To call Dragon Ball Super controversial among the Dragon Ball fandom would be an understatement. With the anime getting off to a rocky start, and the manga having a somewhat inconsistent quality according to some, fandom has been split on how to feel about the current standard bearer for Dragon Ball.
One person who knows exactly how they feel about it, however, is longtime Dragon Ball editor Kzuhiko Torishima. At the recent Jump Festa 2026 convention, Torishima shared his thoughts on an iconic piece of art by Dragon Ball Super artist Toyotaro. In a post on X, Torishima points at Toyotaro’s iconic artwork depicting Dragon Ball Super’s strongest characters.
Where are they looking at? Who is the main character here? A drawing without purpose has no impact. Toy, good luck with the manga.
Though Torishima does wish Toyotaro good luck, it’s hard to deny that his critique of the mangaka’s work is nothing short of scathing.
How Valid is Torishima’s Criticism of Dragon Ball Super’s Art?
Fans fell in love with Toyotaro’s cover for Volume #24 of Dragon Ball Super’s manga. The cover depicts Goku, Vegeta, Gohan, Piccolo, and Broly all in their strongest forms. These characters have never been stronger, so seeing them unite was a true rush for fans starving for more Dragon Ball after Super’s hiatus.
Unfortunately, while the art is indeed epic, Torishima has a point. From a technical perspective, the artwork is definitely a bit messy. Each individual character is well done, but together, the lines of perspective combined with the direction of each character’s gaze make the art kind of jumbled, meaning it doesn’t quite come together as well as it could.
The artwork is very far from bad, but for a seasoned manga editor like Torishima, not bad isn’t good enough.
Dragon Ball’s Torishima Has Always Been Pushing the Franchise Forward
Torishima was famous for pushing Akira Toriyama to revise and rethink his artwork. This can most famously be seen in the Cell Saga, where Torishima thought Androids 19 and 20 would make poor final villains.
Given this, while his criticism of Toyotaro might seem harsh, it could be that he’s just pushing the younger artist in the same way that he had pushed Toriyama previously.
Unfortunately, given the strange purgatory Dragon Ball Super’s manga finds itself in, it’s unclear when Toyotaro will get to use Torishima’s advice practically.
Toyotaro recently released a piece of artwork depicting Ultra Instinct Goku and Beast Gohan, though, so it’s clear the artist is more than willing to continue his work on the franchise.
As is fitting with the themes of Dragon Ball, the series’ latest artist is still learning and growing stronger, same as Akira Toriyama when he was cutting his teeth on the world-famous series week to week. Hopefully, when Dragon Ball Super returns, Toyotaro will be better than ever.
- Release Date
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2015 – 2018
- Network
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Fuji TV
- Directors
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Ryota Nakamura, Masanori Sato, Kenichi Takeshita, Takao Iwai, Hideki Hiroshima, Masato Mitsuka, Kazuya Karasawa, Ayumu Ono, Takahiro Imamura, Tatsuya Nagamine, Kôjiro Kawasaki, Kouji Ogawa
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Masakazu Morita
Whis (voice)
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Masako Nozawa
Son Goku/Goku Black/Son Gohan/Son Goten (voices)
