Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan - Episode 4

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Episode 4: The Harvest Moon (エピソード#04 望月家のお月見, Episōdo #04 Mochizuki-ke no Otsukimi, lit. "The Mochizuki Family Moon Viewing") is a one-shot manga written and illustrated by Hirohiko Araki as part of the Thus Spoke Kishibe Rohan series. The one-shot briefly features Rohan Kishibe as he introduces a story about a certain family and the curse that threatens their lives once every year.

This story was released alongside other works as part of the premiere of Shueisha's online manga service, Shonen Jump+ on September 22, 2014. It was later published in the May 2016 issue of Ultra Jump.

Summary

While dining at Trattoria Trussardi, Rohan Kishibe tells the story of the Mochizuki family, who suffers from a curse that makes them die the same day every generation, the day of the Harvest Moon. After learning his wife, Haruko, has early markers of uterine cancer, the family patriarch, Noboru, forbids everyone in the family to leave the house as a safety measure. He warns his eldest daughter Aki and youngest son Takeru of the family curse, while his mother Mitsu sobs after hearing how her husband and other son died on this day years in the past. Noboru tells them that if they stay together all night, none of them will die, as his great grandparents lived to over 100 because they kept the family tradition of the moon viewing alive. They decide to throw a party in the backyard until the fated day passes.

The family enjoys their night together, even though it seems something is trying to kill them. Takeru's RC helicopter crashes into a tree, breaks a branch, and lands in a fishbowl, after which Aki's phone rings and she knocks her father's glasses onto the branch, sending a goldfish into Mitsu's mouth, nearly choking her. However, the same series of mishaps causes Takeru's kiddie pool to pop after Noboru hits it with a pair of hot tongs, making Takeru lose control of the helicopter which falls onto Mitsu to knock the goldfish out of her throat, saving her life. The pool water, however, washes a hornet's nest out into the family garden.

Later that night, everyone but Aki has fallen asleep, and she talks on the phone with her boyfriend who tells her he has come to the house to see her. She goes out to meet him, taking a jacket, unaware she is being watched by a rabbit-like creature who carries the curse. She drops her jacket, which lands on the hornet's nest. As she is about to be swarmed and stung, her boyfriend proposes to her, saving her from the curse as she is no longer a member of the Mochizuki family in mind and body. A nearby motorcyclist is killed when the hornets are redirected at him, while Aki rejoins her family who have all woken up as a result of the motorcycle crash. The rabbit creature leaves, promising to return to ensure the curse will play out once more during the next harvest moon.

Appearances

Characters
Sakuzo Mochizuki
(Mentioned only)
Mamoru Mochizuki
(Mentioned only)
Seizo Mochizuki
(Mentioned only)
Sae Mochizuki
(Mentioned only)
Kentaro Mochizuki
(Mentioned only)
Kayo Mochizuki
(Mentioned only)
Tsukiji Mochizuki
(Mentioned only)
Yoshigoro Mochizuki
(Mentioned only)
Yamato Mochizuki
(Mentioned only)
Miwa Mochizuki
(Mentioned only)
Akiko Mochizuki
(Mentioned only)

Author's Note

Link to this sectionAuthor's Note
TSRK04.jpg
Times are changing and so is manga. As part of the launch of their exclusively digital magazine, Shonen Jump honored me by publishing this one-shot for their first issue. In the way that they respect their family tradition and celebrate the moon together, the Mochizuki family is reminiscent of the Higashikata family in JoJolion. Although the drafts were drawn on paper, this story has only been published on paper too thanks to this re-edition. It's like opposite elements found each other here, in the end. In any case, the moon will stay where it is.
時代も漫画も変化して、「少年ジャンプ」がデジタルのみの雑誌を作るとの事で、その創刊に載った誠に名誉ある短編。
家族でお月見をするという古風な習慣。『ジョジョリオン』の東方家とリンクするような望月家。原稿の執筆はアナログだが、紙に印刷されるのはこのコミックスが初めて。何もかもが正反の対のギャップがそろったみたいだ。でも、月という空の天体は不変だなぁ。

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