I: Have you been to the anime production studio or the post-recording site?

TA: About two or three years after starting the Dragon Ball serial, I went to the post-recording site. I visited the place where they were recording the voices, and my honest opinion was, "What an arduous task!"

I: Have you ever thought of trying your hand at voice acting?

TA: No way, not at all!! Not on your life!! (enormous laughter) I can never do anything like that!

I: What are your thoughts about the fact that "pictures move" in anime?

TA: I'm always impressed, "Animators are amazing." They have to draw the steps between one movement and another, so I'm impressed that they can get the timing down so well. That's something that I can't imitate. Also, I am jealous of the way anime can render sudden movement so well.

I: How about the way waza (special techniques) are rendered in special effects?

TA: I am very envious of the fact that they can use "light." In anime, a scene with an explosion can be rendered with a brilliant flash of light and sound, but with manga, the only thing I can do is to put in an onomatopoeia for an explosion, so it seems to lack a little punch (laughter).

I: So, I gather the area of sound concerns you?

TA: Yes! The fact that they can use sound effects like explosions and use sound tracks makes me jealous.

I: When you actually draw manga, do you ever try matching sound tracks with the scenes you draw?

TA: No, that never happens. However, when seeing the actual animation, and upon hearing the sound track to a climatic scene, I'd often comment, "This is nice." Verily, with the manga, I just can't draw while humming "fa la la la" (laughter). I'd turn into an idiot (laughter).

I: Do you have any songs that fit the image of Goku?

TA: Hmmm..., I'm not sure. In any case, I think the song would probably be bright, with a good tempo; the tempo would be upbeat, yet have a carefree air to it.

I: When you are drawing the manga, do you ever unconsciously mouth the lines?

TA: I don't speak the lines, but apparently, my face unknowingly gestures the same facial expressions as the characters that I draw (laughter). People such as my assistant and my wife point this out to me. During fighting scenes, a character's face is often severe, you know, "Rrrrr." So, my face would look just like it, "Rrrrr" (laughter). Therefore, afterwards, my face would all ache (laughter). I guess I'm a type that gets sucked into the story.

I: After seeing the animated Dragon Ball, were there any influences of the anime on your work on the manga?

TA: I once worked with Animation Director Ashida Toyo'o, and after speaking to him and seeing some of his anime work, I realized "Sharper lines are better for rendering battle." Also with coloring, I used to blend them together, but afterwards, I began to distinctly differentiate the transition of colors, just like in anime. I discovered that differentiating the colors had just the same effect as blending the colors. Furthermore, the sharp coloration seemed more fitting to a shonen-shi [boy's comic magazine], and coloring also became easier for me. These were the twin influences of Ashida-san and anime.

I: Have you ever seen any foreign broadcasts of the TV series Dragon Ball?

TA: I havenšt seen any directly, but I have seen parts of some that were introduced on a special TV program. I was very weird, but I just thought, "oh well." Particularly, I saw a scene where Goku was eating something, and he exclaimed, "Ah, c'est bon!", and I couldn't help but think it just didn't match (laughter).

I: Do you remember the first anime that you ever watched?

I: What do you think about Dragon Ball, whose popularity today is comparable to the popularity of yesteryear'sTetsuwan Atom?

TA: Is that so?

I: Yes, it is! (Enormous laughter) Well, now that we got a lot of laughs in, I would like to close this interview. Thank you very much for the long time today.

* Information about anime will be continued in DB Daizenshuu Volume 5.

(June 5, 1995, At Toriyama Akira's residence)