Texas Could Get Rid Of ‘Dragon Ball’

Well, Texas, we might be on the verge of a full-scale nerd meltdown. And for once, it’s not because a new Pokémon game has too many trees or Goku got nerfed. No, this time, the anime world might be in actual trouble, thanks to Texas Senate Bill 20, which—if passed—could mean that some of your favorite series might get the axe.

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I’m a Nerd, Just Not That Kind of Nerd

Let me be clear: I am a nerd. I own my nerd status proudly. But I am not an anime nerd. Sure, I dabbled back in the golden days of Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim—back when Cowboy Bebop and Trigun ruled the airwaves. But at some point, I stepped away, and every time I try to come back, I feel like I accidentally walked into the wrong convention hall. Because let’s be real—so many modern anime series look, well, weird. And not just in an “animation style has changed” way, but in a “Why does every protagonist look like a 12-year-old girl in a questionable outfit?” kind of way.

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What Does the Bill Actually Say?

At its core, the bill is aimed at cracking down on AI-generated explicit content featuring minors—something most people can probably agree is a good thing. But the language of the bill is so broad that it could apply to any media depicting minors in “obscene” situations, including animation. Here’s what Senate Bill 20 actually says:

"A person commits an offense if the person knowingly possesses, accesses with intent to view, or promotes obscene visual material containing a depiction that appears to be of a child younger than 18 years of age engaging in activities described by Section 43.21(a)(1)(B), regardless of whether the depiction is an image of an actual child, a cartoon or animation, or an image created using an artificial intelligence application or other computer software."

Classics Like Dragon Ball Could Get Caught in the Crossfire

Even old-school classics aren’t safe—Dragon Ball fans, you might want to sit down for this one. The series, while beloved, is packed with moments that could easily be considered problematic under this bill. Goku, who is literally a child during much of the show, ends up in situations that would absolutely raise eyebrows today. From running around naked in innocent but crude gags to the infamous scene where Bulma unknowingly exposes herself to Master Roshi, Dragon Ball has plenty of material that could get flagged.

And while these moments were meant as silly jokes in the 1980s, a law like this doesn’t care about context. It just sees "a minor in an obscene situation" and throws down the hammer. This means that, depending on how the law is interpreted, one of the most iconic anime franchises of all time could be deemed illegal in Texas.

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The Slippery Slope of Censorship

On paper, this all seems fine—who doesn’t want to get rid of weird, creepy content? But here’s the problem: censorship laws like this rarely stop where they’re supposed to. The wording is vague, and the power to decide what is “obscene” rests on whoever is interpreting the law at any given moment. One judge’s “artistic value” is another judge’s “banned forever.” That’s a slippery slope, and we’ve seen it before—banning LGBTQ+ books, removing harmless manga from libraries, and labeling any content featuring young characters as “inappropriate” just because someone doesn’t understand the context.

So, What Now?

Even if you’re not a die-hard anime fan, you should probably pay attention—because when censorship comes knocking, it never stops at just one door. Today it’s Dragon Ball, tomorrow it’s your favorite comic book, video game, or movie. And once it starts, good luck stopping it.