The Dragon Ball franchise is one of the most popular franchises worldwide. Dragon Ball began airing in 1986, and since then, no anime has come close to it. It rejuvenated when a sequel was announced in the form of Dragon Ball Z. It broke every record and paved the path for the Big Three of anime to make the industry mainstream.
Prince Vegeta was the first major antagonist of the sequel and had a grueling fight with Son Goku. But soon they joined forces and won over the hearts of every anime. Anime lover or not, everyone has heard about Akira Toriyama’s magnum opus. It is sad to hear about the passing of one of the greatest mangaka of all time, but the real value of his franchise will blow everyone’s minds.
Akira Toriyama Left A Multi-Billion Dollar Franchise
Akira Toriyama began writing the manga in 1984, and since then, the franchise has racked up billions of dollars. The anime was not the only source of income; there was revenue from the manga sales. It sold over 260 million manga volumes to date and has released more than a hundred video games. Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, Dragon Ball GT, Dragon Ball Z Kai, and Dragon Ball Super fell under the franchise.
The 'DRAGON BALL' franchise (1984-Present)
— ScreenTime (@screentime) March 8, 2024
▪️ 260M+ manga volumes sold
▪️ 5 television series
▪️ 21 films
▪️ 100+ video games
▪️ Countless memories
Akira Toriyama will be missed ❤️ pic.twitter.com/j4X7PIv463
Apart from these, Akira Toriyama’s fan-favorite franchise also released several short films, television specials, and animated movies. The revenue from all these helped the franchise rack up an estimated net value of $23 Billion and became the fourth highest-grossing anime of all time. Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero is the latest film and became the second highest-grossing movie of the franchise with $102.5 million worldwide.
The franchise is likely to increase the value of its $23 Billion empire with the upcoming series Dragon Ball Daima. Then is also the upcoming video game Dragon Ball: Sparkling Zero, which is believed to be released at the end of the year. With everything happening, it looks like the franchise will soon cross the $25 Billion mark.
Dragon Ball Will Always Be Epic and Fan-Favorite To The Fans
The Dragon Ball franchise has given the fans several epic moments to cherish forever, from Goku’s first Kamehameha to becoming the legendary Super Saiyan for the first time; from sacrificing himself against Perfect Cell to using the iconic Spirit Bomb to end Kid Buu’s terror. Then, in Dragon Ball Super, Vegito returned and gave the fans a nostalgic vibe.
But the most cherished and iconic moment for the fans came when Goku transformed into his Ultra Instinct form for the first time. It was so legendary that all the streaming sites crashed since it could not handle the millions logging in at once to witness the transformation. Not only Goku and Vegeta, but the antagonists were also top-tier and gave the fans a genuine scare.
There is not a single gaming console that does not have a Dragon Ball video game. It has been four decades since the franchise’s inception, but there never has been a decline in its popularity. After creating a multi-billion franchise and making everyone’s childhood great, Akira Toriyama has left us for good. But his work will forever remain with us.
