Tropic of the Sea

Yosuke’s family has a strange tradition: once every sixty years they receive an egg from a mermaid. When the egg matures his family dutifully returns it to the sea, where the whole process is then repeated. In exchange for this favor, the mer-people bless his coastal town with bountiful catches of fish and calm seas.

But as a commercial development encroach on the sleepy seaside village and Yosuke’s father is lured away from tradition towards modern properity, turning the egg into a tourist trap, what will happen to the promise their family made to the mermaids generations ago?

Satoshi Kon’s first feature-length manga, Tropic of the Sea includes a dozen black and white art plates from the original release plus a 5-page essay written by Kon in 1999 detailing his transition from the manga industry to the animation business.

By Satoshi Kon