The Viral 'Equal Power' Quote From Dragon Ball Super's Toyotaro Was Mistranslated, and His Spine Art Comments Hint at More Volumes to Come

There is a ton of misinformation going around right now based on a mistranslation that came from an interview with Toyotaro in volume 24 of the Dragon Ball Super manga. I want to walk through exactly what was mistranslated, what was actually said, and then get into something else Toyotaro mentioned in that same interview about the future of the series that I missed in my previous coverage.

The Viral Mistranslation Claims Toyotaro Said Five Characters Have Equal Power

The wrong translation that has been circulating quotes Toyotaro as saying, "As I mentioned earlier, I wanted to show that the power of all five characters is the same, which is why I created this composition." He is talking about the cover art for volume 24, which features Ultra Instinct Goku, Ultra Ego Vegeta, Gohan Beast, Orange Piccolo, and final full power Broly. People have taken that quote to mean Toyotaro was saying all five of those characters are equal in power, which we know is not the case.

The actual translation, from the same interview, has Toyotaro being asked about the cover showing everyone in their strongest forms. His real answer was, "Like I said before, I wanted to depict the rivalry between the five of them, and that cover illustration was born from that. I worked like crazy on the cover, and I don't think I'd be willing to devote so much time to a cover again in the future." That is a completely different statement from claiming they are all equally powerful.

Why the Power Levels of Those Five Characters Clearly Are Not Equal

We know Orange Piccolo is not as strong as Gohan Beast. We know Broly, despite having the potential to be very powerful, is still training with Goku and Vegeta and still learning how to control his power. And Gohan and Goku had a sparring match in chapters 101 through 103 that Gohan barely won, and even that outcome is up for debate. None of that lines up with a claim that all five characters are equal.

What Toyotaro was actually describing was a rivalry, meaning all five are striving to be as strong as possible, which fits the message Dragon Ball has carried going back to the beginning: be the absolute best you can be, and don't try to be like someone else. That is the message Toriyama left before he passed away, reflected in recent Dragon Ball Super storylines. Beast Gohan, Ultra Ego, and Ultra Instinct are all different pathways to power, and each character is doing the best they can on their own path.

Black Frieza on the Cover's Backside Adds Another Wrinkle to the Power Debate

On the backside of that same volume 24 cover is Black Frieza, who is also part of this power level conversation. We know Black Frieza is stronger than Ultra Instinct Goku and Ultra Ego Vegeta, and because of that, he is probably stronger than Orange Piccolo, Broly, and maybe even Gohan Beast. I have seen some people debate whether Gohan Beast might actually be stronger than Black Frieza, but I do not think there is enough evidence for that yet.

Toyotaro's Comments About Already Drawn Spine Art Hint the Manga Will Continue

Later in that same volume 24 interview, Toyotaro discussed the spine art, which is the artwork on the side of the book that shows when you place volumes next to each other on a shelf, building into one wide connected image, the same way the original Dragon Ball manga did it. He said, "The characters appearing on the spine art are decided and drawn several volumes in advance, so I hadn't thought that I'd end up in a situation where the front cover features powerhouses and the spine art features a total weakling. Incidentally, I've already drawn the future spine art characters, which I hope everyone will get to see soon."

The fact that he has already drawn spine art for volumes that have not come out yet is another clue that Toyotaro at least seems to be under the impression that the manga will continue. Even so, he is very vague about it. He is not directly saying he has been working on a great arc that is coming out soon, or that he has new characters ready to be revealed. There is nothing concrete there, just this small hint buried in his comments about the spine art.

Shueisha's Silence Leaves the Manga's Future Unclear

There is still no update on the broader situation with Shueisha, nothing about what is actually going on behind the scenes. Someone connected to the franchise is still obviously involved, having helped promote Dragon Ball Daima, so that side of the franchise is still in the mix, but there has been no resolution to the broader question. Dragon Ball Super remains on hiatus, and I cannot stand how Japan handles this kind of thing, because they simply do not communicate. If they told us the next chapter would arrive in a specific month, that would be appreciated, but instead we are left waiting with no timeline.

Does the spine art comment mean Toyotaro has more story already written? Does it mean there is more artwork finished that we do not know about? Even Toyotaro himself is vague about it. It is frustrating, but hopefully this clears up not just the mistranslation but also adds another clue that there are supposed to be more volumes coming. If there are truly no more volumes coming, that needs to be stated clearly, but as of right now, nobody, not Toyotaro, not Shueisha, not any of the Jump magazines, has said that. Even people who normally dig up leaks are having trouble finding information because things are being kept so quiet at the top.

What do you think Toyotaro's already finished spine art is hinting at for the future of the manga?