What did Toriyama intend for Dragon Ball to be about?

[DB Tyrant]

Hey everyone,

I'm currently working on a video about Akira Toriyama's intentions with Dragon Ball. It has been hard work because I've come across a lot of information about what people think what Dragon Ball is about but not much on what Toriyama intended. I seem to recall coming across an interview where Toriyama was asked "What is Dragon Ball about?" where I think he answered simply "It's about nothing." However I can't seem to find that source.

Any one with any leads?

[KBABZ]

I think Kunzait would tell you, in great detail, that you can't really do an essay on what Dragon Ball is about without understanding what the Wuxia genre is (he has a great and lengthy break-down of this in a thread linked in his signature). It influences a great deal of the character motivations and story structure.

As for what Toriyama intended it to be about specifically, that I can't answer in confidence. But I think the change in story, both with each new arc and gradually as the series progressed shows that it evolved over time.

[sintzu]

It started as a gag manga that wasn't supposed to be that long. It wasn't popular so he changed it to fighting. He wanted a road trip so he did that with the RRA arc but it didn't work out so he went back to fighting. That was hard because of Goku's size so he made him grow up despite his higher ups being against the idea. Once that worked out he continued with the intense fighting DB is known for until it ended.

[KBABZ]

It started as a gag manga that wasn't supposed to be that long. It wasn't popular so he changed it to fighting. He wanted a road trip so he did that with the RRA arc but it didn't work out so he went back to fighting. That was hard because of Goku's size so he made him grow up despite his higher ups being against the idea. Once that worked out he continued with the intense fighting DB is known for until it ended.

Sources? Normally I wouldn't question it but this is for a proper thing, and I don't think Toriyama did the Tournament Arc just to pivot to "fighting".

[Bruma rabu]

It started as a gag manga that wasn't supposed to be that long. It wasn't popular so he changed it to fighting. He wanted a road trip so he did that with the RRA arc but it didn't work out so he went back to fighting. That was hard because of Goku's size so he made him grow up despite his higher ups being against the idea. Once that worked out he continued with the intense fighting DB is known for until it ended.

Thats kinda weird, it was gag manga that wasn't suppose to be long but he changed to fighting manga for it to last longer? Sounds oxymoronic.

[sintzu]

Thats kinda weird, it was gag manga that wasn't suppose to be long but he changed to fighting manga for it to last longer? Sounds oxymoronic.

It wasn't gaining any popularity so his editor told him if he likes fighting he should focus more on it which resulted in its popularity picking up. He of course didn't intend for it to be 500+ chapters but he also didn't want it cancelled after 20 some.

Sources? Normally I wouldn't question it but this is for a proper thing, and I don't think Toriyama did the Tournament Arc just to pivot to "fighting".

He's said it multiple times in the various interviews translated here on the site.

[Michsi]

It started as a gag manga that wasn't supposed to be that long. It wasn't popular so he changed it to fighting. He wanted a road trip so he did that with the RRA arc but it didn't work out so he went back to fighting. That was hard because of Goku's size so he made him grow up despite his higher ups being against the idea. Once that worked out he continued with the intense fighting DB is known for until it ended.

Sources? Normally I wouldn't question it but this is for a proper thing, and I don't think Toriyama did the Tournament Arc just to pivot to "fighting".

He mentiones this in several interviews I think, but here's one example:
http://www.kanzenshuu.com/translations/ ... interview/

And then the Tenka’ichi Budōkai began. But why did you do that sort of a development?

Up until the Tenka’ichi Budōkai began, the series hadn’t been all that popular. That’s what Torishima-san had told me. “Your protagonist is rather plain. That’s why it’s not popular.”, he said. Personally, since I was doing a fighting story for this series, I had intentionally made the protagonist’s clothing excessively plain. So this annoyed me, but then I figured it out. “Well, let’s increase its popularity” I thought. When I had designed Goku’s character, the words that best represented him were “I want to become strong”. So I thought I’d bring that to the front. Even during “Dr. Slump”, the tournament-like events such as the Penguin Village Gran Prix or the Mini-Event had been amazingly popular. So I’d simply make the story into a tournament format. From there the Tenka’ichi Budōkai was born. I temporarily withdrew the other characters besides Goku, brought back Kame-Sen’nin, and added Kuririn as a new character. From there it got popular before I knew it.

[Cipher]

It truly is about nothing.

I think that's a pretty sincere answer.

But, like, it is vehemently about nothing, and winds up being about things in spite of itself.

[ABED]

Ultimately I think the story is about Goku being the best martial artist he can be.

[Lord Beerus]

An entertaining spontaneous set of adventures and battles centered around a martial artist who loves to challenge himself more than anything else.

[Cipher]

Actual answer: Like nearly all Toriyama manga, it's about having a drive so strong you do good in spite of yourself.

I'm plagiarizing myself from Twitter, but the Toriyama writing formula is: Take one or more selfish weirdos. Over the course of the story, they don't grow morally, but do forge new bonds, which we take to be redemptive enough. Often they wind up achieving some kind of accidental altruistic good.

[KBABZ]

IMO the story is about whatever adventure Toriyama thinks up next, one Chapter at a time. You can broadly point out certain archetypes and how they evolve (gag manga quest based on Journey to the West, fighting tournament, rising to the challenge of the next villain, etc) but ultimately that's what it boils down to for me.

[DBZAOTA482]

A strange but engaging world about superpowered martial arts and sci-fantansy.

Essentially Japanese Star Wars.

[BlazingFiddlesticks]

It truly is about nothing.

I think that's a pretty sincere answer.

But, like, it is vehemently about nothing, and winds up being about things in spite of itself.

Daizenshuu 2 bringing up the rear.

"It seems that the second of the complete works is a “story edition”. For me, having drawn the manga by the seat of my pants, to have it called a “story” is only embarrassing. Even so, I suppose that my job of thinking up the story was a little more fun than when I was drawing the pictures. Ah, but to speak frankly, the second half of the story was difficult because I somewhat overdid thinking it up. Though I did a good job continuing it like that… I think."

–Akira Toriyama

This is definitely the place to find words from the man himself. I hadn't realized the Red Ribbon Army had video game inspirations, in so much as being an excuse to draw a bunch of machines and Muscle Tower having that structure.

[KBABZ]

I hadn't realized the Red Ribbon Army had video game inspirations, in so much as being an excuse to draw a bunch of machines and Muscle Tower having that structure.

Muscle Tower is also very similar to Bruce Lee's last film that he died in the middle of, and has basically the exact same premise only with a group of people and one extra floor to beat.

[GamerSkull]

I took it that it was just a gag manga that parodied The Journey to the West.

And its popularity turned into a martial arts manga...

[Cetra]

Lighthearted entertainment that is not to be taken seriously.

So exactly the opposite of what 99% of the fans who have arguments with made-up explanations think.

[GamerSkull]

Lighthearted entertainment that is not to be taken seriously.

So exactly the opposite of what 99% of the fans who have arguments with made-up explanations think.

Yeah, basically. I think a lot of portions of the fanbase get way out of hand.

But I can understand when fans have issues with the quality of writing/storytelling sometimes...

[KBABZ]

Lighthearted entertainment that is not to be taken seriously.
So exactly the opposite of what 99% of the fans who have arguments with made-up explanations think.

Yeah, basically. I think a lot of portions of the fanbase get way out of hand.

If it's based on hard numbers then it must be taken seriously!

[GamerSkull]

Lighthearted entertainment that is not to be taken seriously.
So exactly the opposite of what 99% of the fans who have arguments with made-up explanations think.

Yeah, basically. I think a lot of portions of the fanbase get way out of hand.

If it's based on hard numbers then it must be taken seriously!

That annoys me almost as much as the apparent opinion that darker stories are inherently better that seems to exist among many fandoms, even in series meant to be lighthearted.