TV ► About Astro Boy... (Fun discussion)

[vaderskywalker]

Have no idea where to put this, but here it goes, is Astro Boy supposed to be a cyborg, please note the only Astro Boy I was introduced to was the 2003 series, the tie-in game to it, and the movie, (That one clearly doesn't count, because the child got incinerated off screen, and the robot was a separate thing all together), the 2003 series confuses me there, but it feels like that's what the creators were going for, (The character creators. not the in-universe child's father), and did any other version actually do that, what are your thoughts?

 

[KudoTsurugi]

Astro Boy is a full-on robot. Cyborgs are humans which have been modified with technological enhancements or body parts. Examples of cyborgs in anime include Androids 17 and 18 in Dragon Ball Z(these two are more akin to cyborgs despite being called androids in the English dub) and the titular Cyborg 009, who was kidnapped by an evil organisation and turned into a cyborg against his will. And of course, there’s Victor Stone, aka Cyborg, from the DC Comics Universe.

While he is modelled after a human, Astro is not human himself, but a very advanced robot.
The movie gets it right on why Astro was created. Dr Tenma’s son, Tobio (or Toby depending on which version you watch) dies in an accident, a car crash in the manga and most adaptations, and Tenma creates Astro in his grief in an attempt to bring his son back.
But because Astro was not Tobio, Tenma ends up kicking him out.

 

[Sonofjafar]

cue the freakzoid reference

 

[vaderskywalker]

Astro Boy is a full-on robot. Cyborgs are humans which have been modified with technological enhancements or body parts. Examples of cyborgs in anime include Androids 17 and 18 in Dragon Ball Z(these two are more akin to cyborgs despite being called androids in the English dub) and the titular Cyborg 009, who was kidnapped by an evil organisation and turned into a cyborg against his will. And of course, there’s Victor Stone, aka Cyborg, from the DC Comics Universe.

While he is modelled after a human, Astro is not human himself, but a very advanced robot.
The movie gets it right on why Astro was created. Dr Tenma’s son, Tobio (or Toby depending on which version you watch) dies in an accident, a car crash in the manga and most adaptations, and Tenma creates Astro in his grief in an attempt to bring his son back.
But because Astro was not Tobio, Tenma ends up kicking him out.

Yes, I know what a cyborg is, I was just curious if he got turned into one in any other version, and it confused me for the 2003 series, because when Astro Boy came online, the doctor (forgot his name), called him Tobio, and then corrects himself, and says "no this is your new life, you need a new name, Astro", or something like that, and that is why that confused me, thank you for the answer.

cue the freakzoid reference

What freakzoid reference? for the record haven't seen freakzoid in years, so my memory is a bit fuzzy on that, if you could elaborate on that, please?

 

[Sonofjafar]

There was a parody of Astro Boy called Hero Boy that was a show within Freakzoid. His catchphrase was “I must succeed”

 

[vaderskywalker]

There was a parody of Astro Boy called Hero Boy that was a show within Freakzoid. His catchphrase was “I must succeed”

I don't think I've ever seen that episode, I'll have to look it up, what's it called?

 

[Sonofjafar]

I don’t know the episode name but here’s the whole segment

 

[vaderskywalker]

I don’t know the episode name but here’s the whole segment

Thank you, and that is not just an Astro Boy parody, but a Godzilla one too, they even got the theme right, impressive, most impressive.

 

[KudoTsurugi]

Yes, I know what a cyborg is, I was just curious if he got turned into one in any other version, and it confused me for the 2003 series, because when Astro Boy came online, the doctor (forgot his name), called him Tobio, and then corrects himself, and says "no this is your new life, you need a new name, Astro", or something like that, and that is why that confused me, thank you for the answer.

No worries, I think they were setting up an amnesia plot line for Astro in the 03 series, which wasn’t really a thing in other adaptations. So as Astro would find out more about himself, along with the audience. I think it was their way of making an Astro Boy for the 21st century, since the last series to air on TV was back in the 80s.

 

[vaderskywalker]

No worries, I think they were setting up an amnesia plot line for Astro in the 03 series, which wasn’t really a thing in other adaptations. So as Astro would find out more about himself, along with the audience. I think it was their way of making an Astro Boy for the 21st century, since the last series to air on TV was back in the 80s.

Huh, sounds like they were trying to make him a cyborg, which would have been cool, and it would have made him the most unique (Don't think I spelled that right) version of Astro Boy.

 

[KudoTsurugi]

Admittedly, it’s been a while since I’ve seen the series, but I don’t think that was the angle they were going for.
There definitely was the idea of Astro being a bridge between humans and robots brought up a lot, but I figured that was because he was a robot modelled after a human, rather than him being a cyborg. If anything, I think that moniker worked more with Atlas than Astro, at least in the show’s manga adaptation

 

[vaderskywalker]

Admittedly, it’s been a while since I’ve seen the series, but I don’t think that was the angle they were going for.
There definitely was the idea of Astro being a bridge between humans and robots brought up a lot, but I figured that was because he was a robot modelled after a human, rather than him being a cyborg. If anything, I think that moniker worked more with Atlas than Astro, at least in the show’s manga adaptation

Fair enough.