The spring break Mad Scientist’s Daughter giveaway contest has come to a close, and I’m delighted to announce the winners! There were seventeen entries total and all of them were excellent. I actually had a hard time choosing which one I liked best. In the end, however, I decided to go with Alexandre, who wrote about Astro Boy:

My favorite fictional robot is Astro Boy (Tetsuwan Atomu) from the homonimous manga and animated tv show by Osamu Tezuka.

Astro Boy can be viewed as a futuristic Pinnochio. In the story, he is an “artificial boy” who was created by a scientist to be a replacement for his deceased son. But since Astro is a robot, he could not grow up like a real boy and also was obviously not human, so he was abandoned by his creator. Later, after some adventures in a circus, he is adopted by another scientist who is not only kind to him but also created a robot family for him. All this gives Astro a unique perspective that enables him to help his adoptive father deal with problems caused by robots or humans.

With this character, Tezuka shows us that we are the result of our environment, not our creation; that our acts are more important than our origin; and, through all that, he teaches us the true meaning of what it is to be human.

Even though “Astro Boy” is sometimes called “the first anime”, it is not actually true. There were other animated tv series in Japan prior to “Tetsuwan Atomu” but it was indeed the first to feature an ongoing plot. In that way, and with its visual narrative and aesthetic, it laid the ground for what would have been known as “anime” in Japan and later in the entire world. Because of that, its importance and influence not only in japanese pop culture but also that of the entire world is undeniable.

I enjoyed this response for its insight into Astro Boy’s character and its examination of the character’s influence on pop culture in Japan and across the world. Well done!

Honorable mention goes to Lux(xxxxxxxxxxxxx) for the opening sentence of her entry: “In a world full of high-powered, hyper-intelligent robots with capabilities ranging from extreme makeup application (Pris, Data) to full-stack adventuring utility (R2-D2, The Brave Little Toaster, Hal 9000), I want to take a moment to recognize one of the too-oft overlooked automatons on the scene: JP of Grandma’s Boy.” This made me laugh, especially the line about “extreme makeup application.” It’s true.

I also promised I would select a winner randomly from the remaining entries, and I have done so! The second book will go to Nina, who wrote about Lia from the Cold Awakening series. Nina wrote:

I think my favorite robot is Lia from Robin Wasserman’s Cold Awakening series. Mostly because it’s debatable if she is in fact a robot at all. Her story gives a whole new spin on the question how we should define life and what makes an individual human. She’s also pretty kick-ass.

Congratulations Nina and Alexandre! I will be contacting you both via email shortly, so check your inboxes.

Finally, a huuuuuuuuuuuuge thank you to everyone who entered the competition! I loved reading all of your entries, and it brightened my day every time I saw a new comment in my inbox.