Dragon Ball
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Wikipedia-Article "Dragon Ball"
- This is about the Dragon Ball manga series. For the microprocessor used in Palm Pilot PDAs, see Motorola DragonBall.
Dragon Ball (ドラゴンボール) is a Japanese manga by Akira Toriyama serialized in the weekly anthology magazine, Weekly Shonen Jump, from 1984 to 1995 and originally collected into 42 individual books called Tankobon. In 2004, the manga was re-released in a 34 volume collection (called Kanzenban) which included a slightly rewritten ending, all new original covers, and original color artwork from its Weekly Jump run.
In the US, the manga was first released as two American-style comic books: "Dragon Ball" and "Dragon Ball Z" starting in 2000. (The split corresponds to the two different anime series, though the original Japanese manga does not distinguish between them. See below.) This style of release was unsuccessful due to its large size and expensive cost ($2.95 for an issue of 2, later 3, chapters), and both series were cancelled in 2002. The "Dragon Ball Z" comic was transitioned into a launch title for the new US edition of the Shonen Jump anthology, starting in January 2003. In parallel to these releases, VIZ Media is in the process of releasing the 42 volumes (nearly matching the first Japanese set) in English. Viz titles the second part of the manga "Dragon Ball Z" to reduce confusion for American audiences.
The story of Dragon Ball follows the life of Son Goku, a monkey-tailed boy loosely based on the traditional Chinese folk tale Journey to the West (西遊記), from his life and adventures as a child all the way up to being a grandfather. During his life, he fights many battles and eventually becomes (arguably) the strongest martial-artist in the universe. He is not without help, however: the comic boasts a large ensemble cast of martial-artist heroes and villains which provide the conflict that drives the story.
The titular Dragon Balls are one component of the universe, but are not the focus of most of the plot lines of the title. The Dragon Balls are seven magical spheres which are scattered across the world. When assembled together, they can be used to summon the dragon Shenlong (Shenron) who will grant one wish (within limits). After the wish is granted, the balls are scattered again across the landscape and become inert for a year. In times past, it would take generations to search the world and gather the balls. In the beginning of the story however, A teenage genius girl named Bulma has created a "Dragon Radar" to detect the balls and making the process far easier than it was intended to be.
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Evolution
The story of Dragon Ball unfolded gradually over 11 years of publication. During those years, the tone and the style of the stories gradually changed to reflect the tastes of the readers and the editors of Japanese Shonen Jump.
The earlier volumes of the manga (volumes 1-12) are primarily humorous fantasy stories, but containing some minor sci-fi elements. Notable fantasy elements include not only the monkey-boy Goku and the balls themselves, but also many talking animal characters, unlikely martial arts techniques, and characters identified as gods and demons. Despite the fantasy elements, the world does contain advanced technology including space-saving capsules which are pocket sized but can expand into almost any object, flying cars, and similar "near future" trappings. The overall mood of the title is light with very few deaths and an emphasis on adventure and humor.
A subtle but significant change in mood began after Goku's best friend Kuririn was killed. This began the Piccolo Daimao saga (volumes 13-17) in which the manga enters a darker tone compared to its earlier volumes.
Dragon Ball fully transformed into an action based shonen manga at the onset of the Saiyan saga (volumes 17-20). Starting with introduction of Goku's first son, things begin to take a much more serious and harder sci-fi approach. Many of the characters which previously had fantasy origins (Goku, Piccolo, etc.) are recast as aliens from other planets. Space travel, alien threats, and powerful cyborgs take center stage instead of more fantastic villains.
After the defeat of Vegeta and the conclusion of the Saiyan saga, the survivors of the vicious Saiyan assault head off to the Planet Namek to resurrect their friends who were killed by the Saiyans. This begins the Freiza saga (volumes 21-28). The Freiza saga is noteworthy for introducing the first "Super Saiyan," now a staple of the series. It also set the tone for more and more awesomely powerful characters. For example, the antagonist Frieza has a "power level" (the series' futuristic measure of a fighter's speed and strength, i.e. humans are 5) of 500,000. He then transforms into a more powerful fighter, at which point his power level is over a million. After two subsequent transformations, he reveals that he is still at only 1% of his "full power."
The Cell Saga (volumes 29-35) introduced the Androids, a mysterious Saiyan called Trunks, and the enigmatic Cell. It was between this series and the last series that creator Toriyama stopped measuring characters' power levels in the stories, deciding that it limited the stories.
The Majin Buu saga (volumes 36-42) is the last arc of Dragon Ball manga. The Majin Buu saga features more of the humor and fantastic plot elements that were present in the very early volumes of the manga.
Recurring Themes
For all its martial arts bravado, the story of Dragon Ball centers primarily around a theme of redemption, generally through exposure to the "pure" ideals of Son Goku and Son Gohan. Nearly every major character in the manga entered the series as a villain but was, through one method or another, converted to the side of good. (Often, this would entail a temporary team up to defeat a greater foe, but somehow the former enemies rarely found the motivation to begin fighting again.) This theme was evident from the beginning (with the conversion of Yamcha, Oolong, and Pu'ar) and continued even to the last saga (with the acceptance of Mr. Buu). This style of redemption is not unique to Dragon Ball (it is often seen even in American comic books), but it is significant that it persisted even through other major shifts in style and tone.
Dragon Ball is also significant in its theme of self-improvement and piety. Throughout the series, the protagonists never cease in their martial arts training. Son Goku remains the very strongest martial artist, and he trains for no other reason that for self-improvement. Furthermore, the downfall of most of the antagonists is their own self-importance, their belief that because of their power, they are untouchable.
Censorship
As previously mentioned, the Dragon Ball manga is published as both "Dragon Ball" and "Dragon Ball Z" in American editions. Originally, both of these releases were censored for nudity and some graphic content. By the end of 2004, all "Dragon Ball" manga had been released almost uncensored (Mr. Popo's lips were removed), including rereleases of the previously censored volumes 1 through 3. The "Dragon Ball Z" manga remains censored, although many volumes (prior to volume 17) are technically uncensored since they did not contain any objectionable material.
Relation to the Anime
Both Dragon Ball (DB) and Dragon Ball Z (DBZ) anime are based on the same original Dragon Ball manga. DB follows Goku's adventures as a child up to his marriage-- roughly the sagas that had the most fantasy and humor elements. DBZ takes up the story 5 years after DB leaves off, with the introduction of Goku's young son and the arrival of a new, more powerful foe. Dragon Ball GT is the sequel to DBZ but is not based on any manga. (Unlike Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z, Akira Toriyama was not directly involved with the production of Dragon Ball GT, though he did create many of the character designs and a few of the plot ideas in the series.)
There are additional differences between the US edition of the manga and the US edition of the anime, but those are primarily due to differences in translation. For example, the character of "Lunch" in the manga is retranslated as "Launch" in the anime. Similarly, the names of "Goku" and "Gohan" lack the family name "Son" in the anime. In general, the translation of the manga is considered to be closer to the translation of the anime as factors such as mouth movement are not taken into consideration.
The "Z" in Dragon Ball Z is rumored to have many meanings. The official meaning, as stated by the author, is that the letter was chosen because it was at the end of the alphabet, echoing Toriyama's desire that the series end soon. Other, fan-given "Z" theories include the naming of the ensemble group of main characters as the "Z Warriors" or "Z Fighters" in episode titles and promotional materials (they are never referred to that way in the anime itself) or based on the "Zenkai Power" theme song in the ending credits. Another interpretation is that Toriyama hand-wrote its title as Dragon Ball 2 and somebody misread the figure 2 as a Z. It is notable that the "Z" of Dragon Ball Z is pronounced "Zed" in the Japanese opening, WE GOTTA POWER!!.
Throughout most of the writing of the manga, the anime was being written and produced just behind the point where the manga was being concurrently published. While this led to getting the episodes released rapidly, the pacing resulted in a large amount of "filler" material needing to be added to the anime to flesh out the episodes to keep them from catching up. There are many instances in the anime where backstory which was filled in by the anime-writers was directly contradicted by backstory written later in the manga. In a very small number of cases however, the inverse was true-- backstory added in the anime was accepted in the manga. Most notably, the character of Bardock (Goku's father) was originally an anime-creation.
Relation to Journey to the West
There are many parallels between Journey to the West and Dragon Ball.
- In the original story, the priest, Xuanzang and his company search for the legendary Buddhist scriptures in the West. In Dragon Ball, Bulma and her company search for the legendary dragon balls.
- The equivalent to Sun Wukong of the original texts is Son Goku in Dragon Ball.
- The equivalent to Xuanzang of the original texts is Bulma Briefs in Dragon Ball (though later, it can be argued to be the role of Kuririn).
- The equivalent to Zhu Wuneng of the original texts is Oolong in Dragon Ball.
- The equivalent to Sha Wujing of the original texts is Yamucha in Dragon Ball (though later, it can be argued to be the role of Piccolo).
Some ideas from Journey to the West are borrowed later in the series.
- Son Goku's Nyoibo (or Power Pole) comes from Sun Wukong's magic staff that can change to any size anytime he sees fit.
- Son Goku finds himself in a place reminiscent of the pillars of Buddha’s palm, the location which Sun Wukong's rampage was finally put to an end.
Names
The names in Dragon Ball are largely (though not entirely) puns and regular words, which are obvious to Japanese readers but not to those reading Dragon Ball in English. Some explanations of the names puns used follow.
Vegetables
- Bardock - Burdock
- Broli (Broly) - Broccolli-Brolli
- Kakarotto (Kakarot)- Carrot
- Nappa - Nappa Cabbage
- Panbukin - Pumpkin
- Paragus - Asparagus
- Raditz - Radish
- Selipa - Parsley
- Toma - Tomato
- Totepo - Potato
- Tullece (Turles) - Lettuce
- Vegeta - Vegetable
Fruits
- Appule - Apple
- Blueberry - Blue Berry
- Dodoria - Durian, an Indonesian fruit
- Kuwi - Kiwi
- Rasberry - Rasberry
- Tsufuru-jin (Tuffles) - Fruit
- Zarbon - Zabon, a "pomelo," an exotic fruit
Foods and Drinks
- Chaozu (Chiaotzu) - gyōza or jiaozi
- Chi-Chi - milk; breasts (slang japanese); father
- Emperor Pilaf - Sauteed, seasoned Rice (rice pilaf)
- Gohan - Rice, or food in general
- Kuririn (Krillin) - coming from the japanese word kuri, meaning chestnut, and the second syllable in "shaolin"
- Lunch (Launch) - Lunch
- Marron - French chestnut
- Oolong - Oolong, a type of Chinese tea
- Puar - Pu'er, a type of Chinese tea
- Shu & Mai - Shaomai, a type of Chinese dish
- Tenshinhan (Tien Shinhan) - "Tianjin-style" rice, featuring egg, vegetables, and other ingredients
- Yamcha - Yumcha; dim sum
Dairy Products
- Butta (Burter) - Butter
- Ginyu - Milk
- Gurd (Guldo) - Yogurt
- Jheese (Jeice) - Cheese
- Reacoom (Recoome) - Cream
Condiments
Underwear
- Bra (Bulla) - Bra
- Bulma Briefs - Buruma/Bloomers, though in Japan this word refers to the short gym shorts worn by junior high and high school girls
- Dr. Briefs - Men's underwear
- Trunks - Boys' gym shorts
Musical Intruments
- Cymbal - Cymbal
- Drum - Drum
- Piano - Piano
- Piccolo - Piccolo the small flute like instrument.
- Tambourine - Tambourine
Devil-related
- Mr.Satan (Hercule) - Satan
- Videl - Devil
- Pan - Pan, who is the base for the Western depiction of the Devil as a male-goat or a satire.
Other
- Babidi - Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo
- Bebi (Baby) - Baby
- Bibidi - Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo
- Bubbles - Bubbles; the name of Michael Jackson's chimpanzee
- Cell - A Cell
- Cooler - Cooler
- Dende - Japanese for "denden-mushi", snail, which is used to describe any mollusk of the Gastropod class
- Erasa - Eraser/Rubber
- Freeza - Freezing/Freezer
- Goten - A play on "Goku," replacing the "ku" (which can mean "sky" in Japanese only) with "ten" ("sky" in Chinese)
- Jackie Chun - Jackie Chan
- Kaio - God
- King Kold - Cold
- Lord Enma (King Yama) - Yama; Yama is the Hindu name, but Enma and Emma-o are the Japanese names given to the same mythological figure. His role is similar to that of St. Peter in Catholicism
- Lord Slug - Slug
- Majin Buu - Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo; "majin" translates to "demon-man" or "magical man"
- Kame-sennin - "Turtle Hermit." "Sennin" are ascetic Taoist hermits of legend who are said to have magical powers, animal familiars, and extraordinarily long life
- Nail - Snail
- Son Goku - The Japanese translation of the Chinese name Sun Wukong. The "go" means "awaken "or enlightened" and the "ku" means "emptiness" or "vacuity". As mentioned above, the titular character in Journey to the West (西遊記)
- Sharpner - Pencil Sharpner
- Suno - Snow
- Vegetto - Fusion of Son Goku and Vegeta via Potara
Influence on Other Series
- In the anime, Excel Saga, Nabeshin teaches Pedro and Sandora to reach a certain powerful afro level, similar to the level of Super Saiyan in Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball GT. They also must use a technique called the Nabehameha, a direct parody of Muten-Rôshi's Kamehameha.
- In the manga, Eyeshield 21, Yukimitsu performs the Taiyô-ken while dressed as Tenshinhan.
- In the OVA, Puni Puni Poemy, Poemi is shown with a collection of dragon balls.
- In the manga, YuGiOh, the main character, Yugi Mutou, relates the Millenium Puzzle's power with wishes granted by the dragon balls. Also, in the anime version, there is a dragon ball shown on a poster.
- In the Sonic the Hedgehog series, Sonic must collect the 7 Chaos Emeralds, similar to the dragon balls. Once collected, Sonic turns into Super Sonic, a transformation similar to that of a Super Saiyan.
- In an episode of Magical Shopping Arcade Abenobashi, Sasshi fights in a martial arts match while dressed as Bruce Lee, and near the end, transforms to a Super Saiyan and performs the Kamehameha Wave.
- In Masakazu Katsura's manga DNA², the main character can turn into a Super Saiyan-like state, gaining golden hair and the ability to use special abilities. Many people consider this to be a plagiarism of DBZ but it was actually suggested to Katsura by Toriyama himself.
- In The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy, Cartoon Network Series, Mandy is shown to eat a Chicken-Ball which makes her transform into a Super-Saiyan.
- In Mystical Ninja, Starring Goemon the Hero, Goemon, after finishing a certain Training, goes to the "Sudden Impact" state, in which his hair grows bigger and its color becomes yellow
- The manga series Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo had many references to Dragon Ball and a one-off chapter making a parody of it. It had Jelly Jiggler (Tokoro Tennosuke) and Don Patch/Poppa Rocks (Don Patch) recreating the first battle between Son Goku and Vegeta respectively, but the order and development is messed up.
- In another chapter of Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo, while facing Kanemaru, Bo-bobo states something about a high wind air-pressure technique, it turns out that Bo-bobo had a picture board of Krillin, Goku and Piccolo with Dragonballs spread over the board.
- Masashi Kishimoto states in his manga Naruto that he was influenced by Toriyama. Kishimoto included a picture of Arale he drew in elementary school.
- Eiichiro Oda, the author of One Piece, stated in an interview that he was a big fan of Dragon Ball. He stated that it was Toriyama that influenced him and that he holds Dragon Ball in high-esteem. Toriyama is a self-professed fan of One Piece, which he was introduced to by his children. Many similarities to Dragon Ball can be seen in the One Piece manga.
- In an episode of the Kids Next Door series on Cartoon Network, Number 4 relates his fight with the delightful children from down the lane to Goku's fight with Frieza in a flashback.
External links
Japan
- Official Toei Animation's Dragon Ball Website
- Official Toei Animation's Dragon Ball Z Website
- Official Toei Animation's Dragon Ball GT Website
- Fuji TV's Dragon Ball
- Fuji TV's Dragon Ball Z
- Fuji TV's Dragon Ball GT
- Shueisha's Dragon Ball
- Shueisha's Dragon Ball Z
U.S.
- Official FUNimation's Dragon Ball Website
- Official FUNimation's Dragon Ball Z Website
- Official FUNimation's Dragon Ball GT Website
- Cartoon Network's Dragon Ball
- Cartoon Network's Dragon Ball Z
- Cartoon Network's Dragon Ball GT
- Shonen Jump's Dragon Ball
- Shonen Jump's Dragon Ball Z
Canada
