Despite being two of the most successful and well-known anime series, Dragon Ball and One Piece are not without flaws and have faced valid criticism. This was evident in a recent discussion between fans of both series. One commonly cited issue is the similarities in facial features of characters drawn by their respective authors, Akira Toriyama and Eiichiro Oda.
Despite not being exclusive to Dragon Ball and One Piece, this does not detract from the high enjoyment of these series. However, it can be a frustrating aspect for some readers and viewers. Additionally, there have been instances where this criticism has been taken to the extreme, even though it has been proven multiple times that Oda and Toriyama do not always draw identical faces.
Please note that this article contains spoilers for both series.
Discussion on Similarities in Character Designs Between Dragon Ball and One Piece
Despite both series receiving ongoing criticism over the years, one recurring issue has been the similarity of some characters’ facial features. A notable example is the “Nami face”phenomenon in Eiichiro Oda’s manga, where several female characters, often ones that Luffy and his crew must rescue, bear a striking resemblance to Nami and have similar body types.
Despite being a valid criticism, it is worth noting that Oda tends to utilize the same template for multiple characters, a trait also shared by Akira Toriyama.
Throughout the series, Toriyama’s designs remained consistent and focused heavily on battles, particularly with the Saiyans. This could be attributed to the Super Saiyan transformations, which caused their hairstyles to become increasingly similar in shape and color.
“So he’s complaining that Family looks alike?”someone said regarding how most of the main Saiyans in the series look similar.
“If the DB characters don’t look identical, then neither do the OP girls. You can’t be looking for fine details in DB but then just do shallow broad strokes with OP. That’s some fanboy/hater s..t”someone else pointed out.
“At least they have genetics to blame idk how to scapegoat the OP face match,”another person said.
It should also be noted that in Dragon Ball, Toriyama incorporates the presence of alien races, which significantly impacts the story. A notable example of this can be seen in the Namekians, who share a striking resemblance to Piccolo, the first member of their race introduced to audiences in the series.
Oda has included characters in One Piece who share similar appearances without providing a clear reason, but he also incorporates a diverse range of designs that bear no resemblance to each other.
“This isn’t even slander i’ve been saying this s–t for literal years. The only difference between dragonball characters is what hairstyle they decide to go with,”a One Piece fan pointed out about Dragon Ball.
“Every character is literally drawn off model so they can look “the same” . Every character has their own facial features,”a Dragon Ball fan argued.
Additional Perspectives on this Topic
The prolonged existence of Dragon Ball and One Piece has caused a limitation in the creativity of the mangaka due to their distinct art styles and lengthy series. This can lead to a sense of repetitiveness in character designs and storylines.
“I always hated these posts bc you can tell they didn’t watch dbz. Goku’s eyes are way rounder and while the artstyle got more pointy and edgy over the course of the series, goku always kept his round eyes,”someone said about Dragon Ball.
“Notice how every discourse of dragon ball having same face syndrome is content made by fans and not actual material from the series,”another person mentioned.
“I like how the only ways you can tell the difference other than their hair and eye colour are the top corners of their mouth,”someone else said about One Piece.
Undoubtedly, Toriyama and Oda are regarded as two of the most talented mangaka in history and their series have become prominent symbols of popular culture. Nevertheless, they are not immune to criticism, even if it may not be well-received by their fans.
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