Nearly three months have passed since the tragic loss of Akira Toriyama, the iconic manga artist who worked on popular worldwide franchises like the Dragon Ball series. However, old concept art and preliminary sketches from his original run of Dragon Ball continue to resurface.
The latest edition of the Toriyama Archives on the official Dragon Ball website reveals a rare piece of artwork that Toriyama drew for the Shonen Jump magazine. The sketch in question comes from the title page of Weekly Shonen Jump 1992 No. 47, Tale 396. It’s a pre-inked pencil sketch of the main cast of Dragon Ball during its Dragon Ball Z era. “In this valuable sketch we can see the detail put into Akira Toriyama’s work, down to each and every pencil stroke,” reads the description. “Looking at it, you can just imagine him sketching away, expanding on the image as he goes. Even at this early stage, the quality is so good it could be used as a first draft.”
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Dragon Ball’s Newly Resurfaced Akira Toriyama Artwork Also Appears in the DBZ Anime
Pictured in the above sketch are Vegeta, Tien Shinhan, Gohan, Yamcha, Goku, Piccolo, Future Trunks and Krillin. If this image seems familiar, it’s because the Dragon Ball Z anime opening used a similar image on which to end its theme song. While the arrangement there is different, the characters remain the same. Of course, being animation, the DBZ anime opening is able to add some additional flair by having Goku transform into a legendary Super Saiyan. Even the Americanized DBZ intro used this image for its alternative rock theme song.
The official Dragon Ball website previously made available some of Toriyama’s earliest artwork for the Dragon Ball manga, such as a stunning illustration for the “Cell Saga” featuring Goku and the androids. Another impressive artwork showed off the devastating one-sided battle Android 17 faced against Imperfect Cell, effectively demonstrating the reversal of roles in the story. Toriyama also drew a piece of far more lighthearted crossover artwork of a young Gohan with Arale Norimaki from his Dr. Slump series.
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Recently, the Dragon Ball website announced a poll for fans to vote for their favorite Goku battle in all of Dragon Ball. The winning fight will be turned into merchandise. The Dragon Ball anime TV series and movies are available to stream on Crunchyroll. The ongoing Dragon Ball Super manga, illustrated by Toyotarou, is currently on hiatus but has been confirmed for an eventual return.
