Bocchi the Rock! (ぼっち・ざ・ろっく!, Bocchi Za Rokku!) is a Japanese four-panel manga series written and illustrated by Aki Hamaji. It has been serialized in Houbunsha's seinen manga magazine Manga Time Kirara Max since December 2017. Its chapters have been collected in five tankōbon volumes as of November 2022.

An anime television series adaptation produced by CloverWorks aired from October to December 2022. The series has been praised for its writing, comedy, characters, and depiction of social anxiety, with the anime's visual creativity receiving acclaim.

Plot

Extremely anxious and socially awkward Hitori Gotō longs to become a rock musician in spite of her struggles, whilst fulfilling her desires to one day make friends. She is suddenly given a chance to do so after she is taken in by Nijika Ijichi to become a member of her newly formed Kessoku Band.

Characters

Kessoku Band

Kessoku Band (結束バンド, Kessoku Bando, lit. "zip tie") is the central band in the series, based in STARRY, a live house in Shimokitazawa. The members' family names are derived from the real-life J-rock band Asian Kung-Fu Generation, with their instrumental roles matching as well (for example, the Yamadas of both bands play bass).[3]

Hitori Gotō (後藤 ひとり, Gotō Hitori) / Bocchi (ぼっち)
Voiced by: Yoshino Aoyama[4]
The protagonist and lead guitarist of Kessoku Band. An extreme introvert who has trouble with most social interactions. Having been inspired by her father, she learned how to play guitar in her first year of middle school, thinking this would help her make friends. Despite becoming incredibly skilled at playing guitar and having a small fanbase online (under the alias "guitarhero"), she still has not been able to make friends as easily until she was dragged into playing with Kessoku Band. Since then, Hitori has gained a few friends and is learning to interact with other people. She is usually seen wearing a pink tracksuit, which she even wears over her school uniform. Her surname comes from Masafumi Gotoh.
Nijika Ijichi (伊地知 虹夏, Ijichi Nijika)
Voiced by: Sayumi Suzushiro[5]
The drummer and founder of Kessoku Band. Her older sister, Seika, runs a live house where they often play. Nijika looks up to Seika, since they lost their mother at a young age and their father disappeared. She's very kind, cheerful, friendly and outgoing, and is the one holding the group together and helping Bocchi with her social anxiety the most. Her surname comes from Kiyoshi Ijichi.
Ryō Yamada (山田 リョウ, Yamada Ryō)
Voiced by: Saku Mizuno[6]
The aloof, quiet and mischievous bassist of Kessoku Band with a cool demeanor and an androgynous appearance, to the point she sometimes attracts other girls (including Ikuyo) without intending to. She often spends what allowance she gets from her family on new music equipment, which leaves her with little money for anything else, to the point of eating weeds when she has no money for food. After having a falling out with her last band over creative differences, Ryo was convinced by Nijika to start a new one with her. Her surname comes from Takahiro Yamada.
Ikuyo Kita (喜多 郁代, Kita Ikuyo)
Voiced by: Ikumi Hasegawa[7]
The vocalist and secondary guitarist of Kessoku Band, who attends the same high school as Hitori. In contrast to Hitori, she is a cheerful, charismatic extrovert who has an active social life, to the point that her extroversion manifests as an overwhelming aura at times. She initially joined Kessoku Band to get closer to Ryo, whom she has a crush on, but fled after lying about her guitar playing skills. With Bocchi's help, she becomes a decent guitar player in her own right, and soon settles on playing secondary guitar and providing the band's main vocals. Her surname comes from Kensuke Kita.