Literature
What Dragon Ball Means to Me
Akira Toriyama's passing shocked me as much as it did anyone else. I had been wondering if I had anything worth saying, and I decided to talk about what Toriyama's most famous work means to me. I got glimpses of the early dub of Dragon Ball on TV. However, it was watching Dragon Ball Z on Toonami that got me into the franchise. Watching DBZ, my thoughts on Dragon Ball were that it was an epic action series. Watching the OG Dragon Ball anime, I saw how it started lighter and sillier, though it never abandoned its clever comedy. Works after the original manga have had their ups and downs; however, I always find myself coming back to the Dragon Ball franchise. I hold it close to my heart because of the memories I have of it from my youth and because my thoughts have evolved, so I appreciate it in new ways. I am fully aware that Toriyama envisioned Dragon Ball as a gag series, and his editor helped steer it toward an action/comedy that wasn't meant to have any messages.