Astro Boy (character)

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Astro Boy
Astro Boy character
Image:Astro Boy-08.jpg
Astro Boy by Osamu Tezuka
First appearance Captain Atom (April 1951)
Created by Osamu Tezuka
Voiced by Mari Shimizu
Makoto Tsumura (2003 TV series
Freddie Highmore (2009 movie)
Profile
Nicknames Astro
Aliases Atom
Gender Male
Species Robot
Date of birth 7 April 2003
Occupation Hero
Known relatives Doctor Tenma (Creator), Doctor Ochanomizu (Foster Father)

Astro Boy (アトム Atomu?, or "Atom") is a fictional character, and the main protagonist of the Astro Boy franchise. Created by Osamu Tezuka, the character was introduced in the 1951 Captain Atom manga. Astro Boy has appeared in animated television shows and feature film adaptations of its eponymous manga, as well as other works by Tezuka.

On 7 April 2003, the City of Niiza registered the character as an actual resident.[1] He was also inducted into the Robot Hall of Fame in 2004.

Contents

[edit] Overview

Astro Boy was created by Doctor Tenma, and was meant to be a replacement for his deceased son named Tobio. However, because Astro was not able to grow and age like a normal human child, Doctor Tenma abandoned him to a Robot Circus led by the cruel Ham Egg. At the circus, Astro Boy was found by Professor Ochanomizu and adopted. Professor Ochanomizu gave Astro a family with a robotic mother, father, sister (Uran) and brother (Cobalt). As head of the Ministry of Science, Professor Ochanomizu often calls on Astro to help resolve situations involving humans, robots and (on occasion) extraterrestrials.

Astro Boy has seven powers to help him in his adventures:

  • The ability to translate more than 60 languages
  • Strength equivalent to 100,000 horsepower (75 MW)
  • The ability to fly using jets in his legs
  • Magnification of his hearing up to one thousand times
  • Guns deployed from his posterior
  • An electro-heart that can discern people's criminal intentions
  • Bright eye-lamps to assist his vision
  • Laser guns in his finger tips

Despite his abilities and work for good, Astro is often ostracized by the human race for being a robot. Since he is not officially considered a citizen, he often has to deal with the prejudice of humans against robots. Ultimately, Astro has to find a way to bring peace between humans and robots.

[edit] Appearances

As part of the Osamu Tezuka's Star System, Astro has appeared in several of the artist's works (although he is not always identified as "Astro Boy").

[edit] List of Astroboy's appearances

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ "Astro Boy: A Japanese Citizen?". Anime News Network. 2003-03-20. http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2003-03-20/astro-boy-a-japanese-citizen. Retrieved on 2007-07-01. 

[edit] External links

v • d • e
Astro Boy series
Characters
Astro Boy  • Doctor Tenma  • Professor Ochanomizu  • Lord Deadcross  • Pluto  • Shunsaku Ban  • Uran
Television
Film
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