Tadashi Hamada

Tadashi Hamada is a fictional character who appears in Walt Disney Animation Studios' 54th animated feature, Big Hero 6. The film is inspired by a Marvel comic book of the same name. He is voiced by Daniel Henney. In addition, Tadashi is ethnically Japanese. In the film, Tadashi, a student at the San Fransokyo Institute of Technology, is the creator of Baymax, as well as the older brother of Hiro Hamada. Baymax, as described in the film, is a personal health care companion.

Big Hero 6 (2014)

Tadashi appears in Big Hero 6 as Hiro's older brother. Due to their parents being deceased, Tadashi is Hiro's primary voice of reason and father figure. In the film, Tadashi and Hiro live in San Fransokyo with their aunt, Cass. Although his age is not explicitly described in the film, Tadashi acts very mature for his age. Additionally, Henney describes the character as "pure," even comparing Tadashi to an angel. Tadashi is also a "tech-wizard" who conceives, builds and programs Baymax.
In the film, Tadashi suggests Hiro attends the San Fransokyo Institute of Technology, as Hiro, like Tadashi, is gifted in robotics and engineering. Initially, Hiro dismisses the request, as he chooses to pursue monetary gain from illegal bot fighting. However, Tadashi is able to redirect Hiro's intelligence, giving him a tour of the institution, and introducing him to his friends. These friends include Honey Lemon, GoGo, Wasabi, and Fred. Tadashi also introduces Hiro to his own project, Baymax, a healthcare robot. Tadashi designs Baymax to have a huggable build. The film's animation team researched at Carnegie Mellon University to help conceive Baymax's design. Directors Don Hall and Chris Williams wanted Baymax to be "appealing but also huggable." Ryan Potter, who voices Hiro, states that Hiro sees Baymax as a representation of Tadashi. The technological projects, especially Baymax, inspires Hiro to want to attend the school himself, and he begins working on his own endeavor in order to gain admission. Hiro showcases his project, Microbots controlled by a neurological headband, at an exhibition held at the school. Shortly after being accepted by Robert Callaghan, the institute's professor, the institute catches fire. With Professor Callaghan still inside, Tadashi runs into the institute in an effort to save him. The building explodes with Tadashi still inside, presumably killing both him and Callaghan. Hiro, Baymax, and Tadashi's school friends mourn Tadashi, whose legacy remains present in the form of Baymax. Following Tadashi's death, Baymax takes over the role of being Hiro's emotional support. A series of events leads to the formation of the superhero team, Big Hero 6, who investigate Tadashi's death. Prior to the film's climax, Baymax shows video tests of Tadashi to Hiro, revealing that it took Tadashi several dozen attempts to perfect Baymax's original design. Portions of these tests are seen in the second official US trailer of the film.

Korean version

In the Korean version of the film, Tadashi's name, which is of Japanese origin is changed to "Teddy," as to not offend Korean audiences.

Printed media

Tadashi appears in the prequel manga, Baymax, which was released prior to the film's release, in August 2014. Unlike other Disney properties that received a one-shot manga, Baymax is a full manga story which had the goal of previewing the film's story. Tadashi also appears in other Disney books, such as The Art of Big Hero 6, and Big Hero 6: Hiro and Tadashi .

Reception

A review by Manohla Dargis of the The New York Times describes that Tadashi "isn’t much better," than the, "disappointingly bland maternal creation," Aunt Cass. In her review, Dargis states that this is despite Tadashi being a, "hunky brainiac who studies at an institute of higher nerdiness alongside a Scooby Doo-like posse." The Japan Times describes that Tadashi, "fits the normal Hollywood bill of a polite young Japanese male." At one point in his review, Sam Adams of Indiewires "Criticwire" blog, writes that Tadashi has a "nurturing spirit." Adams also criticizes Tadashi's death, calling it, "underplayed and unseen." After mentioning another blogger's interpretation of why Hiro didn't want to lose Baymax, Adams writes that, "Even in retrospect, Tadashi's death isn't rendered significant."