Toriyama Akira ○-saku Gekijou
Akira Toriyama's Manga Theater

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"Akira Toriyama's Manga Theatre" is an excellent dive into several One-Shots by famous "Dr. Slump" and "Dragon Ball" author Toriyama Akira. It covers several different time periods of the mangaka’s career, displaying how his style of storytelling and artwork has changed. Almost all of the stories are relatively simple comedies with generic characters, yet they all have a simplistic charm to them that makes them worth reading. For this review I’ve opted to analyze each of the one-shots individually. I’ll give a brief summary of each story, attempting to avoid spoilers as best I can, and then I’ll follow up with my takeaways from the ... experience. Overall, the collection is well worth the time and money. It’s oozing with both history and charm. In addition, the hard cover volume is excellent and looks great on my shelf. Even if some of the stories are misses, I do think most fans of Toriyama’s work will enjoy owning this collection.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=Wonder Island=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Wonder Island follows a Petty Officer who gets trapped on a mysterious island. In its second chapter, a Police force works to catch a criminal who escaped to the very same island.

Perhaps my least favorite of the lot. It’s oddly wordy and not particularly funny. In the first chapter, only the final gag really got me, while the rest didn’t land at all. The second chapter is better, but most of it is built on a relatively weak skit that doesn’t really appeal to my comedic sensibilities. All of this is well drawn, but the only strong trait is the expression work. The paneling is particularly mundane, failing to keep my attention. I can see why this wasn’t a success.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=Tomato the Cutesy Gumshoe=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

This story follows a police officer who becomes the partner of a recruit, an 18-year-old girl named Tomato.

This manga collection has really brought to my attention how much Toriyama enjoys cop stories. Stories with very similar premises to Tomato make up over half of these One-Shots. Almost all of them involve the police in some form. Unfortunately, I think this is Toriyama’s worst application of the setting. As far as protagonists go, Tomato is annoyingly ditsy. Along with that, the story she’s in just isn’t particularly funny or interesting. I think it’s a testament to Toriyama’s growth that every subsequent one-shot with this similar premise gets better and better.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=Pola & Roid=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

This story follows a Space Taxi Driver and a Heroine of Justice teaming up and working together to topple a tyrannical fly-themed planet-wide empire.

This story is much better than the previous two, getting me to laugh out loud at several occasions. Pola and Roid are simple protagonists, but they work for the confines of this short story. In general, the pacing of the narrative is strong, with an ending that feels appropriately open ended. This is also where Toriyama starts to really step up the pace with his art. His expression work was already great, but now the panel compositions are much more dynamic and interesting. This story is also unique because it has a softer and rounder look due to Toriyama’s use of an autograph pen instead of his standard tools. You can tell that he’s had much more practice thanks to his work on "Dr. Slump". There’s even a cute reference in the end where the story starts to go a little off the deep end, but it manages to keep itself together through charm and decent comedy.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=Mad Matic=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Long ago a giant dragon terrorized the planet until the people trapped him in a giant refrigerator. Now, hundreds of years have passed, and the people of the land are being brought close to extinction once again by an invading army. Meanwhile, a man craving beer makes his way towards the massive fridge.

This story is exceedingly stupid in all the best ways. Toriyama has really gotten a good grip on his humor at this point, allowing for absurd moments that really land. It probably has one of my least favorite protagonists of these one-shots, but I think he’s still very appropriate for the story he’s in. The ending isn’t rushed, and it overall makes great use of its time.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=Chobit=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

This story follows a useless cop who works in a town in the middle of nowhere. Suddenly a tiny alien girl lands on Earth, helping him with his work.

Chobit is actually the first of these stories that I would have liked to keep on reading. While I think it could have used some refining, the premise here isn’t awful and could have easily sustained a short run similar in length to Toriyama’s "Sandland". The main protagonist isn’t fantastic, but Chobit is cute, and the cop’s siblings made for a relatively interesting dynamic. There is a surprising amount of bare breasted shots of Chobit.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=Today’s Highlight Island=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

A young boy named Kanta gets to school late and develops a tooth ache.

I really didn’t care for this story. The main protagonist is irritating, the side characters are whatever, the narrative is paper thin, and it’s not even funny. I completely forgot I read this and had little to no memory of what happened. This story shows off Toriyama’s tendency towards absurdist humor, but unfortunately fails to land.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=Escape=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

A young woman runs away from a looping threat.

This story is four pages long. It’s well drawn, but there’s very little to analyze. It’s over before you even realize what’s happening.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=Pink=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Pink is a young girl stealing water from a big shot businessman during a large drought. The businessman then calls up the local sheriff to put a stop to the girl’s criminal activity.

For those who are familiar, this story is essentially a much shorter version of Toriyama’s "Sandland" mixed with elements from the Red Ribbon Army Arc of "Dragon Ball". While it bears a lot of resemblance to those stories, it stands alone as a well-executed one-shot with decent execution. The pace is strong, and the characters are decently interesting if a bit one-note. Overall, this might be one of the best executed stories in this collection.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=Dragon Boy=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

A young boy is tasked with bringing a displaced princess back to her kingdom.

This story is Toriyama very clearly experimenting with ideas that would later make up the first arc of "Dragon Ball". While it’s a little flatter and more uninteresting than its younger brother, that’s understandable considering its length. It’s paced far too quickly to be a well told story, but it’s given no definitive end and treated as though it will be continued in serialized form. Overall, it makes for a bit of a confusing and uninteresting result.
The story also has a problem of introducing pointless ideas that it has no chance to do anything with. The mystery of Tangtong’s back and the miniature dragon orb things are basically worthless as plot points. They get absolutely no space to work with and make for a story that doesn’t seem to have its priorities straight. It feels like Toriyama was tossing everything at the wall he could, logic be damned.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=The Adventures of Tongpoo=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

A young boy searching for habitable worlds wakes up from his cryogenic slumber earlier than expected. A failure in his ship causes him to unexpectedly crash onto a nearby planet, meeting another stranded earthling in the process.

If "Dragon Boy" forms the skeleton of "Dragon Ball", then Tongpool forms the muscles that made the early arcs of “Dragon Ball” a major hit. Of particular interest are the character archetypes and technology. Everything from what would become Hoi-Poi capsules, a technologically savvy character, and a promiscuous teenage girl all are aspects that would later be refined in Toriyama’s future work.

That aside, what’s here is really engaging. There are a few very funny gags. There’s a great minor mystery that’s handled much better than Tangtong’s dragon powers in the previous story. The story is fairly original as far as Toriyama’s one-shots go and the dynamic between the protagonists is well realized. I would have loved to read more of this.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=Mr. Ho=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

A retired northern soldier is exploring the lands to the south when he comes across a bunch of former northern soldiers acting as gangsters in the region.

The protagonist for this story may just by my favorite of the lot. He’s essentially just Yamucha from "Dragon Ball" except with a hankering for bad puns. This means he’s just Yamucha but even better. The story itself isn’t amazing, but it’s pacing is good, and it has a solid ending that works as an inversion of the beginning. It’s nothing special, but it made for a very fun read.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=Young Master Ken’nosuke=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

A young traditional Japanese boy is asked on a date by a girl and must learn what that entails.

The story was a bit awkward to read due to all the formal language, but it made for a fun backdrop to both the aesthetic and the concept of the story. It’s not particularly funny, but I think it executes its idea competently. Not one of the best stories in this collection, but certainly not one of the worst.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=The Elder=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

A village elder must confront a man who litters.

This one is short and to the point, but very enjoyable. It doesn’t overstay it’s welcome while providing a few great absurd jokes. It’s not a particularly memorable story, but I think it does what it wants to very effectively.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=Little Mamejiro=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

A young boy gets his Ice Cream stolen by his dad so he decides to become a juvenile delinquent.

While the protagonist is a little obnoxious, I think it executes its ideas well. There are a few funny jokes, but overall, it’s not particularly noteworthy. I’ll take this chance to note that almost every single one of these stories has a protagonist who is physically powerful. There are few exceptions, but this includes most of the stories. It’s sort of funny to me that the three consistent themes for Toriyama one-shots are comedy, cops, and strong people.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=Karamaru and the Perfect Day=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

A young ninja boy goes to the nearby town to sell mushrooms to buy medicine for his sick grandfather. On the way he meets an older, yet more incompetent, ninja.

The main protagonist is absolutely adorable, as is his relationship with the man he meets on the road. It’s nothing particularly special, but it makes for an enjoyable read nonetheless. At this point most of Toriyama’s stories are fairly consistent, so there is less and less for me to say.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=Soldier of Savings Cashman=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

A space cop crash lands on Earth and must work to get enough money to repair his ship. To do this he becomes Cashman, a paid warrior of justice.

Overall, this may be my favorite story of the lot. Cashman himself is a pretty funny character, combining much of Toriyama’s more serious writing with a comedic tone. I like the stretched out time we get to spend with him, even though I wish the ending felt the tiniest bit less rushed. I feel like, much like "Chobit" and "The Adventures of Tongpoo", this is a concept that could stand to have gone on for a little longer. Cashman’s character design is solid and seeing him deal with both monsters and human life is surprisingly engaging. It reminds me a bit of the work Toriyama did with artist Katsura Masakazu on JIYA.

At this point the artwork has landed firmly in the style he has at the end of "Dragon Ball” but is still thankfully packed full of charm. Also, there’s a moment where the English translation references the Ocean dub of "Dragon Ball Z" and I found it very funny.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=Dub & Peter=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

A gruff young kid wants to get popular with the ladies, so he gets his genius friend Peter to make him a super powerful new car.

This story is alright, but it doesn’t really do much to make itself stand out from Toriyama’s other one-shots. Unlike with "Soldier of Savings Cashman", I don’t think the artwork really compliments the story especially well. I did enjoy the ending though, even if I saw it coming.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=Go! Go! Ackman=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

A young demon boy named Ackman is now 200 years old and ready to start harvesting human souls. However, an angelic rival keeps challenging him to duels in order to try and stop his demonic rampage.

I absolutely adored this set of stories. There are several chapters, so there’s plenty of time to get invested in the little demon boy’s antics. His rivalry with the angel is absolutely hilarious, making for some great comedic confrontations. Much like with some of the other stories in this collection, I just wish there was more of it. Stories like this are just oozing with Toriyama’s charm.

Wonder Island
The first part of wonder island is actually quite funny, and an interesting comedic take on a lone soldier trapped on an island post-war. I found this single chapter to be funnier than anything in Dragonball, and enjoyed the plot, although it's obvious there isn't enough with the character of Furusu himself to take this further. Due to this being Toriyama's first published story, it's interesting to see his character design skills and comedy so on point. From the get go he was a clear talent.

Wonder Island 2 is a far less succinct story, and makes far less sense. The gag's fall through, ... and are nowhere near as funny as the first part. However, Toriyama's design skills are fantastic, and his ability to distinctly draw characters is second to none. Even characters appearing for a few pages have intense personality to them, and look incredibly lively. Movement in panels is extremely clear as well, showing Toriyama's early mastery. The pacing however is a bit off, and mid way through Toyiyama even writes in the panel "gotta move the plot along", so he recognized that was a shortcoming. Anytime you need to do that, you don't succeed in pacing.

Tomato The Cutesy Gumshoe
Combining the best aspects of both parts of wonder island, this story begins to feel much similar to Dr.Slump, and retains many hallmarks of what becomes toriyama's later style. Not just in character designs that end up feeding into Arale or Bulma, but even in the usage of vegetable names. There is not much here that doesn't exist in the previous parts, but it is definitely an upgrade, and a refining of style.

Pola and Roid
The first thing about this manga is how visually stunning it is compared to the previous. Perhaps due to the Star Wars inspiration, but Toriyama really turns it up a notch here, and the designs pop out. Both Pola and Roid are fantastically designed, as well as the landscapes, machines, and robots which stand out from anything else in manga. You can see his experience on Arale-chan in this manga. Unlike the previous two which were still grounded in something that didn't feel "toriyama", this manga feels like Toriyama built a universe, and realistically this is inside the Arale/Dragonball universe since there are multiple references to Arale like a watch and manga, and a character dresses up as her as a gag. There is still weakness in the pacing, but it's very interesting to watch Toryiama improve his pacing over time. An intersting thought is that the martial arts pacing in Dragonball might be the final puzzle piece Toriyama needed for a masterpiece. Arale is great, but it's not Dragonball. Much of the fault of these earlier works tends to lie in the pacing, but realistically the pacing is the complete inverse of Dragonball. While Dragonball(z) are very 'slow', with long drawn out staring contests, and power up scenes like a bruce lee, or kurosawa film, these earlier mangas are almost ADHD in their pacing, with the story progressing far too quickly. It's possible that Toriyama luckily fell into a concept that forced the pacing rate down, finally perfecting the formula. It's also something not exclusive to these earlier mangas, as I've read things like Jaco and Kajika, and they have similar pacing issues that don't come through in Dragonball. Granted, this manga was written in a short period of time, but it's still an effect you can feel.

Mad Matic
There is not much to say about this story, other than it begins to include more of Toriyama's ability to weave a character's unique personality into the story line. Similar to Goku, the character makes friends with a dragon that would normally kill someone, and then uses said dragon to stop the evil bad guys. This is very characteristic of Toriyama.

Chobit
Sadly, while being the longest of the stories yet, Chobit really boils down to not much, and an excuse to see a cute girl in weird situations. There is not even any redeeming comedy here that makes it enjoyable compared to some of the previous stories. Very little plot or character development.

Today’s Highlight Island
This is a short crude story about a boy very similar to Toriyama himself. Published in 1979, this predates Dr.Slump, and comes from a much younger Toriyama. While the story is really not that great, and the main character is not very likable, the art is of particular excellence for such a young Toriyama. It’s easy to see how starting from such an amazing foundation, Toriyama became an absolute master.

Escape
Hardly a chapter, 5 pages, but Toriyama has outstanding art. Must be said, this feels a lot like Dragonquest.

Pink
Interesting little Sheriff/Mafia story, where the mafia boss is named Silver, much like Dragonball, and other Red Ribbon characters have color names hence the title “Pink”. Something I’ve always liked about Toriyama is his ability to draw female characters that come across incredibly femanine compared to many other mangaka. The thing that strikes me about this is how much this feels like the recent Boba Fett series in some aspects. Perhaps it is that fusion of eastern with sheriff/outlaw story, with elements of a water struggle and star wars inspired vehicles and weapons. I haven’t read Sand Land yet, but I hear that it has a similar vibe. Plot and action wise, this manga is one of the better ones and it’s easy to see how many elements get lifted into full manga.

Dragonboy
Pretty fantastic manga here, and it’s obvious why; it’s basically dragonball. Only some minor changes. This is the first manga that is a clear Shonen.

Adventures of Tongpoo
Many elements in Dragonball are found here, such as being frozen in status, capsules, Plano looking a lot like bulma, cyborgs, and the Dragonball-esque storyline. I really enjoyed this one, almost as much as Dragonball, and I could read more about Tongpoo, and I’m sort of disappointed I can’t. I guess that’s just Dragonball.

Mr.Ho
Many elements of this story are definitely reused throughout Dragonball’s Red Ribbon arc, and that isn’t a bad thing at all. Many of the best manga are remixes/remasters of previous one-shots, refined into a cohesive universe. That’s one thing to really take away from these Pre-Dragonball storylines. It must be said the main character is extremely similar to Yamcha, but with more shooty than punchy.

Young Master Ken’nosuke
Extremely different from anything that came previously, with a very un-toriyama writing style, but toriyama storytelling. The entire plot is essentially for the sake of the gag, and while it’s quite a strong gag it doesn’t establish the main characters very well. No one has a strong personality, and there is little in the world that leaves you wanting more like some of the previous chapters. However, it is a good shift of style, and I can’t complain about variety in a volume like this, as too many shonen adventures would get old.

The Elder
Master Roshi stars in the Fast and Furious. Enjoyable story told in Toriyama’s unique comedy/action blend.

Little Mamejiro
A 6 year old tries to become a juvenile delinquent, because his father ate his ice cream. Bruh. 10/10 premise not gonna lie, but sadly a story like that really doesn’t have legs beyond a one-shot.

Karamaru and the Perfect Day
If Goku was a wholesome Ninjaboy trying to save his grandpa in 18th century Japan.

Soldier of Savings Cashman
Straight out of the gate, the art style here is noticeably closer to DragonballZ, with the “muscle-y” Tetsuo Hara style men, sharper, less rounded edges, and including a “superhero”(alien), ala Ultraman, that look extremely similar to Freiza/DBZ aliens in general. However, at its core this is another cop story, and Toriyama can’t seem to get away from this plot. That isn’t a criticism, cause it seems they always end up in completely different places.The action in Cashman is also much better than some of the previous choreography, despite the goofy premise of “Cashman” rescuing people for payment.

Something of note across all of Toriyama’s stories are a few consistent themes. Whether it’s justice, cars, cop stories, aliens/spaceships/robots, or even “dating”, which is found in a large amount of stories. These are hallmarks of what make Toriyama himself, and sets him apart from other artists beyond his visual style, or writing. It’s funny because most of these stories are written well after Toriyama is not just married, but has children that are at least 5-6? So it’s pretty funny seeing his obsession with “messing up dates”.

I actually enjoy Cashman a lot, maybe as much as Tongpoo and Dragonboy, which end up being made into Dragonball. The battle between Cashman and Kazuo Kariyama was pretty awesome frankly, without taking itself too seriously. The “universe power ranking” that it sort of establishes would be interesting to see where Cashman fits into the wider Toriyama universe.

Dub and Peter
Not a big fan of Dub or Peter, to be honest. Containing the same car and get the girl tropes of Toriyama’s previous chapters, this one doesn’t really have anything that stands out. The main character is sort of a loser, and the motivations are thin. Not much to see here, which is sad because the most stand out quality is actually that this all takes place in Pepper Town, which is canonically inside the Dragonball Universe. Someone on this planet, Goku is around doing some stuff, and when the most interesting thing about your story is that Goku might, just MAYBE be around the corner....eh....

Go! Go! Ackman
We’ve arrived at the final story, and perhaps the longest of all yet. The style is noticeably more Dragonquest, which is a very good thing, and personally something I enjoy seeing. Right out of the gate the premise of Ackman is fantastic, and the tongue and cheek writing style of Toriyama matches that story in a similar way it matches Dragonball. Ackman is a failed demon, really unable to live up to his father’s legacy of soul harvesting, with a weakness for nude women. To offset this, Toriyama introduces an interesting rival Angel, who is far more “evil” than ackman, and ends up helping Ackman fulfill his goals. I really enjoyed this story and I’m disappointed there isn’t more.