Originally published monthly in a manga magazine from 1985 to 1994, the story of Banana Fish is a bittersweet one that was animated by MAPPA in 2018. The anime was a success upon its release and it was syndicated by Amazon for viewers to watch the show internationally on Prime Video.
The series followed the life of Ash Lynx, a 17-year-old gang leader, who befriended Eiji Okumura, a photojournalist assistant from Japan. Eiji visited New York City to interview Ash, but he instead found himself entangled in Ash's complicated journey to uncover the truth behind banana fish. Most fans would agree that Eiji's caring and compassionate nature makes it easy for viewers to fall in love with him, nearly as hard as Ash did. As the deuteragonist, Eiji's character is an open book with plenty of screentime, but there are a few things even the biggest Eiji fans may have missed.
10 His Favorite Dish Is Natto
As two different people with two different cultures, Eiji and Ash rarely shared the same taste in cuisine. While Ash was accustomed to American dishes, Eiji's diet consisted of more traditional Japanese dishes.
Eiji excitedly expressed his love for Japanese food many times before, but he made sure to point out that his favorite meal was natto, fermented soybeans. Natto is typically served as a breakfast dish, so it came as no surprise to fans when Eiji readily prepared some for Ash to eat in the morning.
9 He Was Born & Raised In Izumo, Japan
Unlike Ash, who lived a fast-paced life in the big city, Eiji was a small-town boy. He mentioned to Ash that he was from Izumo, a small city in Japan known as the Land of the Gods.
A description of his life in Izumo, Japan was told in the epilogue manga, Fly Boy In The Sky, which focused on the story of how Shunichi Ibe met his assistant, Eiji. In the anime, Eiji made several attempts to convince Ash to live a peaceful life and go back to Izumo with him, but sadly, Eiji's wish never came true.
8 His Homelife Wasn't As Stable As Ash Assumed It Was
The side story, Fly Boy In The Sky, which uncovered the events prior to Banana Fish, focused on Eiji's life before flying to New York City to meet Ash. Although Eiji had a seemingly sheltered upbringing and stable home life, he still dealt with family issues and turmoil back in Izumo, Japan.
His father had fallen ill due to liver complications, and it was implied that his mother was having an affair during her husband's recovery at the hospital. Despite his father's health status and his mother's unfaithfulness, he remained pure and optimistic.
7 His Relationship With Ash Is Literally Indescribable
After the final episode of the series aired, Eiji and Ash's relationship on the official site changed from"best friend" to a single black line. This was done to express that their relationship had surpassed the limit of any platonic or romantic relationship that had ever come before it.
The bond between Eiji and Ash became one that couldn't be described with words. The love they shared was deeper than any feelings they had for anyone else. To Ash, Eiji was the only person in existence that was worthy of protecting at all cost.
6 Ash Was His First Kiss
As someone who knew Eiji since he was a young boy, Shunichi Ibe confirmed that Eiji hadn't kissed anyone before Ash. Disguised as a passionate kiss, Ash's plan to transfer a hidden message to Eiji was a success.
Ash wrote a message, hid it inside a hollow capsule, and held the capsule in his mouth until the end of the visitation. Without warning, Ash shared a goodbye kiss with Eiji and carried out his scheme undetected before returning to his prison cell.
5 The Gender Of His Character Was Intentional
Many viewers noticed that Eiji was a very emotionally intelligent character that was unafraid of expressing his feelings. Recognizing that those are traits that are more associated with female characters, the author Akimi Yoshida explained that she purposefully made Eiji a boy to emphasize the wide range of emotions that go into relationships between two individuals of the same gender.
With Ash as the male protagonist, Eiji needed to be a young man who developed an immeasurably close friendship with him.
4 He Remains Friends With Sing Years After The Series Finished
In the postscript manga titled Garden of Light, the lives of the characters seven years after the events of Banana Fish were described. The story focused on Eiji and his old friend, Sing Soo-Ling, who both were living in New York at the time.
Eiji became an accomplished photographer, and Sing became a student at CUNY and the co-leader of the Chinese mafia. Eiji and Sing managed to stay close friends over the years and lived together as roommates in Greenwich Village, a neighborhood on the west of Manhattan in New York City.
3 He Believes Ash Is His Soulmate
Based on their journey together and the feelings they shared, it is clear that Eiji and Ash's souls are forever tied. Despite not engaging in romantic activities, Eiji was considered to be Ash's beloved, and Sing pointed out that the two boys shared a bond between their souls.
In his farewell letter to Ash, Eiji said, "My soul is always with you," which indicated that the love they have for one another was not, is not, and never will be limited by distance, time, or even death.
2 He Is Nearsighted While Ash Is Farsighted
Although their character traits made them polar opposites, Eiji was the Yin to Ash's Yang. Everything from their personality to their physical appearance showed that they were very different people, but their inseparable bond proved that opposites attract.
They differ in hair color, upbringing, nationality, race, morals, and strangely enough, eye conditions. Eiji suffered from nearsightedness, otherwise known as myopia, which prevented him from seeing clearly from afar. Conversely, Ash was farsighted, which explains why he was good at shooting from a long distance but needed glasses to read.
1 He Ended His Pole Vaulting Career Because Of An Injury
Among those in Ash's crew, Eiji surprisingly was the one with superior athletic ability. Before visiting New York City, Eiji was an established pole vaulter in Izumo, Japan. He received several scholarships and offers to pursue a professional career in pole vaulting, however, he was unable to accept any of the offers due to a career-ending injury.
Eiji was forced to retire as an athlete, but he met Shunichi shortly after during an interview and began working as his assistant. He later used his skills to save himself and Ash in a life-or-death situation.
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