Dragon Ball Super‘s artist Toyotarou has revealed his contribution to the 40th anniversary manga collection with a new cover image, accompanied by a quote which ends with the powerful phrase, “Dragon Ball will never die.” The quote seems to hint at Toyotarou’s determination to continue Super, even now that Akira Toriyama has passed away.
X (formerly Twitter) user @SupaChronicles shared the image of the new cover online, which depicts Buu and Mr. Satan in a car, driving through a snowy landscape. On the cover behind them is a car containing Goku and Eighter, while the group as a whole is being chased by the ghosts of the fallen Red Ribbon Army, who are seemingly emerging from Muscle Tower, one of the Red Ribbon Army’s headquarters. Accompanying the cover was a message from Toyotarou, speaking a bit about his art while also contemplating Toriyama’s original art.
Dragon Ball Super’s Artist is Proud of the Franchise
The cover is part of the “Dragon Ball Super Gallery,” which has been a project to celebrate the franchise’s 40th anniversary, with various well-known artists drawing covers for the project, including One-Punch Man‘s Yusuke Murata and Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure‘s Hirohiko Araki. The covers are designed to emulate Toriyama’s art style, leading to some truly incredible works, and Toyotarou’s is no exception. A new take on the classic cover for Dragon Ball volume 39, one could be forgiven for thinking that this was Toriyama’s original.
Each artist has put out a message alongside their cover, and Toyotarou’s message discusses Toriyama himself a bit, as well as Toyotarou’s feelings towards his old sensei. He states that Toriyama was never too proud of his own work, a trait which Toyotarou admired in the man. He ends with congratulations to the series on 40 years, and by saying, “Now and forever, Dragon Ball will never die.” The line certainly has a defiant quality to it, suggesting that Toyotarou is committed to keeping Dragon Ball alive, and with it Toriyama’s memory.
With Dragon Ball Super‘s fate still up in the air to some extent, it’s a bit of a relief for fans to know that even in spite of the loss of Toriyama, Toyotarou, at least, is still as dedicated to Dragon Ball as ever. As hard as Toriyama’s death has been for fans, one can only imagine how difficult it’s been for Toyotarou, who looked up to Toriyama as a mentor. It’d be understandable if he wanted to take a break from Dragon Ball for a while, but all signs point to Toyotarou being ready to continue his work in honor of Toriyama.
