Renowned manga artist Akira Toriyama, known for works like “Dragon Ball,” passed away on March 1, 2024, due to acute subdural hematoma. He was 68 years old.
“Dragon Ball” had been serialized from 1984 to 1995. During that time, I was in elementary school, and there wasn’t a single child who didn’t know about it. It became a staple topic during school breaks, with everyone imitating gestures of Goku and Vegeta.
Dragon Ball, which gained popularity not only in Japan but also worldwide, has surprisingly little media exposure regarding its creator’s appearance, personality, and thoughts on his work, even in Japan. This article aims to introduce these lesser-known aspects.
Biography
After graduating from high school, Akira Toriyama worked as a designer at an advertising design company. He resigned after two years and then applied for the Weekly Shonen Jump’s newcomer award. He debuted in 1978 with “Wonder Island” and started serializing “Dr. Slump” in 1980. It became hugely popular, achieving high TV ratings for its anime adaptation.
Struggles with Social Interaction
Akira Toriyama admitted to being socially awkward. When he decided to pursue a career as a manga artist, he didn’t expect to become famous, so he debuted using his real name. He appeared on Japanese television and gave interviews only a few times, but afterward, he started getting recognized in public and regretted debuting under his real name. Since then, he has avoided media exposure and instead communicates indirectly with the media and readers by using a self-portrait of a robot and providing comments.
Lazy but High-Performance: Akira Toriyama’s Approach
Despite being known for his laziness, Akira Toriyama was famous for never missing a deadline, even with the demanding schedules of weekly serialization. He had a unique approach of starting to draw directly on the manuscript without sketching out the storyboard first, showcasing his remarkable speed.
One of his techniques included having villains like Cell in “DRAGON BALL” destroy a city once, as he found drawing buildings tedious. He also made the Super Saiyan’s hair golden to avoid the hassle of coloring in monochrome weekly magazines. It seems that by prioritizing tasks, Toriyama maintained high performance in his work.
Akira Toriyama’s Family
Akira Toriyama’s wife is a former manga artist, and the two got married during the production of “Dr. Slump.” Toriyama himself praises his wife’s sense of creativity.
It’s said that she suggested the name “Kamehameha” for the iconic move in “Dragon Ball” while Toriyama was brainstorming names for the move. (The name comes from King Kamehameha of the Hawaiian Kingdom. To align with it, Master Roshi live on a tropical island wearing aloha shirts.)
Toriyama has three children: an eldest son, eldest daughter, and a younger daughter. The eldest son seems to be involved in the production of Dragon Ball, while the eldest daughter pursued activities as an artist. However, information about the younger daughter is not available.
