Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu

Yotarou is a former yakuza member who just got out of jail and is single-mindedly focused on performing rakugo, a traditional Japanese style of comic storytelling, on stage rather than going back to a life of crime. He makes a goal of meeting the famed practitioner Yakumo Yuurakutei after being moved by his admiration for his performance while he was imprisoned. Yakumo is forced to take on his very first apprentice after hearing Yotarou's pleading for his supervision. Yotarou meets Konatsu as he joyfully starts his training. Yakumo has been looking after Konatsu ever since her beloved father Sukeroku Yuurakutei, a great rakugo performer, passed away. Yotarou, who has been trained in conflicting methods, is drawn to Sukeroku's distinctive rakugo style by a secret passion. When Yakumo sees this, old sentiments and memories resurface, and he muses back to a time when he made a promise to his greatest opponent. Genroku Shouwa A story showcasing the art of rakugo, the connections it forges, and the lives and souls of people devoted to preserving this distinctive type of storytelling, Rakugo Shinjuu is both situated in the past and the present.