Hey Y’all,
This is something different, something I should have known one day would come, but damn. The first comic that really captured me was Calvin and Hobbes. The storytelling with a few lines, great moments, and big smiles. Then came Dragon Ball.
There were a lot of comics in between, and I forgot how I found Dragon Ball. I found two issues randomly, but they were some of the best treasures. One was Chapter 38: Water and Cheesecake. Yes, I enjoyed the cheesecake. What really got me was Namu’s back story and the fight itself. These were comics like others. It was cartoony, but clear and simple. With great action. The Next, Chapter 57: Storming of Muscle Tower. This was so much fun. This little kid was fighting these guards in the snow. It was so much fun and the first big inspiration, THE COLOR. I’ll get to that in a bit.
I didn’t know these were from Japan. I was a kid and they were comics. I remember sleeping over at a friend’s house and waking up at 05:30 to Dragon Ball. It didn’t dawn on me that was that comic, it was early. Years went by and luckily Toonami finds in a lot of gaps. I cannot tell you what that time was like. I remember setting up a VHS to record episodes when we were out of the house. I almost missed Super Sayain for a haircut. I remember buying the Garlic Junior Saga VHS. Oh, those were expensive and terrible haha. I loved the movies and the show, up until the Cell saga. Looking up things on the internet, man… GT is going to be the best.
Time went on. I feel out of Dragon Ball then back in. I remember buying the VIz Big of Dragon Ball. Man, I still love these even though we need better. Read ’em, digested them. Time moved on and I decided to try Dragon Quest. It was crazy to find these great Toriyama art in the best images. Seeing them in full 3d in XIII and just solid pixel art in the older. Elven was magical, so why not check out this Dragon Warrior Cartoon? Another thing I fell in love with. I remember watching them as an adult and wishing I saw them as a child. The characters, the villains. It was cheesy at times, but for all the rough patches it was easy to see the charm.
While this was going on, life got hard. I remember I thought got my big break out into comics, that turned into a disaster. I had to scramble to find work and try to stand on my own. THE HARDEST THING I HAVE EVER DONE WAS TO PUT MY DREAMS ON HOLD. It almost killed me. I then got lucky and found a Security job that let me draw when guests weren’t around. Perfect, let me put out my comic to the world. Months went by then a problem happened. Let’s put Greathouse on the morning shift. I am not a morning person. It worked out especially on Sunday since no one would come to bug me.
The issue, I didn’t want to work on my real comic, but need to work on art. I was watching Dragon Warrior and a lot of Critical Role, so why not design my own cartoon? Something simple, just enjoy creating. I started to sketch and lead to this.
I loved his limited color palette. This felt like the perfect time to mess around with ’em. Then I did this sketch. I mean Yasemine is a mix of Yanak and … I mean The YA is a clue too. I had so much fun doing this, so I thought… Okay. Let’s do the first five pages. Let’s scratch this itch. This is a love letter to Toriyama, only one way to do page one.
That caption box I got for Dragon Ball. Goku jumps off the edge with no issue. Bang… not so much. I fell so hard into this series. This might never make me a ton of cash, but this has brought me so much joy. There are more Dragon Ball and Dragon Quest in the DNA of Bang, but spoilers. Easy to say, this man has been a huge inspiration to my art which is one of the best parts of my life!
I do think Bang got some bit, so I submitted it to The Ayukawa Tetsuya Award. It was the first time opened up to the world at large. I believe it was first place, but some of the top Manga artist would review your work. One of them was Akira Toriyama. It didn’t get that far. I hold a dream to not only meet him, but have a conversation. The wildest dream, have Bang drawn by him. Love to see how he would handle my ideas. It’s a dream that died this year. Some will say the ego is on me, but never know what life will deliver.
I am grateful I lived when his art became available to the world. I am grateful it made it to me in Colorado. I am grateful this was my childhood and into my adulthood. Everyone can enjoy Dragon Ball, but the gift of Bang is something I can’t express. Thank you so much, Toriyama. You were a force and the world lost so much magic. Thank you again for all the lines, hours, and craziness.
-Greathouse