Astro Boy

Frieza: Comic books have Superman. When it comes to anime/manga, what 1 character has had an impact upon japanese manga/anime like Superman had  to American comic books? Two that come to mind, when I think about this, are Astro Boy and Goku, but perhaps they aren't the ones who have had the biggest impact upon japanese anime/manga. Who do you think has?

Every field always has its “big man,” its figurehead, its originator. Rock has Elvis, wrestling has Hulk Hogan, video games have Mario and, yeah, comics have Superman. They might not have been the first (or even the greatest in a lot of people’s eyes) but they’re the ones everybody thinks of first.

Astro Boy would seem like the logical choice. You can't get much more "#1" then the creation of the "god of manga." He was even the star of the very first anime TV show, right? And he's inspired however many imitators and tributes (I'm looking at your, Mega Man!)  I also wonder if the dominance of mecha in this field might have a lot to with the kid's robotic nature.  

But that ASTRO BOY movie last year didn't do too well, even in Japan. Maybe this is more of a generational thing?  

See, I might’ve said Goku. He basically is Japan’s answer to Superman, anyway.  An orphaned, exiled, absurdly-powerful alien who's raised on Earth and defends from his fellow, evil refuges? Which one am I describing there, you know? The moving movement’s certainly faster than a speeding bullet and the kamamaya’s certainly as powerful as locomotive. And, lord knows, he's famous the world over.  

But I wonder if this might also be a generational thing. Sure, he’s big in the eyes of guys my age, but how relevant is DBZ to kids these days? Say, anybody born after ’95? Has KAI been doing a good job of keeping it relevant? Has Goku been eclipsed by Pikachu?

I bring that up, because I'm sure some older fans would really want to give Speed Racer as an answer - - and they might have had a point at one point - - but I'm sure most of you are going to disagree. His hour may have passed, just Astro Boy and Goku's may have.

Anyway, keep the questions coming. Seriously, I’ll answer anything you ask me in this column.

Tom Pinchuk’s the writer of   HYBRID BASTARDS! & UNIMAGINABLE. Order them on Amazon here & here.

@sotyfan16: 
Speaking as someone who isn't into sports, there are some sports manga I enjoy.  Nononono (ski jumping), Baby Steps (tennis), Teppu (mixed martial arts), and I enjoyed watching the Ookiku Furikabutte (baseball) anime.
 
And on-topic, I'd actually say for wordwide-ness, Goku is a top contender.  But I also think alongside him and Astro-boy, the title characters for Captain Tsubasa and Saint Seiya should be mentioned, although both series had little popularity in the US.

i think Astro Boy would be it, since he's been popular and been around for a very long time.

Honestly Astro Boy or Tetsuo from Akira. Really, Goku is just a testosterone fueled Tetsuo, and alot more non-anime fans have heard of Akira (or astro boy), like how a lot of non-comic book fans know of Superman.

It depends on how you are really asking the character.  If you are asking who do people know the most then gokkou or Pikachu would be a good answer.  If you are asking which character has had the most influence INSIDE the world of anime, effecting the direction in which the later stories are told (either being in the same vein or purpossly in a different vein) then I might have to pick something like speed racer, akira, or astro boy or maybe even eva. 
 
Superman does both for comics, certainly everyone the world over knows who he is...but he also influenced the way superhero comics are written even today.  I mean batman was basicly the anti-superman (normal guy no superpowers but still a crime fighter) and you could even say the same for spiderman since he was supposed to be kind of an everyman superhero (movies did this very well).  I am not sure anime has one character that fills both these roles the way superman does. 
 
Man...I love this site honestly you don't get real intellecutal questions and conversation like this at other sites....I get so tired of the, the sky is falling anime is dieing, who would beat who threads... 
 
And to ask another contriversial question (I just love stirring the pot) when Japan was trying to outlaw loli manga, the argument from many of the people against it was that it keeps the people with the urges from doing things to real children, since they can read the manga instead.  One mangaka even did that argument in manga form.  (http://www.sankakucomplex.com/2010/06/10/kentaro-miura-vs-tokyo-loli-ban/)  crazy argument or maybe some merit.  (and I promise to ask a less icky question next time).

I actually think its a generation thing with everything, with the exception of superman in comics maybe, kinda weird but superman will never go down from being #1 i don't think, in the other hand many people might say hulk hogan is 'the man" of wrestling, and to others the rock comes to mind, and some might even go for john cena now days... with anime i would definitely say that astro boy, speed racer, akira (tetsuo or kaneda), goku, pikachu, and naruto now days, they all have their place in being labeled "the man" of anime/manga  each in their own time within american audiences, i myself would have to say goku reigns them all, but then again im a dbz generation kid

I would like to think Goku is the most iconic but really I'd think it have to be Pikachu only because it seems like it doesn't matter on the gender or age you walk up to them and say Pikachu and they will have a slight inkling on what your on about. Although in my opinion Pikachu is more of a video game character apposed to anime as I see the anime and manga as more supplementary material to the game (although I guess the bigger the franchise grew the more stand alone it became).