News culture “He is at the height of a head of state” Tributes multiply after the death of Akira Toriyama, brilliant creator of Dragon Ball

Culture news “He is at the height of a head of state” Tributes multiply after the death of Akira Toriyama, brilliant creator of Dragon Ball

Emmanuel Macron, Jackie Chan or even the government of El Salvador: many institutions and public figures have reacted following the disappearance of Akira Toriyama, the author of Dragon Ball, on March 8. Since then, tributes have multiplied throughout the world with gatherings both physical and online. To honor this legendary manga figure, we invite you to take a look at the different reactions sparked by his disappearance.

The political world pays tribute to Akira Toriyama

Following the announcement of Akira Toriyama’s death, Emmanuel Macron’s X account (formerly Twitter) quickly reacted to the tragic news. In the published message, we can see two framed illustrations representing Son Goku in Super Saiyan 3 and Boo, with especially a small Son Goku hand-drawn by Akira Toriyama himself. All this was given to the President of the Republic during his trip to Japan in July 2021. A way to represent the strong popularity of Dragon Ball in France. However, this is not the only political leader who reacted to the announcement.

In the process, the government of El Salvador also issued a statement to send their condolences to Japan for the disappearance of the author. Inside, we can read that El Salvador “recognizes Akira Toriyama’s invaluable contribution to the world of manga and popular culture“‘. In reality, this press release is not surprising when we know the popularity of Dragon Ball in South America. In 2018, we remember that the end of Dragon Ball Super was the occasion for numerous public screenings across the continent. But more recently, more than 20,000 Argentines gathered outside to pay tribute to Akira Toriyama.

Unexpected condolences from the cinema

Among the tributes from public figures, that of Jackie Chan did not go unnoticed. It must be said that the actor greatly inspired Akira Toriyama for Dragon Ball and that the two men even met in the 90s due to the popularity of the work. It was on the Chinese social network Weibo that the 69-year-old actor published a photo with the author, something quite rare when we know that Akira Toriyama tended to shy away from the cameras. On the other hand, if there was one message that was unexpected, it was that of Justin Chatwin.

As a reminder, Dragon Ball Evolution is the live-action film adapted from the work of Akira Toriyama which is considered one of the worst adaptations of the genre, if not the worst. But in it, Justin Chatwin plays the title role, that of Son Goku. When the author’s death was announced, the actor expressed his condolences while apologizing for having “so much missed the adaptation“. A great proof of humility, even more than fifteen years after the film’s release.

The master is gone, the mangakas are mourning

Of course, it is above all the world of manga which has particularly paid tribute to one of its most important figures. For example, Tite Kubo, the author of Bleach, explained that for him, as long as an artist’s creation persists, then they don’t really disappear. Conversely, Hideaki Sorachi, to whom we owe Gintama, above all expressed his admiration for the work of Akira Toriyama, and everything that he brought to it. But among all these comments, there is one that is particularly touching: that of Masako Nozawa. Obviously, we move away a little from the manga since it concerns the actress who has always played Son Goku in anime. When his death was announced, the latter explains that she remembers that Akira Toriyama had asked her to take care of Goku, something she promised to do until her strength ran out. A touching message which shows the actress’s attachment to her character and her author.

To finish this overview of the tributes paid to Akira Toriyama, it is difficult to miss that of the players of Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2. This weekend, players gathered on the game’s servers to pay tribute to the man without whom the title would never have seen the light of day. To do this, they donned Son Goku’s outfit for their character while making the Genkidama sign as a symbol of condolence for the mangaka’s disappearance. Thus, Dragon Ball Daima was the last work on which he worked and which we should be able to view this fall.