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News Breaking news Akira Toriyama has passed away March 1st

Unexpected and sad news. Dragon Ball was one of the first anime I've ever watched back in 1999.

Rip. A legend that died too young.
 
This is like Iwata all over for me. I can’t stop crying. This man influenced me so much and inspired me and countless others. Truly, a legend.
 
I've become aware of this news just now and am still trying to process. What I can say for now is that this is the end of an era, for sure.

Rest in peace, sensei. Thanks for all the magic you brought to my life.
 
Koren Lesthe said:
Like a ton of people, I grew up with Dragon Ball Z when it was aired in France, thanks to "Le Club Dorothée".
But before this, my brother bought the game "Dragon Ball Z 2: La Légende Saien" (aka the second budokai game on SNES) which came with the very first volume of the manga.

Back then, we had to travel to Paris and go to "La FNAC" at "Les Halles" to get a copy of the game. We read the manga in a parc while waiting for our parents and when we came back home, my brother urged me to watch Dragon Ball on TV.

I got hooked instantly. Well, maybe not instantly because the first episode I watched was Cell voring C-17 so as a very young Koren, I was scared quite a lot ^^;. I kept reading the manga and watched the TV series as much as I could.

I never stop loving Dragon Ball Z and I still can't believe how lucky we were to have the series in France in the late 80s to the mid 90s.
It changed my life. The Kakarot ad is so on point with this. Everyone did it.

EDIT :
Man I've been in tears for two hours and it's not stopping.

Did you know ? Brigitte Lecordier, the french voice of Goku in Dragon Ball and then Gohan in Dragon Ball Z, met with Masako Nozawa in Japan and did voiced together Goku & Gohan for a bit :



This is how popular the french dub of Dragon Ball was. They even did a little documentary to meet the other french voice actors.
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I would remember all my life the feverish expectation of the episodes that my older sister recorded on VCR because we had school, DBZ cards that we collected, posters in "Dorothée Magazine", of my father struggling to find a cinema in Paris where we can go to see tje Tapion Movie (it was obviously before the Internet) or to find the end of the series on VHS because never broadcast in the Club Dorothée.

I also regularly continue to listen to the music of the SNES games that were wonderful and made all the charm of the Bandai games also objectively kind of mediocre with hindsight.

Years later, America will discover Dragon Ball, and it will give absolute abominations like Evolution and absolute wonders like Team Four Star. Meanwhile, it was Toriyama and his work that made me interested in manga, anime, video games and Japanese culture in general.

His global cultural contribution is huge, and 68 years is much, much too young to die.
 
This one hit different for me in a lot of ways

For one Akira Toriyama was actively involved in new projects like more Dragon Ball and the upcoming Sand Land project. Dude was talking about them a few months ago. Miura was sad, but I had long accepted Berserk would never finish, so for me his death was just confirmation of that fear.

Secondly, the more I think about his works and where they've lead me, the more I realize he's single handedly responsible for like 30% of my entertainment life choices. Dragon Ball Z may not have been the first anime I saw, but it was the first that majorly impacted my taste. Similarly Chrono Trigger wasn't the first rpg (j or otherwise) I played, but it's the one that made me a fan of rpgs and had a massive influence over the games I played and what I valued in them.

Thirdly there are so many knock on effects thanks to the above. Two of my best friends for the past 15 years were bonded over a love of Dragon Ball and other manga/anime. Part of the reason I've always wanted to be muscular was to look/be more like Goku, and I've been listening to DBZ music while work out. Heck I probably EAT too fast because of the comical way Goku would scarf down food.

I have a major tax deadline in a week and I've got big work to get done today and I'm just staring at my work computer trying not to cry (again)
 
Saw this and wanted to share it. Toriyama didn't only influence many fans, but also many creators in the industry. Man, it hurts losing him. It still needs to sink in.

 
This is an incredible goddamn loss. Anime not just in Japan, but worldwide would not be where it was without him.
 
Author of Kinnikuman commenting on Toriyama's death and how he felt competitive during their serialisation.

 
My god. Playing Golden Sun right now and even if he had no involvement in that game, you see his influence in the character portraits. You see his influence when you see anything shonen from the 90s and early 2000s. You see his artistic influence everywhere. Stuff you take for granted, like the character's eyes and designs of monsters.

The hole is huge.
 
Devastated. The cultural impact of Akira Toriyama in LATAM was, and will forever be, immeasurable. He shaped my, and millions of other kids of my generation, childhood. Goku was the first superhero we knew. Dragon Ball marked young and old alike. He transcended time and today is part of the popular culture of Latin America and the world. Rest easy Toriyama.
 
Really, I can't think of many other creative pioneers that influenced me from such an early age. His work truly helped define my life. RIP.
 
As sad as it makes me feel to still be reeling from this loss...and how much I know I'll be broken again when I see the inevitable homages to such a legend in the likes of Sparking Zero, Daima, Sand Land and upcoming Dragon Quest works...

It's tempered because of how truly grateful I am. So much of what I, and all of us enjoy, can be traced back to this guy. Be it directly or often indirectly.





Aside from the obvious things about Super Sonic, Mario riding around on dinosaurs/clouds and the like. Mario and Sonic both owe a lot to a guy who re-defined Shonen, and the friends/rivals/enemies we meet along the way of truly magical adventures, thereof.





Dragon Quest's influence on the JRPG genre itself. Where would the likes of Final Fantasy (and thus, Kingdom Hearts), Shin Megami Tensei (and thus Persona) and so forth even be without the very model of spikey-haired protagonist that kicked things off that proved this genre had some serious potential?


Even the likes of Digimon, whose Digimon Adventure anime series is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, is not immune. For Katsuyoshi Nakatsuru, the main character designer for Adventure, spent plenty of formative years working on the Dragon Ball anime. And he's back on board with Daima!



And they went with him because Toriyama, himself, wasn't available, and suggested Nakatsuru! Still "kept it in the family", though, as it were! LOL
 
There's a lot of talk about cultural impact, but I don't want that to overshadow the most important thing about Toriyama. In an age of IP, it could be easy to reduce him to the Dragon Ball empire he created. But Akira Toriyama wasn't great because he created Dragon Ball. Dragon Ball was great because it was created by Akira Toriyama.
 
Yuji Horii sounds devastated in his statement. The worst part of this is that Toriyama was still active and doing so much good stuff. It's gonna be a huge blow for more than one industry.
 
One thing I keep thinking about is Toriyama didn’t just create Goku. He created Piccolo, Gohan, Vegeta, Freeza… some of the most iconic and beloved fictional characters in human history. Artists and writers have spent decades trying to recapture the magic of these characters. How many times have people described a character‘s redemption arc in terms of “they’re doing a Vegeta?” It’s incalculable the impact of an artist like that.

When my Crohn's Disease was really bad for months on end, nonstop pain, I thought it might never get better. I thought I might die. When I got to my darkest place, I would picture characters like Goku and Vegeta cheering me on. It's not a stretch to say Toriyama's art, while facing my own mortality, encouraged me to keep living. And I know there are millions who feel the same.
 
chocolate_supra said:
Damn I aughta watch Dr Slump
Click to expand...

Read, watch, whatever!



Shoot, I need to go back. Stuff like this just reminds me of when Miyamoto said that Arale was the direct inspiration for figuring out Mario's movement in 3D.

And well...that cap with wings just adds to it...


800px-Wing_Mario_-_Super_Mario_64.png
 

“I don't want to believe it. My head is empty because I don't want to think about it. Even so, every time I see Goku, I remember what Toriyama Sensei said to me, 'You will take care of Goku, won't you?' I cherish that moment. It makes me think: 'I will stay by Goku's side until my strength runs out completely'. Sensei, please watch over us from the heavens. We hope you depart in peace.”- Masako Nozawa.
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"You will take care of Goku, won't you?"

Hits way harder than it should.
 
This panel was in the final chapter of the Dragon Ball manga, referencing how the story originally began. With a chance encounter. This hits so hard now.


GIKL9t5WkAAGXUh
 
Mekanos said:
One thing I keep thinking about is Toriyama didn’t just create Goku. He created Piccolo, Gohan, Vegeta, Freeza… some of the most iconic and beloved fictional characters in human history. Artists and writers have spent decades trying to recapture the magic of these characters. How many times have people described a character‘s redemption arc in terms of “they’re doing a Vegeta?” It’s incalculable the impact of an artist like that.

When my Crohn's Disease was really bad for months on end, nonstop pain, I thought it might never get better. I thought I might die. When I got to my darkest place, I would picture characters like Goku and Vegeta cheering me on. It's not a stretch to say Toriyama's art, while facing my own mortality, encouraged me to keep living. And I know there are millions who feel the same.
Click to expand...
When I was a kid, anytime I felt lonely at school, I would imagine Goku and Gohan were there with me. They'd fly beside my car window and wave at me from across the courtyard. I couldn't help but imagine them again on my way to work this morning.

...Ugh, I feel like I lost a family member.
 
chocolate_supra said:
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As much as people may not like the theme, that is MY childhood right there. I am in the camp nowadays in when I watch anime I generally prefer the sub version, but (and this might seem blasphemous to some) Dragon Ball, Cowboy Bebop and One Piece are the only ones where I mainly prefer the Dub version.

I have watched a bit of DB Kai and with this tragic news I now plan on going back and rewatching Dragon Ball all the way to Super so I can appreciate what this gentleman (Toriyama-san) and the hard-working animators at Toei have put into this world.
 
A giant of pop culture. I was never really into DBZ, but Dragon Quest’s artwork and monsters you can’t help but love, plus the sense of warmth, community and camaraderie in the games struck a cord immediately. The sense of family, the journey. Rest in peace.
 
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NintendoLife did a pretty good feature on not just Toriyama's most high-profile work in gaming but also the characters his work influenced (yes, Mario and Sonic).

www.nintendolife.com

Akira Toriyama, The Dragon Ball, Dragon Quest, And Chrono Trigger Artist That Inspired The World

"Tackle life with as much energy as Goku! I'll try to do the same!"
www.nintendolife.com www.nintendolife.com

Also it's wild to me to see a major gaming publication like them referencing The Chrono Compendium, holy cow I was there when that site was fresh
 
You know, thinking back…

My early teen years weren’t great, at school I mean. I got bullied at first, because I wasn’t a pushover, but I did my thing at my own pace. I like things like Pokémon, had my own opinions and yes, I wore a Goku shirt to school.

Toriyama’s work just gave me comfort. If I was down or needed a pick me up, I watched Goku’s next adventure. And when things finally went my way at school, it was Toriyama’s work that made me bond with friends, finally.

You could say Toriyama helped me and I’m pretty sure other folks will have that same experience as well.

Rest easy Toriyama-San.
 
The fact that this is an event of worldwide reach states how influential Toriyama's work was. Local news here in northeast Brasil are talking about him. Everyone knows Dragon Ball.

One of the highest achieving people in the history of humanity left the world today.
 


This is my favorite Dragon Ball parody song. Everyone hated it when it debuted, but it was always a guilty pleasure of mine from the start haha That's the reach Dragon Ball has everywhere, though, it not only prompts musical parodies but it even inspires people to build businesses around the franchise, as illustrated by the taco shop shown in the video, legal troubles be damned lol

Incidentally, I watched Super Hero when it premiered in Crunchyroll and I thought Toriyama still had his edge. Gamma 1 and 2 were very enjoyable and their designs are great, I hope we get to see them in more productions in the future. It was also very funny to see Gohan making a crater next to his house just through sheer anger.
 
Síriocaz said:


This is my favorite Dragon Ball parody song. Everyone hated it when it debuted, but it was always a guilty pleasure of mine from the start haha That's the reach Dragon Ball has everywhere, though, it not only prompts musical parodies but it even inspires people to build businesses around the franchise, as illustrated by the taco shop shown in the video, legal troubles be damned lol

Incidentally, I watched Super Hero when it premiered in Crunchyroll and I thought Toriyama still had his edge. Gamma 1 and 2 were very enjoyable and their designs are great, I hope we get to see them in more productions in the future. It was also very funny to see Gohan making a crater next to his house just through sheer anger.
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I'm so blessed for having been born in LatAm and getting the original soundtrack

 
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Speaking of the original soundtrack, it hurts so much that now we’ve lost both Kikuchi and Toriyama. They were both legends.
 
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