TROPIC OF THE SEA
I’ve been a fan of the late Satoshi Kon’s works for so many years. His animation movies. This is the first time I read his comicbook, and for me it is a new experience. In many ways Tropic of the Sea has the same spirit, tone and atmosphere as Millenium Actress. And quite different compared to Perfect Blue or even Paprika. Tropic of the Sea was his first long-form manga, released in 11 installments in Kodansha’s Young Magazine between March & June 1990. Tropic of the Sea focused on faith and loyalty to a trust given to the main characters. Yosuke, a teen age boy, was trusted to take care of a ‘mermaid’s egg’ at his father’s shrine. The mermaid’s egg was originally trusted in the hands of Yosuke’s grandfather some 60 years ago, and he promised to look after it since that day. His son (Yosuke’s father) never believed the myth, though Yosuke’s late mother believed and adored mermaid-myths. The grandfather never disclosed the truth: did he meet a mermaid 60 years ago? Who or how e