The official prequel manga series to Osamu Tezuka's Astro Boy, ATOM: The Beginning, is set to release its first two volumes in October and December. The series is being published by Titan Manga and Stonebot Manga.
ATOM: The Beginning works both as a prequel to the original Astro Boy series, telling the stories of the developers of the artificial intelligence that would eventually give birth to the iconic Atom, and it also serves as a stand-alone sci-fi manga about the turbulent lives of two robotic engineering students and their latest revolutionary project: the unassuming yet insanely strong A106, or “Six.”
Titan Manga, the new manga-centric arm of Titan Comics, has released covers for both Volume 1 and Volume 2, as well as several interior pages from each. Astro Boyfans will definitely want to check them out.
Astro Boy, known in Japan as Mighty Atom, is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Osamu Tezuka. It was serialized in Kobunsha's Shōnen from beginning in 1952 and through 1968. The 112 chapters were collected into 23 tankōbon volumes by Akita Shoten with Dark Horse Comics publishing an English translation in 2002. Astro Boy, follows a young android with human emotions who is created by Umataro Tenma after the recent death of his son Tobio. Eventually, Astro is sold to a robot circus run by Hamegg, but is saved from his servitude by Professor Ochanomizu. Astro becomes a surrogate son to Ochanomizu who creates a robotic family for Astro and helps him to live a normal life like an average human boy, while accompanying him on adventures.
Astro Boy is one of the most successful manga and anime franchises in the world and has become Tezuka's most famous creation. The combined 23 tankōbon volumes have sold over 100 million copies worldwide, making it Tezuka's best-selling manga and one of the best-selling manga series of all time, earning him the title of "God of Manga". The 1963 anime series became a hit on Japanese television, as well as in the United States. Astro Boy has been praised for its importance in developing the anime and manga industry. It has been featured on numerous greatest anime of all time lists and has inspired many other influential manga creators, authors and illustrators.
ATOM: The Beginning is now available for pre-order: