Editor’s Afterword - The Fresh Fish Almanac『FAVORITE FISH: OURS AND YOURS』

Introduction

“If the Tokyo Olympics had gone ahead as planned, what kind of scene would we have witnessed?” I remember saying that once, almost in passing.

This is not regret—not a lament of if only there had been no pandemic. Rather, it is an act of imagining: what if the current surge of inbound energy had overlapped with that very moment? The instant the thought crossed my mind, something stirred deep in my chest, and the weight of time that might have slipped past nearly brought quiet tears to my eyes.

Looking back, Tsukiji Outer Market during the year of the Rugby World Cup was so lively that simply standing there felt joyful. In late 2019, I met Nick for the first time, and together with Shota, we shared kusaya. The image of Kusaya Nick, photographed later, gave meaning to the editing of this book. And now, in 2025, Tsukiji Outer Market is once again overflowing with people from all over the world.

On the Title and Its Roots

The title FAVORITE FISH: OURS AND YOURS was inspired by the Beatles’ Now And Then. Mr. Nomura, the head of Eiwa Marine Products, is also a drummer in a Beatles band— a man who seems to switch between stillness and motion the moment he takes a kitchen knife in hand. There is also an earlier book project from 2020, CARRY THAT WEIGHT, which served as the foundation for this work. It documented the sorting floor during the pandemic and gathered the efforts of younger staff into an album-like volume.

Borrowing its title from the Beatles’ "Carry That Weight," the theme of moving forward while bearing heaviness was a precise reflection of the workplace at the time. The subtitle, What we talk about when we talk about fish— a quiet play on Raymond Carver’s famous title— felt like a gentle preview of the direction this book would take.

The Alfonsino Photograph at the Origin

This book began with photographs and videos that Junki took at Toyosu Market. The beauty of a single image of an alfonsino became the decisive moment that confirmed the project’s path.

As for me, I kept photographing fresh fish— between sorting tasks, just before shipment, at the very moment something struck me as beautiful. Not a single photograph is the same. There is no end to it. That realization lives in the subtitle:

Too obvious in variety to taste.

The earlier book CARRY THAT WEIGHT contains one truly exceptional image captured by chance during that period— a fleeting miracle brought about by finding fish genuinely fascinating. photography continued in Tsukiji Outer Market as well. Fish, people, tools, and the scent of the seasons intertwined, eventually giving rise to a separate volume: Tsukiji Outer Market — Scatter Sight Notes.

Seven Years of Coming and Going

Follow fish, and you arrive at sushi. Follow sushi, and you arrive at Edo. Trace Edo, and you return once again to fish. The 2025 NHK historical drama Berabo depicted the making of Edo-period local publications, and in doing so, quietly affirmed the path I had been researching. From there emerged Professor Junki’s Edo Market Tales.

To Those Who Laughed and Let Me Find Fish Fascinating

I am a graphic designer. Many people who laughed, accepted, and supported my continued fascination with fish. For that generosity, I offer my heartfelt thanks. With fish at the center, people connect. Conversations unfold. Their endlessness invites the next story. Finding joy in that very chain and sharing the ever-expanding space it creates with companions, this book gradually came together. Seven years of places and seven years of dialogue— this is what was quietly prepared before becoming this book.