Sunday Trade: Astro Boy

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Astro Boy by Osamu Tezuka

Astro Boy originally named Tetsuwan Atom or "Mighty Atom" is one of the cornerstones of Japanese manga and anime. Created and written by comics legend Osamu Tezuka, the series ran for EIGHTEEN years. Tezuka's stories, based around the adventures of the good-hearted robot boy became a one of the cultural touchstones of Japan. Here you have the first two volumes collected and translated into English. You get stories of alien invaders, robot/human politics, stage magic and cyborg dogs. Trips to the moon, powerful battles and a robot hero with machine guns in his butt...

These early stories are fun to read and enhanced by the cartoonish but clean drawing style. The characters have exageratted physical characteristics, emotionally overreact and use classic sight-gags. While Tezuka himself was not always happy with his early work it still has a simple elegance to it and the stories are, above all, fun...