I would be lying if I said the tenor of the discussion surrounding Banana Fish hasn’t bothered me, because it has. I’ve tried hard not to let that sour me on the show itself, because the two are discrete of course. But in terms of getting enjoyment out of covering it, there’s no denying there’s been an impact. I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say I’ve been as big a champion of this sort of series – and called out the hypocrisy in the way anything attached to same sex relations (or violence) is treated by anime fandom at large – as anybody. But if legit criticism is going to be attacked as some kind of homophobic screed, what’s the point of even bothering?
I did consider dropping Banana Fish outright, but that would be a real shame because despite my misgivings about it, I still think it’s a substantial and interesting series. It’s no masterpiece but it is a clear cut above the vast majority of anime out there, and as such it deserves to be discussed in a balanced and even-handed way, no matter how much extremists on any side try to poison the well.
The odd thing about this episode specifically is that while watching, I had the sense that it was stepping off the accelerator a bit. It seemed more low-key and less histrionic that prior eps. But looking back on it, this was a crazy 22 minutes once again, with an abundance of plot advancement and action. As I mentioned last week Ash getting out of prison was a very positive development (Banana Fish was kind of in narrative prison while he was locked up in there), and it’s even better news that Max soon follows suit. There are a lot of things the series can do with the two of them free that were never going to happen until they were, and the drama behind bars was already starting to become repetitive.
It’s unfortunate (and perhaps a bit unlikely) that Max doesn’t tell his lawyer that he’s informed Ash of his brother’s death, effectively arming a ticking time bomb, until after Ash and his party (which includes Charles, Ibe and Eiji ) have left the prison grounds. No one has too much trouble figuring out where Ash is likely to go for assistance in getting his revenge on Dino – to Shorter Wong, in Chinatown. He gets some unexpected help there from a Mr. Lee, a Chinese banker whose relationship with the Golzine gang has soured to the point where any enemy of Dino’s is a friend of his. But while Ash is often very much a fool, he’s no naif – he knows what Lee is really after, and that’s Banana Fish.
With Eiji insisting on tagging along, Ash and Shorter plan a hit on Papa when he makes his monthly visit to “Club Cod”, the restaurant that serves as a front for Dino’s human trafficking (boy sex slaves, to be precise) business. Since both Arthur and Max have figured out Ash’s plan they arrive on-scene too, and the hit (employing a semi-truck) goes rather awry thanks to Arthur’s intervention, though Papa Dino is winged in the crossfire. Whether what we saw goes down as Eiji shooting someone or not I’m not sure – if it does, we’d almost have to have some kind of repercussions next week, both for Eiji and from Ibe-san.
For the moment, we seem to have entered a new phase – the dream team of Max, Ash, Shorter, Eiji and Ibe on the lam with plans to try and pursue the investigation of Banana Fish. That will apparently take them first to Cape Cod, where the brothers grow up – whether the “Cod” part is a coincidence I don’t know. But I like the dynamic here – this is an interesting and oddly matched group, and the mystery of Banana Fish is ultimately the part of this premise that always seemed the most potentially interesting.
Rita
August 3, 2018 at 9:25 amFirst off, I’m sorry that the whole discourse around the show has ruined part of the experience for you. I’ve been avoiding comments sections for this show (and reviews too) for that exact reason, though I know that’s not an option for you since you have to monitor your comment section. Usually LiA isn’t as bad, but given the topic I’ve been avoiding them here as well. And I know anime fans aren’t exactly the shining beacon of tolerance and role models, but I do hope for the most part they don’t sour you too much because as you said, this series is still fairly solid and interesting on its own rights and it would be a shame to lose it over that.
Dessa
August 3, 2018 at 11:56 pmI’m sorry but in several reviews you’ve made a couple of prejudiced comments that are frankly disappointing. Like the dismissive comment about “writing stuff that’s service for a specific audience” as if it’s anyway comparable to Free or to the more recent problematic BL faire. Are the scenes titillating? No. Is the female audience supposed to get off at those? Because, that’s frankly what you’re implying with that comment.
At worst, the scenes are pretty realistic given what we know about the horrible things that happen in these facilities.
It also feels disingenuous given that when you had no problem with Koi wa Ameagari, in which the 45 year male character acts completely inappropriate towards the underage female employee. And no, it’s doesn’t matter that it was innocent and that he was having a middle life crisis and she was crushing on him. But in none of those reviews did you ever remark how grossly sexualized the underage character was ,how many skimpy shots there are of her or how the narrative made all her male age peers acts like dumb-asses in order to elevate the manager and therefore justify her crush. And it’s even more disturbing given that on one hand the guy is made to seem naive and good-hearted, but time and time again, we see him narrate events from his POV, which tells us he’s not that naive, he gets what’s happening and he still indulges her…. so on and so forth. But sure, BF’s the one written for “a specific audience” during a time when the genre and the maligned fujoshi audience didn’t even exist.
As for “the extremists on any side” false equivalence comment, that’s another upsetting, disappointing and frankly shocking one given that in no universe, does a homophobe have anything remotely in common with a passionate fan or even a SJW for that matter.
Guardian Enzo
August 4, 2018 at 12:20 amWell, your comment about Koi wa Ameagari reveals that you either don’t read the posts you’re criticizing or see what you want to see, one or the other.
Albione
August 4, 2018 at 2:09 amI think what upset others (it really upset me) was your comment about service for a specific audience. No, I do not get my kicks from a boy being raped in prison; if I did I would have finished reading Under Grand Hotel. Koi wa is an interesting example to make. I liked it, had no problem with the story, I remember being a seventeen year old girl and we can be very stupid. But there was a problem, the sexulisation of the girl, the shots of her on the bed all long legs. It was for the male gaze. I would have preferd her discovering her sexuality than just being there to be lusted over. And that is a problmem with anime, show the panties, juggling breasts and crash into the girl in underwear but never make it over first base. BF is talking about sexual matters, terrible ones, and how they have scarred the protagonist, and I am grateful.
Dessa
August 4, 2018 at 6:05 amIt’s really that you’ve deleted both of my comments or banned me for rather innocuous comments. Take care.
Dessa
August 4, 2018 at 6:06 am*sad… it’s really sad.
Guardian Enzo
August 4, 2018 at 6:31 amWow, nice ego there.
If you included links, they probably ended up in the spam folder – WP does it all the time. But don’t let the door hit you in the ass on the way out.
Aeryn
August 6, 2018 at 7:49 amWay to treat your female readership, Enzo. Had a better opinion of you. Though I can’t say that I’m too shocked in light of your recent comments.