Character Profile: Astro Boy

Astro is a android who was created by Dr. Tenma, head of the Ministry of Science, while grieving over the loss of his only son, Tobio, who died in a car crash. Dr. Tenma built Astro in the exact image of Tobio and treated him as lovingly as if he were the original Tobio. But soon he came to the realization that the little android could not fill the void of his lost son, so he shut Astro down, burned the Ministry of Science down to the ground, and fled.

A short time after, Astro was discovered by Dr. O'Shay, the new head of the Ministry of Science. Dr. O'Shay brings Astro back to life, then takes him in as part of his own family. Astro has several unique abilities and features at his disposal. For one thing, he has jet powered feet which give him the ability to fly. Another ability he has is to shoot laser beams from his finger tips. He can also change his hand and arm into an Arm Cannon. Another special feature which sets Astro apart from all other robots is called Kokoro, which gives Astro the ability to experience all human emotions.

Astro always sees the best in people and often brings out the goodness they never knew was there. Astro struggles to understand what it means to be a robot in world run by humans. Astro constantly searches for a way to bring robots and humans together, and in the process discovers his own destiny.