That 2003 Astro Boy probably would've been received better if they weren't trying to dumb it down for kids
I wouldn't say it was dumbed down for kids. It was Sony doing the dubbing, not 4Kids (4Kids is related to Fox which is a republican outlet channel and thus well under the FCC's tyranny). On the contrary they were trying to dumb it up for the neo-otaku audience by trying to make him more of a hero and less of a boy. But I notice that trend dies out more later in the series, particularly when Zoran comes in.
3.) A lot of his thunder was stolen by Mega Man, whom many thought "Astro Boy" was a ripe-off of
You're probably right there, but that's no reason to hate Mega Man. I love Mega Man and Astro and honestly I think they make an adorable crime fighting duo. Pair them together in some crossover adventures, very cute.
I noticed people referencing the outfit and I hadn't thought about that. I remember the weird only undies outfit actually serving as a bit of a turn-off for me when I saw the 2003 series advertised. That may indeed have something to do with it.
changes like:
always wearing clothes
the way he talks...not as sweet as the Astro we know
and the humour....so typical of americans
But a lot of the clips of him in clothes in the trailers are from early-ish in the film I think and as others have pointed out he does wear normal clothes when doin normal things. In the film they're giving him boxer-briefs instead of the briefs which I believe is simply for animation purposes.
The way he talks is due to action scenes being shown, but we have Freddie Highmore doing the voice and he can be very sweet, so don't lose faith. As for the humour, well, it is a little typical american humour. Though honestly I don't know why nobody in the 70's-80's series commented on the butt guns. We just have to accept it without questioning. lol
If I personally had to take issue with the film, most of it's good, but they seem to ditch recognizable main series villains in favour of custom ones. Only Ham Egg appears. Tenma's much nicer than the 2003 series (good for him) and Atlas seems to be, uh, forgotten.
You have all made some interesting points. In America it's all about instant visual gratification.
just a plain rotten environment
That might be going a little too far. Maybe it's just your neighbourhood, because for all its stupidity at least Naruto does TRY to get some basic love and friendship morals in there. And you can't blame the shows because it's not their fault watchers decide they should be like people in the show. There are no bad shows, bad movies and bad video games, just bad parenting. Parents who don't pay enough attention to their kids and the kids start using media as their parent and support.
I've been surprised how much like Doctor Who Astro Boy, and Mega Man actually, have been. i'm a major Doctor Who fan and I appreciate other media espousing pacifistic morals.
That might change though since were Speed Racer's movie was an epic fail, Astro Boy's has potential of being an epic win!
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