バナナブレッドのプディング

by Yumiko Ōshima, 大島弓子

女子高校生御茶屋さえ子は、再会した幼馴染三浦衣良が深いノイローゼ状態にあることに気付く。衣良が長年依存していた姉三浦沙良の結婚がその原因だと理解したさえ子は、衣良に恋愛を経験させることで彼女を不安から救おうと決意。兄御茶屋峠に衣良の理想像である「世間にうしろめたさを感じている男色家」を装わせる。

Genres: Manga, Fiction

206 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published July 10, 1978

About the author

Yumiko Oshima (大島弓子) is a Japanese manga author.
She was born in Tochigi prefecture.
She is part of the Year 24 Group together with Moto Hagio, Keiko Takemiya and Ryoko Yamagishi..

Reviews

[beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Banana Bread Pudding by Yumiko Ōshima is best described as a psychological comedy, in which our childish teenage protagonist Ira, frightened after her sister gets married, decides herself to marry a gay man who is too ashamed to live openly, in the hope that she can help him overcome his shame. Her parents, on the other hand, are eager to get her psychologically evaluated. Many counts of mistaken identity and antics ensue.

Though many different readings are possible, to me this read as a satirical take on the roles expected of women at the time. Ira marrying a man in order to help him overcome his problems at the expense of concentrating on herself is an obvious one. These themes also appear across various dream sequences. Ira has long been haunted by a monster/clown, who is neither male nor female (but also somehow both), who reveals their desire to consume her, which will result in her becoming them. In another dream, she is visited by a wandering prince, who she asks to settle down with her, but he refuses on the count that he would fade into obscurity. So there are fears of gender inversion and adopting the ‘incorrect’ gender role, but also a denial of the traditional self-sacrificing role of women, and a yearning for purpose and independence. This tension between her chosen mission of going from gay man to gay man helping them (she treats this mission with such solemnity and seriousness…), but doing so through fulfilling the traditional wifely role, is also indicative of these contrasting desires re: tradition and agency.

It’s also clearly and self-consciously influenced by psychoanalysis, but also (hilariously) critical of psychoanalytic theory throughout (Ira’s best friend is confused by a philosophy student as to whether she’s in love with a gay man, her brother, or is herself a repressed homosexual in one of the funniest conversations in the manga).

I wasn’t too taken with the art at first, but it grew on me, and in many places reminded me of Tillie Walden’s graphic novels. Ultimately, I came to the conclusion that it’s beautiful, but I’m clearly very biased towards this ‘70s shōjo style(!).

It’s also hard to overstate how absurdly funny it is, I laughed out loud on numerous occasions. I would recommend this to anyone in search of a good time.

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I also read the one-chapter short He His Him about a high school boy who resembles an androgynous male British musician named Peter Pinkcoat, and the escalating severity of the situations he finds himself in as he agrees to adopt this persona to satisfy both a PP fan club and the girl he had a crush on. 3/5 stars for that, also very funny.

[Isabella · Rating 2 out of 5]

interesting, but it could use better explanations about, well, WHAT is going on. or at least more chapters.

also what is UP with japanese people trying to put incest into everything they make???? it was only suggested here, but it seems like everytime I pick something to read/watch and a character has a sibling there's romantic undertones between them. what the fuck.

[Yue · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was crazy O_O Everyone needs a shrink, but specially the MC, Ira. Besides her mental issues, there is a hell out of a love tangle: Ira gets "married" to Touge, his sister is in love with a gay college classmate from her brother. But this gay guy is in love with Touge, but there is a professor who is the gay guy's lover and he is super possessive and crazy. When Ira finds out Touge is not really gay, goes and lives with the professor, who is doing all this to get revenge on Touge. And at the end, Touge is in love with this nuts girl??

Gawd, just putting it all in a sort of summary made me have a headache.

[maria ☆ · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5⭐? MC is a girl who clearly has some kind of psychological issues and is trying to deal with them through unconventional means. also features one hell of a love triangle(?) or perhaps love square(?) in which everyone has an unrequited love 😂 altogether quite intriguing

if for no other reason, read it because of this amazing summary:

[Amara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found the story mostly confusing but in a good way. It had some unexpected twists and turns, but was an interesting portrayal of mental illness in the main character.

[Lénaïck · Rating 3 out of 5]

Crazy gay

[vanessa · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5
“i loved those rose bushes, but not even in my dreams did i imagine them telling me they love me. not even in my dreams…”