Absolute Boyfriend
Encyclopedia
is a six volume
Tankobon
, with a literal meaning close to "independently appearing book", is the Japanese term for a book that is complete in itself and is not part of a series , though the manga industry uses it for volumes which may be in a series...

 manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...

 series by Yuu Watase
Yuu Watase
is a female Japanese shōjo manga artist. She received the Shogakukan Manga Award for shōjo for Ceres, Celestial Legend in 1997. Since writing her debut short story "Pajama de Ojama" , Watase has created more than 80 compiled volumes of short stories and continuing series...

, first serialized in Shōjo Comic
Shojo Comic
is a shōjo manga magazine published twice monthly in Japan by Shogakukan since 1968. It was originally published weekly and it continued to be published weekly until the 1980s. Many influential shōjo manga ran in Shōjo Comic during the 70s. Moto Hagio's works and Keiko Takemiya's works in...

. Chuang Yi
Chuang Yi
Chuang Yi Publishing Pte Ltd. is a publishing company based in Singapore that specializes in producing domestic and imported comics and comics-related merchandise, in English and simplified Chinese. Chuang Yi distributes all or some of its products in Singapore, Malaysia, India, and the Philippines...

 licensed it for an English language
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

 release in Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...

, with the first volume released in March 2005. Viz Media
VIZ Media
VIZ Media, LLC, headquartered in San Francisco, is an anime, manga, and Japanese entertainment company. It was founded in 1986 as VIZ LLC. In 2005, VIZ LLC and ShoPro Entertainment merged to form the current VIZ Media LLC, which is jointly owned by Japanese publishers Shogakukan and Shueisha, and...

 licensed the series for an English release in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...

, serializing the series in its Shojo Beat manga anthology as well as releasing the volumes.

The manga series was adapted into an eleven episode live-action drama series
Japanese television drama
, also called , are a staple of Japanese television and are broadcast daily. All major TV networks in Japan produce a variety of drama series including murder romance, comedy, detective stories, horror, and many others...

. It has been confirmed in October 2010 that a Taiwanese version will be filmed. A South Korean drama adaptation will premiere in 2012.

Plot

Riiko Izawa has never had a boyfriend and she has been rejected by every boy she has ever had a crush on. When she returns a lost cell phone to an oddly dressed salesman, she mentions wanting a boyfriend. To thank her, he directs her to his company's website, Kronos Heaven. When she visits the site, Riiko finds it's a site to create your perfect lover. Thinking it's a game, she customizes and accidentally orders one. The next day, her new lover arrives. Following the instruction manual, she kisses him to wake him up and configures him to be in love with only her. She names him "Night." Three days later, she is shocked to learn that she only had him for a free trial for 72 hours. The salesman, Gaku Namikiri, tells her that she must now pay 100,000,000 yen for Night, however, they will waive the fee if she helps them to collect data about how women think and feel to help perfect future models.

Riiko must now keep Night's true nature a secret from everyone around her. She also soon finds herself in a love triangle
Love triangle
A love triangle is usually a romantic relationship involving three people. While it can refer to two people independently romantically linked with a third, it usually implies that each of the three people has some kind of relationship to the other two...

 between Night and her childhood friend Soshi, who declares his love for her out of fear he will lose her. As the series progresses, Night begins to develop real human emotions, enabling him to truly love Riiko but also resulting in system malfunctions. When Riiko almost loses Night due to the malfunctions, she realizes that he is the one she really loves. She apologizes to Soshi, who moves to Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

 with his brother to live with their dad. Night and Riiko spend a few happy weeks together, during which they go on dates, get their picture taken together, and purchase matching rings as symbols of their undying love.

As the series ends, Night begins to grow sleepier and sleepier. The problems developed by him exceeding his abilities eventually causes his machinery to stop working, resulting in his "death". Before he died, he wrote a letter directed to Soshi telling him what was happening and asking him to take care of Riiko. He also sends his ring, which Riiko noticed he has not been wearing immediately prior to his death. In the letter he tells Riiko that she doesn't have to cry for him any more. Riiko then smiles through her tears and forever treasures the ring, picture and her memories of Night - her first love, and eternal boyfriend.

Characters

Played by: Saki Aibu
Saki Aibu
is an actress in Japan. She is part of the Box Corporation.-Drama:*Kaseifu no Mita as Urara*Rebound as Nobuko Oba*Buzzer Beat as Natsuki Nanami*Zettai Kareshi SP as Izawa Riiko...

 (drama) / Ku Hye Sun (Taiwanese drama)
Riiko is a young, flat-chested (according to Soushi, 28-A cup) 16 year old girl who has bad luck with boys. When she helps a strange salesman named Gaku Namikiri, she ends up ordering a cybernetic boyfriend. Though initially shy around her new boyfriend, Riiko begins to fall in love with him, while also finding herself struggling with her new admirer, Soushi Asamoto. Riiko is rather naïve, clumsy, and simple-minded, but kindhearted, hardworking, and serious.
Riiko doesn't want to admit she is in love with Night and constantly reminds herself that he is just a figure (a doll). This however, isn't completely true, because she gets jealous, even angry, when he flirts with other girls for "data".

Played by: Mokomichi Hayami
Mokomichi Hayami
is a Japanese actor. He has acted in shows such as Densha Otoko, Gokusen, Nakagawa Masaya|Tokyo Tower and as Night Tenjo in Absolute Boyfriend/Zettai Kareshi. Hayami has appeared on CMs for Daihatsu Tanto, Bourbon Petit, Ban Deo Spray and au by KDDI...

 (drama) / Jiro Wang
Jiro Wang
Jiro Wang , nicknamed Da Dong meaning "Big East", was born on 24 August 1981. He is a Taiwanese actor and singer, who started his career as a model. He is a member of Taiwanese Mandopop vocal quartet boy band Fahrenheit.-Biography:...

 (Taiwanese drama)
Nightly01(Night) is a cybernetic doll custom ordered by Riiko. As such, he is the "perfect boyfriend": charming, dependable, intelligent, athletic, good-looking, sensitive, and completely devoted. At first he is perfect for Riiko because it is in his programming, however as the series progresses, Night develops true emotions and a genuine love for her and has his own will. He is 6' tall as shown on the back of the first volume of the English version.
Being designed to fulfill intimate relations for a woman, Night is constantly seen taking off his clothes offering to have sex with Riiko, to which she steadfastly declines. He also often tries to kiss Riiko, which makes her uncomfortable/embarrassed, and is always interrupted by a third party, much to Riiko's relief.

Night's Ring
Functions similarly to a mood ring, with one difference: it reads the moods of people around Night. This helps him collect data about interacting with them.
What the different colors mean: Red-Happy, Pink-Pleasure, Black-Sad, Blue-Angry. White is for Neutral. Blue-Jealous.

Played by: Hiro Mizushima (drama)
Soushi is Riiko's childhood friend. He lives alone with his brother because his father is a travel photographer. He watches over Riiko and takes care of her while her parents work far away. At first he just treats her as a very good friend. However, as the story progresses, Soushi realizes that he has stronger feelings for Riiko. He discovers he loves her and confesses this to her.

  • Masaki Asamoto
Soushi's little brother. Usually only shown to add comic relief. But He looks as if he is about 13 or 14.

  • Ishizeki
A boy Riiko asks out at the bus stop. Apologizing, he informs her that he is interested in another girl. He and a couple friends confront Riiko and Night at school, after finding out they are 'dating', and calls Riiko a slut. Night doesn't like this, so he beats up Ishizeki's friends and tells him to never mess with him or Riiko again.

  • Mika Itou
A frenemy
Frenemy
"Frenemy" is a portmanteau of "friend" and "enemy" that can refer to either an enemy disguised as a friend or to a partner who is simultaneously a competitor and rival. The term is used to describe personal, geopolitical, and commercial relationships both among individuals and groups or institutions...

, and classmate, of Riiko's. She offers support and reassurance when Riiko feels miserable after being rejected by Ishizeki. However, later on, it is shown that she is the reason why boys always reject Riiko after she asks them out.She's been spreading rumors around school that Riiko is slutty and goes out with boys for their money. Mika went out with Ishizeki just so Riiko couldn't. After dumping him, she states she is only interested in things that belong to other people. Mika later on sets Night's violent fanclub on Riiko and tries to make the model date her instead, and even break them up. In the end, her scheme backfires and she stops being friends with Riiko. In the drama, however, Mika and Riiko maintain their friendship, and Mika helps protect Night's secret.

  • Miyabi
Warns Riiko to watch out for Mika. One day, as she is passing Riiko in the hall, she accidentally drops her transaction book. Riiko picks it up, telling Miyabi she dropped it, then freaks out when she see's it has 10 million yen written in it. Miyabi tells her she deals in stock trading, and then helps Riiko find a job at a vietnamese restaurant. Miyabi at one stage 'borrows' Night when he is in his miniature form.

Played by: Kuranosuke Sasaki (drama)
Gaku is a salesman for Kronos Heaven, a company specializing in making highly realistic robots, or "figures." Though usually businesslike and down-to-earth, Gaku is sometimes mistaken for a cosplay
Cosplay
, short for "costume play", is a type of performance art in which participants don costumes and accessories to represent a specific character or idea. Characters are often drawn from popular fiction in Japan, but recent trends have included American cartoons and science fiction...

er because of his odd manner of dress. When Riiko cannot return Night nor pay the bill for him, Gaku allows her to keep him so Night can collect data on how to become a better lover for use in future models. Whenever there is a problem with Night, Gaku is the one to fix him. He tends to use Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...

 words in conversations, at least in the English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

 version of the manga
Manga
Manga is the Japanese word for "comics" and consists of comics and print cartoons . In the West, the term "manga" has been appropriated to refer specifically to comics created in Japan, or by Japanese authors, in the Japanese language and conforming to the style developed in Japan in the late 19th...

.
Gaku keeps close tabs on the progress in the relationship between Riiko and Night, and often appears randomly out of nowhere, ie. Riiko's closet, mostly for comic relief.

  • Toshiki Murakami
Riiko's first crush. He runs into Riiko and Night before they get on the Ferris Wheel, and hands Riiko an ice pack because she twisted her ankle. His brother, Yuki, feels sick, and as repayment for helping Riiko, Night takes Yuki to the restroom. Toshiki kisses Riiko when they are alone in the Ferris Wheel together, after admitting she was his crush in elementary school. After The kiss in the Ferris Wheel, he appears at the hotel Riiko and Night decided to stay at, invites her to his room, knocks her out, and then says he had fun with her that night. Next he appears at her school and claims they are now lovers (which isn't true, he never slept with her at the hotel).

He turns out to not be the real Toshiki, but an imposter. His real name is Toshiki Shirasaki and he is the Nightly 02 series. He is sent to seduce Riiko because Night failed to sleep with her. He carries a high resemblance to Night in facial features, body structure, and even wears the same jewelry, although he is much stronger and has better reflexes than him.

After a confrontation with Night in Riiko's apartment, in which Night rips off his arm, Toshiki is shut down by Yuki and taken away for testing and reprogramming. Later, he becomes the boyfriend of a wealthy girl and establishes a friendship with Riiko and Night.

  • Yuki Shirisaki
The pretended brother of Toshiki. Knocks Night out when he whispers a code into his ear at the hotel.

In reality he is the boss of Gaku, and sends out his Nightly 02 model to seduce, and have sex with, Riiko. He wants to see if it is a better model than the Nightly 01 series, and states that whichever model successfully sleeps with Riiko is going to be a finished product, and the one that fails will be disposed of.

Manga

Written by Yuu Watase
Yuu Watase
is a female Japanese shōjo manga artist. She received the Shogakukan Manga Award for shōjo for Ceres, Celestial Legend in 1997. Since writing her debut short story "Pajama de Ojama" , Watase has created more than 80 compiled volumes of short stories and continuing series...

, Absolute Boyfriend premiered in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

 in the March 2003 issue of Shōjo Comic
Shojo Comic
is a shōjo manga magazine published twice monthly in Japan by Shogakukan since 1968. It was originally published weekly and it continued to be published weekly until the 1980s. Many influential shōjo manga ran in Shōjo Comic during the 70s. Moto Hagio's works and Keiko Takemiya's works in...

. It appeared monthly until the thirty-fifth and final chapter was published in the February 2005 issue. The chapters were published in six collected volumes
Tankobon
, with a literal meaning close to "independently appearing book", is the Japanese term for a book that is complete in itself and is not part of a series , though the manga industry uses it for volumes which may be in a series...

 by Shogakukan
Shogakukan
is a Japanese publisher of dictionaries, literature, manga, non-fiction, DVDs, and other media in Japan.Shogakukan founded Shueisha which founded Hakusensha. These are three separate companies, but are together called the Hitotsubashi Group, one of the largest publishing groups in Japan...

 with the first volume released on October 25, 2003 and the final volume released on February 25, 2005.

Absolute Boyfriend is licensed for both English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

 and Chinese
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...

 releases in Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...

 by Chuang Yi
Chuang Yi
Chuang Yi Publishing Pte Ltd. is a publishing company based in Singapore that specializes in producing domestic and imported comics and comics-related merchandise, in English and simplified Chinese. Chuang Yi distributes all or some of its products in Singapore, Malaysia, India, and the Philippines...

, which has released all six volumes of the series. Madman Entertainment
Madman Entertainment
Madman Entertainment is an Australian company that distributes international films as well as Japanese anime and manga in Australia and New Zealand. The company is owned by Funtastic Limited and is one of the major entertainment companies in Australia. It employs 130 people and has an annual...

 subsequently imported and republished the Chuang Yi English translated volumes in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

 from May 17, 2006 through October 11, 2006. In North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...

, the series was licensed for an English translated release by Viz Media
VIZ Media
VIZ Media, LLC, headquartered in San Francisco, is an anime, manga, and Japanese entertainment company. It was founded in 1986 as VIZ LLC. In 2005, VIZ LLC and ShoPro Entertainment merged to form the current VIZ Media LLC, which is jointly owned by Japanese publishers Shogakukan and Shueisha, and...

. It was one of the first six manga series Viz included in the June 2005 premiere issue of the company's new manga anthology Shojo Beat
Shojo Beat
Shojo Beat is a shōjo manga magazine formerly published in North America by Viz Media. Released in June 2005 as a sister magazine to Shonen Jump, it featured serialized chapters from six manga series, as well as articles on Japanese culture, manga, anime, fashion and beauty...

. It continued to be serialized in Shojo Beat until it reached its conclusion with in the March 2008 issue. Viz simultaneously released the six collected volumes of the series, with the first volume released February 7, 2006 and the final volume released on May 6, 2008.

The series is also licensed for regional language releases in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 by Egmont Manga & Anime
Egmont Manga & Anime
Egmont Manga & Anime is one of the largest publishers of manga in Germany. It was founded in the year 2000 as a daughter company of Egmont Ehapa, after the manga boom in Germany became apparent around the turn of the millennium. Since 2003, EMA has been part of Egmont vgs in Cologne.- History :In...

, in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 by Kana
Kana (publisher)
Kana is a French publisher affiliated with Les Éditions Dargaud. Kana was founded in 1996 by Yves Schlirf. The company publishes manga in French and Dutch. Its headquarters are in the Dargaud offices in the 18th arrondissement of Paris.-External links:*...

, and in Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...

 by Conrad.

Volume list

Drama CD

A drama CD based on this manga was released under the title Zettai Kareshi - Figure Darling in Japan by Marine Entertainment on August 25, 2004.

Japanese adaptation

A live-action adaptation of the manga began airing on Fuji TV on April 15, 2008 and ran for eleven episodes until its conclusion on June 24, 2008. In the live-action version, Riiko Izawa is an office lady
Office lady
An office lady, often abbreviated OL , is a female office worker in Japan who performs generally pink collar tasks such as serving tea and secretarial or clerical work. Like many unmarried Japanese, OLs often live with their parents well into early adulthood...

 in search of a boyfriend, and she ends up in possession of a "robot" known as Night Tenjo, who is programmed to be the perfect boyfriend. However, this creates a love triangle with a distinguished young man at her company who also has feelings for her. Riiko is played by Saki Aibu
Saki Aibu
is an actress in Japan. She is part of the Box Corporation.-Drama:*Kaseifu no Mita as Urara*Rebound as Nobuko Oba*Buzzer Beat as Natsuki Nanami*Zettai Kareshi SP as Izawa Riiko...

, Night is played by Mokomichi Hayami
Mokomichi Hayami
is a Japanese actor. He has acted in shows such as Densha Otoko, Gokusen, Nakagawa Masaya|Tokyo Tower and as Night Tenjo in Absolute Boyfriend/Zettai Kareshi. Hayami has appeared on CMs for Daihatsu Tanto, Bourbon Petit, Ban Deo Spray and au by KDDI...

, and Soshi Asamoto is played by Hiro Mizushima.

On March 24, 2009, a special episode of this series was released and featured 3 years after the last episode of the series, whereas Riiko had become a patissier
Pastry chef
A pastry chef or pâtissier is a station chef in a professional kitchen, skilled in the making of pastries, desserts, breads and other baked goods...

 and is engaged to Soshi Asamoto; and Night was suddenly revived by a Kronos Heaven employee, who wanted to use his individual ego to her own gain.

Taiwanese adaptation

It was announced at a press conference 5 October 2010 that a live-action adaptation of Absolute Boyfriend will be filmed. It stars Taiwanese actor Wu Chun
Wu Chun
Wu Chun was born on 10 October 1979, birth name Goh Kiat Chun, is a Brunei-born Taiwanese actor, singer, former model and gym instructor....

 of Fahrenheit
Fahrenheit (Taiwanese band)
Fahrenheit is a Taiwanese boy band who has been active in Asia since 2005. The group debut with four members: Jiro Wang, Calvin Chen, Aaron Yan and Wu Chun. They are managed by Comic International Productions . The group's music is distributed by HIM International Music in Taiwan, by WOW Music in...

 as "Night" and Korean actress Ku Hye Sun "Riiko". On 3 May 2011, Jiro Wang
Jiro Wang
Jiro Wang , nicknamed Da Dong meaning "Big East", was born on 24 August 1981. He is a Taiwanese actor and singer, who started his career as a model. He is a member of Taiwanese Mandopop vocal quartet boy band Fahrenheit.-Biography:...

, also of Fahrenheit
Fahrenheit (Taiwanese band)
Fahrenheit is a Taiwanese boy band who has been active in Asia since 2005. The group debut with four members: Jiro Wang, Calvin Chen, Aaron Yan and Wu Chun. They are managed by Comic International Productions . The group's music is distributed by HIM International Music in Taiwan, by WOW Music in...

, was reported to have replaced Wu Chun as the male lead.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK