Is Akira Toriyama a nihilist?

[zarmack]

The more I watch and read the main series over the years, I increasing get this vibe from him. Does anyone else notice it too?

[Kataphrut]

I don't think he would identify as such. Didn't he say of the original Bardock special that it was a darker kind of story than he would ever tell? The difference in tone at least is clear when you compare it with Minus.

That said, at least when it comes to Dragon Ball, it feels like he has a certain detached sense of morality. Part of it comes from the setting- in a world where nobody dies and everything can be undone, no crimes are permanent and even the most heinous people can become allies. It leads to this weird disconnect between the audience's sense of morality and the universe. I'm trying to think how most works of fiction would handle concepts like, say, sacrificing innocent people en-masse to buy time against a threat, being kidnapped and forced into fights to the death as a child, being eaten alive and possibly subjected to a fate worse than death by a monster. These are all things that happen in Dragon Ball that aren't really treated with the gravity they deserve on paper. It's all just stuff that happens with few lasting consequences or trauma.

Huh. When I put it that way, I think that might explain why the franchise resonated so well with children. It's the same lack of grasping the consequences a child would have. It's why Buu and Zeno make so much sense. Of course the most dangerous threat to the universe, and the undisputed ruler of the multiverse would be kids who don't know any better. That's pretty much the lens through which the authour views the world.

[MozillaVulpix]

Anyone who willingly ended recent stories in the heroes losing despite their best efforts multiple arcs in a row has to have at least some sense of it.

[ABED]

What specifically makes you think this? His stories end happily, which would dissuade me from thinking he is a cynical person or that life is meaningless.

[goku the krump dancer]

Anyone who willingly ended recent stories in the heroes losing despite their best efforts multiple arcs in a row has to have at least some sense of it.

They Gain Beerus and Whis as allies (sorta) despite losing in combat, Its pretty much a draw against Hit and Monaka wins the tournament, Copy Vegeta is beaten, Goku wins against Hit in a rematch and Jiren is defeated.

The only outcome that is slightly like that is the Trunks arc with Zamasu and even then he's still ultimately defeated. Lets not push false ideals or hidden messages for no reason yall.

History of Trunks/Trunks The Story, Bardock The Father of Goku and Minus all have tragic endings but all of the antagonists in those stories get their comeuppance later on.

[Neo-Makaiōshin]

The more I watch and read the main series over the years, I increasing get this vibe from him. Does anyone else notice it too?

Could you provide examples of nihilism?

Anyone who willingly ended recent stories in the heroes losing despite their best efforts multiple arcs in a row has to have at least some sense of it.

That is not nihilistic in the slightless, nihilism is the philosophy of there not being inherent meaning/value/moral in all aspects of life. The closest thing to what you describe would be pessimism, not nihilism.

[Eire]

] That said, at least when it comes to Dragon Ball, it feels like he has a certain detached sense of morality.

Correct me if I'm wrong but do you think Toriyama as a person has a detached sense of morality because he wrote work with darker undertones without dwelling much on that? Do you think that he secretly wishes for the world like DB?

The reasons people wrote dark and brutal things vary- some want to tell dark story with moral undertones, some want to vent, some have bloody imagination and some just don't care about implications. While lots of the authors deliberately or not incorporate their beliefs in their stories I highly doubt that's the case. Toriyama repetitively stated that he wrote stories as it went without putting much thought background and world building and if he could put a good gag he just went with it.

[Polyphase Avatron]

If he was he probably would have ended DBS with all of the universes getting erased.

[JohnnyCashKami]

a viewpoint that traditional values and beliefs are unfounded and that existence is senseless and useless

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nihilism

Definitely not Toriyama. I'm not sure how you came to that conclusion as it seems really far-fetched.