Dragon Ball has established it as one of the most iconic anime ever. Akira Toriyama’s magnum opus has inspired a generation of mangaka who took up the profession after watching the popular manga series break record after record. Unfortunately, the icon, Akira Toriyama, passed away on March 1, 2024, leaving a hole within fans.
The entire world was grief-stricken and paid respect to the late great mangaka. The people who were inspired by him paid him respect through their magnum opus. Kohei Horikoshi, the creator of My Hero Academia, is the latest one to pay respect to him in his creative way. Fans could easily identify Kohei Horikoshi’s craftiness after the release of My Hero Academia Volume 40.
Kohei Horikoshi Got Creative In Paying Respect To Akira Toriyama
Kohei Horikoshi’s magnum opus is slowly approaching its end, with the final battle between the protagonists and the antagonists currently taking place. It is considered, to be one of the modern Big Three of anime. Recently, My Hero Academia Volume 40 was released. The fans were left with tears running down their cheeks after getting to know the meaning behind one of the panels. One of the chapters featured All Might looking down on a skinny and young All for One.
Kohei Horikoshi, the creator of 'MY HERO ACADEMIA', pays homage to Akira Toriyama in the latest Volume 40. pic.twitter.com/O0Zvl05un3
— SUPER クロニクルス (@SupaChronicles) March 29, 2024
It was similar to chapter 309 of Dragon Ball, which featured Son Goku and Frieza on the cover. A towering Goku was bending and looking down on a petite yet muscular Frieza. The cover was posted on X (formerly Twitter). Fans may be confused to see Dragon Ball having 309 chapters. But in Japan, there is no Dragon Ball Z instead, it is a continuation of the Dragon Ball manga.
Kohei Horikoshi paying tribute to Akira Toriyama is praised by the fans. They were happy to see Horikoshi did not forget to pay respect to the one who inspired a generation of mangaka. Not only Horikoshi, there are several other mangaka, like Eiichiro Oda and Masashi Kishimoto. who paid respect to the late great mangaka in their own way.
Dragon Ball Creator Was Always A Workaholic
Akira Toriyama worked hard for decades to reach the heights of greatness. Initially, Dragon Ball was not popular among the fans. So, he introduced the tournament, and it became very popular. Even during his last days, he was heavily involved with the Dragon Ball Super manga alongside Toyotarou. Toriyama is also a part of Dragon Ball Daima, which is set to air within a few weeks.
Apart from that, one of his magnum opus from the early 2000s, Sand Land, got adapted into an anime and was released on March 20, 2024. It took him a large amount of time to become the ‘Akira Toriyama’ and become an example to all the other mangaka. The creators of the Big Three of anime, Kishimoto, Oda, and Kubo, have always praised him and mentioned how they were influenced by his works.
Dragon Ball Super chapter 103 is the last chapter on which Toriyama worked. It will remain an iconic chapter since it also featured Son Goku vs. Gohan. After Toriyama, mangaka like Kohei Horikoshi will carry on his ideals for the upcoming generation.
My Hero Academia and Dragon Ball Super are available on Viz Media.
