It’s no stretch to point out thatDragon Ball Zis one of the most popular anime of all time. Yet as popular asDragon Ball Zis in America, the franchise’s previous entry -Dragon Ball- has not been as widely viewed. This is a shame because as influential and iconic asDragon Ball Zis, in many waysDragon Ballis more influential and a far more entertaining show with variety and substance.
It isDragon Ballthat inspired so many modern series likeOne Piece,Naruto, andYu-Gi-Oh!It isDragon Ballthat was the global sensation of whichDragon Ball Zcould become the success it is today. What’s more, by not watchingDragon Ballyou might as well be watchingDragon Ball Zout of context. Let’s discuss everythingDragon Ball Zfans miss out on when they skip the series that started it all.
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Characters Origins Explored
While I don’t want to knock the classic characters that were introduced inDragon Ball Z, when the series starts there are at leasta dozen charactersthat were already established by that point. I remember reading a review ofDragon Ball Zfrom High-Def Digest who wrote in his review of the first season ofDragon Ball Z: Kai:
We aren’t given enough time to understand Turtle, the perverse Master Roshi, or Bulma, let alone Chi-Chi, who finds out her husband is dead, and her son left with a monster she fears, then disappears for the rest of the season. I mean, I understand the grieving process, but this just feels odd. Then there are the other background characters, who are fighters. Korin, Yamcha, Tien, and Chiaotzu are handled so improperly that it’s impossible to truly care about them. They appear, they train for about five seconds, then they go to battle and get their asses stomped. Chiaotzu sacrifices him/herself (really, what the hell is that thing?!) in battle, and it’s supposed to be a sad moment, particularly through Tien’s eyes, but we don’t quite care, as an audience. Wow, a character who has been on screen for a few minutes, who had maybe a total of five lines, is dead.
To say the writer was confused as to who all these characters are and what their purpose was would be an understatement. It’s also easy to brush him off as some old man who “clearly is not a fan of the franchise,” yet if most fans look at what he writes with an open mind, they may realize that he is absolutely right in one respect: When you start watchingDragon Ball Zyou have no idea who any of these characters are or why you should care.
The reality is that these aren’t lesser characters or even poorly written ones:Their backstories are covered extensively inDragon Ball. Yamcha isn’t just Bulma’s ex-boyfriend, but a dessert bandit who wants the Dragon Balls to overcome his shyness toward girls. He plays such a major role inDragon Ballthat he’s actually a deuteragonist, showing up in every major arc until midway throughDragon Ball Z. Did you know that Piccolo was not only one of the main antagonists, but at one point looked completely different than he does inDragon Ball Z? All this character development is covered inDragon Ball, andit’s well worth watching.
Goku’s Growth as Earth’s Mightiest Hero
The whole concept behindDragon Ballwas that it wasa hero’s journey, one that was to have ups and downs. While Goku is a strong tyke even as a kid, inDragon Ballhe loses more times than he wins. Every time he loses, he must learn a new attack, power himself up some more, or learn from a new master so that he can go back and triumph in the end. In fact, Goku loses his first tournament to his own Master Roshi, who is determined to defeat him because (in his words) “a victory too soon will make the boy complacent.”
Sure enough, with every loss, Goku becomes determined to grow stronger, and we as the audience root for him to achieve his goals and become stronger. Now, it could be argued that there are still moments of growth for Goku inDragon Ball Z, seeing that he died at the hands of Raditz and had to achieve Super Saiyan form to take down Frieza, yet these moments are fewer and farther between, andDragon Ballcontains the only moments where Goku truly loses to the point where he must dig deeper and become a stronger person.
There Technically is No Dragon Ball Z
Although we’re talking about the anime, we should take a moment to mention one of the littlest known facts to AmericanDragon Ball Zfans: There is noDragon Ball Zmanga in Japan. Throughout the entire run of the manga, the series was simply known asDragon Ballthe entire time. So why doesDragon Ball Zexist as an anime? Well, you know howDragon Ballhas a reputation for being more humor-oriented and fun thanDragon Ball Zby American viewers? Well, that little fact didn’t go unnoticed by Japanese viewers either.
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During the Piccolo saga, the series was becoming less focused on gags and more focused on intense action sequences. The anime producers were getting letters from viewers who were confused if this was the same series they had been watching the whole time. As a result, they reached out to Akira Toriyama to see if the manga was going to continue with this style. When they got confirmation it would, it was decided to change the name of the series when the next story arc began so that viewers would understand that this was a “different” show.
Starting with Dragon Ball Z is Like Starting in the Middle of the Story
Many sci-fi fans loveStar Wars Episode V: The Empire Strike Back, yet no one would recommend watching it before watchingStar Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. Sure, you could get some enjoyment out of it, but doing so means your viewing experience would be much weaker. In the same way,Dragon Ball Zis a weaker show withoutDragon Ball.There is no context of the character’s relationships with one another, there is arguably no heroes journey, and there is significantly less growth for Goku, who is little more than a powerful superhero whenDragon Ball Zstarts.
Please keep in mind that one can enjoyDragon Ball Zwithout watchingDragon Ballfirst, but whileDragon Ball Zis a good show taken on its own it’s a great show when watched in order. Even if you’ve already seenDragon Ball Zit is highly recommended that you re-watch it after watchingDragon Ballfor the first time, and you will be amazed at how differently things play out once youhave the whole picture in front of you.
