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Akira Toriyama, the legendary mangaka of the Dragon Ball series, has died at 68. Shueisha and Toei Animation confirmed the news, as has the author's entourage, which includes Toyotaro, his Dragon Ball Super manga partner.
A massive loss for the manga industry as a whole, Toriyama has been confirmed to have died of an acute subdural hematoma on Friday, March 1. Acute subdural hematoma is a type of bleeding that occurs between the surface of the brain and its strong outer covering. As per the official post by the Dragon Ball Z team, Toriyama "still had several works in the middle of creation."
Family members and a small group of relatives attended the funeral, according to official statements from the Dragon Ball website. Toyotaro, his partner and apprentice, shared,
“I drew manga because I wanted to be praised by Toriyama-sensei. It was my everything.”
Toriyama's studio said,
"We hope that Akira Toriyama's unique world of creation continues to be loved by everyone for a long time to come."
Dragon Ball author Akira Toriyama has died at age 68
There are different types of subdural hematomas. The acute one, which resulted in the mangaka's death, is typically considered the most severe and occurs following a head injury. It develops within 24 hours of the initial trauma, and if not treated promptly, it can cause paralysis, loss of consciousness, or even death because of the increased blood pressure in the brain.
No additional information about the cause of death has been released, probably out of respect for the mangaka and his family.
There is no debate that Toriyama was one of the most influential manga artists of all time. While he had already become a successful mangaka in the early 80s with his Dr. Slump series, it was through his next project, Dragon Ball, that he reached a whole new level in the cultural zeitgeist.
Whether it was through his paneling, battle sequences, storytelling, or characterization, Toriyama's work in Dragon Ball has stood the test of time and is arguably bigger now than it ever was in the past. It is often cited by successful manga authors as their biggest influence, and characters like Goku and Vegeta have become cultural icons beyond just Japanese entertainment.
Dragon Ball was also instrumental in popularizing anime all over the world, with the Z portion of the story redefining the medium for generations. And even to this day, the series is still reaching young audiences all over the world.
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