Astro Boy...The Modern Prometheus?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVSRm80WzZk

You’re traveling through a dimension not of sound, or sight, but of addled mind. Traipsing pathways overgrown with speculation, you see a sign post up ahead. Adjacent to the last clean restroom this side of paranoia and sitting a mere stone’s throw away from a conspiracy theorists’ support group, it reads “ Hello there gang, and welcome back.”  You’ve invariably stumbled into an air conditioned plot hole I like to call “Shelves and Stacks.” 

    Submitted for your consideration are two tales, two authors and two creations. Penned by like minds, but separated through time, space, geography and genre, the tales in question are a two way mirror. A mirror gazed into by a monstrous mockery of man and a light hearted, childlike defender of justice. Each side a different outcome, but eerily enough, with similar origins. Can a nameless beast of the gallows and a mechanical child of light be one in the same? To you, a notion like that may, at best, be represented as a slim probability. However, the house of ideas has better representation among the Shelves and Stacks. 

AAAAAAND CUT!

    Phew! Didn’t know how much longer I could hold my Serling face. Hey there gang, and welcome back. For this week’s review, the boys upstairs thought a little atmosphere was in order. So, anybody here confused by the whole “two way mirror” and “monster and defender of justice” spiel? Yeah? Thought as much. Alright, here’s the skinny. So, while diligently pondering the complex mysteries of the literary universe, I had a revelation.

True and valid as that point may be, I’m talking about the idea that (and stay with me on this), Osamu Tezuka’s highly celebrated and praised manga and anime (comic book and cartoon show to the uninitiated) series Astro Boy can be interpreted as an indirect retelling of Mary Shelley’s classic work Frankenstein in which we can get a taste of what the monster’s life might have been like had he found his way into a safe, loving, and positive environment. Granted, it may just be simpler to watch a few episodes of this

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TTIqK9nFH8

 but, for the purposes of this little exercise in speculative pop culture we won’t for one fundamental reason. The Munsters suffers from a disturbing lack of robots and as we all know, robots improve the quality of every situation.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lH7XCghlH7M

For the record, he does an excellent Snape impression. Really, it’s quite good.

    Now then, before we get too far into things, let’s have a quick word about retellings. Our friends over at Dictionary.com define a retelling as follows:
retelling (noun) a new, and often updated or retranslated, version of a story.
retelling (verb)to tell (a story, tale, etc.) over again in a new way.
    Keeping this in mind, let’s take a moment and look at the whole of pop culture for a moment. Pop culture, like a rampant rumor, is rife with retellings. We’ve got Shakespearian fantasy morphing into 50’s science fiction (The Tempest retold as Forbidden Planet), classic detective novels retooled into televised crime drama (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes novels retold through the BBC program Sherlock) and beloved animation retconned into a Nicolas Cage movie ( Fantasia’s  The Sorcerer’s Apprentice remade into a live action film of the same name). 


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-p0OadRapq4

Because, Disney works in mysterious ways Cat Bug. Mysterious ways.

    So, what’s all this have to do with the alleged retelling in question? Consider the following. In Mary Shelley’s classic tale, grad student of the damned, Victor Frankenstein (spurred on by scientific interest and grief for the passing of his mother), attempts to create life from dead matter.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QuoKNZjr8_U

The experiment is a rousing success. After Victor brings his creation (an attempt to enhance, and possibly replace mankind with a hardier specimen) to life, he makes a startling realization. Aside from looking like something that crawled out of a bin of medical refuse Victor’s work is not a continuation of life, but a mockery of it. Realizing the error of his way, and with all the grace and dignity of a brave and chivalrous knight, he acts accordingly.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FPELc1wEvk

Alright, he’s a little more Sir Robin than King Arthur. Left to its own devices, the rejected creature wanders out into the world. Subjected to cruelty for his cadaverous looks, the creature grows to hate and fear humanity. After years of wandering that would rank a solid seven on a scale from 1 to Lord of the Rings, the creature hunkers down near the home of an old man named De Lacey. Seeing what his life could be like if he wasn’t so corpsey, Frankenstein’s rejected creation sat tight, biding his time and learning to speak, read and write.
    Meanwhile, 134 years in the future and a few continents over, medical doctor turned cartoonist Osamu Tezuka was busy whipping up his own tale of mad science. Decidedly more light hearted than its predecessor,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cmAaz3irJVQ

Astro Boy’s first story arc was every bit as cruel and unusual as Frankenstein. Mourning the loss of his young son Tobio, the brilliant Dr. Umataro Tenma (head of The Ministry of Science in a futuristic Japan) brought together the Ministry’s greatest minds and resources to aid him in the creation of a technological masterpiece, a perfect mechanical copy of his deceased son.

(For the record, I have no idea why he’s running around in hot pants. Just roll with it.)

    After Astro is assembled and brought to life, Dr. Tenma immediately whisks him away, and continues on as if Tobio’s passing had never happened. Unfortunately, Dr. Tenma slowly realizes that his joy (much like his relationship with Astro) is built on false pretenses. Much like Victor who deluded himself into believing that a living (?) corpse was the herald of a new species, Tenma had fooled himself into believing that this lifelike machine could and would grow and behave as a normal boy. Realizing his error, Dr. Tenma…well…oh, just see for yourself.

Pow! Right in the feels! 

    That’s right gang. Tenma subjects an innocent, childlike being to physical and verbal abuse, and then sells him to a shady looking character of ill repute who carts the poor boy away and forces him to perform in a circus. Pow! Right in the feels!
    That’s right gang, whether they realized it or not, Shelley and Tezuka were pretty much working on the same wavelength. Both created a story about a brilliant scientist (grieving over the loss of a loved one) trying to make themselves feel better and achieve their dreams through the irresponsible creation of sentient life. What’s more, both abandon their creations, and leave them at the mercy of a race who they only wanted to protect, but will always hate and fear them!

Oh, yeah…heh heh…The X-Men kind of already have a monopoly on that. 

    So, you’re probably asking where and when the “re” in this telling fits in.  Well, to answer that, let’s check back in on Frankenstein’s monstrous malcontent. While hiding out on the De Lacey’s property, Victor’s creation becomes fluent in English, and learning that his unwitting host is blind, decides to strike up a conversation. Waiting for the children to depart, the creature slips in and wiles away a pleasant afternoon chatting with his neighbor.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7BO_hqe_q0

The original text is a bit more eloquent, but you get the picture. As you’ve probably guessed, the De Lacey children return, instantly assume their dear old dad’s about to have his brain munched by a Romero refugee and chase the creature over the farmyard and through the woods. Wounded and betrayed, the creature shambles off in search of his creator and the bitter satisfaction of vengeance well wrought.
    Meanwhile, Astro had problems of his old. Sold to the circus, Astro was forced to perform feats of strength, daring, and gladiatorial combat. Despite the hardships endured at the hands of the circus’s owner Mr. Hamegg (I wonder if he’s related to Olive Oyl or Mayor Mc Cheese), Astro keeps his chin up and resolves to let his spotless conscience be his guide (Coincidentally, Tezuka sites Pinocchio as a primary inspiration for his work). As luck, and plot devices, would have it, Astro is given a kind old man of his own. Enter, the big nosed Professor Ochanomizu.  Assuming Astro is a human, Ochanomizu attempts to liberate Astro from bondage. After learning that he is indeed a robot, Ochanomizu sees greatness in the horn haired tyke, and carries out his plan to liberate Astro Boy.

 Under the professor’s care and guidance, Astro learns to utilize his robotic powers (heh heh, butt rockets) and becomes a champion for the rights and safety of humans and their mechanical creations.  Granted, Astro does still come under fire from people (mostly villains) who view him purely as a machine, but rather than allow his anger toward them to fester (like a certain monster we all know), Astro strives to be the change and progress he and Ochanomizu wish to see in the world.
    So, there you have it gang. Mostly infallible proof that Astro Boy can be interpreted as not only an analogue of the Frankenstein story, but as an alternate tale that allows readers a chance to see what could have been. For those of you interested in checking out more of Astro’s adventures, check out the following links:

http://www.mangastream.to/astroboy-chapter-1-page-1.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GYSfncB4peU

You’re welcome.
    Thanks for reading another episode of Shelves and Stacks. As always, I’m your host Jamie Thom- Hang on a minute, they need me on set.
ACTION!
Ahem.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVSRm80WzZk

     Two creators, separated by time and circumstance. Their creations, not so different. Lost within the ages and annals of time and pages long since turned, but found and reunited as spiritual siblings. Family trees fork, but have been known to fold backwards into something between a figure eight and a pretzel in the curmudgeonly old growth forests among the Shelves and Stacks. Goodnight.

(Shelves and Stacks acknowledges the copyright and ownership of all videos and links used in this and any and all future posts.)