Griffin Callenreese is a character in Banana Fish. He is a veteran of the Vietnam War (the Iraq war in the 2018 Banana Fish anime). Griffin is the son of Jim Callenreese and the older half-brother of Ash Lynx.
Griffin became severely mentally handicapped after he was forced to consume the drug called "Banana Fish".
Appearance[]
Griffin has a very depressed face and long brown hair from the front. His face is somewhat similar to Ash's, but he is older and more vacant and has blue eyes. He wears a light brown cardigan with a pale blue buttoned shirt underneath. In his room, he is kept warm with a patterned blanket across his legs and has blue slippers.
Before he had been infected with Banana Fish, Griffin was often seen with a gentle smile and caring atmosphere toward Ash.
Personality[]
Before coming in contact with the Banana Fish substance, Griffin is said to have been very caring toward his younger brother Ash. Because their father had relinquished care of Ash to Griffin, the older brother would act as Ash's caretaker and protector, this said to be the reason Ash was not harmed earlier than he was.
After he was infected by the Banana Fish substance, Griffin became somewhat catatonic as he mainly did not interact with those around him and remained in a wheelchair the majority of the time.
History[]
Shortly after Ash had been born, Jim Callenreese placed it upon his first son to raise and care for his new brother. Griffin was heavily involved in Ash's life and even participated with his little league team. However, when Ash was around six years old, Griffin left home to serve in the American military. He was posted in Vietnam/Iraq during the respective wars where it is implied he became involved with narcotics but, in truth, had stumbled upon Abraham Dawson's work with Banana Fish on other soldiers.
Story[]
Stationed in Vietnam/Iraq (manga/anime), Griffin comes across his fellow soldiers and calmly walks over to a gun before firing upon them. He kills a few of his fellow soldiers but continues to shoot several men before being shot in the legs by his best friend, Max Lobo. Slumped on the ground, he is not himself and in response to Max, he only speaks the phrase "Banana Fish".
Years later, Griffin has his room in Ash's apartment where he is looked after by Skip when Ash is away. He spends his time in a wheelchair by the window and remains unresponsive. Though Griffin's eyes are open, he does not react in any way when Ash asks him what this Banana Fish is that he has been mentioning. He is begged by Ash as he heard someone else say the term and even as his brother places his hands on his knees and kneels to speak to him and rest Griffin is indifferent as Ash wonders if this “Banana Fish” did this to him. Whether he can hear Ash or not, Griffin does not say anything as he continues to stare downwards.[1]
Relationships[]
- Ash Lynx: Griffin has a close relationship with his brother. They were close growing up and Griffin often looked after Ash as somewhat of his main caretaker. They were close to the extent that after he was shot and became mentally handicapped after the war, Ash took him in and did everything to try and make him better, using all of his illegally earned money to try and get treatment and medication for Griffin.
- Max Lobo: Griffin's best friend, whom he served beside in the Vietnam/Iraq (manga/anime) war. Although not much is known about their friendship, it is implied they were good friends by Max.
Etymology[]
Episode Appearances[]
- Episode 10 Babylon Revisited (Memory only)
Trivia[]
- Astrological sign: Taurus
- In Private Opinion, according to Blanca who searches for information about Ash Lynx and his family, Griffin's biological mother's name is Audrey Callenreese, a woman who died in 1967, which indicates that he and Ash do not share the same mother.
- This was confirmed in Volume 03 when Ash details how he and Griffin have different mothers.
- According to Ash, Griffin's mother was run off on his own.
References[]
- ↑ Episode 01 A Perfect Day for Bananafish