Akira Toriyama created one of the greatest series of all time. Dragon Ball made children fall in love with anime. The series earned worldwide fame, and its popularity increased with time. Son Goku and Vegeta are two of the most iconic characters, and their transformations remain unmatched even today. Even though the protagonists are powerful and popular, Akira Toriyama thought of a different character who could become the protagonist in a separate series.
Several modern day anime protagonists are inspired from Son Goku. Even though he is a popular protagonist, the mangaka opted for a different character from his franchise to be the hero in a different series. He had chosen his favorite character, Hercule Satan, to be the lead in a separate series.
Akira Toriyama’s Favorite Character is a Shocker
Akira Toriyama is the man behind one of the greatest franchises and two of the greatest characters in the manga and anime industry. But when it was time to chose a protagonist, he had a different name in mind. Goku, being a lovable character, was not his first choice. Instead, he would go for Mr. Hercule Satan. Mr. Satan is his favorite character, along with the Namekian, Piccolo.
Toriyama sensei was asked to name a character he would make the protagonist if he were to create another series. The mangaka answered, “The main character would be Mr. Satan.” There have been several characters in the Dragon Ball franchise, who joined the good side after initially being introduced as evil. But Mr. Satan was never evil. He was a cunning but cowardly person who managed to steal the credits from the Z warriors.
But Mr. Satan never tried to harm others. When Kid Buu was on a rampage, he convinced the whole world to raise their hand to give energy to Goku for the spirit bomb. Even though he took credit for everything, he loved the Z warriors. Moreover, his daughter, Videl, was the wife of Goku’s firstborn, Gohan.
Mr. Satan was the Comic Relief of Dragon Ball
In Dragon Ball, the Z warriors regularly participated in the World Martial Arts Tournament. But later, they stopped attending it, and this was when Mr. Satan earned worldwide popularity. He went on to win the tournament for several years. Even during the Cell Games, Satan was the last man standing (by luck) and became the winner. Even though he was a coward, Hercule Satan was a lucky guy.
In between all the tension and fight sequences, he would become the comic relief for the Dragon Ball fans. He always brought a laugh to everyone’s faces. He was nowhere near the level of the Z warriors, but he did win the World Martial Arts Tournament for several years straight. It is something that cannot be ignored.
If Akira Toriyama had made a separate series with Mr. Satan as the protagonist, fans would have showered it with love like they did with Dragon Ball. Unfortunately, that will never happen since the legendary mangaka left us all on March 1, 2024, leaving us with tons of memories.
