Banana Fish Season 2: Renewed or Cancelled? Everything We Know So Far
Banana Fish Season 2 renewal is in smokes; 4 years on MAPPA keeps mum
Who doesn’t love an old-fashioned gangster west coast movie? I mean, the 80s and 90s were full of it. We have seen it all: gang war, street shooting, and friends turning foes. But the anime fandom hasn’t been previewed to many of such classics.
As they consistently do, MAPPA expanded their canvas to the crime world of gangsters and released Banana Fish on 5th July 2018. The show’s backdrop is set in the streets of America, with the plot following various crime dramas in different cities.
The story follows Ash Lynx, the leader of a gang of children at the tender age of 17. He was raised by the infamous gang leader, Dino Golzine
When Ash was young, his brother Griffin Callenreese fought in the Vietnam War in 1973. One night he opened fire on his team for no apparent reason and collapsed before uttering the words “Banana Fish.”
Griffin begins living with his brother Ash in the underground bar after suffering severe mental trauma post his service. In the bar, Ash meets a wounded man who passes an unknown vial, and before dying just like his brother, he also mutters the exact word ” Banana Fish.”
Ash starts investigating the truth behind banana fish with the help of Shunichi Ibe and Eiji Okumura, two Japanese reporters. Dino Golzine is hounding Ash, and while running away, Dino s’ men kidnap Shunichi and Eiji.
The task becomes even more arduous as he has to free his reporter friends and find out the mystery behind the two words. Banana Fish.
Banana Fish Season one ended on 20th December 2018, and it’s been more than four years since any official announcement or news regarding season 2.
Let’s find out if there is any chance of renewal or if the show is canceled.
IS THERE A SEASON 2 OF BANANA FISH?
To answer the question, we need to look at different factors that go into any anime’s renewal.
Firstly, the manga finished on 29th April 2019, and Banana fish Season one adapted all 19 volumes. So essentially, there is no source for the studio to adjust from, which isn’t a good start.
Secondly, the manga sales sold more than 11 million copies, which isn’t too bad, but it’s not great either, considering MAPPA is one of the biggest studios right now.
Thirdly, the censorship and controversy before the release of Banana fish season one was also a big issue. The shows involve mature topics like real-world war, homosexuality, and knife/gun crime, and it’s challenging to market the show with such controversies.
Finally, when Banana Fish anime was released, Writer Akimi Yoshida completed the 40th anniversary of manga writing. Some also believe that the show only came about to honor him and was a legacy adaptation.
Considering all the above factors, it’s safe to call that Banana Fish won’t be renewed for a second season.
Needless to say, MAPPA has come a long way since 2018 with hit shows like Jujutsu Kaisen and Attack on Titans. The line-up doesn’t have any space for Banana Fish Season 2.
So, to expect a Banana Fish Season 2 release date or Banana Fish Trailer is futile at this moment in time.
Banana Fish anime is rated 8.5/10 and #221 in popularity with 713k members on MyAnimeList.
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Banana Fish Manga Catchup
Banana Fish manga is written by Akimi Yoshida, a veteran in manga writing. The manga was first released in 1985 in the Bessastsu Shojo Comic.
The first edition came out on 15th December 1986 and ended on 26th September 1994. The manga was translated into English by Viz Media and published from 1999 to 2002.
Aside from the Manga, Akimi Yoshida also wrote five stories published under a single novel titled, Another Story. You can find the details of the five stories below:
Banana Fish Manga is rated 8.6/10 and #307 in popularity with 44k members on MyAnimeList.
| Story Name | Description |
| Fly Boy in the Sky | Explains how Shunichi Ibe and Eiji met from the point of view of Ibe. |
| Ura Banana | Comic story where Ash and Eiji discuss fan mail with writer Akimi. |
| Private Opinion | Story of the meeting of Bianca and Ash |
| Angel Eyes | Story of meeting of Ash and Shorter Wong. |
| Garden of Light | 7 years on from the original story, Eiji finds photos which explains Ash s’ death |
Banana Fish Season 2 Plot
The final episode of Bana Fish Season one, titled “The catcher in the Rye,” was filled with battles and deaths. The kingpin Dino Golzine is killed by Foxx, and the Banana Fish project is sabotaged. Shunichi and Eiji go back to Japan while Ash cuts off contact with Eiji.
But Eiji passes a letter to Ash through sing, which reads, “my soul is always with you.” While reading these words, Ash gets killed by Lao and dies in the NY library holding Eiji s’ letter.
Banana Fish Season 2 Plot, if there is any, isn’t easy to tell because of the termination of the manga. The final side story reveals some details as Eiji discovers how Ash was killed.
Akira, the niece of Shunichi, finds photos of Ash and Eiji, which she hands over to Ibe. Eiji frames the images and places them in his gallery.
Banana Fish Season 2 Cast, Character and Crew
Banana Fish is directed by Hiroku Utsumi and produced by Yuka Okayasu from MAPPA studios. The music is composed by Shinichi Osawa and scripted by Hiroshi Seko.
Banana Fish characters and their voice actors can be found below:
| Character | Voice By |
| Callenreese Aslan Jade | Uchida, Yuuma |
| Okumura Eiji | Nojima Kenji |
| Alex | Ishiya Haruk |
| Arthur Frederick | Hosoya Yoshimas |
| Blanca | Morikawa Toshiyuki |
| Blood Cain | Miyake Kenta |
| Bones | Niwa Masato |
| Callenreese Griffin | Fusegawa Kazuhiro |
| Callenreese Jim | Hoshino Mitsuaki |
| Crosby Marvin | Ishizuka Katashi |
| Golzine Dino | Ishizuka Unshou |
| Jessica Randy | Fukami Rica |
| Wong Shorter | Furukawa Makoto |
| Blanca | Morikawa Toshiyuki |
Conclusion
Banana Fish season 2 may never come, but it has left an indelible mark on anime adaption crime drama. We hope to see more of the same in the future.
