but in all of modern fiction. Influencing generations of fans and creators alike, helping to deliver anime to the West, and lending its instantly recognizable hero to be an official mascot of the Olympic Games; few other series in the art form have had the sort of impact Dragon Ball has had. However, early in the original manga's serialization, creator Akira Toriyama struggled somewhat with maintaining an audience.

It seems unfathomable to even imagine now, but during a large stretch of Dragon Ball's story, it just wasn't very popular. Defined early-on by its adventurous spirit while the main cast explored a world filled with wondrous creatures and technology, the series in its infancy resembles little of what it's become today. The shift towards what would make Dragon Ball a household name occurred due to a simple comment from Toriyama's editor: "Your protagonist is rather plain."

One Comment Changed Goku Forever

Dragon Ball's Editor Claimed Goku Was Plain

inspiration from Journey to the West, Toriyama created Son Goku as the series protagonist in reference to Sun Wukong, giving him a tail as his identifying characteristic. As his adventures commenced alongside characters like Bulma, Krillin, Launch, and Master Roshi, however, the series had trouble maintaining readership.

Toriyama stated, "That's when Torishima-san told me, 'Your protagonist is plain, that's why it's not popular'... So this annoyed me, but that's when I figured it out." The legendary artist decided to truly hone in on Goku's desire to become stronger, and created the World Martial Arts Tournament for his next story arc. Goku would take center stage from this point on, turning the manga's focus towards combat, and the rest was history. Dragon Ball would go on to become one of the biggest anime and manga franchises ever.

Dragon Ball's Shift Towards Action Cemented Its Legacy

Some of Anime and Manga's Most Iconic Fights Come From Dragon Ball

With Goku's dominant trait established as an unending desire to become stronger, Dragon Ball's focus shifted dramatically towards action and hand-to-hand combat. From the World Martial Arts Tournament, the series transitioned into its King Piccolo and Piccolo Jr. Sagas, introducing major, Earth-threatening villains and featuring masterfully drawn and ed fight sequences. Alongside the shift in narrative focus came fans in bunches, skyrocketing Dragon Ball to the top of Shōnen Jump's most popular titles.

The anime adaptation of the series following Piccolo Jr. arc, released as Dragon Ball Z, would go on to become one of the earliest anime series to break into the West and find its way onto cable television in the late '90s and early 2000s. That early exposure would lead to a boom in popularity outside of Japan, leading to Goku becoming one of the art form's earliest internationally recognizable characters. Few stories have since been able to match Dragon Ball's consistent innovation and high quality, leading fans in droves back to the series over 40 years after its premiere.

Goku's Latest Adventure Has Returned the Franchise to Its Roots

Dragon Ball Daima Is Packed With the Series' Early Adventurous Spirit

Dragon Ball Daima, Goku's latest adventure and Akira Toriyama's final vision for the franchise, has returned the series to its original adventurous roots. The anime is a bittersweet experience, featuring the characters exploring a wondrous world just as Akira Toriyama envisioned for Dragon Ball in its earliest stages. Had Goku already been an established character, it might never be known whether Toriyama would have shifted the series towards action, though Daima is proving with every new episode that the artist perfected balancing both aspects of his story.

Dragon Ball remains one of the anime and manga's most popular franchises, decades after it initially premiered in the pages of Shōnen Jump, and shows absolutely no signs of slowing down. The future of the franchise is still somewhat uncertain following the death of Akira Toriyama in March 2024, though no matter what comes next, the series will continue to have an army of fans behind it, showing their .

Source: Dragon Ball Daizenshuu 2 (Translation by Kanzenshuu)