The beauty of science fiction, in my opinion, is how it uses tales of a distant future to explore themes that are relevant to our modern society, and tackle some of the bigger questions that life has to offer. Going through Naoki Urasawa's oeuvre, you are likely to come across more than a few shining gems dealing with these kinds of heavy ideas and concepts. It becomes clear after going through a few of his works that he loves his giant robots and advanced technology. His take on one of the best arcs of 'Astro Boy' is not only his best work of pure sci-fi, but one of the best stories that discusses what it means to be human in any medium. That work is, of course, 'Pluto'.

'Pluto' follows Gesicht, a robot detective working for Europol, on his mission to solve one of the most puzzling cases of his career. The case involves a string of murders, of both humans and robots, where all the victims have been discovered to have objects protruding from their heads which are shaped like horns, or to have such an object positioned by their head. Moreover, the killer seems to have two major targets: the seven most advanced robots in the world and humans who have some connection to preserving the robot laws that govern their civilisation.

Although the plot itself is interesting, what really makes the series special is how Urasawa explores his characters. It's an odd thing to say, but the robots feel very 'human' in their portrayal, and have fleshed-out personalities, instead of just serving as mechanical backdrops to the plot. They have their own quirks, interests, lifestyles and philosophies that distinguish each from the other. The point is, they rarely ever feel stale.

To say any more would be to rob you of a one-of-a-kind experience. 'Pluto' does not waste any time in making its point. At only 65 chapters, it is a relatively short series that just about anyone can spare the time to read. This makes it a great jumping-off point for new readers of Urasawa's work. In fact, this is a series that I regularly recommend to anybody who is interested in manga. So, let's cut to the chase, shall we? Stop reading this, and start reading 'Pluto'.