Culture news Akira Toriyama’s manga have had so much influence around the world that they have even found their way… into Japanese sign language!
Recently, Akira Toriyama passed away at the age of 68. Since then, tributes have multiplied to testify to the importance of his work throughout the world. If we know how the author has left his mark on popular culture, his influence extends far beyond what we imagine.
The world bids farewell to the creator of Dragon Ball
It is with sadness that the world learned of the disappearance of Akira Toriyama on March 8. At the age of 68, the author of Dragon Ball, Doctor Slump, but also the main artist of the Dragon Quest saga has passed away following an acute subdural hematoma. Since then, tributes have multiplied around the world to honor the mangaka who inspired so many generations with his work and the characters he invented. If the popularity of Dragon Ball is no longer in doubt these days, Akira Toriyama’s influence extends far beyond what we imagine, as proven by this extract broadcast on Japanese television.
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An influence that extends to sign language
Following the announcement of his death, the Japanese media obviously covered the information at length. To make it accessible to everyone, sign language interpreters were present on television, and this is where many Internet users made a discovery. To translate “Dragon Ball” into sign language, we can see that the performer makes a Kamehameha with his hands, which pleasantly surprised more than one on social networks. In truth, what could be better than the most iconic technique in the series to designate it? But that’s not all.
In the eyes of the Japanese public, Dragon Ball is not the only work for which Akira Toriyama is also known. Obviously, we can think at the beginning of Dragon Quest, the artistic direction of which was entirely done by the mangaka and which remains one of the most popular video game franchises in the archipelago. But there is another manga that has left its mark on many Japanese readers: Doctor Slump. This is the series published just before Dragon Ball, in which we notably saw an appearance by the heroine, Arale, at the beginning of the manga. Well imagine that to translate Doctor Slump into sign language, the interpreter imitates Arale by imitating his cap, his glasses and his very particular way of standing with his hands to the side, all smiles. As it turns out, Akira Toriyama’s influence extends to sign language.
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