Four Pack Abs for Men in Dragon Ball

[Hulk10]

Does anyone know why the men in Dragon usually show 4 pack abs when shirtless? It makes them look like they are wearing their pants up higher than normal.

[Cure Dragon 255]

Can you explain a bit better I am not getting what you are trying to say here.

[TheGreatness25]

I think they are typically wearing their pants up high. They have thick belts.

Generally, Dragon Ball characters are drawn with small bodies.

[Hulk10]

Can you explain a bit better I am not getting what you are trying to say here.

I'm asking why most male dragon ball characters are drawn with 4 pack abdominal muscles, instead of 6 pack muscles when they are shirtless.

think they are typically wearing their pants up high. They have thick belts.

Generally, Dragon Ball characters are drawn with small bodies.

Hmm possible.

[Cure Dragon 255]

Can you explain a bit better I am not getting what you are trying to say here.

I'm asking why most male dragon ball characters are drawn with 4 pack abdominal muscles, instead of 6 pack muscles when they are shirtless.

think they are typically wearing their pants up high. They have thick belts.

Generally, Dragon Ball characters are drawn with small bodies.

Hmm possible.

I really dont know then, nice catch though! I guess Toriyama wanted to keep the 6 packs a surprise lol.

[Hulk10]

Can you explain a bit better I am not getting what you are trying to say here.

I'm asking why most male dragon ball characters are drawn with 4 pack abdominal muscles, instead of 6 pack muscles when they are shirtless.

think they are typically wearing their pants up high. They have thick belts.

Generally, Dragon Ball characters are drawn with small bodies.

Hmm possible.

I really dont know then, nice catch though! I guess Toriyama wanted to keep the 6 packs a surprise lol.

Well it bothers me since swimming trunks should show off the navel in a male.

[Koitsukai]

The abs that bothered me the most were Tenshinhan's.

[JulieYBM]

Tenshinhand got that oval pack going.

[SHINOBI-03]

The quick answer is the Chinese Kung Fu influence Toriyama drew from where you see you see martial artists wear their pants and belts high up on or above the navel area in a way that give the illusion of shorter torsos.

[TheGreatness25]

The abs that bothered me the most were Tenshinhan's.

Spoiler:

I'm not sure why anyone drew it like this lol Tenshinhan with an abdominal tear injury!

The quick answer is the Chinese Kung Fu influence Toriyama drew from where you see you see martial artists wear their pants and belts high up on or above the navel area in a way that give the illusion of shorter torsos.

Spoiler:

Yep! Though, if the characters aren't drawn with a short torso, they're definitely drawn with big heads. I know that as a super amateur artist, the characters' proportions always aggravated me and I am fine with the idea that the belts are up high, but that doesn't really amount for characters with Saiyan armor or Vegeta in the Boo arc, for example. It looks like they still have short torsos that lead into the hips.

[Cure Dragon 255]

The quick answer is the Chinese Kung Fu influence Toriyama drew from where you see you see martial artists wear their pants and belts high up on or above the navel area in a way that give the illusion of shorter torsos.

To a foreigner, as I am, it is really astounding how many of Toriyama's decision, aesthetic or narrative wise can be said to be due to being common in Wuxia.

[SHINOBI-03]

Yep! Though, if the characters aren't drawn with a short torso, they're definitely drawn with big heads. I know that as a super amateur artist, the characters' proportions always aggravated me and I am fine with the idea that the belts are up high, but that doesn't really amount for characters with Saiyan armor or Vegeta in the Boo arc, for example. It looks like they still have short torsos that lead into the hips.

Unless it is a real fashion statement in the Dragon Ball universe itself, everybody is wearing their pants way high up, Kung Fun-based or civilian.


Except for Boo. Strangely enough he's the only one who is clearly having his pants sitting low below the navel. No visible abs (even in his uber buff form) but the difference is still obvious.


The one character where this Four Pack argument can be valid is Nappa. He's big, he's muscular, his shorts sits lower and yet he's still drawn with 4 instead of 6 even with his tail wrapped but clearly shows nothing below the second row.

[Yuji]

The bottom two abs are typically the hardest to get and even though the characters are generally very low in terms of bf%, they still carry a lot of fat, they're not completely shredded. Someone like Nappa would carry even more fat around than the slender characters.

[SHINOBI-03]

The bottom two abs are typically the hardest to get and even though the characters are generally very low in terms of bf%, they still carry a lot of fat, they're not completely shredded. Someone like Nappa would carry even more fat around than the slender characters.

Good comparison here. Bruce Lee was on the lighter side yet had more defined muscles on his body than Bolo Yeung who practiced Bodybuilding to build his bulk.


EDIT: Even Arnold Schwarzenegger, who was also one on the top Bodybuilders in the world in his prime had a similar structure. Large chest and arm muscles but didn't have a defined Six Pack torso.

[The Monkey King]

Good on Shinobi-03 for providing pictures to illustrate his points and help other board members understand what he's talking about.

OP could really learn from him!

[Hulk10]

Yep! Though, if the characters aren't drawn with a short torso, they're definitely drawn with big heads. I know that as a super amateur artist, the characters' proportions always aggravated me and I am fine with the idea that the belts are up high, but that doesn't really amount for characters with Saiyan armor or Vegeta in the Boo arc, for example. It looks like they still have short torsos that lead into the hips.

Unless it is a real fashion statement in the Dragon Ball universe itself, everybody is wearing their pants way high up, Kung Fun-based or civilian.


Except for Boo. Strangely enough he's the only one who is clearly having his pants sitting low below the navel. No visible abs (even in his uber buff form) but the difference is still obvious.


The one character where this Four Pack argument can be valid is Nappa. He's big, he's muscular, his shorts sits lower and yet he's still drawn with 4 instead of 6 even with his tail wrapped but clearly shows nothing below the second row.

Yes I was aware that a lot of Chinese male martial artists wear their pants up pretty high. But that's for martial arts pants, not every type of pants around. Nappa is a prime example of what I was talking about. You even see it in Xenoverse 2 even for undershorts.