Osamu Tezukas groundbreaking ASTRO BOY was updated by Sony in 2003, with some episodes airing last year on Kids WB! and Cartoon Network. Now the 2 1/2D cartoon series comes to DVD on March 29, 2005 (Columbia TriStar Home Ent., $49.95) with all 50 episodes in a five-disc set. Time has finally caught up with ASTRO BOY (whose birth date is April 7, 2003), which tells the story of a young robot modeled after the son of a research scientist, who becomes a reluctant superhero striving to bring humans and robots together. The new series preserves the original manga drawing style, particularly the outsized eyes and pickle nose. The DVD is dubbed and features a short Remaking doc.
Bill Desowitz, former editor of VFXWorld, is currently the Crafts Editor of IndieWire.
