Buntoku High School Literature Club Ogiri Research Society — Tonight is the Night to Get Drunk on Solo Comedy —

Club room.

The evening light stretches long across the old desk.
On the edge of the blackboard, someone has left 'Ogiri Practice in Progress' written in chalk.

Clatter.

Tsumugi swings the door open vigorously.

—

Tsumugi
“Koharu! Do you know what day it is today!!”

Koharu (while closing her notebook)
“One day before Maji de Zorome.”

Tsumugi
“Wrong! Enough with the Ryoko references!!”

(Pause)

Tsumugi
“It’s the day of the R-1 Grand Prix 2026, the tournament to decide the best solo comedian in Japan!”

Koharu
“I know. Good luck, Tsumu-chan.”
Tsumugi

“I’m not in it! Though I wish I were!!”
—
Koharu

“It would be novel if you participated via text and animation.”

Tsumugi
“That’s not novel, that’s terrifying.”

—
Koharu

“Do you think it will be exciting this year?”

Tsumugi
“Don’t go stirring things up by saying ‘this year’.”

—
Koharu

“Is there anyone you’re keeping an eye on?”

Tsumugi
“Well...”

(Short pause)
Tsumugi

“I guess it has to be the cult leader.”

Koharu
“...That’s a harsh way to put it. You mean Ginji-san from Don de Colte.”

Tsumugi
“It’s only been three months since the shock at M-1. The audience is already ‘prepared to laugh.’ What will that Ginji do as a solo act—my expectations are at the max.”
Koharu
“R-1 has a lot of unfamiliar acts, so it’s normal to first get a feel for the atmosphere. But with Ginji-san, is it like the ‘instruction manual’ has already been distributed?”
Tsumugi

“Oh! You’re good at this!!”
Koharu
“I studied.”
—

(A moment of silence)
Tsumugi puts one foot on the desk.

—
Tsumugi

“The scariest thing in R-1 is ‘explanation.’ The moment you need an explanation before the punchline, the audience gets left behind.”

Koharu

“But for Ginji-san, the ‘explanation is the joke,’ right?”

Tsumugi

“Exactly!! He steals the audience’s hearts with that ‘believe it or not, it’s up to you’ look.”
—
Koharu stands up quietly.
—

Koharu
“In other words—the character wins first.”
Tsumugi

“That’s it. Solo comedy is lonely, but the character brings the atmosphere with them. And look at this. The Cream Nantara segment ‘Partners Who Don’t Say ‘Mou Eewa’ (That’s Enough)’... honestly, it gave me goosebumps.”

Koharu
“Their talk skills are exceptionally high.”
—

She turns on the TV. It’s still commercials. The two of them keep staring at the screen.

—

Koharu

“If you were to perform, Tsumu-chan?”

Tsumugi
“...Stand-up comedy, I guess.”

Koharu
“What kind?”

Tsumugi
“Talking about the sorrow of being forced to do Ogiri every single day.”

Koharu
“Eh? Do you hate it? Are you serious?”

Tsumugi
“If I really hated it, I would have quit the club ages ago!”
—
The two look at each other and laugh.

Koharu
Let’s stop with the rip-offs for today.

Tsumugi
You’re right.


Tonight is the day a new kind of laughter is born.
Tonight is the day to get drunk on solo comedy.