Tetsuo Shima is the main antagonist of the AKIRA franchise. After a near-fatal accident on his bike, Tetsuo was taken in by the Military where he was tested on. He later became a powerful Esper who rapidly evolved over the course of the film.
This dropdown contains the synopsis of Tetsuo Shima’s story. Read at your own risk as you may be spoiled otherwise!
Early Life
Not much is known about Tetsuo’s early life. He was apparently surrendered by his mother and brought to an orphanage sometime after Kaneda, as shown in one of the flashback sequences in the film. Throughout the various flashbacks, it's revealed how Kaneda defended and protected Tetsuo growing, which he later resented Kaneda, alongside the rest of the world, for.
Present Day
When he is older, he takes a liking to motorbikes and, alongside Kaneda, joins The Capsules. After a collision with the Esper Takashi, he is transferred to a military institution. Here he begins to develop latent, powerful psychic abilities on the level of Akira, the individual who had engulfed the old Tokyo in a psychic explosion years prior. As these powers expand, they bestow devastatingly destructive abilities, but also cause tremendously painful headaches. The psychic trio, fearing he may cause Akira to awaken, try and fail to kill him, which encourages Tetsuo to instead seek him out. After finding out where Akira is, he leaves the facility and goes on to rampage through the city in search of him. The military, led by Colonel Shikishima, attempts in vain to stop him, fearing the threat of another Akira-sized disaster.
Upon finding the remains of Akira under Neo Tokyo's Olympic Stadium, he starts to lose control of himself and his abilities while confronted by the military, the Espers, and Kaneda. Here, he finally loses all control of his psychic abilities and becomes a mutated mass of flesh. Akira, called by the Espers, reawakens and draws Tetsuo into an alternate dimension.
Epilogue
Tetsuo’s fate is not elaborated upon by the end of the film. However, it is assumed that he transcended into a new universe alongside the Espers, of which he may have creative control. Tetsuo's voice can be heard at the end of the film, saying "Boku wa... Tetsuo" ("I am Tetsuo", in English). "Boku" is a form of "I" that implies humble, soft masculinity, and, from confronting the Espers and Kaneda up until that point, Tetsuo has elected to use "ore", a hard, tough-guy masculine form of "I", instead. The change back to "boku" in the original Japanese signifies that Tetsuo has cast aside his aggression and re-acquired a sense of humility in the face of this new universe. In English, the line may simply indicate that he is now a god of this plane of existence, which he has begun to shape.
Statistics
Key:Pre-Aewakening | Early Awakening | Mid-Development | Rapid Evolution | New Universe
Vehicular Usage (Land Vehicles; Tetsuo can drive a motorcycle, and does so alongside his fellow gang members[1]), Weapon Usage (Non-Combat Weapons; Tetsuo has a metal pipe on him, which he uses to strike at the heads of his foes whilst on his bike[1])
Awakening (Meeting fellow esper Takashi awoke Tetsuo's psychic powers in an early state, which proceeded to rapidly evolve over the course of several days[1]), Telepathy and Memory Manipulation (After his awakening, Tetsuo began hearing Akira and witnessing his thoughts. Tetsuo could communicate via thought with other Espers[1]), Shockwave Generation (Intense thoughts and feelings can cause potent shockwaves to disperse and destroy nearby objects[1]), Precognition (Premonitions; Tetsuo can receive glimpses of the future when reading the thoughts of people, although this typically overwhelms his mind[1]),
Tetsuo's Bike: Tetsuo's Bike is his mode of transportation across Neo-Tokyo and how he keeps up with opposing gangs. Despite using it, he actively dislikes his bike and would much prefer Kaneda's.
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