Dragon Ball’s Frieza is nothing short of an icon. With his multiple designs and his larger-than-life personality, Frieza is truly one of Akira Toriyama’s finest creations. A perfectly hateful and hateable villain who stands in stark contrast to the noble Goku. This is why it’s so surprising that he almost looked almost entirely different.
In 1990’s Akira Toriyama – The World, Toriyama revealed some of his early sketches for Frieza. While most of the sketches are similar to the ones fans know, a tiny tyrant, one is noticeably different. This version of Frieza is much larger than the ones fans are used to.
It’s unclear if this was originally Toriyama’s plan for Frieza’s base form, or if this was an alternate version of a transformation. Either way, the concept art is a drastic departure from what fans know.
Akira Toriyama’s Original Frieza Design Would Have Made a Much Different Character
Famously, Akira Toriyama based Dragon Ball’s Frieza on a land shark, reasoning that was the worst type of person he knew of. Given this, the larger design for Frieza has a sort of logic to it, as it could represent a more passive version of the character.
It’s unclear, though, how this version of Frieza would have differed from the canon one. Would this Frieza have been a fighter? Would he have transformed? It’s all unclear, making the design difficult to judge.
Akira Toriyama Made the Right Choice With Frieza’s Canon Design
Still, it appears like Akira Toriyama made the right choice by going with the smaller Frieza design. The canon Frieza has an element of contrast to him, as his small stature hides his unreasonable power.
Frieza is one of Dragon Ball’s strongest characters, but that’s not initially clear from his appearance.
By not appearing physically imposing, as Toriyama’s original design would have made him, Frieza is ironically scarier. Seeing massive fighters tremble before such a small character builds intrigue and makes fans curious about the villain’s true strength.
While the concept of a bigger villain for Goku to face is interesting, it doesn’t stand out as particularly unique in the world of manga.
To date, one of the biggest threats Goku has faced in Dragon Ball history is Jiren, a fighter who is larger than Goku and clearly flaunts his strength.
However, despite his raw power, Jiren just isn’t as interesting as Dragon Ball’s best villains.
Ultimately, Dragon Ball is a series that thrives on its uniqueness, and that’s why Frieza’s canon design is such an icon decades after he first debuted.
- Created by
-
Akira Toriyama
- Latest TV Show
-
Super Dragon Ball Heroes
- First Episode Air Date
-
April 26, 1989
