What I really loved the most...
was watching Dad's stories from here.
FIRST STORY THAT DAY
So then the landlord came over, and said, "Look, I'm taking your toolbox."
I'm thinking, "Oh, the landlord's gonna work as a carpenter?"
So I say, "Here you go!" and I lent it to him.
As if he could do carpentry at his...
SHINTA ARAKAWA
He must be senile.
No, you're the senile one!
You... Wait, are you telling me that...
Stiff! You sound so stiff, Shin-chan!
I do?
That's right. Too much pressure on yourself.
Oh. You think so?
You've got that test coming up,
and your little girl is getting bigger.
So I don't blame you for tensing up, but...
You need to be more... smooth as silk, then boom!
Give it your all, okay?
Thank you very much.
You think highly of him, don't you?
If you ask me, he's pretty bland, and his style doesn't really do it for me.
Well, I admit he was rather sub-par today.
Then why?
Well, I once saw him deliver a brilliant performance.
He's not the kind of man who should be languishing in a place like this.
MITSUE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
It's Akane's...
MITSUE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
Hey! How can you say that?
- How dare you... - Gimme a break. I just told you...
Don't talk to me like that!
Oh, can't you see
- how hard my son's crying? - Mrs. Ozaki,
- please, your voice... - Don't you feel sorry for him?
I can't believe children these days.
You haven't heard a word I've said.
Fine. Then I'll show you, so please watch.
Show us?
So, it all started during fifth period, in Japanese class.
We were reading aloud our essays on "The Person I Respect," one by one.
The Person I Respect.
Grade 5, Class 3. Akane Osaki.
The person I respect is my dad.
Dad is a Rakugoka, and he tells the funniest stories ever.
Respect? Huh, that's crazy.
I heard from my mom, you know. She says your dad's a kept man.
And you respect him?
Kept man? What's that?
You don't even know what that is?
- It's a deadbeat dad... - Oh, crap!
...who doesn't even work, got that?
Amazing.
I mean, that's exactly how it happened.
But that doesn't mean she can make him cry!
You've been making him the victim, but he's the one who started it.
Don't give me that crap, you demented ha--
Knock it off.
Dad! Wait, why...
Sorry, Mr. Yanagiya.
Akane's always getting into trouble.
My apologies to you, too.
Dad! These jerks are...
These jerks?
Whatever the reason may be, it's wrong to use abusive language.
I know you understand, right, Akane?
It certainly helps that you're a reasonable man.
- That child is truly-- - Mr. Yanagiya told me what happened.
Both mother and son were talking about me in a way.
We should both try to live up to our kids' expectations, yes?
COUNSELING ROOM
All right, then. Let's get going, Akane.
- Go get your things, okay? - Okay!
Yeah, this is tasty.
Eat up, Akane. Or it'll melt.
I'm sorry.
I only yelled back because I wanted to tell him how great you are.
But I think I just made you feel bad instead.
You dummy.
You're too young to be looking out for my feelings.
Rakugoka are divided into three levels.
The lowest is Zenza, then Futatsume, and finally Shin'uchi.
You're a Futatsume, right, Dad?
I'm impressed you remembered.
There's going to be a test for promotion to Shin'uchi.
And if I pass, I'll get to become a Shin'uchi.
As a Shin'uchi, I can rake in some...
I'll earn lots of money.
And then no one will ever say a word against me!
So don't worry about me like that.
All you need to do is stick to your guns!
All right, I'm gonna rehearse.
You go do your homework, Akane!
- Okay! - Good.
Yeah, right?
I'm going to become a Shin'uchi. I have to.
Or else...
All right. Why don't I start by reviewing today's material?
Hey, Yota! Yotaro! Yota!
Oh, geez.
Must be the curry udon I had for lunch.
Still, how insanely pissed is Mrs. Ozaki? Gross.
Ugh, that Akane and Tohru... They've done it again.
I'm home!
Oh, darn, not again! Curry twice in a day.
Really now, how curry-crazed are we?
Oh well, can't be helped.
Oh, uh... uh... Yota, hey you.
You went in from there?
Y-You, come on, you. Don't try to come in from the front, okay?
Go in from the back, okay?
You sit tight now. Yeah.
I can see.
Uh, excuse me! Hello!
There's no one in the room but Dad.
And yet... inside the room...
There are three people.
Every time he turns his body,
his face, manner of speaking, and his voice all change on a dime.
A spiteful person. An ill-tempered person. A nonchalant person.
All kinds of people appear.
So amazing! It's like magic.
No thanks, damn it!
How does he do it?
O-Old woman! The boss is here!
Hey, there. Your mother is home!
Really, I'm surrounded by Rakugo crazies.
Oh, well, what can you do?
It is next week, after all.
Thank you for this meal!
Yummy!
Yeah. It's good! This turned out well, huh?
Good night!
Hey!
Wake up, Tohru!
Come on! Hey!
Weren't you going to rehearse some more?
Or go to bed?
- Rehearse. - Then get to it!
It's late. I'll be going to bed, okay?
By the way, Tohru, did you read Akane's essay?
Huh? No.
THE PERSON I RESPECT
SAIWAI HALL TODAY'S EVENT
SAIWAI HALL ARAKAWA SCHOOL
This way to reception!
ARAKAWA SCHOOL SHIN'UCHI PROMOTION TEST
Hey, it's Dad! It's bigger than the one at home!
What, you think so?
It looks the same to me.
Hey, someone's full of energy!
SHIGUMA ARAKAWA
Master Shiguma!
Long time no see, Masaki.
It's been a long time.
Thank you for taking care of my husband.
No, no, I haven't done a thing.
Still, time certainly goes by fast.
Hey, Master, where's Dad?
Dummy!
Well, you know.
You should leave him be right now.
The Arakawa School Shin'uchi Promotion Test.
The performances are evaluated by the audience and the jury.
After adding up all the scores,
only those whose skills have been recognized can be promoted to Shin'uchi.
This year, the president of the jury will be my master's elder fellow apprentice...
Thank you for taking the time!
...and the most acclaimed of his day.
Issho Arakawa!
S-So what if he is?
Just how hard have I worked for this day?
Just carry on as always, and believe in your own art.
But...
If I do mess up...
No!
What am I, an idiot?
I can't surrender to my emotions!
I just have to do it! For me...
there's no other option!
ARAKAWA SCHOOL SHIN'UCHI PROMOTION TEST
Okay, so let's get started.
We will now begin the Arakawa School Shin'uchi Promotion Test!
Our first performer is... this man!
I happen to be the first one up, and my name is Shinta Arakawa.
This is nothing like the typical events.
The air is heavy and cold.
Most of all, the audience's eyes are appraising me.
Well, I do appreciate you all
coming to this tasteless test on such a glorious day.
- No, seriously. - This is bad.
Or not?
With one vote from you, my life will change.
You idiot, what are you thinking?
I kind of sound like a politician!
In which case, I wish...
For now, focus on your prologue!
W-Well, since I am a Rakugoka...
Not good. The tempo's too fast.
And that's another way of being like a politician!
I'm not getting any laughs. Was I too greedy?
Please give me your precious vote!
What should I do? At this rate...
This...
That voice...
What? Akane is mimicking me?
That's right.
I'm no expert, but she's actually really good.
She might have a better feel for it than you.
Well, then I'm in trouble.
If that's your attitude, then just become a Shin'uchi already!
Don't make it sound so easy!
But I will. Because it's for Akane's sake!
Akane's sake?
I don't believe you.
Akane's a daddy's girl, you know.
Of course she wants to brag about you.
You can whimper all you want in front of me,
but at least be a cool father in front of Akane, okay?
There's quite a chill in the air.
- But the cold isn't all bad. - What's this?
How great does heated up sake taste on a cold day?
You can't stop yourself from reaching for another, and another.
Before you know it, you're in a dreamy state, gulping down until you mess up...
The atmosphere changed.
...which happens all too often.
Wake up, dear!
Dear! Come on, wake up! Dear!
What the heck? Huh?
Don't wake me up in that harsh way. What is it?
Don't give me that!
He finished his prologue and went into the story?
SHINTA ARAKAWA
SHIBAHAMA
Katsugoro is a skilled fishmonger,
but he drinks like a fish and is drowning in debt.
After he finds a wallet on the beach of Shiba,
he regains his pride as a merchant.
It's a heart-warming Ninjo-banashi.
I'm counting on you.
Right! Be careful out there, okay?
Now, after seeing her husband off, the wife breathed a sigh of relief because
for the first time in a while, he was heading to work and to do business.
And her eyelids grew heavy,
and just as she started nodding off, nodding off...
Hey! Honey!
It's me! Open up! Honey!
Yes, yes, of course!
Oh, hold on a second.
I'm coming...
What's the matter?
Never mind! Never mind that. Close the door, honey!
I said close the door!
So he deleted the scene where Katsugoro goes to the beach of Shiba.
I mean, that's totally fine.
So long as the main storyline fits,
you can change everything from the characters' settings to the punchline.
That's one way to innovate.
That said, describing the sight
of the beach of Shiba when Katsugoro stops by on his way to the shore...
That's the appeal of Shibahama.
But cutting out the only scene of the beach of Shiba in Shibahama...
- It's like an empty bean-paste bun. - Look how annoyed he is.
After all, this is the kind of approach that Zenshou Ani-san loathes.
Well, I do get it, though.
It doesn't change the fact that he threw out a highlight of the story.
Hey, j-just a second there, honey.
Still, rather than talking about the scenery...
You haven't gone anywhere, can't you see?
The beach of Shiba?
He chose to talk about the people.
I woke you up this morning. And I didn't go to Shiba.
Shinta's strength is his acting prowess.
By deliberately throwing out a key scene,
and pushing his descriptions of the characters onto them,
he draws the audience into the story.
On this stage, no less.
Wait, this wife is similar to...
- It's you, Mom. - What?
Dad... He's acting out you, Mom!
Akane, Masaki, are you watching this?
Since I started training under my master,
and threw myself into Rakugo, it's been 13 years.
I was so unsuccessful, it was scary.
I wasn't earning a decent living, either.
Even so, Masaki never told me to quit Rakugo.
And Akane...
"The Person I Respect."
Grade 5, Class 3. Akane Osaki.
The person I respect more than anyone else in the world is my dad.
Dad is a Rakugoka, and he's really great at telling stories.
He makes me laugh every single day.
It's Dad's dream to become a Shin'uchi.
And it's also my dream for Dad to become a Shin'uchi.
I love my dad so much.
Akane still loved me through it all.
I want to live up to that love.
As a father. As a Rakugoka.
All of the skills I've nurtured until now, along with my life, and everything...
I'll gather it all in.
And today, I'm going to become a Shin'uchi!
No, I'll pass.
I don't want it to turn into another dream.
Awesome!
Dad... You're so cool!
SAIWAI HALL
Sorry to keep you waiting for so long!
Apparently, we have all the results now.
It's all good, right? It's all good!
Be quiet.
The results will be announced by Arakawa...
M-Master Issho! If you please...
Ah, it's on, then?
I'd like to thank you all
for attending this Arakawa School Shin'uchi Promotion Test.
For the first time in a while, I got a look at the youngsters' material.
Really, I was shocked.
Well, it won't do any good to drag this on,
so let me announce the results.
Everyone who took part in today's test is hereby expelled.
B-But Master, surely you're joking.
These disgraces to my school put on utterly pitiful performances.
For that I apologize.
All right, so there you have it.
That's all.
Oh! W-Wait, Master!
Hey, what's going on?
What does expelled mean?
Hey, Mom!
Did you hear me, Mom?
Hey, Mom!
Tohru.
SAIWAI HALL
SAIWAI HALL TODAY'S EVENT
Listen, what's the meaning of this?
Expelled?
Shinta's my apprentice!
Later, everyone who took the test that day was officially expelled.
You can't just expel my apprentice without--
What an incompetent apprentice you had.
The reason for expelling them was never revealed.
You can't call that thing Shibahama.
What? You mean it's for real?
Shinta...
Shinta Ani-san, what's going on here?
It's just a joke, right?
It has to be. Come on, Shinta Ani-san!
That day...
the Rakugoka, Shinta Arakawa, died.
RYOKUGYOKU HIGH SCHOOL EVENT CALENDAR
That day...
the Rakugoka, Shinta Arakawa, died.
But...
It's not over.
In fact...
That was the day it started.
My story!
NEXT EPISODE FIRST PERFORMANCE
Akane Small Talk!
Dad! Okay, I have a question!
Sure, what is it?
Why is Rakugo called Rakugo?
Right, because... You know how Rakugo has a "sage"
or in other words, an "ochi"?
It used to be called "Otoshi-banashi."
That got shortened to "Rakugo", or so they say.
Oh, really?
Okay, I have another question!
Don't your legs get tingly from sitting for so long?
Well, they'd get tingly if all I was doing was sitting,
but when you perform Rakugo, you actually move a lot while you're talking.
So you don't end up getting too tingly that you can't stand up.
I see.
Oh, question!
Yes, Ms. Akane?
Why do you take off your haori in the middle?
If you're going to take it off right away,
you might as well not wear it from the start.
It's better to be properly dressed when you show up before an audience.
So you take it off when you're ready to get to the heart of the story.
Not that there are any hard-and-fast rules about when you're supposed to remove it.
Oh? I'd like to give that a try myself!
I'd start out wearing tons of them,
and then I'd go on shedding one haori after another!
Sounds like a hassle to tidy up afterwards.