We at Kakuchopurei were heartbroken and devastated to learn that Akira Toriyama passed away on 1 March 2024, leaving behind a legendary legacy that few others can boast of. He’s one of the most influential creators in perhaps all of pop culture and while his works are many, his greatest was and will always be Dragon Ball, a seminal franchise that has in turn inspired and influenced countless others.

While the late legend was best known for Dragon Ball, he was also known for his other works across a variety of different mediums, including video games. His art style was distinctive and unique, and there’s nothing else like it. One look at his art and you’ll know instantly, this could only be Akira Toriyama.

Most importantly, many of Akira Toriyama’s legions of fans across the world of all ages will miss the late legend. Many grew up with his work, which has shaped their lives. Many have also been inspired to become artists or designers because of his work.

As a remembrance and tribute to the late Akira Toriyama, here are some of his greatest and most iconic works:

Dragon Ball (1984 to now)

It would be remiss of us not to mention Dragon Ball in this article, despite it being his most well-known work. Since Akira Toriyama started the Dragon Ball manga all the way back in 1984 (2024 actually marks the franchise’s 40th anniversary), the franchise has grown to become something akin to Japan’s equivalent of DC Comics’ Superman in the West in terms of pop culture and historical footprint.

Son Goku is Japan’s Superman and he’s a character that transcends the medium he was from. Even if someone’s never watched a single anime episode or read any manga in their life, it’s highly likely that they would still be able to recognise Goku.

Dragon Ball itself is still going strong 40 years later with new movies (most recently, 2022’s Dragon Ball Super Super Hero), sequel manga/anime (the upcoming Dragon Ball Daima) and games (the upcoming Dragon Ball Sparking Zero!) still being embraced and highly-anticipated by legions of fans across the world.

If there’s a single work of Akira Toriyama that will be remembered until the end of time, it’s Dragon Ball.

Akira Toriyama is Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball is Akira Toriyama.

Here are the openings to all the mainline Dragon Ball anime series so we can all bawl our eyes out:

Dragon Quest (1986 to now)

Besides manga/anime, Akira Toriyama was also responsible for bringing his distinctive and unique art style to Square Enix’s Dragon Quest franchise. While the JRPG franchise isn’t as well-known as Final Fantasy outside of Japan, it’s actually even more popular than Final Fantasy in its home country, and a major part of that can be attributed to Akira Toriyama’s iconic designs.

Dragon Quest itself isn’t limited to games either, there are manga and anime, the most well-known of which is probably Dragon Quest The Adventure Of Dai (do yourselves a favour and watch the recent anime reboot, it’s available on Netflix).

Without Akira Toriyama’s one-of-a-kind art style, Dragon Quest would never have been as popular and enduring as it became.

Chrono Trigger (1995)

Chrono Trigger is one of the most iconic and legendary JRPGs ever made, and again, just like Dragon Quest, a lot of that can be attributed to the distinctive art style of Akira Toriyama. Sci-fi elements have always been Akira Toriyama’s forte and he was a bit limited by the fantasy-focused themes of Dragon Quest, he really went all out when it came to the character designs and world/environment designs in Chrono Trigger. More than 30 years later, it’s a testament to how timeless his art style remains to this day.

Blue Dragon (2006)

Now we get to some of his lesser-known works. Another game Akira Toriyama worked on for character designs was Blue Dragon. While it is now considered obscure, this is still Akira Toriyama at his best when designing characters and settings. Unfortunately, Blue Dragon was only released for the Xbox 360 (and its sequel, 2008’s Blue Dragon Plus, was only on the Nintendo DS), so hopefully one day Microsoft will release this game on more modern platforms, especially in light of Akira Toriyama’s passing. Also, even if you can’t play the game, there’s an anime adaptation of the game, so if you want more Akira Toriyama, do check it out.

Dr. Slump (1980)

Dr. Slump actually predates Dragon Ball by several years, with the manga having debuted in 1980. However, it’s arguably one of Akira Toriyama’s most important works. Firstly, it was his first manga to be more than just a one-shot and serialized in Shonen Jump. More notably, Dr. Slump is the framework that started forming not only Akira Toriyama’s unique art style, but also his special tone.

Akira Toriyama’s art is not just visually distinctive, but they have a unique tone and humour that is unique to Akira Toriyama; and it’s one that he would eventually put into most of his later works. As such, without Dr. Slump, we wouldn’t have gotten Dragon Ball or any of Akira Toriyama’s trademark humour.

Also, Arale is such a cutie-pie.

Sand Land (2000)

This is one of his more recent works, with the manga having started in 2000. However, this work of Akira Toriyama is worth putting on this list because it’s going to get more popular really soon, with an anime adaptation coming out in March 2024, and a game adaptation releasing the following month in April 2024. Sadly, the late Akira Toriyama won’t be alive to see these being released, but we’re sure he would have been happy regardless.