Absolute Boy

Author: Yuu Watase

A pair of storylines, twisted together, one in summer and one winter, in a way that makes each of them more impressive. The first story is a personal tale of Ayumu and his visit to his father. The other takes place a year and a half later and is all about Kisa, a depressed young girl who comes across a mysterious machine. The story introduces Ayumu and follows the exploration of the metal object, a mechanical fish Kisa builds, and how the pair go about looking into a scary concept. The big issue here is the way that we are presented the ordinary side of extraordinary world. The world Ayumu and Kisa live in is amazing, but it's not entirely a magical glen of unicorns and pixies; it's a far more real place where people bike to visit family, and go to school. It's a weird little conjunction, but it's also very natural, and it makes Absolute Boy into something that is very much a work that can play for many different crowds. Why it's on the list: A great part of the early 2000s anime explosion that made major inroads into the US Mainstream.