As longtime Dragon Ball fans know, legendary Saiyan warrior Goku started out as a spirited 12-year-old boy. Now, a new series of concept sketches have emerged created by the late Akira Toriyama that illustrate how the artist meticulously transformed Goku from child to adult.
Recently, the official Akira Toriyama Archive released a piece of concept art dating back to 1988, about four years into the life of the original Dragon Ball manga. As one site staff member describes, these sketches illustrate the “trial and error” process that went into perfecting Goku's adult features. “Aging Goku was a huge challenge…as we can see from the variety of clothing and layout styles,” they wrote. As shown below, Toriyama spent a lot of effort designing Goku's face and hair design. Additionally, the sketches examine Goku's aged appearance when compared to two different outfits in the series: a classic jumpsuit and an old-fashioned kimono. The archive released the artwork to the public on April 10 — as with previous releases, it will only be available on the website for 24 hours.
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Old and rare Dragon Ball image releases give fans a look back in time
This isn't the first time Archive has revealed decades-old concept art of Son Goku. Last week, visitors to the site had the opportunity to view one of the oldest official Goku drawings in existence. The sketch dates from around 1984 – the same year that the Dragon Ball manga debuted in Japan. The image depicts young Goku in a clear fighting pose, with an angry look on his face. His dazzling gaze is a stark contrast to the carefree, innocent appearance he usually has. However, he still keeps the classic spiky hairstyle.
The anime world is still mourning the loss of Akira Toriyama, who passed away suddenly after suffering an acute subdural hematoma at the age of 68. From 1978 onwards, the beloved mangaka brought the world Dozens of memorable stories, typically a combination of action and humor. and sometimes, even romantic. Besides Dragon Ball, his most famous works include Dr. Slump, Sand Land, Go Go, Ackman, Dub & Peter 1 and Soldier of Savings Cashman. Currently, the ongoing Dragon Ball Super manga is on an indefinite hiatus following the recent conclusion of the “Superhero” arc. However, Toei Animation's upcoming anime series, Dragon Ball Daima, is still scheduled to release this fall, despite Toriyama's dual role as writer and character designer.
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Dragon Ball enthusiasts can visit the franchise's official website every day to view additional releases from the Toriyama Archive. Akira Toriyama's Dragon Ball manga series is available in English on VIZ Media. Toei Animation's popular series adaptations are now available to stream on Hulu and Crunchyroll.
Dragon ball
Son Gokû, a warrior with a monkey's tail, goes on a quest with a host of oddball characters to find the Dragon Balls, a set of crystals that can grant its bearer anything they desire.
Author Akira Toriyama
Artist Akira Toriyama
Release date November 20, 1984 category Adventure, Fantasy, Comedy, Martial Arts
chap 519
Practice 42
Adaptation Dragon ball
Publishing company Shueisha, Madman Entertainment, Viz Media
Source: Dragon Ball official website
