{"id":68807,"date":"2024-03-08T09:33:06","date_gmt":"2024-03-08T09:33:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/dragon-ball-creator-akira-toriyama-dies-aged-68\/"},"modified":"2024-03-08T09:33:06","modified_gmt":"2024-03-08T09:33:06","slug":"dragon-ball-creator-akira-toriyama-dies-aged-68","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pakistaninewspaperlist.com\/news\/dragon-ball-creator-akira-toriyama-dies-aged-68\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Dragon Ball’ creator Akira Toriyama dies aged 68"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The creator of Japan\u2019s hugely popular and influential \u201cDragon Ball\u201d comics and anime cartoons, Akira Toriyama, has died aged 68, his production team said Friday.<\/strong><\/p>\n

First serialised in 1984, \u201cDragon Ball\u201d is one of the best-selling manga franchises of all time and has spawned countless anime series, films and video games.<\/p>\n

Toriyama died on March 1 because of a blood clot on his brain, a statement posted to the official \u201cDragon Ball\u201d account on X, formerly Twitter, said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s our deep regret that he still had several works in the middle of creation,\u201d said the statement attributed to Toriyama\u2019s Bird Studio, which praised the artist\u2019s \u201cgreat enthusiasm\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe would have many more things to achieve. However, he has left many manga titles and works of art to this world,\u201d the statement added.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe hope that Akira Toriyama\u2019s unique world of creation continues to be loved by everyone for a long time to come.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDragon Ball\u201d features a boy named Son Goku who collects magical balls containing dragons to help him and his allies in a fight to protect the Earth from evil enemies.<\/p>\n

The comics have sold more than 260 million copies in Japan and worldwide, according to publisher Shueisha.<\/p>\n

Toriyama was already famous for his comedy manga \u201cDr Slump\u201d in the early 1980s when he created \u201cDragon Ball\u201d, which he said was inspired by Chinese-style kung fu movies.<\/p>\n

The 1990s brought the beloved cartoon \u201cDragon Ball Z\u201d, and Toriyama was also part of the design team for the massively successful \u201cDragon Quest\u201d games.<\/p>\n

Not all the spin-offs have been a hit, however, with the live-action 2009 movie \u201cDragonball Evolution\u201d flopping at the box office and attracting withering reviews.<\/p>\n

Publishing house Shueisha, whose weekly \u201cShonen Jump\u201d magazine serialised the \u201cDragon Ball\u201d comics, said it was \u201cgreatly saddened by the sudden news of his death\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cHis manga have been read and loved all over the world, transcending borders,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n

\u2018Big shoes to fill\u2019<\/h4>\n

Eiichiro Oda, creator of Japan\u2019s major \u201cOne Piece\u201d manga franchise, said in a statement that Toriyama\u2019s death was \u201ctoo soon\u201d and had left \u201ctoo big shoes to fill\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo think I\u2019ll never see him again\u2026 I\u2019m overwhelmed by sadness,\u201d Oda said.<\/p>\n

Born in Japan\u2019s central Aichi region in 1955, Toriyama studied design at an industrial high school.<\/p>\n

He worked for three years at an advertising agency in the city of Nagoya before making his debut as a professional manga artist in his early 20s.<\/p>\n

In an interview with Japan\u2019s Asahi newspaper in 2013, Toriyama described himself as a \u201cdifficult\u201d person.<\/p>\n

\u201c\u2018Dragon Ball\u2019 is like a miracle, given how it helped someone like me who has a twisted, difficult personality do a decent job and get accepted by society,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He told the newspaper he had \u201cno idea\u201d why \u201cDragon Ball\u201d had become such a huge hit worldwide.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I was drawing the series, all I ever wanted to achieve was to please boys in Japan,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The news of Toriyama\u2019s death immediately made headlines in Japan, with many fans expressing their grief.<\/p>\n

Rua Kimura, 20, said she was inspired by the growth and evolution of the story and characters in \u201cDragon Ball\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cSince I was a child, I\u2019ve sometimes felt weak or haven\u2019t been good at interacting with others, so watching \u2018Dragon Ball\u2019 made me want to try harder,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Fans paid tribute with art posted under the statement on X, including of Son Goku ascending to the sky with angel wings and a halo.<\/p>\n

\u201cThank you for making my childhood awesome,\u201d one wrote.<\/p>\n

Anime journalist Tadashi Sudo told AFP that for many manga artists, Toriyama was \u201ca role model\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cToriyama knew exactly what everybody wants to read \u2014 adventure and the growth of characters,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cMany people \u2014 not only creators in Japan, but those abroad\u00a0\u2014 saw in his works the culmination of what entertainment should be like,\u201d Sudo said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n