Because you keep policing people's headcanons, making fun of them and calling them horrible things, and on top of that, you're somehow claiming to be a safe space for people to express their creativity, yet turning around and harassing them anyways because you've made a billion exceptions to the "don't police people" rule and you think, like everyone else who's made their own exceptions, that your exceptions justify harassment.
So you're making fandom into a field of rat traps where nobody even dares interact with anyone, or shares art anymore, because you still might just attack them for it because they did something as simple as writing a canonically soft character as... a softie.
Let people do their "cringe" y/a romances, let people do their "gross" ships, let people write those characters as jerks or softies. Let them, and mean it when you say you'll let them, instead of soapboxing about it in a patronizing post but not really meaning what you're soapboxing about.
Issho running into Akane at the hospital, less than 24hrs since she saw her grandpa have a heart attack: oh this is perfect. I’ll give Akane the rundown now so we can proceed with her rakugo studies, which I’m sure are her priority right now. I’ll let her know the situation is under (my) control.
What Issho says IMMEDIATELY: Your dad sucks your mentor sucks I could do better in fact I will. I’m your new mentor now.
Kaisei's Dark Feminine Energy and the Rejection of Traditionalism
Kaisei is a rather difficult character to understand within the story of Akane Banashi, his actions often go against his words, and its hard to tell what his real intentions are sometimes, even to characters that have known him for a long time.
As I mentioned in my previous post, Issho's transgenerational trauma may unintentionally be leaving a dark influence on Kaisei, however Kaisei won't end up going the same route as Issho who is obsessed with the legacy of his previous master.
The plan is laid out from here, Issho wants to bring in more young talent to kick out of the way the system by seniority that has plagued the world of Rakugo for years. It is a complete lack of traditionalistic values that have carried the career for years. And Kaisei is a rather unconventional Rakugoka.
Kaisei's dark feminine energy is the backbone of his Rakugo
Dark feminine energy is the opposite of the divine, they put themselves first, are selfish, unapologetic, angry and use underhanded methods like seduction to get what they want. It falls under the same category as a femme fatale.
Kaisei's is known for his seductive female roles, which is rather similar to Urara's rakugo.
Toyoshiga the shamisen player, is Kaisei's proxy character in his Rakugo stories.
Both stories that he has performed in front of Akane so far, has Toyoshiga as a central character. Despite being talented in music, she is characterized by jealousy and is delusional and hateful.
Kaisei's mom was kind. However, she was kind to a fault. Between his dead beat biological dad who abandoned him, and his frustration with his mother who was just willing to forgive and forget the mistreatment from other men in her life until she was pushed into a corner, it's pretty obvious why he would be drawn to playing this kind of character.
Scorned, entitled, angry at any perceived disrespect from someone else. Toyoshiga is the embodiment of Kaisei's anger and resentment towards the world.
Aside from his friendlier attitude towards Akane, Kaisei is rather hostile towards his fellow Rakugoka. Ignoring them at best, and being standoffish and straight up disrespectful at worst.
He has no Rakugoka friends, and doesn't care for adhering to the system of respecting his seniors. This is reflected on his Rakugo as he goes out of his way to crush whoever else has the misfortune of performing in the same show as him. Which is stark contrast to Akane.
His relationship with Issho seems to be rather complicated. Its hard to tell how he feels about his master beyond seeking his stand of approval, and even that may not be due to having any respect or loyalty for him.
Its a means to an end.
What's interesting is that in Kaisei's eyes Issho appears in the same borderline demonic aura in which Akane sees him.
And while he tried to recruit Akane at first to be Issho's student and help fulfill his goals, this was prior to her becoming Shiguma's pupil.
Knowing Issho's contempt for the current Shiguma and his students, keeping Akane a secret was nothing short of Kaisei protecting her from what he perceived would be a threat to her.
Not to mention respecting her decision on the path and master she chose herself.
Akane is really people-smart, and while Kaisei's second performance may have seen like a act of intimidation to those aware of his open hostility towards other Rakugokas, it was actually him helping by showing her that she still needed to improve more to catch up to him, and give her an opportunity to perform in the same show as him.
And I think this is supported by him showing up to see how she was doing even after her lost (his "Ikken called for him" excuse, doesn't really hold up considering we saw Ikken talking to the other judges later on instead). This was his best attempt at consoling someone.
Kaisei does have a dark side to him, however I don't think it has ever extended towards Akane, and he actually cares a lot for her.
There's a number of interpretations to his exchange with Rokuro, but I fully believe that he wants Akane to inherit Shiguma's art and he doesn't want Rokuro to take this chance from her.
But like I mentioned with Issho, Kaisei is also not a fully black or white character and shouldn't be judged as such, and there's a lot of aspects to him that remain a mystery.
Kiroku accumulated a tab at the soba shop because as we can see, he is dressed in rags and may not have really had the money to pay back the owner. Being a rakugoka may not have been as profitable at the time.
However, in Kaisei's flashback, we can see that Issho is dressed in neat clothes, and he is at that point a well known name in his field based on his age. There's no reason for him to accumulate a tab at the bar.
Issho is so obsessed with Shiguma's legacy that he is imitating every single aspect of Kiroku that he can remember, even outside of Rakugo to be closer to him.
“Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery that mediocrity can pay to greatness” - Oscar Wilde
Fatherhood as one of the Central Themes of Akane-Banashi/Akane & Kaisei as foils to each other
Having recently finished reading Akane Banashi, I have a number of analysis I want to write about, so I'll start with what I think is one of the central themes of the series: Fatherhood
Akane Banashi (Akane's story) begins with the ending of her dad's career as a Rakugoka.
Throughout the story, fatherhood takes shape in several different forms, not just the conventional form of Shinta's biological father-daughter relationship with Akane. But through non-blood related ways, like Shiguma's relationship with Akane, who is not just her master but a second father figure in her life who helped her achieve her full potential as a Rakugoka while growing up.
The main thing in common is that between her father's gentle personality of looking out for his family, and Shiguma's careful upbringing in teaching her the art of Rakugo, Akane had nothing but positive influences in her life, which helped shape her art and the person she became. Akane is a easily influenced person by her surroundings, and despite her talent, had she fallen on the wrong hands back then it would have likely caused her to become a completely different character from what we know now.
At the other end of the spectrum we have Kaisei.
Unfortunately, he had nothing but father-figures that would win no father of the year awards in his life.
Between a dead-beat dad who abandoned both him and his mother, and Issho who is seemingly just using him to project his ideals onto him.
All of this may have caused a form of unintentional transgenerational trauma to manifest itself on Kaisei, from Issho's own previous insecurities regarding his own master.
The reason why both him and Akane work as each other's main rivals is because they both started their training very early on, by actual masters.
The main thing currently dividing them is their two year age difference. (I will talk more about Issho's own darkness being passed onto Kaisei and why it won't turn out the same way, in another post.)
Issho and Shiguma were brought up by the same master but turned out completely different. Which brings up the idea that a person's personality can also be made up of what they choose to make of their shared experiences.
Regardless, much how Shiguma's traits are being painted on Akane and her stories
Issho's traits are being painted on Kaisei
Issho is not a character that should be judged as a bad/good person. While his upbringing of Kaisei can be questionable, more often than not, you don't CHOOSE to be a bad parent.
There's no guide to being a good parent, is just you hoping that your children don't make the same mistakes you did. And at the end these characters are just humans, and all humans are capable of making mistakes.
The stories told in the manga, are not just based on one or two things, but are meant to be layered and can be tied to the characters, telling and listening to them, in several different ways.
While him showing up to claim Akane as his pupil may have looked underhanded, I don't believe it was done with malicious intentions. He just has poor way of expressing himself.
Since a long time ago.
It should be remembered that he still chose to take in Kaisei, a kid he knew nothing about that wanted to help his mom. Because he knows what is like to have no money, and he rushed to take in Akane as his new pupil because he knows what is like to have your master/father-figure dying before you.
I believe the current arc, will go into further depth on how a father figure can influence the present and future of their children.
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