Hitori Gotoh (Bocchi)

Birthday; February 21

Age; 15

Height; 156 cm

Weight: 50 kg

Hair color; Pink

Eye color; Aqua

Blood type; B

Occupation; Student

Relatives; Naoki Gotoh (father) Michiyo Gotoh (mother) Futari Gotoh (little sister) Jimihen (dog)

Hitori is an extremely introverted girl with high social anxiety, making it very difficult for her to talk to strangers. She often tries to avoid interactions, even performing her first live house show from inside a cardboard mango box. Because of her introversion, she rarely goes outside and instead spends most of her time at home, playing the guitar alone in a dark closet.

She seeks praise from others, likely as a reaction to her personality. She started playing the guitar to become a music star for the sole reason of being admired. She sometimes attempts to socialize, often in unusual ways, such as mimicking how others talk. However, these attempts often fail.

Despite her low self-esteem and anxiety, Gotoh unknowingly becomes a close and reliable friend or even an idol and a source of inspiration for the people around her. Sometimes she does notice how other people appreciate her, but Hitori doesn't draw any conclusions from this, simply bragging about it to her friends or going off into another fantasy about future popularity.

Probably because her self-esteem is so low, Hitori perceives any positive attitude towards her as a coincidence or a rare achievement, without thinking at all about how she was able to achieve such an attitude and how she can maintain or develop it. Considering also that due to her constant anxiety and bad mood, she is simply not used to positive emotions and easily gets carried away by them whenever possible.

Hitori Gotoh is characterized by her long, straight pink hair, typically adorned with a blue and yellow cube hair clip on the right side of her head. She has large aqua-blue eyes and a fair complexion, often accompanied by a somewhat vacant or anxious expression.

Her go-to outfit consists of a loose-fitting pink tracksuit top, a long gray pleated skirt, black knee-high socks, and brown loafers. The oversized clothes reflect her introverted nature and preference for staying unnoticed. While her physique may be subtly noted in the manga (she surprisingly has a sizeable bust), it's intentionally downplayed in her usual wardrobe and demeanor.

"I don't want! I don't want to work!! I'm scared! People scare me!!"

Hitori Gotoh (後ご藤とう ひとり, Gotō Hitori), often referred to by her bandmates as Bocchi-chan (ぼっちちゃん). She is a first-year of Shuka High School and is the lead guitarist and lyricist of Kessoku Band.

She is extremely timid and introverted, with a strong desire to perform in a band to highlight her talents. This aspiration led him to take up the guitar. Despite being very skilled, she faces challenges in demonstrating her abilities effectively in front of an audience.

Guitarhero (ギターヒーロー gitāhīrō)

Bocchi-chan (ぼっちちゃん) by Ryo

Mango Mask (マンゴー仮面 Mangō Kamen) by Seika

Hippie-senpai by Nene

The name Hitori means "alone, one person" (ひとり).

Hitori's surname Gotoh means "rear, remainder" (後, go) and "wisteria" (藤, tou).

Her nickname Bocchi comes from hitoribocchi (ひとりぼっち), meaning "loneliness." Bocchi means "loner" in Japanese slang.

Her first guitar was a Gibson Les Paul Custom 1968 Reissue Ebony, which she borrowed from her father Naoki.

The guitar's brand is the same as Yui Hirasawa from K-ON!, but the model is different; the latter owns a Gibson Les Paul Standard '50s Heritage Cherry Sunburst.

It took her two hours to get to STARRY from her house.

She was never seen wearing a school uniform blouse and often wore her pink tracksuit alongside with a maroon band t-shirt underneath.

She prefers to wear a school swimsuit rather than a bikini because she feels more comfortable in it.

She does yoga with her mom to calm her anxiety, and surprisingly, she is quite flexible.

Over time, everyone started to grow impatient with Bocchi due to her lack of self-esteem and how she hardly grew as a character that they were ultimately annoyed with her introversion.

Nijika plays a significant role in Bocchi's exposure to band life and her social development, as she is the one to recruit her into the band. As the Kessoku Band's leader, she treats Bocchi with kindness and encouragement, along with the other members. Aside from her own goals, Bocchi thinks highly of Nijika and is motivated to see Nijika's dream for the band realized. Bocchi is notably observant of Nijika's moods and intentions, and tries to help whenever possible, which Nijika herself acknowledges. Nijika often checks up on Bocchi's mental state and finds ways to make uncomfortable situations easier for her without making her retreat, either through compromise, showing signs of support, or being very frank.

Bocchi was invited by Nijika to play the rhythm guitar for their band after their guitarist/vocalist ditched on them last minute for a live show. Despite finding out that Nijika is a GuitarHero fan, Bocchi did not want to reveal the fact that it is her because she believes the real her does not deserve the image she has built on the internet. With supportive but not forceful encouragement from Nijika, Bocchi joins the band and does what she can to help, like working part-time in STARRY to meet their quota and recruiting Kita as their guitarist/vocalist, which Nijika acknowledges and praises. When they were preparing for their audition, Nijika opens up to Bocchi about having a big dream for the band, which motivates us to do well to see that dream come true alongside her own dream of becoming popular. After their first live show in STARRY as Kessoku Band, Nijika reveals that she has figured out Bocchi is GuitarHero, she opens up about her past, her dream, and tells her that she considers Bocchi her "hero" for all the times she has saved their shows when times seemed rough.

As mentioned, Bocchi is observant with Nijika's mood and tries to help when she can. When Nijika insisted Ryo's absence during the start of the Mikakunin Riot was not a big deal, Bocchi pointed out that she seemed bothered, which prompted Nijika to open up. When Nijika passed her college entrance exam, Bocchi went to her spontaneous evening celebration party uninvited because she believes such things should be said in-person. Bocchi calls Nijika by her first name, "Nijika-chan".

Ryo is responsible for giving Hitori her nickname "Bocchi," and also named the band "Kessoku Band." The two quickly became close friends after their first meeting, and Ryo used her experience from a previous band to help Bocchi find his role in Kessoku Band. Although both are introverted and quiet, Ryo is less anxious than Bocchi and tends to remain composed in stressful situations.

However, Ryo has a habit of borrowing money from Bocchi, making promises to repay her, but often fails to do so due to financial difficulties. Additionally, when Bocchi experiences a mishap, Ryo sometimes laughs at her, although this is just playfully teasing within their strong and supportive friendship. Bocchi calls her "Ryo-san" in the beginning but changes to "Ryo-senpai" later on.

Despite being strangers, they quickly became close friends as Bocchi was the one to recruit Kita back into the Kessoku band and teach him how to play the guitar. They also attended the same school and were in the same class during their second year. She was also the one who helped Kita reconcile with the other band members after her sudden disappearance.

Although they have a strong friendship, they both have their own weaknesses. Bocchi feels insecure about her ability to make friends compared to Kita's outgoing personality, while Kita is insecure about Bocchi's talent and determination. Despite this, they rarely argue, except for the time when Kita became uncomfortable with Bocchi's obsession with keeping their band photo as a tiled wall in her closet, which led her to distance herself from Bocchi for a few days.

Kita is known for her politeness and addresses Bocchi by her last name, "Gotoh-san." Later, as they became closer friends, Kita started calling her "Hitori-chan." We are also aware of Bocchi's social anxiety and want to help him overcome it. However, her attempts sometimes end up making things worse for Bocchi, such as when she gave her a chance to speak during their cultural festival live, which resulted in Bocchi's stage dive incident. Despite this, neither Bocchi nor Kita seems to dwell on these mishaps. Hitori calls her "Kita-chan".

At first, Bocchi was intimidated by Seika's unfriendly and strict personality when she first joined STARRY. Seika's demeanor often made Bocchi nervous about her job and performance. However, Seika actually considers Bocchi to be a great person with untapped potential as both a guitarist and as an individual. Unfortunately, Seika struggles to effectively communicate these thoughts to Bocchi, which has left Bocchi largely unaware of Seika's true feelings. While their relationship is primarily that of employer and employee, there are moments when they do genuinely care for each other.

Kikuri is like an older sister to Bocchi, who greatly admires Hiroi's skills as a bassist. Their first meeting was during a street live performance in Kanazawa-Hakken, where Hiroi's encouraging words helped Bocchi learn a lot. Hiroi also recognized Bocchi's potential as a guitarist and became a huge supporter of her band, attending all of their performances.

However, Bocchi is not fond of Hiroi's off-stage behavior, as she sometimes causes trouble for the crowd due to her excessive drinking. Hiroi also has a tendency to borrow money from Bocchi and others, which can be frustrating.

Bocchi finds it challenging to get along with Futari because of their contrasting personalities. She often feels hurt by Futari's blunt comments and inferiority due to being placed at the lowest tier of the "Futari Family Pyramid." Despite this, their sibling relationship remains positive, and Futari occasionally shows support toward Bocchi.

Naoki played a significant role in Bocchi's guitar journey as he allowed her to borrow his guitar and even set up her guitarhero channel. Being a former musician himself, Naoki understands the struggles that come with learning an instrument, and he always provides Bocchi with helpful advice and support whenever she faces difficulties. He is Bocchi's most expressive supporter among all her family members and often records her performances on his camcorder during events or occasions.

However, Naoki tends to be brutally honest with his opinions, which sometimes includes not believing in Bocchi's ability to make friends through her music because of his impression of her. Despite this, his intentions are always well-meaning, and he truly wants the best for Bocchi.

Bocchi's mother is known for being both nurturing and strict towards her daughter. She has always been supportive of Bocchi's interests and activities, while also providing constructive criticism when necessary. Despite her understanding of Bocchi's social struggles, she never hesitates to address any problematic behaviors, whether they occur in Bocchi's personal life or band activities. While she tends to be honest about her views of Bocchi with others, she never scolds Bocchi for her introverted tendencies. Instead, she encourages her to step out of her comfort zone while also respecting her boundaries.

Hitori started playing the guitar in her first year of middle school and improved her skills by practicing six hours daily. Although, after she had graduated from middle school and started attending Shuka High School, she still had no friends.

Hitori was playing her guitar in her house while lamenting in an internal monologue about how she was on the brink of becoming a hikikomori, a shut off from society due to her social issues. She found comfort in the comments people left on her "guitarhero" video channel, but when someone suggested she perform live, her motivation dropped. She thought back to her middle school days when she tried and failed to make friends through her love for "rock". She dreamed of forming a band and performing live, but it seemed like a distant fantasy. The next day, she showed up at Shuka High School with her guitar and band merchandise, but no one seemed interested. Feeling down, she wandered around Shimokitazawa, ending up on a swing in a nearby playground, and remembering her bad luck. Suddenly, a girl approached her, and she introduced herself as Nijika Ijichi. Noting her guitar, she asked Hitori to be a substitute for their band's recent runaway guitarist. Hitori reluctantly agreed and Nijika took her to a live house called STARRY. On the way, Nijika rambled on about herself, making it hard for Hitori to listen. But when Nijika mentioned the "guitarhero" channel and how she wished to play with the creator, Hitori was surprised and grateful that someone liked her work.

When they arrived in STARRY, Nijika introduced Hitori to Ryo Yamada, who was already inside. The live house and its staff were so gloomy that Hitori was afraid and hid in a trash can. When they started to practice, Hitori was very bad, which dampened her motivation despite her impressive performances as guitar hero. To boost her confidence, Ryo suggested that she hide in a mango box to calm down, and surprisingly worked. She felt much better and was able to perform well in the live show. Ryo also explained the band's name, Kessoku Band, and gave her the nickname "Bocchi(-chan)." Although Hitori was just in a box, she felt optimistic playing with the band and believed that improving her social skills was crucial to showcasing her potential as guitar hero.

On the following day, Bocchi shared with the band her avoidance of people, revealing how she travels 2 hours to school to avoid meeting anyone she knows, and how happy songs make her feel like she is missing out on youth. When Nijika brought up the band's financial situation and the need to work part-time, Bocchi was hesitant to give up her savings and feared the idea of ​​working. Nijika then offered her a job at the live house instead, which Bocchi reluctantly accepted but still searched for the odds of winning the lottery to avoid her responsibility. On her first day of work, Bocchi tried to skip it by resorting to bathing in cold water and sitting in front of a blowing fan but failed. Her nervousness gets in the way even right before she enters the live house until the manager notices her and gets her mistaken as a customer. The whole day passed with a lot of mishaps on her part, but it went well nevertheless, and Nijika compliments her for taking a step forward. She managed to get herself excited for the next day, but her excitement for the next day was ruined by a fever that struck her at the wrong time.

She came back to school frustrated with her anxiety hindering her communication until she stumbled upon a cheerful girl. She tried getting her attention to get the girl to join her band but ended up running away herself. After a proper explanation, Kita initially declined due to her previous experience with a certain band but asked Bocchi if she could teach her guitar. Bocchi agreed and even brought Kita to her part-time job, only to discover that it was at the very same live house where her old band played and where the former Kessoku Band vocalist quit. Despite feeling overwhelmed by Kita's presence when she joined the crew on her job, Bocchi showed her the ropes on the job and they developed a mutual understanding. Finally, we rejoined the band.

In the following events, Bocchi "enjoyed" teaching Kita how to play the guitar, working her part-time job, and having photoshoots with the group. The band asked him to write lyrics for a new song, but Bocchi struggled to come up with an idea that he was satisfied with. After receiving guidance from Ryo, he finally finished the lyrics, which the band liked and approved of. When Seika puts the band for their upcoming live performance, the band passes, but Bocchi becomes overwhelmed and vomited due to the stress. Seika saw this and offered constructive criticism to her, commenting such as that she often looked down, hoping to help Bocchi improve, but Bocchi misinterpreted her comments as a threat.

Bocchi encounters a dead end when trying to sell her tickets for their performance. She finds herself reflecting on her situation where suddenly she comes across a collapsed woman. After helping her, she identifies her as a guitarist and introduces herself as Hiroi, a bassist. After hearing about Bocchi's situation, Hiroi invites her to perform a surprise street live together. The impromptu performance attracts a large audience and even results in a few ticket sales; two girls bought her tickets and so does Hiroi, but she still borrows the money from Bocchi for her tickets home. The band members, except for Ryo, pay Bocchi a visit at her home to have a good time and discuss band-related matters. Things go "well" until the end when they all turn into dust.

When the date for their performance came, unfortunately the weather was bad which caused a significant setback for the band as many people were unable to attend. Only the drunk woman and two girls from Bocchi's previous live performance showed up, which resulted in the band feeling demotivated. The live performance started poorly with the band feeling out of sync, but Bocchi stepped up with her leading guitar solo, which helped to remotivate them, which caused them to perform their next song exceptionally well. They later celebrated their success with a feast at an izakaya. Before they went home, Nijika had a conversation with Bocchi, recognizing him as guitar hero and giving him a new name, Bocchi the Rock.

In the summer holidays, Bocchi found himself spending most of his time playing the guitar and aimlessly browsing the internet until he grew tired of it. She then went to STARRY just to hold a funeral for cicadas. Upon learning that the band had not done anything together for almost the entire holiday, they decided to take a trip to Enoshima. This was particularly challenging since all but one of them preferred indoor activities. Despite the challenges, they had a good time, although Bocchi was attacked by the birds there.

When the application window for the school festival performance opened, Bocchi tried to apply for the band but found himself held back by his persistent anxiety. Seeking guidance from both her bandmates and the STARRY crew, she struggled to muster the courage to apply. Just when she thought she might give up, Kita revealed that she had already applied on their behalf, making Bocchi die on the inside (figuratively). With the application now irrevocable, the pressure mounted as it cannot be cancelled. Bocchi also faced a grueling exam session that left her feeling drained. Though she just managed to pass, the looming festival weighed heavily on her mind.

In search of motivation for the upcoming school festival live, Hiroi invited the band to witness her band's performance at FOLT, a live house. Bocchi found renewed determination after watching Hiroi and his band gave it all on stage. The band members then practiced tirelessly for several days leading up to the festival. On the day of the festival, Bocchi found herself in a difficult situation as she needed to dress up as a maid for their class café. She ran away before the café even started, but the other band members managed to track her down and take her to other stalls to have fun. However, Bocchi was still obliged to work at the café. They also rehearsed in the school gymnasium as their performance was scheduled for the second day of the festival.

In the school gymnasium on the second day of the festival, Kessoku Band started their performance, and Bocchi was filled with anxiety. Unfortunately, midway on the performance, she discovered that the first guitar string was severely out of tune during the performance, and had to constantly try to tune it during the first song. The situation worsened as the same string snapped during the second song; the second string could not be tuned due to a broken peg. With no time to waste, Bocchi improvised and used an empty cup of sake left by Hiroi, who was watching, to perform a slide guitar solo, which surprised the audience in a good way. After the performance ended, Kita gave Bocchi a space to talk during the MC session, but she didn't know what to say. So, she thought about what Hiroi would do and impulsively jumped off the stage, without anyone to catch her it resulted in Bocchi falling to the ground and losing consciousness. She was rushed to the infirmary, accompanied by Kita. The incident caused the students to remember him as the "crazy rocker who dived," which made Bocchi very embarrassed.

Bocchi apologized to his father for the broken guitar and the incident at the school festival. Despite this, her father told her not to worry about it since it could still be fixed, but he suggested that she buy a new guitar. To her surprise, her father revealed that her guitarhero channel had earned her enough money (a total of 300,000 yen) to buy a new guitar. Although she initially tried to quit her part-time job, she eventually gave up. Along with his friends, Bocchi went to Ochanomizu in Shibuya to look for a new guitar. She finally decided on a custom Yamaha guitar, which the attendant advised her to take care of well.

Later, Nijika paid Bocchi a visit at her place and expressed her interest in watching Bocchi's guitarhero recordings. Upon viewing them together, Nijika brought up "My New Gear," a user who flaunted a high-end guitar and later auctioned it off to purchase a newer model. They both discovered that Ryo also joined in on this trend. Nijika encouraged Bocchi to create a Twitta account, but unfortunately, Bocchi was unable to resist the "Attention-Whore Monster" in her mind, which begged for more likes. She ended up spending the remaining income from her channel on a lot of effects pedals just to garner attention. After realizing her poor decision-making skills, she became frustrated with her financial situation; and worst, found out that her failed stage dive had gone viral.

When Kessoku Band was preparing for their next live performance, they were surprised by the unexpected appearance of a young-looking girl named Poison♡Yami. She introduced herself as a writer for Band Lab. She interviewed the band, with a particular interest in Bocchi due to her previous viral fame. This caused some suspicion among the band members. Later, during their live performance, Poison♡Yami was among the audience and was amazed by Bocchi's guitar playing. She made a shocking revelation to everyone present—she was the person behind the guitarhero channel.

Despite Nijika's efforts to conceal Bocchi's online identity (the only person who knows about Bocchi's online persona), Poison♡Yami pointed out several similarities between Bocchi's online and real-life appearances, leaving Bocchi feeling flustered. The rest of the bandmates did not react strongly, but Poison♡Yami accused Kessoku Band of not allowing Bocchi to reach her full potential as a guitarist and labeled them an average band. Seika and PA-san eventually chased Poison♡Yami out of the venue, threatening to expose her real identity to the public. Although the band didn't seem too affected by her accusations, Bocchi took them to heart and made a big decision: she and the band would join Mikakunin Riot together as Kessoku Band.