When it comes to shonen anime, there is only one series that stands at the top of them all as the biggest inspiration, and that's it Dragon Ballan iconic series created by one of the most famous mangakas of all time, Akira Toriyama. Dragon Ball has been a worldwide sensation for decades, and his influence is such that he is known outside the realms of anime and manga. Dragon Ball and Son Goku have reached unprecedented levels of fame in the past few decades.
My Hero Academia: Horikoshi pays great homage to Dragon Ball and Akira Toriyama
Horikoshi, creator of MHA, pays tribute to the late Akira Toriyama.
Unfortunately, with the unfortunate death of Toriyama, the series took a somewhat uncertain hiatus. That means next week, January 25, 2026, all of that is set to change. Dragon Ball Genkidamatsuri is finally fast approachingand fans are expecting huge projects to be revealed regarding both the anime side of things as well as video games. Fans are very excited to see what the future holds for Dragon Ball, especially after the last few rough years.
Dragon Ball is the father of Shonen anime
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The cult series that started in 1984
Dragon Ball has always been the father of modern shonen as it inspired a generation of mangaka and continues to inspire more today.. Shonen series before and after Dragon Ball are night and day apart and the only reason is Dragon Ball itself. All major Shonen have taken at least some inspiration from Dragon Ball, and this includes series like One Piece, Naruto, Bleach, and many more. Akira Toriyama's work, which began in 1984, still carries enormous weight even now in 2026, 42 years later.
“There would be no point in fighting you now; you are too scared and ashamed. Live with the shock. Keep it inside you. Goodbye Frieza, live the rest of your life in peace.”
Although Dragon Ball is not the best-selling manga of all time, it still holds its position in the top ten best-selling manga of all time with over 260 million copies in circulation worldwide, which is quite an impressive number for such an old series. It has only grown with the release of newer series and now, with Dragon Ball expected to return in 2026, fans are incredibly excited for the upcoming big revival soon.
Dragon Ball Genkidamatsuri is happening soon
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Genkidamatsuri will be held on January 25, 2026
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Dragon Ball's biggest 40th anniversary event
Dragon Ball is a fan-favorite series that has seen great success around the world, and fans of the series will be incredibly excited to know that the biggest day of all will finally arrive later this month. Indeed, on January 25, 2026, the biggest Dragon Ball will finally make some massive reveal, and needless to say, fans are incredibly excited.
“And this… is supposed to go even further!”
This upcoming event is called Dragon Ball Genkidamatsuri. As some fans may already know, this Dragon Ball Genkidamatsuri event is a celebration of the anime's 40th anniversary, and it's an exciting day for any fan of the series, especially since it could change the future of Dragon Ball forever.
Dragon Ball Genkidamatsuri could change the future of the series
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After Toriyama's death, the series took a big hiatus
Of course, Dragon Ball is one of the most famous and profitable anime and manga franchises in the world, and not many series can match it in this regard. The only anime series that can really rival or surpass Dragon Ball in popularity are Pokemon, One Piece, and Naruto.
However, despite its huge popularity, Dragon Ball faced some very big problems. In 2024, the creator of Dragon Ball, Akira Toriyama, diedand thus the franchise slowed significantly.
Without Toriyama, the franchise can technically never get any canon content again, and even manga like Dragon Ball Super has stalled.
After all, the brand is also facing some legal issues with the rights to the series. he said that its upcoming 40th anniversary event, Genkidamatsuri, could be what changes the franchise's future forever. Instead of dying, Dragon Ball will have several projects revealed and could revive the series and bring in fans, old and new.
Dragon Ball is Akira Toriyama's legacy and is already immortalized with more content to follow for decades. The story of Son Goku is far from over.
Dragon Ball Genkidamatsuri will reveal big projects
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New video game
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New animated content
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Stage action with voice actors
With Dragon Ball Genkidamatsuri coming up in a week, fans are sure to be curious about what could be in store for the series. Nothing is fully confirmed at this point, but there are plenty of leaks, and some are actually quite believable.
Firstly, Dragon Ball fans are anticipating the release of a new video game. It hasn't been too long since the last Dragon Ball video game. After all, the last one was Dragon Ball: Gekishin Squadra in 2025. However, fans are expecting a bigger game to come. Dragon Ball is quite famous for its spectacular video games and the next one could be its biggest yet. If Dragon Ball gets a new game, fans are hoping that some information will drop during the event, such as the name of the game or maybe even a small teaser.
In addition to video games, fans really want to see new animated content. The most recent animated content for Dragon Ball was in 2024 with Dragon Ball Daima. Daima was one of Akira Toriyama's last works and fans are hoping for a return with a second season. The story has been quite entertaining and fans would love to see it continue.
Of course, Dragon Ball Daima may not be the only animated content fans see. Fans are hoping that a new movie will be announced, and even though this movie won't be overseen by Toriyama, fans want to see the series live and get new theaters. The last Dragon Ball movie was in 2022, so the series is definitely overdue.
The biggest of all, however, is the Dragon Ball Super anime. Fans know that DBS ended in 2018 and since then fans have been clamoring for more. The biggest rumor at the moment is that Dragon Ball Super might be getting a remake soon. Fans also eventually expect a sequel the highly anticipated Mora arcand Dragon Ball Genkidamatsuri would be the perfect event to reveal that.
All this also exists in addition the possibility of announcing a continuation of the Dragon Ball Super manga. As fans know, the DBS manga stopped after Toriyama's death, but fans still want to see this story continue. Hopefully, the Dragon Ball Super manga return date will also be announced at this event.
In addition, fans can also expect to see action with voice actors such as Goku's voice actress Masako Nozawa taking center stage as well.
Source: X (formerly Twitter)
