#maybe its because of the translation
Originally posted on 24 July 2019 in Turkish here.
Previously, I wrote about Ash’s perspective on how he and Eiji live in different worlds. Now it’s Eiji’s turn… The story of Banana Fish gives us a couple of hints about Eiji’s life before he came to New York. But our main source for the ‘different world’ that Eiji’s living in is the side story Fly boy, in the sky which was written before Banana Fish began serialization.
Fly boy, in the sky tells the story of how Ibe-san and Eiji met. Eiji is introduced as a high school student living with his parents and little sister in his hometown Izumo. He’s no different from the Eiji we know, except for the hair. An obedient, good-natured, baby-faced boy. He opens his already huge eyes to see better because he’s near-sighted and refuses to wear glasses for fear that the other kids will make fun of him in school. Yes, he’s a perfectly normal teenager.
Eiji is a member of the school’s athletics club and competes in pole-vaulting. He’s got a rival from another school and although the two boys have been competing against each other since middle school, his rival has grown a lot taller recently which puts Eiji at a considerable disadvantage. Now he keeps coming second in competitions (The second character in Eiji’s name “二” means “two”).
At home, things are not so easy for Eiji either. His father was hospitalized a year ago due to liver disorders, so Eiji has been living with his mother, sister and grandmother ever since. The family is not doing great financially. But above all, the 17-year-old Eiji is away from his father when he needs a male role model around the most. And he can’t bear to see his mother flirting with other men.
But Eiji really loves pole-vaulting even if he doesn’t realize it. When his body is suspended midair for two seconds, his mind becomes free of all thought and an expression of pure bliss appears on his face. So much so that Eiji can’t recognize himself when Ibe-san shows him the photos he took of Eiji when he was ‘flying’.
Eiji: Is this… me?
Ibe-san: Of course, it is!
Eiji: So this is how I look? Wow… I didn’t know that…
Ibe-san: Right? You look so good.
Then we find out in Banana Fish that Eiji badly injured his foot and, although the injury eventually healed, he could no longer pole-vault. And later when he lost his sports scholarship, he became more and more withdrawn. Ibe-san tries very hard to lift him out of this depressive episode and finally decides to take Eiji to the US with him, thinking that some change of scenery might be good for him.
So the now 19-year-old Eiji finds himself in New York as Ibe-san’s assistant and meets Ash.
First, Eiji pictures Ash quite differently because of how the police describe him. But when he actually meets him, what Eiji sees is a teenager just like himself. And Eiji chooses to believe what he sees, conquering his nervousness. While Ibe-san stutters trying to speak with the notorious gang leader, Eiji even makes a curt retort at Ash when the latter remarks that he looks like a child. Then he notices Ash’s gun and we get this awesome scene with many layers of meaning.
This scene might be the one that best describes how Eiji sees Ash. I wish we could get into Eiji’s head and hear his thoughts. I bet he noticed how empty Ash’s eyes looked. It is also in this scene that Ash gets to experience for the first time what it feels like when someone weaker than him approaches him without fear. Naturally, Ash isn’t used to being seen as a normal teenager rather than a fearsome street punk.
Then all hell breaks loose with Arthur’s gang storming the underground bar. In the chaos that follows, Eiji’s reactions and behavior give away how he slowly becomes attached to Ash. Just think about it: Eiji is in a foreign country and suddenly he finds himself in the midst of a gang battle. He is kidnapped and held hostage. He thinks he’s going to die for sure, but manages to escape wounded. On his way to find help, he faints from heavy blood loss and when he comes to in the hospital, the first thing he says is “I wish I could go right back.” Later on, when he finds out that Ash’s going to jail he pleads Max to protect him and says “I almost wish I could join him.”
Why is that? It’s because Ash endangering himself to save Eiji—a complete stranger—leaves a deep impression on him and he returns the favor when he gets the chance. I’m talking about Eiji pole-vaulting over that wall in the warehouse using a rusty pipe to get help. And when things get even more complicated, suggesting just how much danger Ash is in, Eiji can’t bring himself to leave him behind like that. It breaks his heart to see Ash determined to crack down the mystery of Banana Fish, knowing that he’ll probably end up dead in the end. So Eiji wants to help Ash however he can, although he knows very well that he can’t do much.
Let’s not forget that Eiji met Ash at a time when he was depressed and thought he failed at life. Ash is around the same age as Eiji but had a much harder life and is still trying to cope with trouble that Eiji can’t even imagine. So, Eiji decides to help him out and that becomes his new purpose in life. At the end of the story, I think Eiji was alluding to this purpose In the letter he wrote to Ash: “I know you are much smarter than me, and bigger, and stronger—but even so—I always wanted to protect you.”
It’s easier to explain why Ash is so captivated by Eiji. But when I asked the same question to myself the other way around, I had to pause and think. A lot. And all that thinking lead me to write this meta.
Read the next part of the meta here.
