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Japanese Fans of Anime Series ‘Banana Fish’ Are Flocking to the NY Public Library

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Banana Fish is a hugely popular Japanese manga and anime series.

The original, created as a manga series by Akimi Yoshida, was probably the most well known Yaoi (Boy’s love) series in the U.S. and ran from 1985-1994. Now, because the main protagonist Ash Lynx, dies in dies sitting in a chair in the iconic Rose Main Reading Room, now Japanese fans are flocking to the historic New York Public Library to take selfies in the room and buy replicas of the chairs as souvenirs.

Above: Ash Lynx takes an L in the Rose reading room of the New York Public Library.

According to The New York Post: “The tourism company Kinki Nippon Tourist Kanto operates a $2,327 travel package that hits all the Big Apple locations featured in the series — called “Banana Fish” in English. About 80 fans with the group toured the library Tuesday, snapping photos inside the Rose Room, where New York City teenage gang leader Ash Lynx dies, smiling and clutching a letter from his photojournalist friend Eiji Okumura. Some even held up small cut-outs of the characters to take photos of inside the room. Fans of the series have also been leaving red roses at chair 378, where Ash perishes. The unusual interest has been a boon for the library too — with Japanese tourists snatching up $30 miniature replicas of Rose Room chairs, staffers said.

Read the full story here.

 

 

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