NANA by Ai Yazawa, VOL 1: Introduction.

Serialized in Cookie magazine (related to Ribon magazine), published by Shueisha in Japan (book form), and published by Viz Media in North America, who serialized it in their magazine Shojo Beat. NANA is a Japanese manga created by Ai Yazawa, whose main characters are two women with the same name: Nana (Nana Osaki & Nana Komatsu).

The manga was adapted into an anime in 2006, directed by Mario Osaka, and animated by Madhouse Studios, with a total of 47 episodes (April 2006 — March 2007). Being in 2007 adapted into a live-action film with a sequel. Otherwise, NANA’s first video game was released in March 2005, by Konami, for PlayStation 2. The second video game was released for PlayStation Portable, in July 2006, and the third part was released in June 2007, for Nintendo DS.

Train scene.

Nana Osaki is a punk singer who wants to debut with her band, Black Stones, where she is the vocalist, and her boyfriend (Ren) is the bassist. However, everything changes when Ren is offered a chance to debut in Tokyo as a replacement member of the popular band, Trapnest. Nana chose to continue with BLAST (Black Stones), cultivating her own career, instead of following Ren, and parting ways. On the other hand, with a completely different personality, Nana Komatsu is a girl who easily falls in love with any man who shows interest in her. When her friends and boyfriend leave for Tokyo, she decides to join them a year later.

But, everything starts when Nana Osaki meets Nana Komatsu on the train by chance, on her way to Tokyo, to then start living together in apartment 707, where they become close friends, and go through different situations. Even having different personalities, to the point Nana Osaki gives Nana Komatsu the nickname Hachi (from Hachiko), for having the same characteristic as a puppy, and as a joke, since Hachi means “eight”, and Nana means “seven” in Japanese.

Apartment 707.

Between tears and smiles, each Nana struggles to get ahead and succeed. From wanting to be a well-known singer, succeeding with her punk band, to finding true love, and forming a happy family. In a race to achieve their personal goals, full of dreams and illusions, where they go through all kinds of particular situations, like toxic relationships, and artist agencies with a shady background. Both go through different obstacles, together and separately, without ever losing the connection that, since that meeting on the train, has only become stronger.

Like a good Josei, NANA is a story full of adult feelings: hate, sadness, joy, regret, love, selfishness, despair, jealousy, pain, ambition, infidelity, lust… showing the rawness of them, without any type of sweetening. Each character, main or secondary, is going and has gone through their own difficulties to reach their personal goals or be on the most feasible path to get there, based on everyone's personal situation. From a porn actress who dreams of leaving the adult film sector, to become an actress in movies and series with non-sexual content; to a singer from a very famous Japanese band, who suffers in silence every day for her unrequited love, with a womanizing man.

Asami Matsumoto (porn actress).

NANA is the story of two girls with the same name, full of hopes and goals, with completely different personalities, which have many characteristics in common, forced to mature through various obstacles and events that life has put them in. NANA is the story of different people, with very different personalities and feelings, who despite the difficulties they face, decide to keep fighting and get ahead, each in their own way. And… NANA is a story full of deep feelings, which shows us part of the universe of adults.

Nana Osaki & Nana Komatsu.