Movie
Description
Saruta recurs throughout Osamu Tezuka's Phoenix universe, notably appearing in *Phoenix 2772* as a prisoner in an Icelandic labor camp mining facility. His defining physical trait is a large, grotesque nose marked with pockmarks, consistent across all incarnations.
Posing as a professor, he offers counsel to protagonist Godo while secretly plotting escape to pursue the Phoenix, believing its blood can rejuvenate Earth’s depleted resources. After a catastrophic earthquake, Saruta flees with Godo aboard a stolen "Space Shark" spacecraft. During their voyage, he reveals his true objective: capturing the Phoenix by exploiting his scientific knowledge of its weakness.
Saruta’s obsession drives their mission, but he perishes before fully relaying critical information on subduing the Phoenix. His fragmented final words hint at its vulnerability, forcing Godo to decipher the solution alone.
He manifests in every story within the *Phoenix* manga series, with roles shifting dramatically across timelines—sometimes heroic, sometimes villainous—reflecting humanity’s cyclical ambition and suffering. Examples include a scientist restoring a dying Earth in "Future" and an officer under Queen Himiko in "Dawn." Saruta often endures extreme hardship, embodying traits like greed and ruthlessness, though occasionally displaying selflessness.
He possesses deeper awareness of reincarnation and karmic cycles than other characters. This extends to his appearance in Tezuka’s *Black Jack* as Dr. Honma Jotaro, a disgraced surgeon mentoring young Black Jack while emphasizing death’s inevitability and nature’s power. His recurring presence across Tezuka’s works—recognizable by his nose despite name changes—positions him as a thematic anchor exploring humanity’s relationship with mortality, ethics, and redemption.
In English and German translations of *Phoenix 2772*, his name was altered to "Salter," likely due to transliteration choices between Japanese and Western languages.
Posing as a professor, he offers counsel to protagonist Godo while secretly plotting escape to pursue the Phoenix, believing its blood can rejuvenate Earth’s depleted resources. After a catastrophic earthquake, Saruta flees with Godo aboard a stolen "Space Shark" spacecraft. During their voyage, he reveals his true objective: capturing the Phoenix by exploiting his scientific knowledge of its weakness.
Saruta’s obsession drives their mission, but he perishes before fully relaying critical information on subduing the Phoenix. His fragmented final words hint at its vulnerability, forcing Godo to decipher the solution alone.
He manifests in every story within the *Phoenix* manga series, with roles shifting dramatically across timelines—sometimes heroic, sometimes villainous—reflecting humanity’s cyclical ambition and suffering. Examples include a scientist restoring a dying Earth in "Future" and an officer under Queen Himiko in "Dawn." Saruta often endures extreme hardship, embodying traits like greed and ruthlessness, though occasionally displaying selflessness.
He possesses deeper awareness of reincarnation and karmic cycles than other characters. This extends to his appearance in Tezuka’s *Black Jack* as Dr. Honma Jotaro, a disgraced surgeon mentoring young Black Jack while emphasizing death’s inevitability and nature’s power. His recurring presence across Tezuka’s works—recognizable by his nose despite name changes—positions him as a thematic anchor exploring humanity’s relationship with mortality, ethics, and redemption.
In English and German translations of *Phoenix 2772*, his name was altered to "Salter," likely due to transliteration choices between Japanese and Western languages.