Akira Toriyama was one of the most beloved and influential authors and artists in the world. It’s no exaggeration that Shounen would not be what it is today without him. While many of us take these tropes for granted, they wouldn’t be what they are today without Toriyama’s influence. Today, we’ll be paying our respects to Akira Toriyama by covering the legacy of 9 Shounen tropes he popularized.

Tournament Arcs in Shounen

Let’s start with the heavy hitters. The Tournament Arc has become a staple of most modern Shounen, and sometimes, we get an anime that is just one huge tournament arc. The World Martial Arts Tournament from Dragon Ball can be considered the grandfather of all Tournament Arcs.