Akira Toriyama on Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero: Two Supers, Piccolo's Feet and Battles That Gave Him Goosebumps

Akira Toriyama, who wrote the script for Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, called the finished film "an amazing animated film" and said its battles gave him goosebumps. He made the comments in two pieces translated from Japanese. One was an interview in the pamphlet sold with the movie in Japan. The other was a statement he wrote after seeing the completed film.

At the time of writing, the movie was out in Japan and its US release was set for August 19. I did not know whether the pamphlet would be translated and included with the US release. I assumed not, because it seemed to be something just for the Japanese audience, and they never really give us cool extras like that, even though I wish they would. My thanks go, as always, to Herms, one of the most experienced and knowledgeable Japanese translators in the fandom, for these translations. I am relatively sure none of this contains major spoilers.

Toriyama wrote Super Hero's script, but Toei made the movie

Before getting into his comments, it is worth remembering that Toriyama wrote the script but did not produce the movie. Toei Animation did. The fight scenes, the choreography and the way things look are not really his area. He was not even supervising. That work was done by director Kodama and the team at Toei, and Toriyama only got to see the finished product at the end.

The pamphlet interview was written before the movie was finished. Toriyama said he was writing after a private test screening with partially incomplete visuals and only the voice actors' voices, with no sound effects or music. Even so, he called it "plenty impressive" and said he got excited thinking about what it would be like once complete.

Toriyama forgot the movie was already called Dragon Ball Super

In the interview, Toriyama admits that he forgot the film's main title was Dragon Ball Super, so the subtitle Super Hero left it with two supers. "I guess everyone thought I had done it on purpose because nobody pointed it out to me," he said, adding that the repetition was his fault.

To me that says something I have been arguing for a while. Toriyama is not the one really pushing Dragon Ball Super. He is involved, but the brand is now corporate: it is Toei, Shueisha, Bandai and Fuji TV. Dragon Ball is no longer one man writing a manga, the way it was in the 1980s. Because of that, I think "Toriyama himself is like halfway checked out," and honestly, I do not know how to feel about that, because it is weird.

Toriyama says the animation's unevenness is gone, but I disagree

Asked about the film's improved visuals, Toriyama said there had always been unevenness in past finished products, because of the division of labour and the different talents of the animators. This time, he said, a revolutionary new method had removed that unevenness, with no corners cut even on background characters. He admitted he does not know anything about film and does not really understand how they did it, but said it looked like it took a tremendous amount of time and effort.

It did take time. The movie was in preproduction from 2019 and went into production in 2021. His answer also shows again that he was not at Toei supervising. He sends in his script and they take care of the rest.

Where I disagree is the claim that the unevenness is gone. He had not seen the finished product when he said that, and I have. There are at least four or five cuts where the 3D does not look good. I think anyone who sees the movie will notice those unfinished or unpolished scenes. They are noticeable. Still, the rest of the movie was way better visually than I thought it was going to be.

After Broly, Toriyama wanted to bring back Dragon Ball's cheerful spirit

On the follow up to Dragon Ball Super: Broly, Toriyama explained that Broly focused on battles of next level strength. He felt that making another pure battle film would risk losing Dragon Ball's cheerful spirit. So he went for a lighter route, built on character based daily life that is threatened by a crisis, which then leads to a big battle. That is exactly what this movie was, and I love him for that.

He also said he can simply write that two characters have a big battle in the script, and rest easy knowing the staff will turn it into an incredible fight. I love that about him. He is a big troll, but he is humble, and what he wrote is true. The script for Resurrection F was released in a book years ago, and he did not describe the fight in detail. He just wrote that Goku and Frieza have a thrilling battle, and it was up to Yamamuro and the anime staff to create it.

He will write that Goku transforms into Super Saiyan God, and he will draw what the form looks like, but he does not draw the transformation itself. That is up to Toei. A lot of people do not know that.

Gohan is not simply stronger than everyone, despite what some Instagram and Facebook pages have written

On featuring Gohan and Piccolo against the Red Ribbon Army, Toriyama said Gohan is actually stronger than anyone, or so it is said, but has not had a chance to shine lately. To motivate him, it takes his revered teacher Piccolo rather than his father Goku. He wanted to give birth to some new superheroes by putting the two in the spotlight against the Gamma androids. As for the Red Ribbon Army, he said it did not seem so scary when he drew it originally, so he brought it back as an organisation that triggers the birth of powerful new foes.

I have seen a bunch of Instagram and Facebook pages run with the line about Gohan being stronger. What Toriyama is saying, with that "or so it said" qualifier, is that Gohan has the potential to be stronger. He was not stronger than Goku and Vegeta in Dragon Ball Super. They far surpassed him. With this movie, Toriyama is trying to course correct and put the focus back on Gohan.

Without spoiling anything, by the end of the movie I think many people are going to be wondering whether Gohan has really surpassed Goku and Vegeta, or where Piccolo stands. The power scaling is going to create some debates, and it is worth talking about.

Piccolo's backstory confuses even Toriyama

Asked about Piccolo, Toriyama ran through his history: he began as King Piccolo, who split off from Kami, the god who created Earth's Dragon Balls. After King Piccolo was defeated by Goku, his child, or rather doppelganger, entered the Tenkaichi Budokai as Ma Junior to hide his identity. He later merged with the Namekian Nail during the Frieza battle, and later still recombined with Kami. "It's such a complicated past that even I have trouble remembering it," he said. I love Toriyama when he says things like that.

He added that most Namekians are sage types, fighters like Piccolo are rare, and they are still a mysterious race that can be a headache even for him. Piccolo turned down living with Gohan's family and chose the nearby mountains, because he likes quiet places and living next to water is a Namekian's natural habitat. Toriyama also noted that for some reason Namekians have teeth yet only drink water. Even he is questioning his own design, and I love it.

The comedy details are great too. Piccolo's smartphone was a present forced on him by Videl. His stuffed animal collection began when Pan gave him one and he pretended to be happy so he would not hurt her feelings, so Gohan and Videl mistakenly believe he really likes them. That is Piccolo to a tee. We have all made fun of Toriyama for being wacky and forgetting things, but he definitely understands his characters.

Toriyama said Piccolo is his favourite character and that this might be the first time he has been this talkative and active. I agree: Piccolo has not had this much screen time in any Dragon Ball film, even the old ones. Toriyama also said Gohan has had a strong bond with Piccolo since training with him as a child, and that Videl and Pan think of him as family they can rely on more than anyone.

Toriyama softened the designs, and Toei went beyond his base

On character design, Toriyama said that, as a matter of taste, the warriors' physiques and faces had become too buff somewhere along the line, so he wanted to return to a softer feel. He also designed the enemy base, but the staff suggested something far more amazing, and he said he was glad for all the things they did that went beyond his imagination.

I know what he is talking about. Without spoiling it, there are actually two sides to the base. It goes back to my earlier point: Toriyama sends designs, but Toei animates them and sometimes adds to them.

Asked what Piccolo's feet look like, since he has never taken off his shoes, Toriyama seemed surprised to realise it. He said they are probably much the same as human feet, but with black toenails like his fingernails. In this movie Piccolo's fingernails are coloured black, as in the original manga, and they did try to do that a little.

The new animation method and director Kodama impressed Toriyama

The characters were animated with a new process in which models were created first and motion added afterwards. Toriyama said the major portions of the main characters were rechecked and edited countless times. He did not see the process after that, but found the lifelike movement very emotional. No question, they did good.

He has never met director Kodama in person but said he got a feel for his fastidiousness and sense of style through his editor. Seeing the images for the first time, he was particularly surprised by the composition, presentation, movement and the rain scene. The rain scene definitely looked great. I was expecting it not to, and it was fun.

Gamma 1 and 2 are Toriyama's idea of old school heroes

Toriyama said the Gamma androids were created by the brilliant Dr. Hedo, whose dream was for cliche heroes to appear. I love that, because Hedo is like a wannabe hero. Toriyama called the slightly old fashioned designs the embodiment of what he imagined heroes to be like when he was young, and said Hiroshi Kamiya and Mamoru Miyano breathed life into them with pitch perfect voices, making them cooler than expected.

For second viewings, he said the anime from 2013 onward, starting with Battle of Gods, has been a casual continuation of his manga. First time viewers might find the character relationships hard to follow and may need to learn about the series beforehand, but people who know it should grasp the content in one viewing. So the second time, he said, just enjoy the action and details.

Seeing the finished film, Toriyama was worried it might be plain

In his statement on the completed film, Toriyama said it was amazing, admitted that as the original author he may not be too convincing, and said that even as an old man he got really excited. Earlier stories had been set in space or other large scale settings, so this time he wanted to go back to the roots and use a small area of Earth. Add a Red Ribbon Army that did not make much of a splash originally, and Goku and Vegeta not being the leads, and he said he was worried the whole time it might be a bit plain.

That ties into a concern I have heard about at Toei: whether they could put out a movie without Goku and Vegeta as leads and still make money. So far it was doing tremendous business in Japan. Its first day did better than Broly's. People in Japan were hyped for this one, and I think there are more Gohan fans over there than people realise.

Toriyama said the second half battles gave him goosebumps

Toriyama credited Kodama and the outstanding anime staff with turning a small scale story into an amazing movie unlike any before, thanks to their flair and cutting edge imagery. The battles in the second half gave him goosebumps, especially the fight in the pouring rain, where he said the composition was so intense he went numb from adrenaline.

The last fight in this movie was crazy. I was told months ago that the finale was nuts. It is not a one on one fight like Gogeta versus Broly; it is a huge deal, and it was way more crazy than even I expected. Nobody told me anything else, and I had no idea how they beat the villain. That was a surprise to me, and I like going in not knowing everything.

Toriyama said Piccolo, Gohan, Gamma 1 and Gamma 2 are all so cool, and that he does not usually get excited about his own works, calling this the first time that has ever happened to him. He said all the trouble hashing things out with his editor was worth it, and thanked Kodama, the anime staff, the voice actors and his editor at Shueisha, who I take to be Akio Iyoku, his right hand man there. "I guarantee your heart will be racing by the time you leave the theater," he wrote.

It is Toriyama talking up his own product, and I love how he drew himself as Toribot in Piccolo's clothes. But I do not think he is exaggerating. The movie caught us all by surprise, people on social media are loving it, and it turned out surprisingly well.

So what do you think: by the end of Super Hero, has Gohan really surpassed Goku and Vegeta?