On one hand, the story moves so effortlessly that it is easy to forget that there is a wide-eyed boy claiming to be an alien running amok. Though, on the other hand, between a self-proclaimed alien and a mysterious man who talks to his duck, it can be just as easily forgotten that the story is, above all, about a few unlikely friends who are simply going fishing. The craft of story telling is mastered beautifully in Tsuritama. Even among the moments of concentrated fishing, there is never a feeling of doubt that this isn't just fishing--it's more, and that propels the story to move at an easy pace--ultimately too quickly by the series' end.
What ultimately shines in Tsuritama are the characters. None are without fault, and all are able to experience evident growth throughout the series. In true coming-of-age fashion, the boys are confronted with real-life issues of death, family, and friendship. The interactions between Yuki's grandmother and innocent, self-proclaimed alien Haru are some of the most poignant, as he learns about the inevitability of goodbye and the frailty of the human spirit.
Tsuritama is an artistic gem. It is not by any means an "average" slice of life, nor is it too fantastical to be grasped. While it lends itself to be a coming-of-age, that is not easily won on the viewer who, at its end, longs to be forever young, surrounded by the best of companions, with a hook and rod in hand. Perhaps that is, after all, how to save the world.
