Just wanted to bring everyone's attention to an amazing article by Patrick Macias for Otaku USA about one of North America's pioneering anime fans, Fred Patten. It's a really fascinating look at the early days (and I mean EARLY) of how anime fandom developed. Included is his meeting with Osamu Tezuka and their combined attempts to bring more anime to America. Here's a small sample:
But Fred had some pretty major conspirators in his corner, starting with the “God of Manga” himself, Osamu Tezuka. After briefly meeting each other in 1977, Tezuka would come to rely on Fred and the small circle of fans that he belonged to (the LA branch of the Cartoon/Fantasy Organization, AKA the C/FO) to show him around the SoCal area, and supply information about the burgeoning popularity of anime and manga outside of Japan. Says Patten in his book, “(Tezuka) was bewildered but flattered that so many Americans, who did not understand the Japanese language, had taken the trouble to figure out the plots of his manga from the pictures alone.”
I have to reiterate just how amazing this movie is. It's the best movie I've seen in a long time and it's an absolute crime that it hasn't made more money at the box office in North America. Do yourself a favor and see this movie in theaters if you haven't done so already. If you have, go see it again! I've seen it twice thus far and that just wasn't enough for me. Please go watch it and help support innovative films!
Continue reading "Scott Pilgrim's Astro Shirt - Live!"...
A new Astro Boy video game is set for release on the iPhone. This is a colaboration between Tezuka Productions, Widefos, and SJgames. It's a side scrolling action game that seems akin in many ways to the GameBoy Advance classic Astro Boy Omega Factor. It has a unique art style and looks to feature battles with both Atlas and Pluto. Other famous characters like Dr. Ochanomizu and Inspector Tawashi also make an appearance.
Check out some gameplay footage below!
The game is set for release in 2011 for what will be the 60th anniversary of Astro Boy. It is be available in Korea and Japan first, but other regions including North America and Europe will follow. Stay tuned to ABW for more information on this exciting new game as it develops.
This vintage poster was made for the Tokyo Subway system some time ago as a way of reminding passengers to not forget their belongings on the train. Some very interesting artwork of Astro returning Osamu Tezuka's umbrella and distinctive hat. It's a creative and funny way to get a point across, though it's pretty unlikely that Tezuka would ever forget his hat, as he was seldom seen without it.
What I thought was going to be an epic encounter wasn't quite as epic as one would think. Here is the extended version of the previously reported commercial featuring famous TV doctor House and Osamu Tezuka's Black Jack.
I was expecting more from this, honestly. It's not as cool as I thought it would be. Existing Footage from the House TV show was cut together with footage of Black Jack. The only really notable thing about it that gives it any sort of authenticity is that the Japanese voice actors are used. In the end we can see that this is not just a promotional tool for the Japanese DVD release of House season 4, but also for the Black Jack OVA.
This tumultuous sequence of battles took place at a robotics event called Robotech (no relation to the cartoon) at the Tokyo Big Site last month. Clearly these bots have taken some major influence from the famous mecha of anime.
As cool as this is, one has to wonder, is it right to force robots to fight each other? Will they become angry and turn against humans someday? Ah, who cares? Robot wrestling rules!
This site is dedicated to everything Astro Boy, the works of Osamu Tezuka, and other related anime & manga. Whether you're an old-school fan, a newcomer, or anything in between, AstroBoy World is bound to offer something interesting for you.
