isn't afraid to stand up for them and to show others how important it is to her. It doesn't hurt that she is good at it, but that's not because she is a natural at it, she has her learning moments, but she is open to them which shows an arc of growth that I am DOWN for.

This one ended on a cliffhanger, but in a natural way where you are driven to read the next one, not in a teasing way. Highly recommended if you want a strong female lead who isn't afraid to grow and learn from those around her, but isn't a perfect Mary Sue. Not one WHIFF of romance, which I appreciate, as it would detract from her goals at this point.

5, I am definitely continuing with this series, stars!

My thanks to NetGalley and VIZ Media LLC for an eARC copy of this book to read and review.

I liked this series after the first volume, but by the second volume I can confirm that I LOVE this series! I think it comes down to a few things. Firstly, it is wonderful to see the vigor, dedication, and growth of a young teenage girl trying to succeed in a male-dominated field. Akane is an awesome female lead that makes you want to root for her from the get go. Secondly, I love how in each volume we learn more about rakugo and get to see different aspects of what living in that niche world is like. All in all, I would highly recommend this story to a diverse group of individuals as it touches on all the markers of a great manga.

Akane grew up watching her father perform Rakugo, a traditional Japanese art form, but when her father is expelled from his Rakugo studies suddenly, she vows to learn the art and get revenge by getting good. Akane-banashi is such a great start for a manga and gives me mega Hikaru No Go vibes. Volume 2 is a bit of a training arc for Akane. She learns how to perform for the audience rather than herself.

Thanks NetGalley and Viz Media for this arc

3/5 stars

Here we learn more about Akane and follow her growth to become better at rakugo. The story got more interesting and held my attention more than the first volume here, and the cliff hanger made me excited for the next volume

A Special Thanks Goes Out to Viz Media and Net Galley for the opportunity to read this title.

We’re jumping back into the wonderful world of Rakugo with the help of Yuki Suenaga and Takamasa Moue’s Akane-banashi, Volume Two. If you recall in Volume One, Akane took a shift at Izakaya Umi to help her learn how to perform rakugo, with the help of her master’s senior pupil, Kyoji Arakawa. He believed it would help her learn how to make her audience happy and master Kibataraki, to be considerate of others.

In this newest volume, Kyoji takes Akane to a retirement home in Tokyo for his Zenza opening act while under the assignment she was given to offer rakugo that would please the audience in front of her. Akane wonders how she can show Kyoji how much she has grown and learned from his training. Akane later learned about the Karaku Cup, a Student Rakugo Competition with Issho Arakawa presiding as the head judge! She sought permission from her master to attend the competition, and Shiguma gave her permission to go, but with one catch, Akane must perform Jugemu.

Akane-banashi continues its well-written story with character-building and each character that has been introduced so far has served a purpose for Akane’s Rakugo Education and personal growth. But it doesn’t just focus on Akane’s rakugo journey, it also focuses on her Senior’s point of view while not straying off the main story’s path.

Another strength this book has is how educational it is, a similar strength that another Shonen manga shares and that is Boichi and Riichiro Inagaki’s Dr. Stone. While Dr. Stone has action, drama, and comedy, it also helped make science education interesting and accessible. Akane-banashi on the other hand, helps make rakugo accessible to a newer generation (including those who live in the Western part of the world), a similar point I made in my review for the first volume when it came to focusing on certain parts of Japanese culture, and the importance of Rakugo. While we are on the subject of Rakugo, the second volume introduces readers to Zenza-banashi, a brief and light story that is performed by the Zenza Rank, and Jugemu, a comical story about a parent who gives their child an extremely long name that gets repeated often. Jugemu also serves as a basic lesson for rakugo beginners.

The artwork continues to be another treat to admire about this story, blending in the elements of a manga art form with a sense of traditional Japanese history in each rakugo tale that was featured. Each expression and new character that was introduced was drawn beautifully and expressively. Near the end of the volume, we learned more about the Karaku Cup, its history, and the competitors that would be a tough test for Akane’s character, and her rakugo training.

Akane's journey towards becoming a rakugoka continues in volume 2 of Akane-banashi. I like how we are introduced to more characters who subvert expectations by looking like they would be a certain type of character. In fact, they are, but they also serve important roles for Akane's rakugo education. One twist in this storyline is the required guidance counseling at school, and I love how they handled her adviser's point of view. The volume ends with a new competition and I cannot wait to see what happens next. (I received a free ARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley.)

The momentum stays strong in this second volume. It was nice to shift the focus from Akane for a bit and see other performers shine as she learns how and why they use their various styles. Each artist is going to have a different focus of a work. Winning a contest with a challenging story that forces her to shift gears should prove an interesting start to the third volume. This series is worth keeping an eye on.

An excellent continuation from volume one, wherein we get to see a closer look at our protagonist, Akane. In this volume Akane continues on her journey to become a professional in the world of rakugo and learns more about what separates an amateur from a professional as she shadows her fellow apprentices. This continues to be a fascinating story that explores a lesser known art form. The characters are strong and stand out as unique, even while performing the same types of stories. An excellent story for readers who enjoy acting or learning more about traditional Japanese culture.