When it comes to Dragon Ball, fans are ready to kneel down before Akira Toriyama for his creations. The artist is the one who thought up Goku years ago, but the creator isn’t the only one overseeing the series nowadays. Toriyama selected the artist Toyotaro to be his successor, and the latter is the one in-charge of drawing Dragon Ball Super‘s manga.
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So, if you have ever wondered what Toriyama thinks about his protege, then you are in luck. The creator opened up about Toyotaro during a joint interview that was released in Dragon Ball Super‘s fourth volume.
Thanks to fan-translators like Herms98, fans can see how involved the two creators are. And, if you had not guessed, Toriyama is pretty pleased with all of Toyotaro’s work.
According to the translation summary, Toyotaro has shown his merit to Toriyama. Herms explains that most of the “twists and turns” which led up to Goku’s climatic battle with Zamasu came from Toyotaro. The artists did not break down the credit exactly, but it was revealed that Toriyama gave his protege’s drafts approval after very little interference.
“For the Future Trunks arc, most of the time Toriyama approved of Toyotaro’s manga rough drafts on the first go-around, but he did offer corrections at times,” Herms wrote.
“He says that while Toyotaro was just ‘chasing after my Dragon Ball,’ now he’s started showing his own color. However, he thinks Toyotaro’s battle scenes are a bit too ‘careful’, and that it’d be better if he drew them with a rougher touch.”
When Dragon Ball Super made its debut a couple years back, fans were concerned the series would fly in the face of all Toriyama had done. Dragon Ball GT had made many wary of Goku’s comeback, but Toriyama’s oversight and Toyotaro’s authenticity are hard to disparage. In just the past few months, Dragon Ball Super has grown in popularity thanks to its nostalgic throwbacks and intense action. The series’ manga has only added to the lore of its anime, and fans are now eager to see what stories Toyotaro will think up next.
Are you a fan of Toyotaro? Hit me up on Twitter @MeganPetersCB to let me know and talk all things comics, k-pop, and anime!
