Hey, I finished Banana Fish friday and then I found your blog, I loved to read your Ash and Eiji tags because they really matched my own feelings, I was wondering if the manga has different scenes of them interacting and if you think it's worthy reading it too? Even if I already saw the anime? I really got sad, I know when something will be painful, sometimes I read knowing it because drama and stories that are sad makes me reflect about life itself and they feel more real? (part 1)
And I need to read real things to balance the imaginary world of some animes and mangas. Drama is one of my favorite things but sometimes I avoid it too and I knew Banana Fish could hurt me real bad and it did, man, in the next day I really felt dead inside and when I think about their story, this freaking beautiful story and a masterpiece anime, oh, God, it still hurts. Anyways, just wanted to know what you thought about the manga and if I should give it a try. (part 2)
Plus, I needed to get it out of my chest, no one I know likes anime and it's tiring to keep them to myself. Hope you're having a great day and happy new year. And if it's not too much to ask, recommend something for me, please. Otherwise, I will end up in my confort zone watching sport anime or rewatching gay stuff like No. 6 that keeps poping in my head and blogs these days. (the end)
hello! first of all, i completely understand what you’re going through :’) this story gutted me as well and took a bit of time for me to shake off my feels. and i highly do recommend the manga because it goes into the nuances of the character interactions and plot points that the anime skipped over because of the lack of time. so i would say that to fully experience banana fish in all of its wondrous complexity, you should definitely read the manga. i loved it.
first and foremost because eiji’s language barrier is very prominent, something that wasn’t conveyed in the anime. it adds such an enduring touch to his character, him struggling to communicate in this foreign language in this foreign world. you truly feel the essence of his character, and i say ‘full’ because i believe the anime softened him up a bit more than he actually is (so as to provide a full contrast to ash’s character; soft and nurturing to ash’s bolder nature). i believe this to be the biggest difference from the anime, but it really changes the way you read and perceive eiji as a character.
other reasons to read the manga would be, like i said, the little nuances the anime left out (you see more of nadia, for example, and also some tiny moments like eiji putting a blanket over ash, etc, tiny moments like that; as for your question, the anime pretty much goes over all of ash and eiji’s major interactions but there are tiny moments the anime tended to skip over like the one mentioned above) and also the tense political climate of america in the 80s really colors the story in a way the modern setting of the story in the anime just doesn’t do. not only that, but the fashion, the architecture, the pop culture -- all of it is there and provides a different experience than the anime does. but to get the original feel of the story, you should definitely read the manga to get the full essence of 80s new york. so yes! read the manga. you experience the story in its entirety. i personally felt the anime to be a bit diluted but i also understand that time was of the essence. they did a wonderful job regardless and the voice acting was incredible.
i hope this helped, and also, you can find a list of anime i recommend here~
