Astro le Petit Robot (1963)

In the year 2000 A.D., the brilliant scientist Dr. Boynton, grief-stricken when he loses his son Astor Boynton III, in an automobile accident, decides to create a super-robot in Astor’s image. He calls the robot Astro Boy. Astro Boy can swim oceans, leap over mountains, even fly into space on his own power! When Astro Boy fails to grow, however, Dr. Boynton, disappointed at having created an imperfect machine, disowns the youngster and the robot promptly falls into a series of misadventures. He is saved only by the arrival of Dr. Packadermus J. Elefun, who becomes his friend, conscience, and legal guardian throughout the remainder of the series.

At the great Institute of Science, where robots are made on huge assembly lines, a giant of a robot - COLOSSO - suffers a short circuit before his electronic brain is completed. In this brainless state, he smashes his way to the street, destroying everything in his path. He will obey the first human being to give him an order. As chance would have it, the first man he encounters is a safe-cracker robbing a bank. Soon Colosso becomes the pawn of a band of notorious criminals. Astro Boy comes to the rescue as the criminals are executing their most sensational theft. He apprehends the criminals and returns Colosso to the Institute, where the huge robot is completed and becomes a ”good guy” after all.

When the first expedition to Mars fails because of a mutiny by the crew, Astro Boy is appointed commander of the second expedition. His own crew grows rebellious, however, when his chief officer refuses to take orders from a robot. On Mars, Astro Boy’s courage and cunning in defeating an invasion by creatures from outer space earn him the respect of his crew. His mission is a success and the planet Earth is saved from an attack from space.

Professor Nutty Fruitcake, living alone in his secluded mountain observatory, has taken to a unique hobby: growing giant fruits and vegetables. When the novelty of giant watermelons and tangerines wears thin, the Professortakes to breeding giant animals - in particular, giant snails. Snails, he reasoned, always seemed such placid creatures. And so they were...until they grew to be giants! Exactly one million mammoth snails - count ‘em - one million spawned from the bed of eggs in Professor Fruitcake's oversized incubator! En masse, they crawled from their overcrowded mountaintop and surged toward the helpless cities below! Army, Navy, Marines - all were powerless to stop the onslaught. One boy, one little robot boy, armed with nothing more than a bag full of chemicals, finally succeeded where all others failed. The robot boy, of course, was Astro Boy. The bag of chemicals that stopped the fresh-water snails in their tracks was NaCI. Salt! Common table salt.

Astro Boy is tricked by Clyde Snidely and a band of Arab cutthroats into helping them search for “treasure” in the desert. Astro Boy believes that Snidely is searching for relics in the tomb of an ancient Babylonian king. Actually, the tomb is inhabited, not by a king at all, but by Dr. l. C. Snow, who is testing secret equipment. As Astro Boy enters the tomb, he is attacked by a sphinx. After a dramatic struggle, the defeated sphinx informs Astro Boy that she is really an aide for Dr. Snow. When Astro Boy learns the real object of Snidely's search-the seizure of Dr. Snow’s secrets-he turns the tables, apprehends Snidely, and assures the success of Dr. Snow’s experiments.

Yes, it was true. Someone had finally learned how to blend Etheric Resin with Clear Plastic to produce an invisible robot. Only polarized light could make Zero visible. Now Fearless Fred Fenk knew nothing about polarized light, but as a notorious fink and convict, he knew he could steal the world blind with an invisible robot. Lying to Zero, making him think that every robbery would benefit the poor, Fearless Fred was able to pull the biggest, most daring, most successful, most baffling jobs in history! Seemingly, Zero could not be stopped. Not until he was ordered by Fearless Fred to destroy the Institute of Science and its guiding genius, Doctor Packadermus J. Elefun-Astro Boy’s friend, mentor, and guardian! Thus, robot was pitted against robot. Astro Boy won the contest, as Astro Boy must, being the most perfect robot ever built; but he lost, in a way, too. For his attempt to save Zero ends in failure...and Astro Boy must pause in the end to reassess his own singular role in a world filled with many heartless human beings.

Alien resembling aliens including the doctor of Ochanomizu and Higeyajiji emigrated from the stars that looked like the earth in emergency. However, the food crisis and humankind will begin attacking the aliens with cell shrink solution.

It finally happened in the little mid-European land called Shangri-Lee. An absolute dictator rose to power. Rudolph Hatter (his enemies called him Mad Hatter) was ruthless. Like other madmen before him, he sought to rule the world. He trusted no one; needed to do everything himself; tried to be in all places at all times! To lead the army, while commanding the navy, while remaining behind to run things, Rudolph Hatter needed to be at least 3 men, if not more. And so he commanded his scientists to build a machine that would produce duplicate Hatters; a sort of Spirit Machine that could turn out carbon copies of the dictator, all endowed with his invincible spirit. Since Hatter’s own scientists were unequal to the task, Hatter's secret agents kidnapped Doctor Elefun and spirited him to Shangri-Lee. With Doctor Elefun gone, Astro Boy leaped onto the case. His assignment: rescue Doctor Elefun, smash the Spirit Machine, and do something about a bewildering array of Mad Hatters!

Crime knows no boundaries - not even the North Pole! Sharkey Dirk and his gang of cut-throats had become the Scourge of the Arctic! An avowed robot-hater, Sharkey foraged far and wide destroying every machine in his path. His hideout was a secret den situated right at the Pole (who would think to look for him there?) Nothing could stop Sharkey until, quite by accident, Astro Boy arrived on the scene. Noting Sharkey's modus operandi, his method of operating, Astro Boy tracked the criminal to his lair and - through a clever ruse - tricked Sharkey into removing his mask and revealing is true identity! Surprise ending: Sharkey was a young boy - a bitter young boy who had been reared by a robot mother! An unusual reunion between mother and son brings a happy ending to this novel arctic tale.

When notorious Louie the Lug hides aboard a space ship bound for the moon, Astro Boy leaps aboard just before blast-off. Suddenly, a meteor hits the ship and in the scramble to escape, Astro Boy finds that his lifeboat companions are Louie and a group of strange, hostile characters. An emergency landing is made upon an asteroid. Here, Astro Boy discovers an ancient ruined space shipwreck-the remains of an expedition headed by woman astronaut Margo Polo. Margo had discovered diamonds upon the asteroid. When Louie the Lug and others in Astro Boy’s party learn of the diamonds, they fall to fighting among themselves over the riches. ln a surprise but true-to-Iife turnabout, some ”nice guys" in the party become villains, and the greatest villain of all, Louie, becomes a "nice guy” and a hero!

One day, excitable Mr. Pompous was relaxing at home when suddenly a mysterious ship crashed through his front door. Clearly the ship was something from the future. A door opened and out stepped a boy in strange garb. His was not a space ship from another planet, he announced, it was a Time Machine from the 23rd Century! The boy was Teddy Tyme and had come searching for his Father. The shame of it: his Father was a brilliant scientist, who had perfected a Time Machine not for Good, but for Evil; for the man was using the machine to travel back to prehistoric times. From each age, he would seize plants, animals-even primitive people! - then place them on display for profit in his own era! Shocked at hearing the story, Mr. Pompous and Astro Boy decide to join Teddy in his travel back through time. They hurtle backward through the eons, back at last to the Ice Age. Here they are ambushed by a curious tribe of tailed human beings, who take them prisoner. Here, too, they meet Teddy’s greedy Father. Showing Father Tyme the folly of his ways, and escaping the wrath of the prehistoric people, becomes perhaps the most unique challenge of Astro Boy's amazing career!

Cross Island is a mysterious uncharted island in a little-known sea. Here a task force of robots work in great secrecy extracting valuable stores of Uranium. One day, the diabolic scientist, Dr. I. M. Sinister, returns in disguise to Cross Island after his daring escape from prison. His plan is to take over the island with the help of Bobo, a mischievous little robot created by Dr. Sinister just before his imprisonment. The evil doctor endows Bobo with super-powers-powers to enable Bobo to cope With any other robot on the island-even Astro Boy. Astro Boy arrives, finds the criminals at work, and engages Bobo in a spectacular struggle. Not even Bobo's super-powers, however, can defeat Astro Boy. Bobo and Dr. Sinister, shown the folly of their ways, reform and Astro Boy saves the day!

That priest was dying carving a single mark on the eyes of Christ decorated in the church. Apparently it seems to be a clue to teach the identity of the pirate who broke into the church. The same pirate begins to aim for beard hair that knew their secret.

Film mogul Elia Belial had suddenly become one of the wealthiest men on Earth. Yet, he hadn’t-made a picture in years. What was the source of his sudden wealth? And why did a mysterious artificial sun - a super heating device that melted banks and vaults - always seem to disappear in the vicinity of Belial's own tropical island? To solve the problem, Astro Boy traveled to the South Pacific, hid upon the island, and observed. Imagine his shock to learn that the genius who created the artifiCial sun was none other than his guardian, Doctor Elefun! Elefun had built the device years before to be used as a prop in a Belial South-Seas extravaganza! Natives of the island, beholding the-splendid creation began worshipping it as their ”sun god.” Soon, Belial realized that he could exploit the artificial sun as far more than a movie prop! He used it to melt anything that stood in his way to money and power. At night, he hid it in an island volcano. Astro Boy’s battle with the artificial sun is a strange and oddly humorous adventure!

One night, during a storm, Astro Boy meets Lodar, a boy from another planet. Lodar has come to warn us of an invasion of flying saucers from his world. The planet Zykobee has grown barren of water; the saucers have come to drain our lakes. Dr. Elefun invents an ingenious method for halting the invasion and, with Astro Boy's help, turns back the invaders and finds a new home for Lodar.

Young Tommy Speed prepares to enter the World Champion Motor Car Race with his supersonic car, the Silver Comet. The night before the race, however, thugs break into Tommy's garage and smash the car to bits. Tommy's friend, Dr. Elefun, is summoned and with the help of Astro Boy, he rebuilds the Silver Comet. Next day, the race begins! The hoodlums lay many traps for Tommy Speed and it takes all of Astro Boy’s courage and strength to see Tommy through to the finish line.

No amusement park in the world-in the universe, for that matter-could compare with the one called Hullabaloo Land." Here was a child's Dream World: Everything from Hansel and Gretel’s tiny cottage in the enchanted forest to King Arthur’s mighty castle at Camelot! "Hul Ia baloo Land” was the creation of Doctor Magico, a mechanical wizard. What no child, and certainly no adult, ever suspected was that kindly old Doctor Magico was actually a power-mad scientist plotting to take over the world! What appeared to the visitor as a fairy tale castle was in reality an arsenal wherein Doctor Magico built weapons of destruction! Astro Boy and his guardian, Doctor Elefun, following a hunch, decide one day to visit Doctor Magico in his castie. Astro Boy discovers the Wizard's secret workshop-only to be discovered himself by Doctor Magico and his robot dragon, Firesnout! Astro Boy's escape, his fight with the dragon, and his pursuit of the evil wizard are exploits that could happen only in the bizarre setting of "Hullabaloo Land."

In the year 2000, there were robots aplenty. Since human beings no longer worked, there was a wide assortment of robots, big and little, fat and thin, tall and short, to perform every conceivable menial task. But nowhere was there a robot like Gangor, the Monster. Created by the arch-criminal Patch, Gangor was actually a gang of robots - 47 robots rolled up in one! By day, these robots walked the streets as a group of helpful machines. By night, and under orders from Patch, they linked together, one behind the other, to form a seemingly endless chain - a mechanical centipede capable of executing the most monstrous crimes! For once it seemed that even Astro Boy himself might have met his match. In a thrilling battle at the bottom of the sea, Astro Boy challenges one of the most cunning monsters ever invented!

The plan might have worked, had not a giant robot-lying in disassembled form-been discovered by Doctor Elefun and Astro Boy. Instructions for assembly were found upon the monster robot, instructions written in a code like none on Earth. Thanks to Astro Boy’s computer-like mind, the code was quickly deciphered. It proved to be a secret message issued to an Earthling posing as a friend of Humanity (when in reality he was an undercover agent for the invading forces!) Exposing the agent was only half the task. Astro Boy was forced to grapple with the assembled monster - a cosmic giant too formidable for even Astro Boy to tackle! In a brilliant stroke of logic, Astro Boy tricked the monster into reversing the Earth's specific gravity - a feat that sent the giant careening back into space and kept the planet free for humanity.

When early American astronauts reported seeing "fireflies" in space, they posed a riddle that intrigued men of science for decades. In the year 2000, the intrepid Doctor Bolt - astronomer, adventurer, astronaut ~ decided to investigate on his own. Soon after entering orbit, he spotted the mysterious fireflies and attempted to capture some in a special chamber of his capsule. Suddenly, the chamber began to grow cloudy! Doctor Bolt's brain began to burn. The cosmic "fireflies" were not fireflies at all, but a horde of Mist Men hovering in space, awaiting just such an opportunity. Our atmosphere prevented them from entering directly, but when borne by a human host, they could come to Earth, invade men's minds, and so conquer the planet! Doctor Bolt returned to Earth a man possessed: soon after, important men from all walks of life found themselves possessed too and forced to perform evil acts that threatened public safety! All seemed doomed until a Mist Man attempted to seize control of Astro Boy. The Mist Man had never encountered a robot before, and so was unaware that Astro Boy’s mind was impervious to attack. Listening to the Mist Man within, Astro Boy soon learned the details of the plan for conquest. With the help of Doctor Elefun, the Institute of Science, and a specially designed vacuum cleaner, Astro Boy dispels the Mist Men and sends them back to outer space.

Space stations are nothing new in the year 2000. A number of them dot the Milky Way between here and Andromeda, like floating islands in the sky. One of the largest is Satellite R45, a way station for trans-galaxy flights. Ships from every part of the Milky Way moor at R-45’s massive Spaceports. Interplanetary travelers stay at ultra-modern hotels and exotic wares from all over the universe are sold in exclusive shops. When Astro Boy arrives one day, he discovers a pair of fumbling souvenir vendors hawking stolen wares! A bit of ingenious sleuthing reveals that the fumblers are actually tools of the Master Smuggler, Trickum, a local hotel owner who tries in vain to force the resignation of Cronipuss Good heart, President of Satellite R-45. If Trickum himself should become President, he could turn the satellite into an enormous trading-post for stolen goods. Here, Astro Boy's computer- like mind, rather than his great strength, saves the day... and R-45!

Sitting alone at the beach one day, watching wave after wave break on the lonely sand, Astro Boy spotted a mysterious bottle being washed ashore. The bottle proved to contain a note calling for help and rescue from a dreaded but unknown, uncharted island called Sea Serpent Isle. The note was signed ”Princess Papaya Petal." Doctor Elefun knew nothing of Sea Serpent Isle other than that many ocean liners in recent days had disappeared after reporting sightings of giant sea serpents. And these disappearances always occurred in the same region, although there were no islands in that particular part of the ocean. Astro Boy's investigations over and under the water revealed that there was indeed an island-not a natural one, but a man-made base that, like a submarine, could appear or disappear at will. Giant tentacles shaped like sea-serpents attacked ships at sea: pirated the ship’s cargo, then forced the passengers to work at hard labor upon the "island." Astro Boy himself was captured. Taken to the base "hospital,” he met Princess Papaya Petal...and devised a plan for escape. Prisoners were sent floating to safety within giant laboratory bottles while Astro Boy himself set out to stop the men and machines behind the threat of ”Sea Serpent Isle.”

A mysterious epidemic grips the city! Everywhere, men and women drop suddenly into a nameless coma. What causes the affliction? Scientists are baffled by the disease! Even gifted Doctor Elefun of the famed Institute of Science is at a loss until Astro Boy-quite by accident-discovers a strange species of horse-fly near the names of various victims. His hunch proves correct: the flies are mutants-deadly cousins of the common house fly, made poisonous by exposure to atomic radiation. But what Astro Boy himself failed to realise at first, was that the lethal little insects were actually being bred by a ruthless master criminal whose dreams of power would proceed unchecked, unless an enemy could be found who was immune to the bite of the flies. Astro Boy becomes that enemy. To wipe out the breeding ground ofthe flies, Astro Boy must battle a formidable array of robot guards.

There was laughter when a strange-looking, almost sinister robot swathed in a trenchcoat confronted Astro Boy and Doctor Elefun, demanding that they accompany him to an unknown kingdom at the bottom of the sea. Intrigued by the prospect of it, Doctor Elefun persuades Astro Boy into joining him and the robot. Soon they are hurtling in a peculiar ship straight toward the bottom of the ocean where lo and behold- a magnificent city of the future rises, splendid and shining beneath a great glass dome! The visitors from Earth are dumbfounded, until they realise the purpose of the visit. The city is inhabited entirely by robots - robots who believe they created themselves; who believe that they are perfect and are dedicated to wiping out the animalistic human beings that people the continents above! Why have they brought Astro Boy here? To show him that he was created to be nothing more than a tool for his selfish masters; to convince him that he should join their great crusade to destroy the menace of humanity! Astro Boy's attempts to reason with the robots prove futile! At last he proposes a contest; a personal contest between him, the pinnacle of human art and science, and the greatest robot his self-made adversaries have to offer. It's agreed. Several tests for intelligence and creativity are staged. When Astro Boy wins each one, his powerful opponent seeks to destroy him until the bottom dweller learns that he was created not by robots, but by a man, and that he is really a robot bomb!

Together with Dr. Jordan who ran away from under the president who plots world conquest, Atom who got into the underground tank fights the president. But the underground tank loses control and starts pushing towards the volcano.

It was perhaps natural that Don Tay should hate civilization. After all, were not his ancestors simple, hard~working peons, captured and exploited by the cruel conquistadors? Don Tay had sworn his revenge...and how was ready to make civilization pay for its greed with the help of Ferno, a robot capable of generating unbearable heat. Ferno could melt the fortress-like walls of the Institute of Science; could sear through steel vaults and seize secret scientific data; could ignite a dormant volcano and send molten lava plunging toward the city below! Stopping Ferno would become a Herculean task for Astro Boy, who was faced with the need to battle the robot, throttle the volcano, save the city and Don Tay - at the same time! Powerful as he is, not even Astro Boy could have accomplished the impossible Without the help of resourceful Doctor Elefun and an ingenious freezing device.

Time after time, mysterious forces destroy the huge underwater dam being built by the Institute of Science. Why should anyone wish to destroy it? How do these forces create the irresistible whirlpool that no dam in the world could withstand? Astro Boy's underwater investigation unearths a surprise; the whirlpool is created by an enormous bed of oysters! Not Earth-bound oysters, but oysters that traveled here from a doomed planet. Trouble at home meant destruction of that planet; and so the oysters - actually a kind of flying saucer operated by tiny Pearl Men who lived Within - had migrated to our waters, closest to their Own. All they wanted to do was rest on the ocean bottom until they could return to their own planet, but the constant construction noise from the dam site kept them awake. And so every time the noise became too great, the Pearl People agitated the water into a Whirlpool. Astro Boy learns the simple explanation too late to stop the barrage of Starfish Depth Charges from above. All his persuasive skill and unabridged strength are required to abort the attack and launch the Pearl People safely on their long voyage home.

Professor I. Q. Plenty startled a group of greedy plant owners by announcing that he had perfected the very thing they were seeking: a Robot Wacky Inducer - a machine that could actually make troublesome robots wacky and, therefore, harmless. All Professor Plenty asked for his machine was an annual rental fee or 50 million dollars! The plant owners accepted. Next, the Professor went to Doctor Elefun and offered to withdraw his machine, a device that could affect every robot in the city including Astro Boy! - for a mere 80 million dollars! Doctor Elefun refused to be intimidated and Professor Plenty made good his threat. He turned on the Wacky lnducer and every robot within a 100 mile radius was rendered feeble. But not Astro Boy, for at the boy’s own request he was dismantled by Doctor Elefun so that he would not be a robot While the machine was operating. Once the machine stopped for a periodic shutdown, however, Astro Boy was quickly re-assembled. He knew what he had to do: find the machine hidden somewhere in the vast city, and destroy it before it destroyed him all this in the course of two minutes. Just 120 seconds! He finds the machine, all right, but attempting to overcome all the hidden obstacles Professor Plenty has planted in his path becomes one of Astro Boy's greatest and most unique adventures!

Once every year in the 215t century, the citizens of Earth celebrate Memory Day. On that day, they honor the memories of family members who have traveled so far into the universe that they are gone for years at a time! Some true pioneers have journeyed to galaxies so distant that they may never see their families again. In their honor, relatives on Earth build a robot in the likeness of the absent hero. The robot lives with the family as the hero himself, and is duly honored on Memory Day. Astro Boy volunteers to double as the robot of a little boy to help one family celebrate Memory Day. Once in the home, however, Astro Boy discovers that the missing little boy has actually disappeared by accident in a home-made Time Machine! Furthermore, the boy's brother is mixed up with a gang of notorious criminals! Saving the brother from the fury of the mob and rescuing the little boy from the limbo of Time Forgotten becomes a double-barreled and almost insurmountable assignment even for Astro Boy!

President Pudge of Udopia feared for his life, and understandably so. The Presidents of several other countries had all been attacked by Secret Agent 3-2. This mysterious attacker sprayed his victim with a little - known Primitive Gas - an amazing vapor that made its victims revert to babies or monkeys or other primitive forms. By eliminating the heads of nations, Secret Agent 3-2 clearly sought to create a power vacuum into which he could move, in an incredible plot to gain control of every country On Earth! But President Pudge’s son, Rion, had become a good friend of Astro Boy. Following a single clue, Astro Boy tracked the 3-2 organization to its subterranean base, smashed the Primitive Gas-producing apparatus, and finally came face-to-face with masked Secret Agent 3-2 himself! The identity of 3-2 shocked the world... and wrote finis to an amazing chapter.

Astro Boy and Dr. Elefun get involved with a mysterious Dr. Gray Dorian. A man at least eighty years old, he has the appearance of a man only half that age. How come? Years ago Dr. Dorian had been sent to the penal colony on Mars. There he continued his research of the cosmic rays until he found a method of isolating and using the life giving force that permeates the universe. This kept him young and vital...on Mars. Back on Earth, however, he can not tap this source as freely. Accordingly, he turns to other living creatures, draining their vital energies in order to satisfy his increasing demand. Alas his body finally changes to the monster his desires have made of him and he unleashes a flood of terror. Astro Boy comes to the rescue in a highly charged scene atop the high tension electric power lines.

Dogs transplanted their brains to the robot are remodeled by Dr. Ponkotsu and challenge humanity as a hot dog corps.

Impresario J. C. Tenpecent had invented an uncanny magician robot billed as MISTER ABRA KADABRA. Not content with presenting KADABRA as a theatrical wonder, Tenpecent conceived an incredible plot to have the magic robot steal masterpieces of art from the Museum-right under the noses of the police! Somehow, KADABRA could be in the museum while he was still on stage in the theatre: the best alibi in the world! Clearly this was a case for the greatest robot of them all, Astro Boy. Astro Boy was able to solve the case, all right, but only with inadvertent help form ABRA KADABRA himself!

From time to time, the civilized world is shocked to hear of the sightings of various and assorted monsters: The Loch Ness Monster of Scotland, the Mediterranean colocynth - a prehistoric fish actually caught in the late 1950's, etc. These monsters invariably appear in remote parts of the. world. Imagine the furor that arose then, when word spread that a monster had actually been sighted in nearby Lake Foggy Bottom! Not one, as a matter of fact, but several! A bevy of prehistoric reptiles- lizards that towered several stories tall and endowed with, of all things, hypnotic venom! Exposure to a single drop of that powerful venom made men the slaves of the lizard. It was clear that this reptilian cotillion, unless curbed, would eventually enslave Mankind. It remained for a single individual - Astro Boy - to track the beasts to their lair, shrug off their hypnotic venom (ineffective against a robot) and send them packing back into the pages of prehistory.

Four persons - a tall, skinny newspaper reporter; a short, fat doctor; a gal jazz singer; and a mischievous little boy ~ are summoned by note to meet at eight o’clock in the park one night. Each arrives to the surprise of the other. But each is even more surprised to learn from Astro Boy that he is the author of the mysterious notes. And to top it ali off, they are shocked to learn from the little robot that they are not on the planet Earth at all, but on Planet X, millions of miles away from home! All four persons had unwittingly been rendered unconscious by the creatures from Planet X and transplanted on that strange planet in a town that was actually a recreation of their home town on Earth. There they were being studied - secretly observed like guinea pigs in a huge laboratory - by the creatures of Planet X, who planned one day to set up their own colony on Earth. Escaping that planet and returning the “guinea pigs" to Earth proves to be one of Astro Boy's most harrowing assignments.

A thin, wiry man named Professor Nafsu had finally done what seemed impossible: invent an Elixir of Life! One good quaff of the Elixir could make a man immortal. The potion was invented so that astronauts could survive trips into space requiring hundreds of years to complete. But word of the miraculous invention fell upon greedy ears. Evil interests sought to acquire the formula for their own selfish ends. One day, Professor Nafsu was kidnapped by rocket ship to a remote tropical island where a masked business tycoon, posing as high priest of Order of Bali, sought to wrest the formula from him. The plot failed, thanks to Astro Boy... and to a harmless little bottle of castor oil!

On his most recent birthday, Astro Boy received an amazing gift-something he had always wanted... a little sister! She was a gift of Doctor Packaderm us J. Elefun, head of the Institute of Science, and she was the image - the very image - of Astro Boy, but with pigtails. Her name was Astrogirl. A guileless child, in effect "born yesterday," Astrogirl somehow found herself in the clutches of an eccentric inventor who had perfected a method of doubling things. In no time at all, there were two Astrogirls each identical to the other. Not even Astrogirl herself could recall which was the original, and which the duplicate. When one Astrogirl became enmeshed in a shady plot to exploit her talents (which were nearly as formidable as Astro Boy's,) it took the other Astrogirl, plus Astro Boy, plus the entire Institute of Science to determine which Astrogirl was involved and how to save her!

Somehow, unaccountably, the Asteroid Medusa had broken orbit and was now plummeting irresistibly toward Earth! A collision, if one occurred, would mean the end of this planet. Drastic action was called for and a drastic plan executed: a spaceship blasted off from Earth to intercept the Asteroid Medusa. Its mission: to detonate an anti-proton bomb upon the run-away body and blast it into oblivion. But only five persons in the world knew how to operate the highly secret and dangerous anti-proton device: Dr. Elefun, Astro Boy, and Doctors Alfa, Beta, and Gama. These last three Doctors - Alfa, Beta, and Ga ma - were serving a prison sentence when they were ordered aboard the spaceship. They were known to be dangerous men, yet so great was the crisis facing Earth that no risk was too great to take. As the spaceship approached Medusa, however, the true nature of the scientist~criminals emerged: they ordered the pilot to turn the ship around and head for coordinates unknown! Also, somehow they had acquired guns. Though Astro Boy was impervious to bullets, Doctor Elefun and the pilot were not. What was Astro Boy to do - resist, and risk the lives of those aboard ship? Or follow orders and jeopardize the planet Earth and its inhabitants?

One housing development after another was destroying the beautiful woodlands around the City, spoiling the beauty of natural surroundings and leaving animals homeless. One day, the animals animals of every description, led by a mysterious cat - actually rebelled and launched an attack upon Mankind. While puzzled authorities pinched themselves to see if they were really awake and groped for ways to meet the strange attack, Astro Boy investigated the source of the rebellion and discovered it to be none other than a human being-one Professor Greenthumb, a dedicated naturalist and friend of homeless animals. The professor had learned how to communicate with animals. It was he who had planned and organized the uprising. Making peace with him and his horde, and at the same time saving the woodlands from destruction, was to become one of Astro Boy's most unusual and vexing assignments.

Doctor Elefun, Professor von FIugIe, and others in the scientific expedition, had trekked to the remote Himalayas in an all-out assault upon the region to learn once and for all whether or not there was such a creature as the Abominable Snowman. There was indeed such a creature, they learned, for it seized Doctor Elefun and disappeared with him! An 5.0.5. from the search party brought Astro Boy to the scene. Astro Boy’s intensive search led him straight to the Abominable Snowman, a fearsome creature who proved to be a robot! Although incredibly strong, the Snowman was no match for Astro Boy. Defeated in battle, the Snowman revealed that he had taken Doctor Elefun to a hidden city-a sort of Shangri-La, accessible only through a secret cave. Astro Boy flew at once to the cave, only to discover that the hidden city was a reconstruction of Ancient Rome! And the ”Emperor" of this Ancient Rome was a power-mad ruler named Sam Caesar! Caesar had created an Abominable Snowman robot to frighten strangers away from his hidden city; the city was, in fact, a spearhead from which Caesar was ready to launch an attack upon the entire world in an insane plot to recreate a glorious Roman Empire of old! Astro Boy's task was cut out for him: to free Doctor Elefun and nip in the bud the seeds of a new Roman Empire!

That mysterious plane that crashed in the Bering Strait was more than a routine air disaster; it was a global calamity. For, unknown even to security officers, aboard that plane was the dreaded X-Bomb, a stupendous explosive device used to probe stars in deep space. If that bomb should accidentally explode on Earth, all seven continents would be inundated by a wall of water. Civilization would be wiped out! There was a time fuse on that bomb, set to go off in 48 hours. The job of recovering and dismantling the bomb was too important, too secret, to entrust to anyone other than Astro Boy! Imagine Astro Boy’s horror, though, to discover that the bomb had somehow disappeared from the sunken plane! Finding the device - lost somewhere, anywhere on the face of the Earth - and finding it before it exploded, easily became the most pressing assignment of Astro Boy's career!

Astro Boy's family is surprised by a robot caller who has only the lower part of a body. His name is Knobby Knobody and he is quite insistent that Astro Boy comes with him to the Land of Goshen where his help is urgently needed. Astro Boy agrees to try and help and they leave, incognito. The president of the Land of Goshen is a very brilliant robot named Ditto, who won by a landslide because there the robots have the right to vote. His arch enemy is Prince Upley, a hooded, diabolical-albeit soft-spoken-genius. As the story develops, we discover that Prince Upley is really the inventor of Ditto and feels himself betrayed by the robot’s independent success and fame. Using Mr. Pompous as a hostage, the wicked Prince lures Astro Boy into many traps that finally succeed in putting the mighty little robot out of commission. All efforts to revive him are fruitless, until Mr. Pompous places a long-distance video-phone call to Dr. Elefun. Astro Boy is revived just in time to foil Prince Upley’s master stroke and saves the day. The Prince is forced to see the error of his ways and we leave on the note of a new and better life for men and robots in the Land of Goshen.

Astro Boy and Mr. Pompous settle down for a long ride in their train compartment, when suddenly the door bursts open and a strange, dark man, dressed in ancient Egyptian garb, enters. He whispers that he is being followed; then produces an enormous heart-shaped jewel he calls "Cleopatra’s Heart". He bids Mr. Pompous take the jewel and keep it safe, for it is priceless. It once belonged to Cleopatra herself and was proof that the bearer was indeed Queen of the Nile! Suddenly, the stranger disappears! Afterwards, our heroes find that they are being pursued by a gang of dark strangers, also dressed in ancient Egyptian garb! Expert sleuthing by Astro Boy in Egypt reveals that the intent strangers are members of a secret society called the Crimson Brotherhood, whose Grand Master, Rasburton, has created a robot in the image of Cleopatra. Before the multitudes will accept her as Queen of the Nile, though, they demand to see proof of her royal heritage: the famous ruby "Cleopatra’s Heart". Now Astro Boy realises why the Crimson Brotherhood will stop at nothing to recover that jewel. With Mr. Pompous‘ life in danger, Astro Boy swings into action. His target is the power-mad scientist Rasburton. But, Rasburton proves to be a man who is prepared for just such interference. Astro Boy faces one deadly surprise after another...and a large, sphinx-like bird threatens his undoing!

That fiend of the Nile, the evil genius Rasburton, had once before confronted Astro Boy, then fled when the brave, little robot thwarted his scheme to re-create an Egyptian dynasty. Now he returns with a regal queen whom he calls the new Cleopatra. She is the ancient beauty reborn, he insists; and with the aid of strong-arm tactics, he installs her as Queen Of the Nile. Astro Boy, sensing trouble, arrives to investigate, but he is surprised and ambushed by a colossal robot that stuns him and leaves him to perish in the desert. All seems lost until a handsome young sheik discovers the disabled Astro Boy and revives him. Cleopatra is a fake, reveals the sheik-a sham, a mere robot built by Rasburton to resemble the Cleopatra of old. Actually, Rasburton is now ruler of the Nile - a cruel pharaoh who seeks to make all the people his slaves. Astro Boy needs hear no more. He swings into action at once, engaging in a mighty battle with a robot that towers higher than the ancient Lighthouse of Alexandria! Rasburton is defeated but-oddly enough-defeated only indirectly by Astro Boy. For the evil genius’ own robot turns against him and makes it impossible for Rasburton ever to return!

Dr. Elefun's Institute of Science has achieved the impossible: it has actually built an all-robot spaceship: an unmanned "phantom ship" composed entirely of robot parts, each with its own electronic brain unit. Upon a command from Astro Boy, the greatest robot ever built, the individual parts of the ship assemble themselves into a space craft capable of undertaking journeys to the corners of the universe journeys lasting several hundred light years! Who wouldn't want such a ship for his country! Captain Olga, ruler of a tiny Pacific Island, tries to force Astro Boy into building her a phantom ship. Her purpose, though, is not to use the ship as an instrument of scientific study, but as a weapon for power. When Astro Boy eludes her agents, Captain Olga has her chief scientist, one Professor Schlepkin, build an imitation Astro Boy. This ersatz Astro Boy is similar enough to the original to be downright dangerous - so dangerous, in fact, that the two Astro Boys find it necessary to battle each other. Astro Boy vs. his double! Sure, the real Astro Boy wins, but not before the fake and his creators pull some unexpected and formidable surprises!

From the planet Gip Gip in outer space, comes a spaceship. The Gip Gip men ask the men of Earth for an animal specimen to take back to their 200. Mr. Trickum, who runs a circus, gives the Gip Gip men a small pig in exchange for a giant space crab. The crab escapes and roams the world destroying everything in its path. Astro Boy and his new found friend, a dinosaur left by the Gip Gip men, are sent to save the world from the crab. Finally, off the coast of Hawaii, Astro Boy and the Giant Crab meet in a tremendous battle. Only because he is the strongest robot in the universe is Astro Boy able to defeat the crab and once again save the Earth from destruction.

From the distant planet of Popilloli comes the little boy Yatata to go to school. He is followed by his close friend, the great space horse, Davalon. Astro Boy and Yatata become pals but when the world learns of the unusual horse at Astro Boy’s house a vast throng surrounds them. Meanwhile, Trickum, a circus owner, realises that he could make a fortune if he had Davalon in his show and so he hires Ugapug, a gangster, to kidnap the horse. Astro Boy fights off the gang, but Yatata and Davalon realise that as long as they remain on Earth they’ll be hounded by curious people. They decide to return to Popilloli. But the gangsters follow them to the planet and try to round up the whole herd of great space horses. Astro Boy arrives in time to join the terrific fight in defense of the horses. Finally, the gangsters are defeated and sent back to Earth. Astro Boy watched as Yatata and the great space horse decide to move on to a much more distant planet where they hope to continue living in peace.

For the first time in the universe, three dimensional television is about to be introduced; but there is great interference as the; first show starts. A monstrous fog emerges from the TV monitor and then disappears Soon afterwards, the evil Dr. SnOrkel pays the notorious Wily gang to steal one of the TV transmitters. The doctor explains that years ago his yoUng partner, Rockar, invented a machine which would transmit objects and living things from one place to another. The doctor was so jealous that, while Rockar demonstrated by entering the monitor himself, he threw the switch leaving poor Rockar suspended in the middle of the transmission. From then on, Rockar was doomed to exist in an electronic fog. As soon as he gets his hands on the 3D transmitter, which actually works the same as Rocka r’s inventions, the notorious Wily orders the fog to get rid of Dr. Snorkel. But the doctor calls on Astro Boy for help. Finally, Astro Boy overcomes Vlfily, and with Dr. Snorkel’s help the machine brings Rockar back to human form where he and the doctor resume their once happy partnership.

A nervous and worried father asks Astro Boy, Dr. Elefun, and Mr. Pompous to come at once to his western ranch. There he confides to them that his son, Heck, has disappeared. The young man, always in love with the romantic Old West, built a time machine, vanished into the past, and never returned. Astro Boy and his friends agree to help the anxious father. Using the same time machine, they go back to the Old West. They find Heck, only to discover that he is apparently mixed up with a gang of no-good, shiftless varmints; bank robbers and such. To make matters worse, the local townspeople suspect Astro Boy and his dude friends of having committed the bank robbery that took place the day of their arrival. The three strangers are strung up under a tree and face a lynching. Things look bad. Suddenly, Astro Boy hits upon a plan: he convinces the townsfolk to give him 24 hours to bring the real crooks in. So begins a whirlwind roundup. The real crooks are brought to justice, but not before Mr. Pompous is forced into an old-fashioned gunfight and Astro Boy has to do some fancy shooting!

On a journey to darkest Africa, Astro Boy meets a baby elephant whose mother hasjust been killed by hunters. The little elephant, Jimbo, and Astro Boy become close friends. While Astro Boy goes forth to search for Jimbo’s herd, seeking to re-unite the tiny pachyderm with its companions, the greedy hunters that killed the mother now capture Jimbo! Astro Boy returns facing a dilemma: reveal the whereabouts of the herd to the greedy ivory hunters, or risk the safety of Jimbo. With Jimbo's life in danger, Astro Boy is forced to betray the safety of the herd, but nature takes care of its own. A rogue bull elephant attacking the herd actually plays right into Astro Boy's hands. The distraction provided by the attack allows Jimbo to escape, allows the herd to flee, allows Astro Boy to capture the unlawful hunters, and leads directly to the baby elephant’s acquiring a new and loving mother. Thus, a calamity becomes a blessing in disguise and Astro Boy happily ends one of his most touching adventures.

A mysterious snow blankets the Earth. Wherever it falls, communications are disrupted; machinery fails; electricity dies. Careful examination of the snow by the Institute of Science reveals that the snow" is really composed of billions upon billions of microscopic animals that feed upon energy, clearly unlike any animals on Earth as we know it. How to fight them? Guns turn to rust! Aircraft, their batteries dead, lie grounded! Even Astro Boy, seemingly an invincible robot, finds all his energy drained by the incessant blizzard from outer space. Is this the end of the world? Here is an unusual adventure in which not Astro Boy, but the human Dr. EIefun saves the day when robots that are his own invention re-awaken the good Doctor's conscience and fire anew his will to live!

Doctor Elefun, on his way to the moon, suddenly disappears! When Astro Boy traces the Doctor's route in space, he finds the moon under attack by monsters from another sun! They have captured not only Doctor Elefun, but several members from Earth‘s Junior Squadron, a team of young men sent to guard the moon from just such an attack! With an electronic brain unit that transfers human knowledge to their own brains, the monsters seek to gain the necessary know-how that will enable them someday to conquer the Earth. It remains for a girl to overcome the electronic brain units in a manner so mysterious that all eyes rivet upon her! Who is this girl? Where did she come from? How does she "just happen" to know the secret of the electronic brains? A surprising turn of events helps defeat the moon monsters and re-unite the feuding members of the Junior Squadron.

Dr. Elefun decides that Astro Boy and Astro Girl do not have the proper appreciation for the beautiful wonders of nature - flowers, trees, etc. He sends Astro Boy and Astro Girl to school to learn to appreciate the beautiful things of life. The school is run just like any other school, except all the students are robots. Astro Girl and her girlfriend, Lalla, go on a field trip and meet Al McAnic, who hates beauty and wants to turn everything into something useful. He captures Astro Girl and Lalla. Astro Boy attempts to rescue them. McAnic tells Astro Boy that he wants Miss Lisa, the teacher at the school, to come and get the girls. Astro Boy flies off to get her and brings her back to McAnic. McAnic then captures Miss Lisa and holds all three captive. Aftenfvards, the principal thinks that Astro Boy is playing hooky and orders him to stand in the corner all alone. Meanwhile, McAnic plans to destroy Astro Girl, Lalla, and Miss Lisa. Lalla escapes and calls to Astro Boy for help. He comes to the rescue (by disobeying and leaving the corner,) and wants to destroy McAnic. But Miss Lisa says that we must forgive others and that forgiveness is the beauty of life. The teacher's name is Miss Mona Lisa - the beauty of a smile of forgiveness.

On the distant Boolaboo islands stands a group of stone statues covered with mysterious writing. The writing, finally, is understood and it reveals that hidden on one of the islands is a super ship left on Earth by highly adVanced space travellers of prehistoric times. Whoever possesses this great ship can rule the universe. The notorious Sneer gang, seek the ship while Astro Boy tries to reach the hidden vessel before they do. Sneer finally captures Astro Boy and Doctor Elefun, but Astro Boy fights his way free. Just when Astro Boy thinks he has saved the world, Icky Ichabod, a suddenly ambitious scientist, tries to get possession of the ship. Using his super powers, Astro Boy manages to save the day again, but the great spaceship is accidentally exploded. The mystery of the Boolaboo Islands is solved.

A strange rocket from outer space crashes on earth and the first man to investigate is Professor BooBoo who finds the plans for a super duper robot. BooBoo hires Doctor Elefun and the Institute of Science to build the robot for him. Astro Boy and Astro Girl, left alone in the laboratory, play with the controls of the robot builder and accidentally complete the assembly of the robot. Astro Boy fights the robot and is saved from destruction by Doctor Elefun. Astro Boy insists that the robot is too dangerous. Doctor Elefun disagrees and intends to turn over the robot to Professor BooBoo. Astro Boy, realizing that it's the only way to save mankind from the robot, steals its head and hides it on a distant island. Professor BooBoo sends the robot in search of its head and only after a tremendous battle can Astro Boy defeat the robot. Having proved that it was indeed a vicious robot he is forgiven for stealing the head and once more is hailed a hero.

Astro Boy and his pal Specs visit a carnival fun house where Specs is frightened by all the tricks played on them. But Astro Boy has no fear because as a robot he lacks a human heart. He longs to learn what fear feels like and so he persuades Doctor Elefun to give him a human heart for a few days. Doctor Elefun reluctantly gives Astro Boy the heart and then leaves by ship on a long ocean voyage. Astro Boy is taunted by his sister about his new fears. They overhear sailors talking about a dangeroUs haunted ship in the ocean near where Doctor Eiefun's liner will be passing. Astro Boy overtakes the doctor's ship and tries to have the captain turn back. But the captain refuses. Astro Boy is sent ahead to keep watch for the haunted ship. He finds it and on board he battles huge mutated plankton. He almost loses the fight and then his human heart stops and once again he is Astro Boy the fearless robot. He defeats the plankton, and then Weezzell and his gang, who have been using the haunted ship as a decoy while they transport uranium by submarine beneath it. Astro Boy wins and saves the liner. And he has learned that he is happier without a human heart, and without fear.

Astro Boy and a group of passengers from a doomed rocketliner are stranded on an asteroid with strange characteristics and a mysterious monster.