Legendary manga artist Akira Toriyama, the creator of the internationally popular “Dragon Ball” series and character designer on the “Dragon Quest” video games, died Friday after suffering an acute subdural hematoma, his studio announced Thursday. He was 68.
“He has left many manga titles and works of art in this world,” read the statement, which noted that Toriyama had multiple projects in progress at the time of his death. “Thanks to the support of so many people around the world, he has been able to continue his creative activities for over 45 years. We hope that Akira Toriyama’s unique world of creation continues to be loved by everyone for a long time to come.”
The Japanese artist was best known for creating “Dragon Ball,” a serialized manga that originally ran from 1984 to 1995. The bestselling manga series follows a young martial artist named Goku as he grows up, traveling and training to become more powerful. He’s later revealed to be an alien invader-turned-refugee and has saved the Earth more than once.
Toriyama’s manga was adapted into two anime series: “Dragon Ball” and “Dragon Ball Z,” which originally aired in Japan from 1986 to 1996. The anime, which was later dubbed into numerous languages including English, is among those that helped propel the popularity of the medium outside Japan. Over the years, the ever-growing “Dragon Ball” franchise has expanded to include two sequel anime series, 21 films and a number of video games.
The publishers of “Shonen Jump,” the weekly manga anthology that published Toriyama’s work, shared some remembrances and reactions from manga artists who were influenced by Toriyama and his work on its website.
“It’s too soon,” read the Japanese-language statement from “One Piece” creator Eiichiro Oda. “The hole he has left is much too big.”
After recalling how much it meant that Toriyama had considered him a friend, Oda added that he “hoped heaven is as pleasant as [Toriyama] had envisioned in his work.”
