Dragon Ball teases more content after DAIMA, but the future of the franchise is still unclear

It’s an exciting time to be Dragon Ball fan. After mourning the passing of Akira Toriyama last March and the understandable pause in the franchise that followed, Dragon Ball fans now have something to look forward to. With the premiere of a completely new, original Dragon Ball DAIMA anime series, new launch DAYMA range of merchandise and discussions about a bold new future for the franchise, the happy days appear to be returning. Dragon Ball fandom However, even as the franchise regains its creative momentum, legal concerns now threaten to halt its further development.

One of the lesser-known issues in creative industries such as manga and anime is intellectual property (IP) ownership. When Toriyama created Dragon Ballhe published it in Weekly Shonen Jumpmagazine owned by Shueisha, who ultimately own the rights to it and have given them to third parties (Toei for anime, Bandai and others for merchandise). However, over the decades Toriyama has managed to maintain some control over its creation, even if the legal details are unknown. It’s in these details Dragon Ballthe future lies.

DAIMA’s executive producer hints that the Dragon Ball franchise will be even more interesting

Akio Iyoku will play a fundamental role in the future of Dragon Ball

To fully understand potential legal restrictions that may prevent Dragon BallFor the company’s future as a franchise, it is important to first understand the context in which these limitations arise. These issues were highlighted in the July 8, 2024 issue of a prominent Japanese business magazine. Toyo Keizai Weeklywhich was later translated and posted on the popular Dragon Ball website Kanzenshuu. According to the article, the crux of the problem lies in the competing powers that Toriyama granted to both Shueisha and Akio Iyoku, his former main contact at Shueisha, head of the Dragon Ball department and executive producer of Dragon Ball. Dragon Ball DAIMA.

Iyoku seems confident that he understands Toriyama’s vision well enough to continue development. Dragon Ball stories even after Toriyama’s death. As reported by @SupaChronicles on X, during the special premiere DAYMAIyoku spoke to fans, hinting at new projects:

“We are still coming up with different plans, brainstorming and will continue to move forward.”

Over the years, Toriyama and Iyoku developed a close professional relationship, fostering a deep understanding between them. As a result, in 2022, when Iyoku left Shueisha to start his own intellectual property management company, he named it Capsule Corporation Tokyo, and Toriyama became his main client. According to the article, although the rights to the manga still belong to Shueisha, Iyoku acted as Toriyama’s representative. This has caused confusion and disagreement throughout Dragon Ball characteristicswhich was obviously only made worse by Toriyama’s sudden death. According to a Shueisha employee quoted in the article, “The decision is now up to Mr. Toriyama’s family.”

The future of Dragon Ball is unclear after Toriyama’s death

The battle for franchise rights may hinder the implementation of new projects

The main problem stems from the fact that Shueisha owns the intellectual property rights to the very central element Dragon Ball Franchise: manga. Manga is where it all started and continues to be the basis for everything. Dragon Ball The universe is canon. In fact, this year’s celebration marks the 40th anniversary of its founding. Dragon BallDebut in Shueisha’s manga line. Thus, Shueisha has a clear and significant right to control the development of the franchise, given that it owns the most important canonical component.

However, Toriyama clearly had a lot of trust in Iyoku. Interestingly, the article also mentions that when Iyoku left Shueisha, Toriyama was so upset that company chairman Marue Horiuchi personally went to his residence in Aichi Prefecture, “but was unable to persuade him.” While the details of the actual distribution of rights are unknown, it is clear that Iyoku is an important player, and Shueisha is apparently trying to involve Toriyama’s heirs in resolving the dispute.

As a result, the ongoing dispute between Shueisha and Iyoku goes away. Dragon Ball fans are in a bittersweet predicament, making this both the best and worst of times for the fandom. On the one side, promise of new anime content The stretch over the next few years is certainly interesting. However, this optimism is tempered by the possibility that some of this content may be non-canonical, despite being well produced. In addition, the ensuing battle for the rights Dragon Ball The franchise could become a quagmire, holding back all future projects.

Source: Kazenshuu; @SupaChronicles (X)