Banana Fish Opening and Ending Review: The Disparities Combined
Episode two and three left me with too much to write for as MAPPA is consistent with their compacted plots so I decided to just write for the opening and ending in a separate note.
With the opening orchestrated by a Japanese indie band ‘Survive Said the Prophet’, I’ll say this again and again, Banana Fish never failed to impress me. Instead of doing the standardized opening and closing, they decided to differ and use bands that are foreign to our ears. This idea they’ve built on can produce this feeling of anonymity that gives off when introducing something new and peculiar, which is very suiting for the concept Banana Fish is trying to solidify.
And that is: Banana Fish is no ordinary anime. Again, Devilman Crybaby did it for their anniversary by hiring Masaaki Yuasa’s psychedelic acid trip art style, and on this Banana Fish wants the audience, new ones in particular, to know that they’re everything but normal — the diversity of the shoujo genre by combining the extreme polarities into one manga. Similar with my words in the introductory part, this story made by Akimi Yoshida is done with all specialities combined. A manga that everyone can love by touching all the abnormalities inside of everything and compiling them.
Before anything else, I’ll state that Banana Fish isn’t the first anime who used indie artists, but with this particular congealed concept they’re trying to put up, it fits perfectly.
In all honesty, I’ve never heard of Survive Said the Prophet before this, and thank the gods for introducing them to me. Aside from their ingenious band title, the name of the song ‘Lost and Found’ is everything but boring. From all the exciting speculations surrounding the news, I was afraid at first when I heard there will be an anime adaptation of Banana Fish as I don’t want anyone to tarnish its beautiful universe, but I never thought they’ll do more than I expected. And using Survive Said the Prophet’s Found and Lost is more than I asked for.
The opening is far from grandiose, yet a perfect production not to empower the lyrics (that might have said too much), metaphors simplified. SSTP’s melody that is infused with heavy metal genre and signature Japanese rock, which translated the whole Banana Fish project into rhythmic stance; have it even occurred to everyone that metal is the music genre that can encapture the relationship between Eiji and Ash? Well, me neither, but Survive Said The Prophet did that. And now I can never disassociate Banana Fish and metal rock with each other, the ingenuity that only Found and Lost can do. (Please appreciate the title too. It’s very witty)
And for the ending song, King Gnu shaken every nerve inside me when I heard Prayer X.
As the opening that gave us a present song about the relationship of our protagonists, Prayer X provided us a tearjerker for our lovable blond. So for all the people who’re starting to like Banana Fish, this is not just about Ash and Eiji (which dominates, of course, most of the story in an enveloping way), but also Aslan’s life as he’s starting to become the ‘Ash Lynx’ he deserves to be. And Prayer X delivered that.
With a melancholia animation to accompany our music, the interpretative voice of King Gnu depicted Ash with much suppressed emotions and contempt similar on what we’ve felt from reading the manga and unavailability to do anything as it progresses, producing a feeling of sorrow yet stoic respect for experiencing all of that and he still keeps on standing — An ode to Ash Lynx himself.
MAPPA outdid themselves. You can feel how every little detail is made with intricacy and emotions, not leaving, even a subtle drop, into commercialism oblivion. The paid homage to (mangaka name) Banana Fish with all it deserved. They’re solidifying into artistic remastered, and my heart is very full because of it. Thank you, MAPPA.
