Fullmetal Alchemist by Hiromu Arakawa and Dragon Ball by Akira Toriyama are two of the biggest names in the anime and manga world. The two series have inspired many mangakas and have been a source of entertainment for millions of fans. But what many people don’t know is that the two masterpieces share an interesting connection.
The intriguing similarity between the two is that the mangakas of both series, Toriyama and Arakawa, drew inspiration from animals for their creations. A big part of Dragon Ball, The Great Ape, is inspired by monkeys, and in the case of Fullmetal Alchemist, the Law of Equivalent Exchange is inspired by Arakawa’s experience while working on the farm with animals.
Both creators have mentioned their love for animals and how it led to them creating some of the most inspirational manga in history.
Akira Toriyama’s Love for Pets Led to Him Drawing Animals in the Dragon Ball Manga
Weekly Shonen Jump released a 50th anniversary special interview with Akira Toriyama and Takehiko Inoue (Slam Dunk’s mangaka), which was translated by Skullknight. In the interview, Toriyama was asked about the imaginary animals that he used to draw on the title pages of the Dragon Ball manga.
Toriyama explained:
“Yes. There wasn’t much to do for fun in the countryside, so I read illustrated reference books about animals, birds and fish until they fell apart. I was poor and couldn’t buy a pet, so I drew the animals I wanted. I couldn’t draw properly, so I faked it and drew it with a manga style.”
According to the mangaka, he loved pets but couldn’t buy them. Which is why he decided to draw the animals that he wanted in manga style. This led to him including these drawings in the Dragon Ball manga’s title pages and later inspired him to draw Goku’s character as a monkey, which he later changed and only kept its tail.
Hiromu Arakawa’s Farm Experience Inspired Equivalent Exchange in Fullmetal Alchemist
In 2013, Arakawa was interviewed by Animeland, a French magazine, and the translation of this interview was shared on Tumblr. During the interview, Arakawa revealed that she grew up in the countryside and had a lot of experience with farm animals. She explained how her experience with farm animals helped her devise the equivalent exchange in Fullmetal Alchemist.
Arakawa stated:
“This concept comes from my farmer background : the way you feed matches up the efforts you’re making. The more you love your animals, the more they give it back to you. The more you take care of them, the better their meat will be.”
She further added:
“Equivalent exchange is based on the energy you’ll deploy to realize the task that was assigned to you. In a way, that exchange gives rhythm to my life.“
Hiromu Arakawa pointed out that the better you treat the animals on the farm, the more they give you back, and that is essentially what Equivalent Exchange in Fullmetal Alchemist meant.
Both creators, Toriyama and Arakawa, have been inspired by animals in one way or another. While Toriyama used his inspiration in the character designs of Dragon Ball, Arakawa used her inspiration to create a concept around which Fullmetal Alchemist is based.
You can watch Fullmetal Alchemist and Dragon Ball on Crunchyroll.
