If you haven’t acted out ‘Ka-me-ha-me-haaaa’ while growing up, were you even a Dragon Ball fan? Each and every power-up of Goku is celebrated by children and adults all over the world. But did you know that Akira Toriyama was extremely close to not naming any Dragon Ball moves at all?
Shouting out the names of moves has always been a norm in Shonen manga. How else would you know what the random beam of light is called? The author of Dragon Ball had a completely opposite view towards the age-old practice.
Akira Toriyama Hates Naming Dragon Ball Fight Techniques
In an interview, Akira Toriyama explained that he does not like naming battle techniques. The reason behind his dislike is so logical that it will make you laugh.
“In a battle of life and death, there’s no way you can say the name of each technique. You’d be done in while yelling the technique’s name. (laughs)”
It is true that the type of battles Toriyama draws are too fast-paced for anyone to talk in between. Talking while fighting or shouting technique names is not an option. Plus, if you shout the name of the move you are about to use, it takes away the surprise element. The enemy would read the upcoming move and prepare to defeat it.
However, Toriyama’s editor suggested that it was best to name the techniques. While this was a sensible suggestion, it did cause Toriyams some trouble, as he struggled to come up with names.
Naming techniques help in categorizing power-ups. Otherwise, you would be stuck explaining the specifics of a move to make someone understand what you are talking about. You can only imagine what life would be like without shouting ‘kamehameha’.
How Akira Toriyama Named ‘Kamehameha’
Apparently, the credit for naming Goku’s signature Kamehameha move goes to Akira Toriyama’s wife. After Toriyama’s editor suggested naming the moves, the Dragon Ball author fell into a dilemma. He kept fretting about what to name the techniques.
“I was fretting, saying, “Kame-Sen’nin’s special attack should be something-or-another-ha, something-or-another ha…” and she said, “Wouldn’t Kamehameha be good?”
Little did Mrs. Toriyama know that the silly name she suggested would go down in history and be uttered by every Dragon Ball fan with awe. The author himself admitted that the goofy name fitted Kame-Sen’nin’s mood perfectly.
So that’s how Toriyama sensei’s wife made a huge impact on the Dragon Ball world without anyone even knowing about it.
You can read Dragon Ball on Viz Media and watch the anime on Crunchyroll.
