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The story
Demolition work is underway on the workshop-and-home of manga artist Akira Toriyama in Kiyosu, Aichi Prefecture. Toriyama passed away in 2024, and the Mainichi Shimbun reported on November 3 that locals and others connected to him are expressing regret over the disappearance of this “sacred site” that gave birth to Dragon Ball and other classics. On 5ch, opinions split between those who felt the building should have been preserved and those who argued demolition was unavoidable given upkeep costs and the impact on neighbors. Many also questioned Aichi’s handling of the matter, pointing to the existence of memorial museums for Fujiko F. Fujio and Machiko Hasegawa.
Farewell to the ‘Dragon Ball’ Sacred Site: Akira Toriyama’s Workshop to Be Demolished — Aichi | Mainichi Shimbun
Nov 3, 2026, 08:15 (Last updated Nov 3, 09:27)
Demolition work is underway on the building in Kiyosu, Aichi Prefecture, that served as the workshop of manga artist Akira Toriyama, creator of the globally popular manga and anime Dragon Ball among other works, who passed away in 2024. Locals and others connected to him are voicing regret over the loss of this “sacred site” that produced so many celebrated works.
Source: mainichi.jp / Original article here
What people said
Yeah, once that strongest-and-most-evil Frieza got sliced up by some scrawny kid who claimed to be from the future, I really lost interest.
If it had just ended there, it would've been a legend.
Net users just love talking about inheritance tax.
It doesn't affect us plebs, and watching rich heirs struggle scratches that resentment itch perfectly.
That said, I'd think Dragon Ball royalties still bring in more than that anyway, so… I guess it's not really about the money.
It's owned by a company, so inheritance tax doesn't apply. And it's out in the countryside, so property tax isn't that high either.
– Kamehameha (Master Roshi)
– Kaio-ken (King Kai)
– Spirit Bomb (King Kai)
– Instant Transmission (the Yardrat people)
– Jan-Ken Punch (his grandfather Gohan)
– Solar Flare (Tien)
– Afterimage Technique (Master Roshi)
– Flight / Kinto'un-style soaring (the Crane Hermit school)
– Mafuba, the Evil Containment Wave (Master Mutaito)
Rookie — go look up the Dragon Fist (Ryūken, the move he came up with himself in GT).
I feel like there was also 'Kyōken' (the 'Mad Fist,' or was it 'Mad Dog'?) — isn't that an original one too?
There's definitely one — 'Pan-Pan' (the move that sealed the deal with Chi-Chi; it's a cheeky double entendre, not an actual technique).
That's because manga isn't considered 'art.'
But every region keeps the studio of some random obscure artist preserved, though.
It literally says 'home' — it was his home AND his workshop.
Re: #41
Yeah, guess you're right.
You'd think Fujiko F. Fujio or Machiko Hasegawa would be too old-school to have anything, but no, they've got proper museums. This news really drives home just how carelessly his hometown has treated him.
Ichiro Mizuki, you say?! ZETTO!! (a nod to Mizuki's famous shouted battle cry from his anime theme songs)
What are you even talking about? Akira Toriyama, Ichiro (the baseball player), and Mao Asada are Aichi's three great icons.
Why are you putting him on the same level as Shakespeare?
He's basically the Shakespeare of the Heisei and Reiwa eras, that's why.
No way, no way. He's not even ranked top-tier among manga artists. If it were Tezuka, Akatsuka, Mizuki (Shigeru), or Oda, I could maybe see it, at a stretch.
Tezuka aside, Mizuki and Oda really don't measure up to Toriyama.
One of those names doesn't belong on that list.
With his royalty income, covering upkeep costs should be a breeze, you'd think.
Having something like that in a residential area would just be a nuisance to the neighbors. And building a new facility elsewhere, you'd hesitate once you factor in construction and ongoing maintenance costs.
We don't really know how the rights are set up. If everything belongs to Shueisha, then aside from opening the workshop to the public, there's nothing the family can really do on their own.
No, Dragon Ball has worldwide name recognition — I bet quite a few foreign fans would've come to visit. Kiyosu doesn't really have any other tourist attractions anyway. What a waste.
Foreign tourists showing up is probably just seen as a nuisance anyway. Look at the mess the Slam Dunk 'sacred site' turned into.
He's got fans all over the world, you know.
Seriously, this. If they're going to build some kind of museum, it'd be better to put it somewhere convenient to reach.
Background and Key Points of This Discussion
Akira Toriyama was a manga artist who passed away in March 2024, and the building reported to be facing demolition was his home-and-workshop in Kiyosu, Aichi Prefecture. The thread floated speculation that the family gave it up due to the burden of inheritance or property taxes, but others pointed out that if the building is registered under a company rather than an individual, inheritance tax wouldn’t directly apply, and since it’s in a suburban area, property tax likely isn’t especially heavy either — so the basis for the ‘tax burden’ theory isn’t clear. The existence of memorial museums for Fujiko F. Fujio and Machiko Hasegawa led some to frame Aichi’s response as uniquely cold, but those facilities were newly built after their deaths, which is a different premise from preserving a private home as-is. Additionally, since Shueisha manages the copyright to Toriyama’s works, it’s unclear whether the family could unilaterally turn the property into a memorial museum, and the reporting alone doesn’t reveal the full circumstances behind the demolition or what alternatives, if any, were considered.
*This article is compiled from excerpts and a summary of the 5ch (Entertainment & Sports News+) thread “[Manga Artist] Farewell to the ‘Dragon Ball’ Sacred Site: Akira Toriyama’s Workshop to Be Demolished — Aichi.”
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