Rock Is a Lady's Modesty

Rock Is a Lady's Modesty — What's the cost of living a life of the fictional rich and noble when all things rock 'n roll are much more frictional to develop a hidden interest so bold and verbose that it tells a better life story above all? High society (or sometimes simply referred to as society). What comes to mind when you hear of these two words that defined a group of upper-class citizens whose world is miles apart from that of the average common folk? If you're thinking of wealth, power, fame, social status, or anything of that sort, you've pretty much got the thinkingon point. Reserved only for the "specially" born and bred, it's a life that no doubt anyone wants to experience, but in the world of mangaka Hiroshi Fukuda's Rock wa Lady no Tashinami deshite a.k.a Rock Is a Lady's Modesty, it is anything BUT the case, with its coming-of-age story about how musicality transcends the borders of one's heart being its driving force to be true to oneself and go against the formalities of the world. And if you didn't know any better, this is the mangaka's 2nd rondo of his works being adapted into anime, which started with the adaptation of his very first work: Spring-Summer 2013's action fantasy series of Joujuu Senjin!! Mushibugyou. The Noble Maiden, one of a handful of titles bestowed to ladies-in-the-making for being prim, proper, prestigious, and, most importantly, popular. This is the setting for the ladies-only elite school of Oshin Girls' Academy, where young ladies that are bred from the stature and reputation of families that have proven themselves and contributed to high society come together to be taught more of that same nature and be successors to their own families to keep the legacy going. One student in particular is the blonde-haired, twin-tailed young lady who goes by the name of Lilisa Suzunomiya, and the 1st-year lady student racks up her popularity by showcasing through her refined expressions what the next Noble Maiden should be like. However, deep down, there is a secret that the unassuming young girl holds her resentment for, and that is to play some music with the gift that made her the real lady beneath all the "preposterous" fine facade of hers, with an (electric) guitar that her late father had bestowed upon her. In the rage to fit the demands of high society and a family's remarriage that cemented her future, Lilisa is in one of two camps: to uphold her adopted family name and be the next heir to the Suzunomiya empire or commit to the guitar and see everything fall apart before her very eyes. It's within this context that we see Lilisa bump into another girl, Otoha Kurogane, who, as the daughter of a prominent political family, has all eyes on her as the top popular student that exudes admiration and fangirling from within. Yet, in an ironic twist of fate, Lilisa soon finds out that Kurogane is just like her — a relentless drummer practicing in the music room of the school's old and unused schoolhouse that's way off the beaten path, and a fiery confrontation between the girls' primp image and their preposterous rawness begins to rear its head. Clearly, this form of high society, or what is more commonly referred to as a "Class S" culture, is one that has existed since the early 20th century in Japan, and the literature's influences and legacy go far beyond as both a social phenomenon and even spawning its own genre as a pseudo-Yuri genre counterpart that depicts lesbian literature. And if there's one thing that's unapologetic about Rock Lady, it's that Hiroshi Fukuda wants the audience to know that this "Yuri" story is more than just an act of symbolism of how Japanese high society has been deemed "unreachable by the average reader," and that it allows the scrutiny of the market itself to be viewed through the lens of both Lilisa and Kurogane, who not only want to upstage themselves as girls of high stature but also as girls who know how to rock the party with "intended" BDSM-like sexual innuendos and phases of seduction that reek much in similarity to Kakegurui. Also, I think it's a fair judgment to call Rock Lady the "antithesis" of many shows of the same regard that have recently come into emergence to redefine the sub-genre of girls' band series, which you'll instinctively know THE one that made all of this possible: Bocchi the Rock!. In fact, author Aki Hamaji even endorsed and recommended the series alongside her very own when it comes to the deconstruction of the girls' band feature, which, as you can tell, it has revitalized the AniManga scene around that specific culture. With shows being similar in style, like the BanG Dream! franchise with its spin-off series of Summer 2023's It's MyGO!!!!! and last season's Ave Mujica, as well as last Spring's Girls Band Cry, the hype around the girls' band sub-genre has never been more fired up than before. From the pure to the raw, the fate of Lilisa Suzunomiya and Otoha Kurogane is one that's unapologetically doused in not just "friendly chaos" that's combined with the show's depiction of the class anxiety and societal sexism, but a dynamic and electric Yuri/lesbian relationship that knows no limits to amp the seductive BDSM traits of the series overall. It goes both ways between the ladies trying to be the dominatrix over the other with their explosive but sapphic and proud vulgar expressions. That's the story of "liberation and libidos," and the show constantly makes you aware that you're not just watching a constant catfight, but it's the catfight to end all catfights that doesn't diminish what's to love of the raw friction between the two ladies. However, while it takes two to form a small music team, it takes twice as much to form a band, and that's where both Tina Isemi and Tamaki Shiraya contribute to their "liberation" of rock 'n' roll. The vice-president of the girls' academy, Tina, looks the part of a model, and being the daughter of a family-owned cosmetics brand, she's instantly adept atupholding her Prince Charming persona in public. But in regard to her true self, she's anything but that as a gentle girl who has no mission in life until she chances upon the twin-tails girl's performance and wants to be in their reign. As for the latter, the childhood friend of Kurogane and a 2nd year at the academy's sister institution of Kuroyuri Girls' School, who's also well-versed in the underground music scene, holds nothing back against those who try to oppress her, and having only had Kurogane, who is her central area of influence, to even pick herself up to be a skilled musician, she's the epitome of "don't try to mess with me, or I'll mess you up even worse." On the sidelines, however, are also people who are in the direct line of fire when it comes to Lilisa and her two-faced facade of a persona, which, as you can imagine, affects them greatly. I've already mentioned that Lilisa was adopted into the Suzunomiya household after the passing of her late father, which brought both her and her mother, Yuka, into the prestigious family. However, like the strict confirmations of the Class S regime, Lilisa is always constantly informed by her mother to give up on rock music, something that was once shared within the commoner family before the remarriage, which is instantly noticed as a change of heart to not want to disappoint the new family's expectations. Moreover, the arrival of the mother-daughter duo does not bode well for the younger "adoptive sister," Alice, of whom she's the true biological heir to the name, and assumes her declaration to chase them both out by exposing Lilisa's facade and proving them otherwise, only for that same "class" act to rather influence her instead as a fan of Lilisa's. How the tables have turned. Interestingly enough, Rock Lady's production is also a twist on real-life fate as well. For the man who helmed the Gundam Build Divers series, as well as Fall 2023's The iDOLM@STER Million Live!, on a friend's recommendation, director Shinya Watada instantly found the series interesting and was even surprised that the studio of Bandai Namco Pictures reached out to him for a directorial role in the anime project, alongside assistant director Ori Yasukawa, who played drums in an amateur band. That proves more than enough to form a staff team centred around the marriage of rock music. And to make this effect come alive, the idea of using motion capture for the performance aspects of the anime comes as a consensus, but it's only with the help of producer Tatsuya Sunado scouring for bands that best fit what they're looking for that Watada picked the band that fits this rhetoric to a T: the famous all-female rock band BAND-MAID, which instantly hits all the right notes for rather gruesome recording sessions that at first were hard to overcome but went well thereafter. Even the VAs themselves have given recognition that despite the different-than-usual voice recording sessions that prove quite the challenge, at least to both central MC's VAs of Akira Sekine (Princess Principal's Charlotte, Senpai wa Otokonoko's Aoi Saki) and Miyuri Shimabukuro (Fruits Basket's Yuki Soma, Bofuri's Syrup), it's a lot of work and codependence with the author himself to flesh out Lilisa and Kurogane's characters to their very best. All of this combined really gives you the sense of appreciation of how coincidences can actually elevate the original source material to its full potential, which I think Shinya Watada and his staff team did an absolutely great job at that. When it comes to the actual production, Bandai Namco Pictures is as versatile as a studio you can get for its diverse range of shows, and Rock Lady is no exception to the formula. Great animation alongside the pseudo-3DCG motion capture that is supposed to induce head-turning epilepsy, which I'm thankful that it's not overused at all, gives the show its own identity to tell you that it's not goofing around, not even for a moment. Even the music is specially tailored for a series like this, with Band-Maid and its group members contributing heavily to the musical aspects of the anime, more than just its normalcy of a fired-up, rock-heavy hype of a banger OP song. With Little Glee Monster onboard for the ED, it's not a bad song either, and it's something that's outside the usual comfort zone for the all-female vocal group themselves. If you fancy a show that's all rock 'n roll, all hype, and Yuri/lesbian-induced, Rock wa Lady no Tashinami deshite a.k.a Rock Is a Lady's Modesty has you all covered for an experience awaiting its doors to be opened. While it has similar vibes to Girls Band Cry, the show is wholly its own thing that does just as majestically (in the ladylike sense), but with hard, punk rock vibes so toxic that it leaves you coming back for more battles. Even pure-minded ladies do have their antitheses of life as well.

This story sounded like something right up my alley since it seemed to combine two elements that I like: elegant rich girls and rock'n roll. It sounded too good to be true. What a disappointment it is. I am not even going to use the names of the characters because at a certain point I just didn't care about them anymore and just wanted to know how the story would end. The first few episodes set up the story of a girl who finds herself becoming rich due to her mother's marriage. She must repress herself as she vows to become the top student in aprestigious school for the elite. Unfortunately almost none of this has any relevance as the show goes on. You sporadically see them in class or studying, but it is a mere visual setup. The author probably drew some pompous girls holding rock instruments and thought it looked cool. Making a story out of the cool images is the hard part. Apart from the visuals, it doesn't matter that the girls go to a school for wealthy teenagers. The girls could be poor, aliens, supernatural detectives, ninjas, pirates, etc. It wouldn't make a difference. The reason for that is that this story is written like a martial arts tale. Characters meet, form a group with a common goal, find opponents, practice, fight, find other opponents, practice, fight. I've read this kind of story in Shounen Jump many times. You could easily tweak the story to make their visual motif different and it wouldn't change its structure. Let me compare this show with another one called Maria Watches Over Us. The protagonist there is a girl from higher middle class home that enters the world of incredibly wealthy families. In that show, everything is based on the fact that most characters come from high society. There is absolutely no story if you change that. The fact that they are rich dictates their personalities, their mannerisms, and their relationships. If you remove the parts involving the upper class in Rock wa Lady no Tashinami deshite, does it still work? The answer is yes. When the girls are playing in their band, which is the main core and majority of the story, there is no relevance that they come from a more affluent background. The girls practice hard rock and metal in a isolated room in their school and play gigs in small venues. Being rich barely has anything to do with these parts. Regarding the characters, you would only need to change the school uniform and the way the drummer speaks. Aristocracy here is just a visual theme. No character is properly fleshed out. They keep lazily hinting that the protagonist learned to play the guitar thanks to her father but it never shows anything relevant. The protagonist is in the prestigious school to keep appearances for her mother's sake, but there is barely any interaction between mother and daughter throughout the entire show. They briefly show the past of the drummer and the bassist together, but it is all so corny. This is the main problem with this story. The writing is so shallow. There is no depth as to why they love rock. They are just cool looking characters with barely any backstory or personality. I want to like and care about these badass girls with an attitude but we only know them in a very superficial level. Half baked characters in a half baked story. The production of the show is what stands out. Great opening and ending songs. Cool songs when the characters are playing their instruments. Decent usage of 3DCG for when the characters play their instruments. It is unfortunate that the rest of the show is so disappointing. This isn't a show about girls forming a rock band. This is a ludicrous musical battle story. It is less about music and more about defeating foes.

I love when you know from the first episode what your anime of the season is. The first 20 minutes of Rock is a lady’s modesty were all I needed to see to know there was nothing that would touch this show this season and 3 months later, I can confidently say that’s still the case. I have been the biggest fan of this series for the last 12 weeks, pushing the agenda everywhere I can. It’s one of the 3-4 hyper fixations that I get every year and just can’t shut-up about. This was incredible. I’m such a big fan of series where characterscome out of their shells and embrace who they really are as people, and Rock Lady does it in such a cool way, using rock music as a tool of expression for emotionally(and sexually)repressed girls at a school for rich kids. I had so much fun seeing the girls come together, form a band and open up to one another. Living your life hiding who you really are from the world just to fit in has to be so suffocating. While we aren’t all rockstars, I think a lot of people will be able to relate to the themes in the story of self-acceptance and doing the things YOU want to in life. Life’s too short to waste it trying to please other people at the expense of yourself. I hyped this show up as “my weekly dose of rock lesbians” every week and don’t get me wrong, it is unapologetically gay af which is awesome, but it’s also so much more than that. It’s an inspiring story that should make you want to pursue the things you’re passionate about, even if others laugh at you or think you’re naive. You combine that great story setup with some of the greatest 3DCGI musical performances of all time, an amazing cast of seiyuus and of course our dose of Yuri, and you got an amazing show. “What does it mean to be a proper lady?” That’s the foundational question of this series. Society has a predetermined notion of what “proper” looks like, but is it worth forcing yourself into a box just to be what others want you to be? What good is living a life if it’s not your own? To hell with what anyone else thinks! Lilisa’s gradual descent into just not giving af what other people think of her love of rock and roll is one of the more satisfying character arcs I’ve seen recently. At school she’s known as this perfect girl who can do everything, everyone looks up to her as a role model, etc., but after school she’s rocking her soul out with Otoha trying to get better on the guitar. Having to hide what she’s really passionate about from her mother, classmates and sister is difficult, but it’s that challenge that makes the after school performances with Otoha, and later the full band, that much more special. After wearing a mask all day and pretending to be someone she’s not, Lilisa can truly let go and be herself when she’s got a guitar in her hands. Again, most of us are not trying to be rockstars, but there’s probably something you enjoyed doing that you felt you had to grow out of, or were even forced to stop whether it’s because of peer pressure, a parent or just life circumstances. This series is all about encouraging people to be themselves and embrace that passion. If you wanna try out being an artist, or making music or chasing some dream that others have deemed “unrealistic”, go for it. NOW. Following up on the Otoha x Lilisa point, their relationship is the other foundation of the series and man it was great. There’s this really interesting sexually charged dynamic in almost every scene with the two of them, but it’s not just for fanservice. It’s used to further the point of two young women who’ve been forced to present themselves in a certain way, finally having an opportunity to be free and just lose themselves in their passion. Their profanity laced shouting matches were hilarious, Lilisa’s BDSM kink fantasies and of course, their actual musical performances which the studio did in a way that conveyed this feeling of being lost in spiritual and physical ecstasy, were amazing. It truly is such an intimate and liberating feeling when you find people with whom you can be yourself with no reservations. So we’ve had a few rock/music shows in the last few years with similar premises and concepts to Rock Lady, what makes this different is the focus on instrumental musical performances as opposed to traditional voiced band performances. There’s no vocals, just pure rock and it works very well as a means of conveying the girls’ feelings. This show has an emphasis on letting you FEEL the music. It’s a different sort of experience than hearing lyrics. It goes very well with the girls’ punk rock alter egos as well since rock is inherently a counter cultural style of music that young people have always turned to as a way of rebelling against predefined social roles. The music in this show hits you like a wave and while you might not have a fangasm like Otoha, it will move you. Speaking of fangasms, while the show does have sexual themes and some fan-service, I like that it’s not just there for the sake of it. For example there’s a scene where a character is revealed to flatten their chest using a girdle and then suddenly her breasts spill out of the girdle. It’s done for a bit of comedy, but it also shows how this character’s been living a lie her entire life, she’s literally suffering everyday pretending to be someone she isn’t. Same with the BDSM stuff, yea it’s cool and kinky, but importantly it shows Lilisa’s desire to have control over things in her life instead of being a passive observer all the time. Rock performances are the only time she can be a “dom” and exert her will over another person through her performances. I’m cool with fanservice when it actually serves a purpose and isn’t just there for goon-bait, this series handles it well. Emotional and sexual liberation aside, the other big thing here is the cast! I love each and every member of this cast so very much. The way everyone comes together to form a band, bringing their own strengths and weaknesses to this ragtag group of individuals who seemingly have no business being together was awesome. All the girls have great personalities, but Tamaki was my personal weakness from a design and character standpoint. I’m weak to crass speaking alt girls and I love the chaos she brought to every episode. Could be recency bias talking, but this was probably my fave rock band cast. The yuri teasing, the fights, the way they all push each other to be better, it moved me. This was a marvel from a technical perspective. I’m constantly amazed at how far 3DCGI performances have come and this had the best I’ve seen yet. It’s so easy to lose yourself in these musical performances, just like the characters, because of how well done they are. The camera angles, the fluidity of motion, the way the music almost seems to hit you physically.. it’s great. I didn’t even miss having a vocalist in this because I’m a huge Shoegaze/Alt J-rock fan so I’m used to hearing entire songs with no lyrics. The art in general also looks gorgeous with bright and colourful backgrounds and character designs! Another show I could yap about nonstop for hours, and tbf I did, every week on Twitter and in the MAL/Reddit discussion threads, but simply put this is a must watch to me. In fact, it’s one of like 3-4 shows this season that if you don’t watch anything else, you NEED to watch. These girls rocked my world and I’m gonna miss them so much. Rock Lady gets 10 notes out of 10.

I really love this anime—I’ve already watched it multiple times and I’m still looking forward to a season 2. Out of all the anime I’ve watched, this one truly stands out as one of the best for me. It feels like a whole new level of anime with its unique story, strong characters, and the emotions it brings. The balance of action, drama, and depth makes it unforgettable. Every rewatch feels fresh, and I always notice something new that makes me appreciate it even more. I honestly think this anime deserves more recognition, and I can’t wait to see how the story continues.