Akira Toriyama: podcast appearances and interviews

Akira Toriyama was a Japanese manga artist and character designer known for his significant influence in the manga industry. He initially gained recognition with his manga series Dr. Slump, which was serialized in Shueisha’s Weekly Shōnen Jump magazine and earned the 1981 Shogakukan Manga Award for best shōnen series. The series achieved commercial success, selling over 35 million copies in Japan, and was adapted into an anime with a second series produced in 1997. Toriyama’s most renowned work is the Dragon Ball manga, which he created from 1984 to 1995. This series became one of the best-selling manga of all time, with 260 million copies sold worldwide, and played a major role in elevating manga circulation and international popularity of anime. Beyond his work in manga, he contributed as a character designer for various video games, notably the Dragon Quest series, Chrono Trigger, and Blue Dragon. Acknowledging his artistic achievements, Toriyama was decorated as a Chevalier of the French Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 2019. Following his death on March 1, 2024, he was posthumously inducted into the Harvey Awards Hall of Fame in October 2024.