Story 07: P.U.N.K JAM FEVER! [VBEX5]

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STORY & ILLUSTRATIONS No.07
P.U.N.K JAM FEVER!
“PONT City”: A cybernetic town floating in the skies with its electronic scenery. Its people are driven crazy by the art group “P.U.N.K.”. From between the buildings, they will make history once again with their sudden performance!

The Lastest P.U.N.K. Report
On that night, a new legend was born in the “P.U.N.K. JAM”
P.U.N.K. JAM FEVER!

Refined yet passionate, classic yet innovative, wabi-sabi yet dazzling…The “P.U.N.K.” shatter traditions by blending opposing art forms into an overwhelming performance. They gather in the yearly “PONT JAM-FESTIVAL”, maxing out the City’s voltage with their improvisation. For the “SHI SHI MAI DANCE” performed that night, a combined art by all the techniques (Ukiyoe, Joruri, Gagaku and Noh) created a new shining legend in the JAM-FES with their catchy verses and thrilling holographic masks.
Footage from previously held
“JAM-FES” events
P.U.N.K. JAM Dragon Drive

P.U.N.K. JAM Extreme Session

SCOOP!!
The debut of a new “Noh-P.U.N.K.” member!!
Noh-P.U.N.K. Ze Amin

Noh-P.U.N.K. Deer Note

“-The Zeamins-: The Holographic Masks of Songs and Dances” have gained massive support from younger audiences, and have now discovered a third member!! The debut of this calamitous child prodigy who had never performed before shook PONT City like a storm. Her amazing trance dance and aggressive foul mouth captivated the stimuli-starved City Crew in an instant.
Noh-P.U.N.K. Rising ScaleNEW

SECRET IMAGE
Noh-P.U.N.K. Rising Scale

End of chapter

Thanks to 过户费喜加一 at Bilibili for the scans

TL notes:
-The “electronic scenery” is a modification of the term 風光明媚 (fuukoumeibi, scenic/picturesque), replacing the first kanji for 電 (den, electric).
-“SHI SHI MAI DANCE” is written like that in the book (in the Latin alphabet), but it likely references the traditional Chinese Lion Dance, whose name in Japanese is 獅子舞 (shishimai).
-The “songs” by which The Zeamins are recognized use the word 謡 (utai), which is used for noh chants, but read as “uta” like “song” (歌).
-The “calamitous child prodigy” is a pun on 天才児 (tensaiji, child prodigy), replacing the middle kanji with the homophone 災 (disaster).
-While the reference art refers to the previous Ze Amins as older “sisters” to Rising Scale, nothing is explicitly mentioned about Rising Scale being a boy or a girl, so we’re back on the guessing game as we were with Ze Amin and Deer Note.

Reference art:
Appearance:

“Has a torii in her head. I wanted to make the design based on the 8-armed Benzaiten (Scale-shaped). Combined with Ze Amin and Deer Note’s 4 arms, it totals 8 arms”

Fish mask:

Face:

Eye sketch:

“Long, vertial pupils”

Talisman:

Kenkafuda. It glows!

Description:

“Because she’s a child prodigy who’s great at everything she does, she snaps like a mad dog when someone else is incapable of doing something. She wishes to make friends. She even snaps at her calmer older sisters, but they still spoil her because she’s cute.”