A Love Letter to Ai Yazawa’s Nana.
Last summer, I was looking for something to read. I had just finished a book that was a major disappointment and wanted something different, so thats when I decided to turn to manga. As a longtime anime fan, I had gotten into reading manga a few years prior, and I wanted something that wouldn’t take up too much time. I thought about going back to the Sailor Moon series or maybe reading the manga to an anime I loved, but I wanted something totally new. Walking through the aisles at Newbury Comics, I looked down and saw the next work that would consume me. I crouched down and picked up the first four volumes of Ai Yazawa’s modern classic, Nana.
Since its initial run starting in May 2000, Nana has been heralded for it’s characters, it’s storylines, and most importantly, it’s fashion. It’s one of those manga’s that alway’s seems to trickle back into mainstream popularity every few years. I first became aware of the work back in 2017 when a coworker recommended it to me. I tried searching for the anime at the time but wasn’t able to find it. I forgot about it until last year, when Youtuber The Anime Man mentioned it in a video. When I opened up the first volume and read the first few pages, I knew this work would take over my life.
Before getting into the nitty gritty, I want to throw out a few disclaimers. There are many depictions of 90s and early 2000’s stereotypes in this series that might not fly with today’s demographic. There are also many triggering scenes and storylines that might not sit well with readers or viewers. If any of this sounds like it might bug you, I highly recommend doing your own research before reading or watching Nana. These thing’s didn’t ruin my experience with the series, but it might for you. Also, this is a mature story with explicit content. I wouldn’t recommend anyone younger than 18 reading the manga or watching the anime.
The manga follows two 20 year old women, both named Nana, as their paths cross when moving to Tokyo. Nana Osaki is the singer of punk-rock band who’s ready to make a career in the music industry. She’s tough, edgy, and still stuck on the guy who left her for his own career. Nana Komatsu (often referred to as Hachi) is moving to Tokyo to be with her friends and live with her boyfriend. She’s bubbly, energetic, a little ditzy, and a little too trusting. Despite their differences, the two women find commonalities with each other and decide to live together.
There is so much I love about this series and it’s hard to pick just one thing to talk about. The art style for one is clean, edgy, and so finely detailed. The fashion too is always a highlight for an Ai Yazawa work and Nana is no exception. References to the late Vivienne Westwood are sprinkled throughout the story and many of these outfits have become influential, inspiring many peoples personal styles. The anime adaptation, as well as the music written for it, is another bright spot in my love for this series.
But what I really admire about Nana is the characters and how real they feel. After all, this is a story about people in their 20s and the relationships they have with each other. I know what you’re thinking, “This sounds like every other story with the same premise!”, but trust me when I say it’s different. These are people who are deeply flawed and who are trying to survive in their daily lives. It’s a story that is truly for young adults, not the silly bright manga or anime you think is aimed for kids.
I truly admire Ai Yazawa for really going there with many of these storylines. There are storylines of addiction, perfection, abuse, loneliness, depression, loss, and so much more. These may seem common nowadays, but for a manga that started running in the early 2000’s, its pretty groundbreaking. Reading about these relationships and characters made me feel like I knew them. I was so invested in these fictional people that I felt their anger and pain, their sadness and fears, every emotion they felt. And it probably wasn’t good for me to read this on my lunch breaks at work. One day in particular, I finished a very sad volume and had to go back to work wiping tears out of my eyes.
But the true strength of Nana is the relationship between the two title characters. Osaki and Hachi have a unique relationship to say the least. They’re able to connect even though they are total opposites. They are able to lift each other up and support each other, even when they don’t agree with each others choices. At the end of the day, their relationship and friendship is the most important, even more than their romances and longtime friendships.
Unfortunately, Nana has been on hiatus since May 26, 2009. Ai Yazawa ended up getting very ill (the illness has never been revealed to the public) and she has never confirmed if or when she will return to her most popular work. And to make things sadder, the manga ended on a cliff hanger. So many storylines left opened, so many questioned still unanswered. Ai Yazawa has worked on smaller projects here and there, but has continuted to be very vague about giving Nana it’s proper ending. While I fully support her decision to focus on her health, I’m still praying to one day see Nana Osaki and Hachi again.
Nana is a story that consumed me like no other. I have so many questions and theories about the story and I hate knowing that they may never be answered. I hope Ai Yazawa knows just how much this story and these characters mean to me, as well as so many others. It’s a story that feels relatable no matter what year you read it and anyone can connect with it. It’s easy to see why Nana is one of the best selling manga series of all time!
To try and wrap up this rambling, Nana is a work that will stick with me for a longtime. It’s truly an experience I will never forget. I cherish these physical books and blast the anime soundtrack for years to come. And to Ai Yazawa, I just want to say thank you for creating this story. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that one day we’ll get to know what happens in the rest of the story.
