Can you watch the Pluto anime before Astro Boy? Explained

The much-awaited upcoming Pluto anime will arrive on screens on October 26 to give fans a blast from the past. Pluto anime and manga are based on the 1964 Astro Boy story arc "The Greatest Robot on Earth" by Osamu Tezuka. This exciting manga series written and drawn by Naoki Urasawa in 2009 transforms the original thrilling story into a gritty, intricate storyline that focuses on issues of war, justice, and humanity from a different perspective.

Osamu Tezuka produced the Astro Boy comic series in 1952, which delves into a futuristic world where humans and robots live. Astro Boy chronicles the exploits of a young robot kid named Astro. The first anime adaptation of Astro Boy was also the first Japanese animated television series to debut in 1963, and it has won over its audience ever since.

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Pluto anime creator Urasawa collaborated with Astro Boy's production team for a faithful adaptation

The audience could watch the Pluto anime without having watched the Astro Boy series, as Urasawa used a different approach with Pluto’s storyline. Urasawa presented the series from the perspective of Gesicht, a German robot detective from Europol, while Astro Boy has undertaken the narrative of the titular character. Gesicht makes an appearance in the original plot arc, however, it does not specify whether he is connected to any detective bureau.

Additionally, in the Astro Boy series, Gesicht looks more like a machine than a human. However, doing so will essentially give away the whole original series' Greatest Robot on Earth plot arc of Astro Boy because, although they differ in a variety of aspects, they eventually arrive at the same conclusion.

Astro Boy is not necessary to understand the Pluto anime because it has adapted a different approach. Pluto includes new characters, locales, and conflicts while also including certain Astro Boy-inspired aspects. One doesn’t need to be familiar with Astro Boy to appreciate Pluto as a stand-alone narrative.

Moreover, Astro Boy could lose part of its charm because of Pluto. Pluto is based on one of Astro Boy's most well-known and popular tales, which exposes Pluto's identity and history as well as his connection to Astro. A few Astro Boy characters, like Dr. Tenma, Professor Ochanomizu, Epsilon, and Uran, are also present in Pluto. It is possible for the audience to miss part of the surprise and mystique that these characters possess in the original narrative of Astro Boy series.

Pluto also highlights some of the breakthroughs and accomplishments Tezuka accomplished throughout his career, including the development of cinematic narrative techniques, the creation of distinctive and memorable characters, and the influence he had on subsequent generations of manga and anime authors. In addition, Urasawa collaborated with the late Tezuka’s production team to make sure that Pluto anime aligned with the original series.

In conclusion, it comes down to what the audience wants. While Pluto anime presents a dark and intricate thriller that reimagines one of the most famous stories in manga and anime history, it may ruin portions of Astro Boy, and it has a different genre and tone from the original series, so the audience needs to be aware of that as well.

However, to experience a timeless and classic adventure that exposes you to the setting and people that served as the inspiration for Pluto, consider watching Astro Boy first. Anyhow, both series are respectable as masterworks of manga and anime.