Farewell to an Unseen Master
Mar. 8th, 2024 09:36 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
krpalmerHaving kept watching anime for as long as I have sometimes still provokes trying to explain that, if only to myself. I’ve supposed not watching as many “new” series as I could might help evade becoming jaded and annoyed by “sameness,” although I’m not anywhere as selective and discerning as some people. As for also watching titles years or decades old, there are at least a few names out there I’ve let remain gaps in my knowledge.
As a result of that, one reaction following the first jolt at the news of the death of the manga artist Akira Toriyama was the awareness I’ve never taken more than the briefest of glances at his Dragon Ball manga or anime. I can’t be so grandiose as to claim I’m the only fan with that blind spot, but I was conscious of all of the people who’ve commented about Dragon Ball being a gateway title for them, and of comments the series is something more than just that, too. There’s at least the impression the anime showed up over here on the final borderline of “localizations becoming acceptable to many established fans,” but just perhaps that meant it not quite registering on me right away. I’m at least conscious that “lengthy shonen action series” are something I don’t dip into very often, but again some of the things I take in instead aren’t a sign of refined tastes. Aware Toriyama’s career encompassed more than Dragon Ball, I do wonder if other things he worked on have caught my attention a little more; at the same time, I’m aware they haven’t got to the point of trying to seek them out.
As a result of that, one reaction following the first jolt at the news of the death of the manga artist Akira Toriyama was the awareness I’ve never taken more than the briefest of glances at his Dragon Ball manga or anime. I can’t be so grandiose as to claim I’m the only fan with that blind spot, but I was conscious of all of the people who’ve commented about Dragon Ball being a gateway title for them, and of comments the series is something more than just that, too. There’s at least the impression the anime showed up over here on the final borderline of “localizations becoming acceptable to many established fans,” but just perhaps that meant it not quite registering on me right away. I’m at least conscious that “lengthy shonen action series” are something I don’t dip into very often, but again some of the things I take in instead aren’t a sign of refined tastes. Aware Toriyama’s career encompassed more than Dragon Ball, I do wonder if other things he worked on have caught my attention a little more; at the same time, I’m aware they haven’t got to the point of trying to seek them out.