Dragon Ball’s Anime Is Staging A Big Comeback, So Why Are Fans Still So Worried?

Few anime franchises can boast the sort of lasting, overwhelming success enjoyed by Dragon Ball. For more than four decades, Akira Toriyama’s iconic creation has remained atop the anime and manga worlds, and that isn’t likely to change any time soon. Every year, Dragon Ball sets new franchise records in revenue while continuing to compete with the profits of the industry’s current biggest titles. Only one anime series featuring Goku and company has been released in the last decade, yet fans of Dragon Ball remain entirely loyal to the series.

Fortunately, Dragon Ball‘s ongoing dry spell will finally come to an end this year, with a remake of Dragon Ball Super‘s Battle of Gods arc scheduled for fall 2026. A proper continuation of Dragon Ball Super has also been announced as currently in production. For the first time in a long time, a roadmap is in place for the franchise.

However, there remains one major absence in Dragon Ball‘s triumphant 2026 return. The Dragon Ball Super manga, drawn by Toyotaro and written by Akira Toriyama, has remained on hiatus since Toriyama’s passing in 2024, and there is still no official word concerning its return. Dragon Ball‘s future is bright for now, though the franchise’s new era cannot begin until the manga returns.

Two Years Later, Dragon Ball Super Remains on Hiatus

The Manga Has Shown No Signs of Returning Since Its Final Chapter in 2024

In the years since the Dragon Ball Super anime ended in 2018, the series’ perpetually growing fan base turned to the manga’s version of events to fill the void. Drawn by Toyotaro with oversight from series creator Akira Toriyama, the manga continued far beyond the climactic Tournament of Power, and followed Goku into battle with new, uniquely terrifying foes. Now, nearly a decade on from its conclusion, the anime is finally set to return and bring one of those foes to life.

Fans have spent years expressing a desire to see Moro animated, and the series will grant their wishes by diving into the manga’s exclusive sections in the coming years. However, the manga has since traded places with the anime, and remains entirely inactive. While there’s no imminent trouble, Dragon Ball Super cannot stay sidelined for long. There’s understandable concern from Shueisha and Dragon Ball executives about continuing the story without Akira Toriyama, and it’s been made public that behind-the-scenes rights issues have left questions between all relevant parties.

For now, fans can be excited about Dragon Ball Super‘s anime return, but the fact of the matter is the franchise can only survive on existing stories for so long. The post-Toriyama era of Dragon Ball can only truly begin when both the anime and manga are active and progressing, with one helping to feed the other content for years to come.

Dragon Ball Super Has All It Needs to Make a Return

Toyotaro, who was handpicked by Akira Toriyama to draw Dragon Ball Super, has been relegated to drawing special illustrations featured in the monthly releases of V Jump. There remains little to no information about the manga’s continuation, though it has all it needs to return. Toyotaro has admitted that, though he was listed as the series’ writer, Toriyama slipped into more of an advisory role during Dragon Ball Super‘s later arcs. If the series’ creator felt comfortable leaving his work in Toyotaro’s hands, so should Shueisha and other Dragon Ball executives.

Dragon Ball Super is making its triumphant TV return later this year, and is kicking off its next era by correcting past wrongs and delivering a high-quality remake of the series. From there, the anime will move into manga-exclusive sections of the story, finally allowing fans a glimpse at Moro in action. Until the manga returns, however, the post-Toriyama era of Dragon Ball cannot truly begin.

Release Date

2015 – 2018

Network

Fuji TV

Directors

Ryota Nakamura, Masanori Sato, Kenichi Takeshita, Takao Iwai, Hideki Hiroshima, Masato Mitsuka, Kazuya Karasawa, Ayumu Ono, Takahiro Imamura, Tatsuya Nagamine, Kôjiro Kawasaki, Kouji Ogawa

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  Masakazu Morita

  Whis (voice)

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  Masako Nozawa

  Son Goku/Goku Black/Son Gohan/Son Goten (voices)