Akira Toriyama developed a very particular aesthetic for ‘Dragon Ball‘, and although the original manga were done in black and white, their use of color is one of the best-remembered features. In the anime these details can be better appreciated, and it is the one that the mangaka pays a lot of attention to the color palettes when designing certain characters for a very simple reason.
marking the differences
Like the vast majority of manga, ‘Dragon Ball’ and now ‘Dragon Ball Super’ is published in black and white, although when the compilation volumes arrive, certain characters can be seen in full color and with this base the palettes for the anime (although with some mess along the way).
Specifically, and setting aside their differences, the villains of ‘Dragon Ball’ are characterized by quite unusual colors and of all kinds: pink, garish green, violet… Not only in the big shots, but also many times in minor antagonists, and the main reason is so that each one has their own hallmark.
“The main reason why there are so many strange colors, like Piccolo Daimaō, Frieza, Cell, or Boo, is because this variety of colors makes it easier to understand their individual differences,” Toriyama explained for ‘Dragon Ball Chōgashū: Super Art Collection’.
Many of the characters in ‘Dragon Ball’ have very similar traits, so giving each villain their own identifying color helps separate them from the others. Even Frieza himself has only had several color palettes to differentiate his various transformations and power levels, which as Toriyama says definitely helps to quickly identify which character we have come across.
It would also come into play that many of these characters are not human and they would have to be given an aspect that would differentiate them from the Saiyans and the inhabitants of the earth, with which these garish colors would end up highlighting the variety of characters.
The identification colorss are not only in the design of the villains, but sometimes Toriyama also chose the tones for the clothes in a very conscious way, as with the Turtle School uniform worn by Goku and Krillin.
“For the colors of the dōgi, naturally the reason is the color of the Chinese monks’ robes. I was always a little dissatisfied with it turning red in the anime,” said Toriyama.