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While illustrating Dragon Ball and other series, Akira Toriyama occasionally references real-world brands for vehicles, buildings, and other products. These references serve different purposes in the story, but could imply that Renault, Kawasaki, and other companies exist in the universe of Dragon Ball, alongside fictional counterparts like Capsule Corporation and the Red Ribbon Army. This page catalogs those references.
The follow list refers to directly written out references to real-world products, celebrities, or similar media. It may be written out in English, Japanese, or in another language. The assumption is that the below products may potentially have an in-universe counterpart, even if the reference itself is primarily for humor. For example, Pilaf has a bookshelf full of Jump comics. While we know this to be a real-world reference (to Shonen Jump), it is conceivable that books may exist in the Dragon World that are also titled Jump.
The "Turbo" car, in reference to the Renault 5 Turbo, is the first vehicle that Bulma is shown to drive in the manga. She nearly hits Son Goku on her way to find the 4-star dragon ball. In real-life, the car was only in limited production primarily for use in rally races.
The Kawasaki KR250 is a motorcycle that Bulma drives in the manga's second chapter. Like the "Turbo" car in the prior chapter, this is primarily a racing bike. In the universe of Dragon Ball, it is implied to be a Capsule Corp vehicle. Lunch steals one of these in Dragon Ball Episode 92.
Bulma's capsule house contains a chair with "Tyrell Corp" branding. Tyrell Corporation is a fictional company in the 1982 film Blade Runner directed by Ridley Scott. In the movie, Tyrell Corporation invented "replicants", androids indistinguishable from people. This reference may have been to highlight the science-fiction nature of Bulma and her journey, in contrast to the rural Chinese setting.
Pilaf's bookshelves contain an ample supply of Jump (ジャンプ Janpu) comics, an overarching brand used within Shueisha. Weekly Shōnen Jump specifically is the publication that featured Dragon Ball and many of Akira Toriyama's other works.
Pilaf's castle also appears to contain an Interflip Dragon pinball machine, first manufactured in 1977. This was likely selected as a play on the manga title, and the resemblance to an actual pinball machine may be a coincidence.
The Turtle Hermit is depicted as lounging in a Pennzoil shirt when Son Goku arrives at Kame House to train after defeating Pilaf. Senbei Norimaki wears a similar shirt in chapter 82. Pennzoil is an American oil and gas company, perhaps best known internationally for sponsoring motorsport events and racing teams.
The Goonies, ZZ Top, Tanya Roberts, Playboy Playmates, and Golf Aerobics
The Turtle Hermit's movie collection is visible as he is preparing for Goku to return with his "date". Visible on the shelf are the film The Goonies (グーニーズ Gūnīzu), a tape of the rock band ZZ Top (ZZトップ ZZ Toppu), a tape labeled for the actress and "Charlie's Angel" Tanya Roberts (タニア・ロバーツ Tania Robātsu), three volumes of "Playmates" tapes, presumably Playboy Playmates (プレイメイト, Pureimeito), and several aerobics tapes. Tanya Roberts had been on the cover of Japanese Playboy in November 1982 as part of a promotion for the film Beastmaster. The reference to ZZ Top may have been an indirect play on their hit song Tush where the protagonist of the song, much like the Turtle Hermit, was "looking for some tush". A tape labeled "aerobic golf" (エアロビ ゴルフ earobi gorufu) appears to be a reference to a VHS release in Japan by Jan Stephenson, a golf pro in the 1980s who encouraged the sexualization of the LPGA as a marketing strategy.
Son Goku and Kuririn see a Rodeo pickup truck while searching for a "hottie" for the Turtle Hermit. This appears to be an Izuzu Rodeo pickup truck manufactured for the Japanese market.
Lunch is wearing a pair of Sturgis racing gloves when Son Goku and Kuririn first encounter her being chased by the police. The Sturgis Motorcycle Rally is an annual cycling event held in Sturgis, South Dakota. The Turtle Hermit was previously seen to wear a Sturgis shirt on the cover of Dragon Ball Chapter 24, but did not wear one in the series itself. Another man is seen to wear a Sturgis jacket in the audience of the 21st Tournament in chapters 35 and 36.
The Turtle Hermit has a poster from American Graffiti, a 1972 film by George Lucas. The movie is set in 1962, the date given on the poster. Like many of Toriyama's references, American Graffiti depicted the "cruising" automobile culture of the 1960s.
Goku and Kuririn ride in an "Air Fix" plane en route to their first martial arts tournament. Airfix is a company that produces scale models of vehicles, especially airplanes. One such model kit may have been used for the design of the plane in this chapter. This design was reused in Dragon Ball Z Episode 146 for several of the planes at Basil Airport.
The Turtle Hermit's luggage when he arrives for the 21st Tournament has a "Bali" sticker and the name "Wayan" on it. A man elsewhere in the panel has a shirt that reads "Budhiyasa". Bali is a popular tourist region in Indonesia that Toriyama visited prior to working on this chapter. While there, he met and had an enjoyable time with a tour guide, Wayan Budhiyasa, whom he honored with a cameo appearance in the manga.[1] Wayan and "Bali" (written on the Tournament wall) both appear again in chapter 35. The Turtle Hermit used the luggage again in chapter 113. A map of Bali appears in the background in Dragon Ball Episode 92.
When Son Goku and Kuririn enter the Tournament grounds for the first time, they pass a man wearing a "LUMA" shirt. In Japan, LUMA is a popular brand of colored ink used in drawing manga. This chapter featured eight limited-color pages.
Goku walks past a "Hotel Hilton" in West City while searching for Bulma. Hilton is an international hotel chain with properties in more than 100 countries, including Japan.
Goku walks past an advertisement for Dragon Ball on Fuji TV on Wednesdays at 7 PM. This chapter debuted less than two months after the start of the Dragon Ball anime on Fuji TV.
Teenage Bulma's bedroom includes a poster for Fandango, a 1985 comedy about college friends going on a final roadtrip. It starred Kevin Costner in his debut, but for Torimaya the real star may have been the blue 1959 Cadillac Series 62 that was at the heart of the film.
Among the clutter in Bulma's bedroom is a model kit for a Yamaha VMX12 motorcycle. Toriyama may have been thinking about the VMX because he included a VMX designation on a Metro West-style motorcycle in Chapter 68.
There is a fox in the audience of the 22nd Tournament wearing a "FOX" shirt. It may be a reference to the FOX Network in the United States which had been founded by 20th Century Fox only seven months previous... or it may be just a fox wearing a shirt that says "fox" on it, similar to Bulma and Arale wearing shirts with their own names emblazoned on them.
A farmer drives this Chevrolet pickup truck to Raditz's landing site. Chevrolet is an American automotive brand that produces a wide variety of vehicles for the international market.
Visual References in the Manga
The follow list refers to item, vehicle, and character cameos which appear in Dragon Ball but which do not have a given or implied name in-universe. For example, characters from the Wizard of Oz books appear as the 21st tournament spectators. While Toriyama is making a direct reference to the books' characters, he is not necessarily implying that Dorothy Gale is a character in the Dragon World.
The gun that Bulma brings for self defense on her first dragon ball hunt appears to be a Walther PP, a German sidearm used in World War II. She unsuccessfully uses to protect herself from Son Goku.
In the background of one panel, an owl is seen to wear a Chairman Mao cap (人民帽 rénmín mào), also known as a "People's Cap". This background detail may have been intended to evoke a Chinese setting to the early part of the Dragon Ball story. Oolong would be seen to wear a similar cap later in the series.
Bulma's nightgown from the beginning of the series sports a patch for the First Armored Division of the US Army. This division was created in 1940 for World War II. The exact reason for including this patch is unknown, but Toriyama may have been inspired by a model tank. Tank-related terms were also used for upcoming characters like Sherman Priest, Hedge, Hogg, and Lee.
Bulma shoots Son Goku with a machine pistol after he admits that he removed her underpants, leading to her exposure to the Turtle Hermit. This appears to be either a MAC-10 or MAC-11, designed by Gordon Ingram for the Military Armament Corporation in 1964.
While Bulma and Son Goku are on their first dragon ball hunt, they pass a fish jumping out of the water. This fish has a head shape reminiscent of Ultraman, as well as speaking that character's trademark transformation sound effect: "Shuwatch" (シュワッチ, Shuwatchi). Ultraman is an extremely popular and influential character in Japanese pop culture, first created in 1966. The time limit used for Ultraman's powers were reused by Toriyama for Oolong's transformations. Ultraman is also a favorite of Arale's in Dr. Slump.
After Bulma loses her capsules, she tries to convince Oolong to transform into a vehicle to carry her. He briefly transforms into a scooter very close in design to a Powell Streamliner (or potentially the closely-related Fuji Rabbit S-1). This scooter was used by the United States military during World War II. Although the scooter is not an exact match, Oolong's inability to exactly mimic what he chooses is a recurring aspect of his transformations.
Yamcha's car that he uses to pursue Oolong's camper van is based on a Kurogane Type 95 (nicknamed "Kurogane 4×4") scout car used by the Japanese in World War II.[2]
Yamcha attacks Oolong's camper van using a panzerfaust ("tank fist"), an anti-tank weapon used by the German military during World War II. The ordnance is single-shot. The model that Yamcha uses includes original German text on the side, suggesting that Toriyama was working from a model or picture of the device while illustrating.
After destroying Oolong's camper van, Yamcha provides a Fiat Abarth 695 to Bulma and her group so they can continue the hunt for the dragon balls. Yamcha installs a tracking device so he can follow their progress. Although not named in the story, the Fiat Arbath logo can clearly be seen on the front of the car.
When she was first encountered by Son Goku and his friends, Chi-Chi protected herself with a special helmet. This helmet featured a detachable boomerang that could be thrown to decapitate enemies, plus the ability to fire a laser blast. Both of these features, as well as the pose that Chi-Chi makes when she uses them, are derived from the Ultraseven series, one of the sequels to Ultraman.
In the qualifying rounds of the 21st tournament, the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man from the 1984 film Ghostbusters appears as a contestant in one panel. As he did not make the final rounds, he was presumably defeated by another contender.
Several crowd scenes from the 21st tournament audience include a simply-drawn rabbit, Miffy. Created in 1955 in the Netherlands by artist Dick Bruna, Miffy was a well-known character in Japan. Mr. Bruna's art style may also have been an influence in similar characters, such as those by Sanrio.
Wizard of Oz Characters: Dorothy, Tin Man, Cowardly Lion, and Scarecrow
Beginning in the fight between Yamcha and the disguised Turtle Hermit, characters from the Wizard of Oz film make an appearance: Dorothy Gale, Tin Man, Cowardly Lion, and Scarecrow. These are all characters from the 1939 film, however book-only characters appear in other panels. The series was created by L. Frank Baum in 1900.
Continuing with the appearances of Oz-related characters in the 21st tournament crowd scenes, one appearance during the Jackie Chun vs. Kuririn battle depicts the Scarecrow holding a boom-box. This is in reference to Torimaya's assistant Matsuyama's entry in the 1985 Tamiya Figure Modeling Contest. This entry re-imagined Dorthy and the Oz characters as doing "modern" things such as riding a motorcycle, drinking a Coke, and skateboarding.
When Goku's friends are discussing Panput's life as an action movie star, a poster for Rumble Fish is briefly displayed. This is a real-life 1983 film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, based on the novel by S. E. Hinton. Panput appears to be playing the role of "Motorcycle Boy", the protagonist's cool older brother who dies at the conclusion of the film while trying to rescue animals (including a "rumble fish") from a pet store. In the original, Motorcycle Boy drives a Kawasaki GPZ550 motorcycle, rather than the American one shown here. He also does not use a bazooka in the original.
The bottom of the Rumble Fish movie poster (starring Panput) contains credits in the form of the Iroha poem, a classical Japanese pangram poem composed prior to 1079 AD. The poem is noteworthy for containing each Japanese phonetic character exactly once. The order of characters in this poem was subsequently adopted as Japanese "alphabetical" order.
While Goku is being driven around Papaya Island by Panput's manager, they pass a billboard advertising "Singaraja". Singaraja is a town in northern Bali, one of several references to that country in that section of the manga and anime, thanks to a recent vacation taken by Akira Toriyama.
In the first moments of the Dragon Ball Z series, Raditz'spod flies near a sun emitting solar flares. The sun and flares are an homage to the opening of the recently-completed Dragon Ball series.
Chi-Chi suggests both "Einstein" and "Archimedes" as good names for her first son, but he reveals his desire to be named "Gohan" instead. Einstein and Archimedes are scholars from the real-world. Einstein (1875-1975) was a scientist best known for his development of the Theory of Relativity. Archimedes (c. 271 - 212 BCE) was a Greek inventor and mathematician who pioneered many branches of study including geometry and an early version of calculus.
In the moments before Doctor Gero attacks, two people on Amembo Island are seen wearing "Bird" shirts. Bird Studio is the name of Akira Toriyama's production company.
In a self-referential moment, a young girl is carrying a balloon labeled "D.B.SP" ("Dragon Ball Special") with a picture of Son Goku at the beginning of the Trunks TV special. This moment of levity will be shattered soon after as the Artificial Humans attack and the balloon floats away.
The first city that the Artificial Humans destroy in the TV special is Pepper Town. This town not only matches the pun-series used by most of the other towns in the Cell arc, but also serves as a reference to Toriyama's brief series Dub and Peter 1, published only a few months before; Pepper Town serves as the primary setting of this series.
When the camera pans over the abandoned Kame House, a duffel bag labeled "UEDA" is left on the floor. This is likely a tribute to Yoshihiro Ueda, a director on many episodes of the series including the special where it appeared. He started work on the series with Dragon Ball Episode 7 and continued all the way through to Dragon Ball GT Episode 62.
During Son Goku's battle with Cell, he powers up in a specific pose then calls down lightning that explodes into a red aura. This is nearly identical to a sequence in the first Dragon Ball Z anime opening, except that Goku is a Super Saiyan in the episode version. A second homage is found in the following episode which shows Piccolo reflected against an explosion just as in the opening.
In the department store in Movie 7, a customer can be seen looking over new cameras while carrying a "Kedak" case. This appears to be a reference to Kodak, a real-world camera company. This is one of several slightly-misspelled English words in the film, but the only that referenced a brand.
While a crowd of people are fleeing from the rampage of Nos. 14 and 15, one man can be seen wearing a "Z" hat in the same font as the "Z" in the Dragon Ball Z logo.
While Son Goku is battling Artificial Humans Nos. 14 and 15 in an unknown city, a sign can be seen saying "Nagasaki". In real-life, Nagasaki is a city in western Japan, also known for being one of the two cities that were hit by atomic bombs during World War II. As Nagasaki does not exist in the Dragon World, it is unclear what the name on the building was referring to.
The "three principles" of Jump: Friendship, Effort, and Victory
As Goku and Chi-Chi discuss Goku's rehearsed answers for how they will get Gohan into a prestigious spring seminar, Chi-Chi tells Goku that his three favorite words must be "friendship", "effort", and "victory". These words are also written on a poster in the interview room of the "Most Famous School", although they are only visible in some 4:3 prints of the film; the original theatrical cut and releases based on the 16:9 theatrical ratio crop out this poster. These words serve as the "three principles" of V-Jump.
Tsubasa o Kudasai (翼をください, "Please Give Me Wings")
At a cherry blossom party to celebrate the coming of spring, Kuririn sings a karaoke rendition of Tsubasa o Kudasai (翼をください or "Please Give Me Wings"), a Japanese folk song by Michio Yamagami, written in 1970. It is a popular song for Japanese artists to cover and is well-known by school children. Kuririn's rendition is considered either amazing or comically bad, depending on the listener.
While listening to Kuririn's karaoke, the (very drunk) Turtle Hermit shouts out that his former student is the "best in all Japan!" The cherry blossom party he and his friends attended in the film mimic a real-world festival that takes place in Japan in the spring. As "Japan" is not a country in Dragon World's Earth, this an anachronistic reference.
While distracting Broli on New Planet Vegeta, the Turtle Hermit performs a comedic dance using a traditional Hyottoko mask to shift between alterations of his facial features. His fan also depicts the flag of Japan, the real-world origin of the Hyottoko mask tradition. The mask's puckered mouth is depicts a man breathing fire through a bamboo pipe, hence the term hyottoko (ひょっとこ), from "fire" (火 hi) and "man" (男 otoko).
In the press conference with Gyosan Money, one of the reporters is seen wearing a patch for "Tokyo Sports". Tokyo Sports (東京スポーツ Tōkyō Supōtsuis) a Japanese daily sports newspaper founded in 1960. It is known for including glamor shots of attractive women in addition to its traditional sports coverage.
Camera Manufacturers: Nimolta, Kentax, Mikon, and Olympus
In the press conference with Gyosan Money, many of the cameramen are using cameras with named derived from real-world camera manufacturers. "Nimolta", "Kentax", and "Mikon" are slight misspellings of Minolta, Pentax, and Nikon, all real-world camera brands. "Olympus" is also present but not misspelled. To add some Dragon Ball flavor, another cameraman is using a Capsule Corp-branded camera. These off-brand cameras may be calling back to the "Kedak" camera seen in Movie 7.
After the press conference, Mister Satan is expected to come out of a door with a fleur-de-lis overhead. Instead, he appears high above on a helicopter. In real life, the symbol represents the French monarchy in heraldry and has come to represent France in general. In this instance, it may be being used to show that Gyosan Money has "class".
A display of many flags from around the world adorn the entrance area to the Tenka'ichi Dai Budōkai. These flags are all patterned off of real-world flags, but few or none of them directly represent a real country. Rather, they are remixes of heraldic elements to resemble real flags. Included in the display is a "star and crescent" symbol, usually associated with Islamic countries but is more properly a symbol of the Ottoman Empire and countries which were once part of that empire.
Among the grand prizes stashed for Bulma's Bingo Tournament is a white suit and a single white glove. This outfit is a reference to Michael Jackson's outfit from the 1987 music video for Smooth Criminal, as well as his signature diamond-studded glove.
