Akira Toriyama’s Dragon Ball franchise is a licensed shonen basic, effortlessly combining laugh-out-loud humor with thrilling motion scenes, compelling story arcs and unforgettable characters. Nevertheless, a daring anime fanatic has damaged new floor for the franchise by means of fan artwork that merges the world of Dragon Ball with that of Katsuhiro Otomo’s 1988 sci-fi masterpiece, Akira.
A gifted fan artist who goes by NICO (or @nicocolors) on X (previously Twitter) lately unveiled idea artwork modeled after Akira‘s unique movie poster. The unique picture depicts central protagonist Shotaro Kaneda as he approaches his iconic bike. Initially posted on June 25, 2024, @nicocolors’ model reimagines the scene with Future Trunks strolling towards the time machine he makes use of throughout Dragon Ball Z‘s famous “Androids Saga.” Moreover, Akira’s title textual content is changed with the phrase “HOPE,” — a reference to Trunk’s unflinching dedication to defeat the androids and take again Earth’s future from their villainous creator, Dr. Gero.
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New Paintings Completely Combines the Worlds of Dragon Ball and Akira
NICO’s intelligent inventive tribute is definitely a part of a a lot bigger fan undertaking. Earlier this yr, the creator launched a prologue chapter for a brand new self-created manga undertaking titled “Not Taken,” seen above. Set within the Dragon Ball universe, the manga’s plot explores what might need occurred if Kakarot had by no means landed on Earth after being despatched into area as a child. NICO’s unique X description reads: “What would be the destiny of Kakarot, who has made an emergency touchdown on a planet apart from Earth? A battle begins over ‘one thing’ that’s on that planet and associated to Frieza.” The prologue’s debut was accompanied by fan artwork that additionally paid tribute to Akira‘s unique film poster. Notably, considered one of these illustrations options Goku’s father, Bardock — initially an anime-original character who ultimately grew to become canonized within the Dragon Ball manga collection.
Written and directed by Katsuhiro Otomo, who additionally created the manga model, Akira transports viewers to the cyberpunk-style world of Neo-Tokyo — a vibrant dystopian metropolis tormented by terrorism and authorities corruption. One evening, Tetsuo Shima, the most effective pal of central protagonist Shotaro Kaneda, crashes his bike into Takashi, an esper who’s on the run from Neo-Tokyo’s authorities. After Tetsuo and Kaneda are taken into custody, it’s found that Tetsuo additionally possesses highly effective psychic talents that he cannot management, making him a brand new authorities goal. Decided to assist Tetsuo, Kaneda groups up with an anti-government activist named Kei. In the meantime, Tetsuo seeks out a robust esper named Akira who might maintain the important thing to mastering his newfound talents.
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Dragon Ball and Akira Each Had a Large Affect on Abroad Anime Viewers
Whereas Dragon Ball and Akira are vastly totally different works, they’re united by a mutual icon standing that has withstood the take a look at of time. Together with Pokémon and Sailor Moon, each franchises have been credited for popularizing anime in North America. Moreover, each works launched basic themes and tropes that will develop into prominently featured in future manga and anime collection. Concerning the “Not Taken” fan manga, NICO doesn’t point out if Akira particularly influenced the collection. Nevertheless, their cleverly designed Akira x Dragon Ball idea illustrations will undoubtedly make a powerful impression on anime followers who’ve fond recollections of Otomo’s legendary science-fiction flick.
Dragon Ball followers can discover further updates relating to NICO’s “Not Taken” manga through their X page. The unique Dragon Ball manga, along with Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball Tremendous, is out there in English from VIZ Media. Akira is presently accessible to stream on Hulu.
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Dragon Ball
Dragon Ball tells the story of a younger warrior by the title of Son Goku, a younger peculiar boy with a tail who embarks on a quest to develop into stronger and learns of the Dragon Balls, when, as soon as all 7 are gathered, grant any want of selection.
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Akira (1988)
A secret army undertaking endangers Neo-Tokyo when it turns a biker gang member right into a rampaging psychic psychopath who can solely be stopped by an adolescent, his gang of biker associates and a bunch of psychics.
Sources: X (formerly Twitter), YouTube
