News culture This Dragon Ball character shocked his creator: he is one of the most iconic characters in the saga
Among Dragon Ball’s many antagonists, there are some that stand out for the terror they exude. It must be said that the author himself, Akira Toriyama, was inspired to create it by his own fears and that is why it is so impressive.
While Akira Toriyama recently left us on March 1st, many anecdotes surrounding Dragon Ball are emerging. This is how we discover the genius of the mangaka’s creative process, who was known for taking inspiration from the simplest things to create brilliant things.. And obviously the creation of the saga’s most iconic antagonist will not deviate from the rule.
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A nightmarish apparition
At the time of the Namek arc, we ended up having to draw Frieza, portrayed as a galactic tyrant, the ultimate threat that could contain the world of Dragon Ball. Akira Toriyama was inspired by his own fears about his design and personality. So the author remembered a regular nightmare he had as a child in which he saw a terrible creature with a lizard’s tail
As mentioned, Akira Toriyama was known for being a lazy person, but a brilliant, lazy person. He never hesitated to steal concepts from right to left, reinvent them and incorporate them into his work.. We remind you that Dragon Ball was initially heavily inspired by the Chinese novel Journey to the West. So for Frieza’s design, it’s not very surprising to see this“Akira Toriyama was inspired by the most frightening alien in pop culture at the time, namely the Alien or the Xenomorph.” First seen in Ridley Scott’s film Alien. If this was enough to create the design of the galactic tyrant, the author took inspiration for his personality from behaviors that are, unfortunately, very real.
A character that is unfortunately inspired by reality
As a reminder, Frieza is a galactic tyrant who delights in ravaging planets and killing their inhabitants in order to then sell them to the highest bidders. In addition, this aspect is explored in more detail in the Granola arc of the Dragon Ball Super manga, where we discover the Heaters, a brotherhood that negotiates with him. So, This “sold worldwide” site was inspired by the Japanese real estate developers of the time in Akira Toriyama
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