Karakter & Staf

Pinoko

Utama

Female

Pinoko is Black Jack's sidekick, She often acts as comic relief in Black Jack, physically and in many ways mentally appearing to be around the age of five years, but claiming to be a girl of eighteen and engaged to him, despite that he only treats her as a daughter.

Minori Matsushima

Kenichi Shikishima

Utama

Rock achieved a long life as an actor because of his various defects and his portrayals of the numerous dark sides of human nature; Kenichi meanwhile, is loved as the everlasting youth in Tezuka Osamu's Manga. At any rate, Tezuka Osamu's Manga began in earnest with the meeting of Tezuka Osamu and Kenichi-kun. Kenichi was given the leading role in the majority of the early works, including "New Treasure Island", and was the first star of Tezuka Osamu's Manga. He looked out intently onto the world, was habitually considerate and never forgot to be kind, and in this he embodied the kind of conscientiousness and purity of "childhood days". Afterwards, the Manga world started to focus attention on "realities that cannot be communicated through the agency of simple integrity". Due to the need to exist as outsiders from human society, leading characters, including Atom, came to have other facets to their characters in addition to their innocent righteousness. Tezuka Osamu himself said, "I was forced to relinquish Kenichi from his role as protagonist because he lacked individuality." In the same way as people even come to feel embarrassed by the innocence of their sense of equity as children when they reach adulthood, the Manga world forgot Kenichi as it struggled to grow up. Nonetheless, no matter how grown up, how adult our faces become, our "childhood days" live on forever in our hearts, and in the same way, Kenichi continued to put in straight performances as the "righteous boy" who occasionally appears in Tezuka Osamu's Manga.

Hiro Suzuki

Rock Holmes

Utama

Male

Rock is a recurrent character in Osamu Tezuka's manga series, and he is an important part of Osamu Tezuka's Star System. Rock is a young boy with shiny dark hair. He first appeared in the manga series Detective Boy Rock Holmes, as a child detective. While most of other Tezuka child characters stayed the same age, Rock grew up throughout the years and his character was reused for more mature "roles" in Tezuka's manga, where he gradually developed a darker personality. Often cold and brutal, his character tends to be used as an antagonist, who later, in works such as Phoenix, kidnapped and murdered people. In this older form, Rock is often wearing a three-piece suit, a striped tie and dark sunglasses, the last of which became something of a trademark for him. Best known to American audiences for his dark and violent roles in the Metropolis movie and second volume of Alabaster, Rock is sometimes good, sometimes evil, but always determined, absolute and charismatic.

Kaneto Shiozawa

Shunsaku Ban

Utama

Male

Easily recognizable by his huge, bristly mustache, Shunsaku Ban, also affectionately known as “Higeoyaji” and/or “Mustachio”, is one of Tezuka’s longest-running characters. Most often cast in the role of a spirited, if not particularly sophisticated, middle-aged man, he has appeared in many of Tezuka’s most important series, including (but not limited to): Lost World (1948), Metropolis (1949), Next World (1951), Astro Boy (1952-68), The Adventure of Rock (1952-54), Lion Books (1956-57), Black Jack (1973-83), The Three-Eyed One (1974-78), MW (1976-78), Rainbow Parakeet (1981-82), among many others. Short-tempered and rough, he is also warm-hearted with a burning sense of justice – perfect for his usual occupation as a plucky detective. It is interesting to note that, even though Shunsaku Ban appears in so many of Tezuka’s series, he didn’t really create him. As Tezuka confesses in his book I am a Manga Artist, Higeoyagi’s character design is in fact based on a doodle that a good friend of Tezuka’s drew of his own father, when both were in middle school. Tezuka swiped it and used it in Old Man Detective, one of his early amateur works, and he soon became an indispensable part of Tezuka’s work.

Kousei Tomita

Dr. Hanamaru

Utama

Probably Osamu Tezuka’s most reliable “go-to” Star to play a scientist or a doctor. He is generally a friendly and competent researcher, concerned with the welfare of mankind. He will often be the one to make a great discovery pertinent to a crisis, even to the salvation of mankind, and yet be disregarded as a crackpot by the rest of the scientific community. However, at other times he serves as a voice of sage wisdom – including somewhat famously lecturing Black Jack on the significance of not underestimating the human body and the miracles of nature.

Junpei Takiguchi

Rokoko

Utama

A creature part of the fumoon race.

Mari Okamoto

Ochanomizu Hakase

Pendukung

Male

Dr. Ochanomizu, a recurring character in many of Osamu Tezuka's manga, including Astro Boy, can be seen "lecturing" at Narita International Airport, outside of Tokyo, on HIV and safe sex. Dr. Ochanomizu was most famously seen as the mentor to Astro Boy and the creator of Astro's sister and parents.

Hisashi Katsuta

Duke Red

Pendukung

Despite almost never taking a starring role, Duke Red is, without a doubt, one of Tezuka’s major stars. Whether he’s been cast as a bandit, a pirate, a university professor or a judge, his classy aristocratic style and larger-than-life performances steal any scene he’s in. Although he has a wide range of performance experience, he is usually cast in the role of the refined criminal mastermind, a politician with an ominous air, or a captain of industry with devious intent – and is more often than not surrounded by a gang of henchmen, including Hamegg and Acetylene Lamp, to do his bidding. Duke Red first burst onto the stage with his debut (and namesake) role in Metropolis (1949) as the head of the notorious Red Party. Since then he has gone on to many prominent and memorable roles, notably as Judge Porfiry in Crime and Punishment (1953), “Wild Bill” Hecock in Age of Adventure (1951-53) and Mr. Nikula in Black Jack (1973-83). He also had a less well known, but humourously appropriate appearance as the title character in Cyrano the Hero (1954) – one of his only starring roles. In the "Metropolis" film incarnation of Duke Red, he is a plutocrat who funds both the Ziggurat, a skyscraper-sized machine built to spread the mankind's power across the world, and the Marduk, a vigilante group for suppressing malfunctioning robots. He also commissioned Tima's creation, who resembles his deceased daughter, to act as the core controller to the Ziggurat.

Chikao Ootsuka

Acetylene Lamp

Pendukung

First Appearance: 1948 – Jungle Kingdom Acetylene Lamp is widely known for the running-gag candle that appears in the dent in the back of his head. This came about from the image of one of Tezuka’s childhood friends who has similarities that the character shares. Acetylene Lamp is one of Tezuka’s more used villains. He generally plays more important roles such as Inspector Tomobiki, a role in Black Jack and the widely best role, Acetylene Lampe from Adolf and Drake Lamp from the 2003 Astro Boy. He also shares lesser important roles such as the conductor of the Marine Express in Undersea Super Train Marine Express. In his earlier years, Lamp generally was pointed out by his long face and large round eyes, he was later fitted with thick round glasses, adding to his now signature appearance. Though considered a villain, Lamp has played nearly every kind of role, from minor assistant to big time propaganda activist.

Kenji Utsumi

Notaarin

Pendukung

Notaarin is one of Tezuka stars who most frequently plays the same role over and over again. In his most characteristic roles, he is a scientist of any and all disciplines. He also frequently plays police chiefs.<br><br>(Source: TezukaInEnglish)

Ichirou Nagai

Mitchy

Pendukung

Mitchy was Tezuka’s earliest important female star, and is one of the women who appears in the greatest variety of roles in Tezuka’s work. Although she monopolized many of Tezuka’s early female roles, she was a true student of her craft and proved early on that she was more than just a pretty face – leaving all the “cutey girl” roles instead for Riiko. Mitchy’s most famous appearance is in Metropolis (1949) as the robot created by Dr. Lawton, that Duke Red and the Red Party attempt to co-opt for their own megalomaniac political purposes.

Kumiko Takizawa

Whisky

Pendukung

Another of Tezuka’s academics/scientists, Whisky often takes on the role of the antagonist in Tezuka’s stories. Rather than being truly evil, Whisky is simply overly proud, often self-serving, and generally unwilling to heed advice or warnings. While he does on occasion aid others, it usually comes at a price. Although he first appeared in a more prototypical form in Magic Mansion (1948) and Dr. Tiger (1950), his character traits were first really on display in his official debut and namesake role as “Iron Heart” Whisky, the Minister of Science in Next World (1951). He also had memorable roles as Albert Koch, the adult version of Kenichi‘s childhood friend, in Jungle Emperor (1950-54), and as the Gernica research scientist in Astro Boy (1952-68), along with a few others. Distinguishing Features Unlike the short, round figures that make up the bulk of Tezuka’s cadre of scientists, Whisky has a tall, laanky frame. He can usually be spotted by his long nose, large round spectacles and puffy side-burns – all of which help to enhance his overall appearance of aloofness and superiority. (Source: Tezuka in Englsh)

Minoru Midorikawa

Bolorkin

Pendukung

A bit of a roughneck, ruffian and a drunkard, Bolorkin usually finds himself cast in the rough and tumble roles of a dock worker, a cowboy, or a slave-trader. His drinking seems to have been a career-limiting factor though, as many of his later appearances are simply bit parts in the background or as part of the crowd. His first appearance is as the drunken ship cleaner, Borozokin in King Rocket (1948), however he has also had memorable roles as the cowboy, “No. 9721” in The Golden City (1950), and as Colonel Bolorkin of the Uran Federation in Next World (1951), among others. One of the more visually distinctive stars, he is easily distinguishable by his pencil moustache and squinty, squiggly-line, eyes. (Source: Tezuka In English)

Kenichi Ogata

Frankenstein

Pendukung

Despite his stark appearance, however, Frankenstein is no lumbering simpleton. Instead, he is another of Tezuka’s cadre of mad scientists who is a master of his trade. Often cast in leadership roles, as a scientist, a general, or a respected professor – he usually has a harsh lesson to teach. Frankenstein followed up his first appearance in Men with Tails (1949), with a role in Next World (1951) as a research scientist with his famous name. However, he has also had memorable performances as a virtuoso violinist in Black Jack (1973-83) and a biology professor with an axe to grind in Rainbow Parakeet (1981-82), among several others. Almost as imposing as his famous namesake, Frankenstein is a large hulk of a man, with an extremely long, somewhat monstrous-looking face. (Source: Tezuka In English)

Tamio Ooki

Tabasco

Pendukung

Kazuya Tatekabe

Mozu

Pendukung

Ryouko Kinomiya