The manga industry has shown tremendous growth in recent decades, and it could not have been done without pioneering franchises such as Dragon Ball or Naruto. Akira Toriyama, the creator of the Dragon Ball franchise, can be solely given major credit for carrying the love of manga out of Japan and spreading it over the globe with his works.
While it remains obvious that new mangakas will keep coming around as time goes on, Akira Toriyama in an interview published in the 50th Celebration Weekly Shōnen Jump Edition revealed his feelings towards the new and coming mangakas. He mentions roughly how they are primarily lacking a sense of originality in their works and need to step it up.
Akira Toriyama Shares His Thoughts About The New Generation Of Mangakas
Akira Toriyama, in an interview published alongside Takehiko Inoue, the creator of Slam Dunk and Vagabond, revealed how he felt about new authors taking influence from old works like his own, and creating something of their own.
Talking about the same, he remarked-
“While the quality of the work itself is increasing, individuality and pride in one’s work are decreasing. I’d like to run across a manga that makes me think, ‘this author must be nuts!'”
Toriyama expressed how it is great that new authors take inspiration from their favorite mangakas. However, at the same time, these authors should have some pride in their work and include some originality.
To sum it down, the famous creator of Dragon Ball parted ways with the interview while giving one final piece of advice to the new generation of authors and mangakas. He addressed the recent concern of how mangakas might be avoiding the responsibility of being original in the name of inspiration from classics such as Dragon Ball or Naruto. While they might not be particularly bad, it should not be a reason to not implement your ideas instead of relying on something else.
Creator Of Dragon Ball Reveals A Huge Secret About The Manga Series
It seems it was not only the work of others the renowned mangaka talked about, as he also revealed a subtle secret about his own manga series. Upon being asked about the construct and flow of their manga, he revealed the one thing his assistant was not able to keep up with when drawing the panels.
He unveiled how he purposefully drew the stage of the World Martial Arts Tournament in a grid to give the reader a clear understanding of the character’s speed and their location on the stage. However, it had to be destroyed quite often as his assistant would have difficulty drawing it.
It was also revealed how one of the reasons Toriyama opted to give Kakarot a Super Saiyan Transformation was so he could avoid inking in Son Goku’s hair, as it gave him some pain filling in the black areas.
The official Dragon Ball manga is available to read on Viz.
