Did The Cartel Really Stop Fighting To Honor Dragonball Z?

Ah yes, the internet. The same place that gave us “Birds Aren’t Real” and convinced a generation to eat Tide Pods is now trying to convince the world that Mexico’s most dangerous criminal organizations hit pause on their decades-long blood feud to honor the death of Dragon Ball creator Akira Toriyama.

According to the now-viral meme, rival cartels allegedly laid down their arms for 24 hours, united in grief over the passing of the man who gave us Goku, Vegeta, and that one filler episode where Piccolo learns to drive. Sounds touching, right? Heartwarming, even. Also completely fake.

A Meme with Power Level 9000... in Fiction

Let’s be clear. There is zero credible evidence that any cartel halted operations or declared a Dragon Ball-themed ceasefire. No public statements, no verified footage, and certainly no UN-backed treaty scribbled on an orange gi and signed with a Kamehameha. The rumor likely started as a joke, which the internet, being the internet, promptly took and ran with like Goku chasing a Senzu Bean.

Did some fans light candles? Sure. Did some artists paint murals in tribute? Absolutely. Did high-ranking cartel leaders put down their rifles and gather for a DBZ marathon on Crunchyroll? That would be a hard no.

But you know what is real?

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Dragon Ball Does Have Mexico in a Chokehold

While cartels weren’t canceling shootouts over Dragon Ball, the Mexican public might as well have declared Toriyama a national treasure. His work has a cultural presence in Mexico so massive it might as well have a seat in Congress.

• Dragon Ball Z regularly pulled in Super Bowl-level ratings when it aired in Latin America. In the 90s and early 2000s, entire neighborhoods would shut down during a Goku vs. Frieza rerun.

• In 2018, when the final episodes of Dragon Ball Super aired, cities in Mexico held public screenings. We're talking jumbotrons in plazas and families cheering louder than a Chivas championship.

• Goku has been painted on taco trucks, school notebooks, and even Catholic candles. Yes, really. There's probably a street named after him by now.

Anime is Big in Hispanic Households, Period

It’s not just Dragon Ball. Anime is huge in Hispanic communities across the Americas. According to a 2021 Crunchyroll report:

• Hispanic and Latino viewers make up one of the most engaged demographics in the U.S., especially among younger audiences.

• A Pew Research Center study found that Hispanic teens are more likely than their white peers to consume anime regularly, often citing subtitles and voice acting in Spanish as major draws.

• Mexico is Crunchyroll’s second-largest market globally, only behind the United States. Let that sink in. More than Japan. More than Brazil. More than Canada and Europe combined.

Final Thought: Fictional Peace Is Still Kind of Nice

So no, the cartels didn’t hang up their guns in honor of Akira Toriyama. But if anything could ever unite the country, it's the memory of a spiky-haired Saiyan raised in the mountains. Maybe it’s not so crazy to believe in a world where Goku’s values of honor, perseverance, and screaming until you glow could actually bring people together.

Just maybe don’t cite that meme in your sociology paper.