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Seriously, when Kazuhiko Torishima, the Og editor of Dragon Ball Z, speaks, he manga world should probably shut up and listen. We mean, this is the guy who helped bring Dr. Slump and Dragon Ball to life, shaped Weekly Shonen Jump during its most iconic years, and saw manga evolve from this quirky kids’ entertainment to an international sensation.

But now? Torishima’s not clapping. He’s calling it out. Loud and clear. At Japan Expo 2025, he unleashed some tough realities that were a lot more powerful than a Goku Kamehameha. He said the manga industry is losing its artistic touch, originality is struggling, and if we keep going on like this, we’re gonna have a future full of soulless, boring, copy-paste manga. And yeah, he compared it to Starbucks and McDonald’s. Let’s break it down.

Dragon Ball Z Legend Torishima Thinks the Manga Industry Is in Big...

Dragon Ball Super manga artist Toyotaro has stated that it won’t be impossible to continue the popular series without its original creator, the late Akira Toriyama. The statement was made during a stage conference at Japan Expo on July 3, 2025.

Toyotaro started off by explaining his collaborative process with Toriyama, revealing that he was responsible for writing the story for Dragon Ball Super. He would then submit the story to Toriyama for approval.

On other occasions, Toriyama would provide story ideas for Toyotaro to review and suggest changes, which Toriyama would then give final approval on.

Due to this involvement in the process of writing the manga’s story, Toyotaro believed that continuing Dragon Ball Super without Toriyama would be “not easy, but not impossible.”

Toyotaro had confirmed in an earlier interview that he has already developed and drawn material for future arcs of Dragon Ball Super.

However, the path...

From Manga Mavericks latest releases, “Bonds” by Zenzo truly embodies the independent and unconventional spirit of the publisher, as an action-packed story where characters literally pierce through the page and drag the reader into the rich repertoire of Chinese mythology.

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At the inception of their journey to India, the enlightened clergyman Sanzo and his newly acquired disciple Son Goku still do not trust each other. Fearing that the monkey’s rebellious nature against heaven might resurface, Sanzo is naïve enough to accept a golden band from an unknown traveler: As soon as Son Goku wears it, though, he loses all his powers and Sanzo is kidnapped by the King of Demons. Without fearing for his life, Son Goku will nevertheless confronts a horde of enemies in order to prove his loyalty.

For those growing up with “Dragon Ball,” the names of...

Dragon Ball fans will be able to commemorate the franchise's 40th anniversary with a special collection of phone cases and tech accessories from CASETiFY. The new lineup includes fan-favorite characters, both heroes and villains, including Goku, Vegeta, Gohan, Frieza, Cell and more.

Per PR Times, the new Dragon Ball Z x CASETiFY collection will be released worldwide at 5 p.m. (Jst) on June 24. It includes a special-edition smartphone case recreating the most famous scene from the "Cell Saga," with 3D dynamic effects on the case making it so the Kamehameha takes shape and Goku appears behind Gohan. A limited-edition bundle will also be available with two cases that feature the spine illustrations from the Dragon Ball manga, complete with a special bundle box and serial number card.

Dbz & CASETiFY Unite for New Anniversary Release With Phone Cases and Tech Accessories

In addition to a collection of phone cases featuring iconic Dragon Ball Z characters,...

In April 2025, Japan saw the debut of Detective Conan: One-Eyed Flashback -- the latest theatrical entry in Tms Entertainment's hit mystery franchise. Two months later, the film has broken a major record previously held by Dragon Ball Super: Broly, Toei Animation's second-highest-earning Dragon Ball movie of all time.

Detective Conan: One-Eyed Flashback has earned a whopping 13.98 billion yen (roughly US$97.1 million) during the first 59 days of its domestic theatrical run. According to a detailed box office breakdown by Oricon, it is currently the 19th highest-grossing film of all time in Japan. In the first 38 days of its domestic release, it earned roughly 12.8 billion yen (or US$88.1 million), surpassing Broly's 38-day box office total of 3.75 billion yen (equivalent to US$34.23 million at the time) by an impressive margin. Additionally, One-Eyed Flashback hit the 10 billion yen milestone in only 19 days -- faster than any other Detective Conan film to date.

Dragon Ball was a unique attempt at an adventure mirroring the Journey to the West. Despite Toriyama’s attempts to stick to his gags and humorous writing, he ended up creating a grand world. A notable part of the world comes from the usage of modern-day technology and inventions, and how they manage to coexist with powers like Ki.

In the very beginning of the Dragon Ball series, little Son Goku is hit by a car driven by Bulma, a somewhat arrogant young woman. Discovering Goku’s colossal strength and fascinated by the Dragon Balls he possesses, Bulma joins him on his journey, eventually gathering all seven Dragon Balls.

Bulma’s early genius set the stage for Dragon Ball

Bulma is a character central to the narrative in Dragon Ball. Where the dense Goku fails to display knowledge, insight, or even a common reaction, Bulma steps in. After journeying with Goku,...

When one is asked to name the most legendary mangaka of all time, Akira Toriyama is a name that pops up in everyone’s subconscious, and why wouldn’t it? The man created Dragon Ball, a legendary series that reshaped the landscape of Shonen manga. Goku was a great protagonist, and the story only got better as it progressed, with Goku’s lineage being revealed and the universe expanding.

However, did you know that Toriyama only created Dragon Ball so that he could quit writing another hit series? The series in question is Dr. Slump, a story that pushed Toriyama to his limits. The only way he could escape it was to create a manga deemed “more interesting” by Shonen Jump’s editors. This sparked the creation of Dragon Ball, a series that would go on to become a global phenomenon.

Toriyama was burdened by the success of Dr. Slump Doctor Senbe talks to Arale,...

The creation of Dragon Ball by Akira Toriyama was inspired by the late manga artist's desire to quit his most popular Shonen Jump series at the time. However, as alleged in a new book by his former editor, Toriyama wasn't allowed to stop unless he had a "manga more interesting" as its replacement.

Dr. Mashirito's Ultimate Manga Techniques was released in English by Viz Media on May 13, 2025. The book is written as an informative "how-to" guide for aspiring manga artists by Kazuhiko Torishima, drawing on his experience as the sixth editor-in-chief of Shonen Jump. In particular, Torishima's history as Toriyama's editor during the early days of Dragon Ball is discussed, alongside his other works. In the book, Torishima shares a fascinating anecdote about Toriyama regarding his work on Dr. Slump, the origin story of Dragon Ball, and the harsh work ethics of Shonen Jump.

Dragon Ball Was Created Out of...

The Dragon Ball franchise is extensive, with several strong characters that rival the powers of Son Goku, but the protagonist always comes out on top. Within and outside his universe, fans believe he might be the strongest Shonen character to ever be created. His power upgrades make this almost a fact if it weren’t for this one anime character.

Shonen fans are always debating who could beat Goku, with the top candidate being One Punch Man’s Saitama. However, they need to expand their pool and consider other genres.

The Disastrous Life of Saiki K. might be a slice-of-life comedy series, but the titular protagonist’s powers have the potential to beat every other Shonen hero in history. Son Goku might upgrade in strength with each fight, but it won’t be enough to beat this high schooler. Who will prevail between these two?

Goku might have trained his whole life,...

Marvel’s Golden Guardian of Good and DC’s Man of Steel have a lot in common at face value—they are both considered amongst the strongest beings in their respective universes, they both sport an iconic ‘S’ symbol on their costumes, and one is a clear analog of the other.

As is often the case with Superman analogs, fans have been wondering how The Sentry is going to stack up against Superman, given Lewis Pullman’s brilliant performance in Thunderbolts*. Like Son Goku, Homelander, and Omni-Man before him, fans are now wondering what a clash between these two characters would look like. Given the rich history that both characters have in the comics, Superman and The Sentry might be as worthy as opponents get in match-ups like this.

Superman vs. Sentry: Where do they really come from Grant Morrison’s All-Star Superman | Credits: DC Comics

When Krypton was on the brink of destruction,...

In the realm of Shonen anime, the main characters often show mercy to the villains, despite how ruthless their actions have been. It gets frustrating to watch them stick to this unwavering moral code, no matter how vile a villain is. The epitome of this merciful nature is Son Goku from the Dragon Ball franchise.

The main protagonist of Dragon Ball always prioritized fighting powerful enemies more than any noble cause. Goku only wanted to fight strong opponents to test himself. Because of his inherent warrior spirit, he never intends to deal a final blow and offers a second chance.

So, imagine our surprise when Goku had to confront his ideals during the Namek Saga. He isn’t one to give up on his enemies, despite how dangerous they are. The development of villains like Vegeta and Piccolo relied on this. However, Frieza deserved to be put down, and the...