Banana Fish
Encyclopedia
Banana Fish is a classic shōjo
manga
by Akimi Yoshida
which ran from 1985 to 1994 and spawned several mini-spin-offs: Private Opinion, Angel Eyes, X Men, and The Garden with Holy Light. The series was very popular in Japan.
The name is most likely inspired by the short story A Perfect Day for Bananafish
by J.D. Salinger.
There are nineteen Japanese tankōbon
or eleven bunkobon
reprints published by Shogakukan
, an art book, Angel Eyes and Rebirth: The Banana Fish Official Guidebook. The spin-offs are collected in a single bunko
titled Another Story. There was also a NHK
radio drama, released in 1996 on CD as "BANANA FISH Part 1-3". Eiji was voiced by Kazuhiko Inoue
and Ash Lynx was voiced by Tohru Furusawa.
Banana Fish is published in English by VIZ Media
. The first (now out-of-print) graphic novel edition spanned the first seven volumes and featured 'flipped' artwork, subsequent "shōjo" editions are in the original right-to-left format and released on a bi-monthly basis (these new editions feature some translational differences). The series also ran in both of Viz's now defunct manga magazines, Pulp and Animerica Extra
for several years.
Twelve years later, in New York City
, police investigate a series of puzzling suicide
s and a dying man gives a charismatic young gang leader named Ash Lynx a vial of a mysterious substance...
veteran and journalist who has trouble with his ex-wife. Max Lobo also has a young son. He becomes Ash's main confidante in his battle against Golzine. His real name is .
Angel Eyes
Private Opinion
Hikari no Niwa, or The Garden with Holy Light
identifies Banana Fish as:
Shojo
The term refers to manga marketed to a female audience roughly between the ages of 10-18. The name romanizes the Japanese 少女 , literally: "little female". Shōjo manga covers many subjects in a variety of narrative and graphic styles, from historical drama to science fiction — often with a strong...
manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...
by Akimi Yoshida
Akimi Yoshida
is a Japanese manga artist.Yoshida is best known for the series Banana Fish. She twice won the Shogakukan Manga Awards for shōjo, for Kisshō Tennyo in 1984 and for Yasha in 2002...
which ran from 1985 to 1994 and spawned several mini-spin-offs: Private Opinion, Angel Eyes, X Men, and The Garden with Holy Light. The series was very popular in Japan.
The name is most likely inspired by the short story A Perfect Day for Bananafish
A Perfect Day for Bananafish
"A Perfect Day for Bananafish" is a short story by J. D. Salinger, originally published in the January 31, 1948 issue of The New Yorker. It was anthologized in 1949's 55 Short Stories from the New Yorker as well as in Salinger's 1953 collection, Nine Stories...
by J.D. Salinger.
There are nineteen Japanese tankōbon
Tankobon
, with a literal meaning close to "independently appearing book", is the Japanese term for a book that is complete in itself and is not part of a series , though the manga industry uses it for volumes which may be in a series...
or eleven bunkobon
Bunkobon
In Japan, bunkobon are small-format paperback books, designed to be affordable and portable.The great majority of bunkobon are A6 in size...
reprints published by Shogakukan
Shogakukan
is a Japanese publisher of dictionaries, literature, manga, non-fiction, DVDs, and other media in Japan.Shogakukan founded Shueisha which founded Hakusensha. These are three separate companies, but are together called the Hitotsubashi Group, one of the largest publishing groups in Japan...
, an art book, Angel Eyes and Rebirth: The Banana Fish Official Guidebook. The spin-offs are collected in a single bunko
Bunko
Bunko may refer to:* Bunko library, a Japanese private library for children* Bunkobon, a Japanese book format* Bunko Kanazawa, a Japanese adult film actress* Bunco , a parlor game played in teams with three dice...
titled Another Story. There was also a NHK
NHK
NHK is Japan's national public broadcasting organization. NHK, which has always identified itself to its audiences by the English pronunciation of its initials, is a publicly owned corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television license fee....
radio drama, released in 1996 on CD as "BANANA FISH Part 1-3". Eiji was voiced by Kazuhiko Inoue
Kazuhiko Inoue
is a veteran voice actor from Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan.-Biography:Since his debut in 1973, Kazuhiko Inoue has become one of Japan's most well established voice actors. His early roles from the 1970s include Anthony in Candy Candy, and later as Joe in the 1979 remake of Cyborg 009...
and Ash Lynx was voiced by Tohru Furusawa.
Banana Fish is published in English by VIZ Media
VIZ Media
VIZ Media, LLC, headquartered in San Francisco, is an anime, manga, and Japanese entertainment company. It was founded in 1986 as VIZ LLC. In 2005, VIZ LLC and ShoPro Entertainment merged to form the current VIZ Media LLC, which is jointly owned by Japanese publishers Shogakukan and Shueisha, and...
. The first (now out-of-print) graphic novel edition spanned the first seven volumes and featured 'flipped' artwork, subsequent "shōjo" editions are in the original right-to-left format and released on a bi-monthly basis (these new editions feature some translational differences). The series also ran in both of Viz's now defunct manga magazines, Pulp and Animerica Extra
Animerica Extra
Animerica Extra is a monthly shōjo manga magazine that was published in North America by Viz Media from 1998 until 2004. Established as a complement to its monthly review magazine Animerica, Animerica Extra was the first manga anthology to be published by Viz.The titles published in Animerica Extra...
for several years.
Plot
1973, Vietnam - an American soldier goes mad and guns down his buddies. Since then, the only words he has uttered are "Banana Fish"...Twelve years later, in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, police investigate a series of puzzling suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
s and a dying man gives a charismatic young gang leader named Ash Lynx a vial of a mysterious substance...
Characters
- The protagonist, a street-wise young gang leader with expert marksmanship. His real name is . - Japanese former athlete who, due to an injury, became a photographer's assistant. - A retired assassin and the man who trained Ash to become Dino Golzine's heir. Though he cares for Ash, he carries out any contract he is hired for. - Ash's former patron, a mafioso kingpin with pedophiliac tastes. - Japanese photojournalist who brings Eiji to the U.S. to do a report on street gangs. - A former member of Ash's street gang who allies himself with Golzine in order to usurp Ash. He is particularly vindictive and cruel. - A Vietnam WarVietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
veteran and journalist who has trouble with his ex-wife. Max Lobo also has a young son. He becomes Ash's main confidante in his battle against Golzine. His real name is .
- Shorter Wong - The gang leader who controls Chinatown, ally to Ash, who has been friends with him for a long time.
- Sing Soo-Ling - A very young member of the Chinese gang. Attacks with the deadly "flying dragon fang." He, like Ash, is amazingly smart and calculated for his age. He is loyal to Shorter.
- Lee Yut-Lung (李月龍, Japanese: Rii Yuerun, Chinese Hanyu Pinyin: Lǐ Yuèlóng, Cantonese: Lei5 Yut6Lung4) - The youngest son of the Lee family, the top family of China's criminal underworld. He despises his brothers for looking down on him and wants to depose them. Regards Ash and Golzine as special and is jealous of the care Ash shows for Eiji, a normal boy. - The cool and collected leader of New York's African-American gangs. He supports Ash in his gang war against Arthur.
Spin-offs and Prequels
Fly Boy, In the Sky- Eiji Okumura and Shunichi Ibe were introduced in this early short story by Yoshida.
Angel Eyes
- The story of the beginnings of Ash Lynx's friendship with Shorter Wong.
Private Opinion
- Details Ash's first memories of meeting and coming to trust Blanca.
Hikari no Niwa, or The Garden with Holy Light
- A short story set after the events of Banana Fish, in which the characters Eiji and Sing, now several years older deal with the shadows of their past and try to cope with their present lives together.
Reception
Frederik L. SchodtFrederik L. Schodt
Frederik L. Schodt is an American translator, interpreter and writer.Schodt's father was in the US foreign service, and he grew up in Norway, Australia, and Japan. The family first went to Japan in 1965 when Schodt was fifteen. They left in 1967 but Schodt remained to graduate from Tokyo's American...
identifies Banana Fish as:
Further reading
- Shaenon Garrity review
- Shaenon Garrity recommendation
- Melinda Beasi review
- Michelle Smith review
- Girls Love Boys Love
External links
- VIZ Media BananaFish site: The American distributor
- Boy Fruit Fan site