Marii Buratei is one of the five central protagonists of the anime and manga series Joshiraku and is generally regarded as the de facto main character. She is a young female rakugo performer with long red hair and orange eyes. Despite her appearance and mannerisms, she is originally from Tokushima Prefecture, though she adopts the speech patterns and demeanor of a native Edokko, speaking in a loud, assertive, and masculine tone that reflects a self-styled tough, streetwise personality. Her family name Buratei ends with the character tei, a common suffix in rakugo stage names, and her full name is a pun on the drink Bloody Mary, referencing her fiery and sometimes intense reactions.

Marii serves as the tsukkomi, or straight man, in the group’s comedic interactions, frequently calling out the absurdities of her friends’ conversations with her signature line, “Don’t ask a trifling question!” She often finds herself arguing with the other girls, yet she is just as often the target of their teasing, especially from the sharp-tongued Gankyou Kuurubiyuutei and the calculating Kigurumi Harokitei. Her closest bond is with Tetora Bohatei, whose laid-back and lucky nature acts as a calming foil to Marii’s impulsiveness. Marii’s role in the story is to anchor the group’s backstage banter, leading transitions from their rakugo performances into the dressing-room discussions that form the core of the series. Her development is episodic rather than serialized, revolving around her attempts to maintain her dignity and composure while navigating the surreal, illogical tangents her friends constantly introduce. In terms of abilities, she is a skilled rakugo storyteller, using only a paper fan and cloth as props, and her tsukkomi role demonstrates a sharp instinct for comedy timing and verbal retort. Her outward toughness masks a vulnerability that makes her a relatable emotional center for the quintet.