 "Some fun episodes from a fun show" | 2008-07-07 |
| - Reviewed By User: AOD1HU8UBBNCE |
| With this Dragon Ball storyline, we get undersea adventures, a cave filled with bobby traps, a cool killer robot, , and a gay supervillian. It all adds up to some of the most awesome, unique fights & action scenes in Dragon Ball. |
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 "Finally, the original DB, uncut on DVD" | 2006-09-30 |
| - Reviewed By i1iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii |
Dragon Ball (1986.)
INTRODUCTION:
It was in 1984 in Shonen Jump Magazine that manga artist Akira Toriyama premiered his next big thing - Dragon Ball. Toriyama, best known at the time for his previous series Dr. Slump, had created a new series based on the classic legend, Journey to the West - but with his own unique spin on things. It wasn't long before the manga became a phenomenon and inspired a long-running anime series. And now, at long last, FUNimation has released the Dragon Ball anime in America, uncensored! Read on for my review.
OVERVIEW:
The Dragon Ball anime series, based on the manga, was first created in 1986. The anime consists of over a hundred episodes, and takes place prior to the more popular sequel series, Dragon Ball Z. The DVD released have broken the series into eleven volumes: Pilaf, Tournament, Red Ribbon, General Blue, Commander Red, Fortuneteller Baba, Tien Shinhan, King Piccolo 1, King Piccolo 2, Piccolo Jr. 1, and Piccolo Jr. 2. The Pilaf saga has not been released uncensored, however, as an earlier dubbing company still retains the DVD rights. Each set is two discs, and features an uncut dub and sub track, plus some modest bonus features.
STORYLINE:
Dragon Ball is the precursor to the considerably more popular sequel series, Dragon Ball Z. When the series begins, Goku is a young boy and befriends Bulma, the smart-but-spoiled city girl. The two set off on an adventure to gain the Dragon Balls - mythical crystal balls, that when all seven are gathered, will grant a person any one wish they desire. While the series starts off on an adventure/comedy tone, it fast shifts more toward the action end of the spectrum. As the series progresses, Goku meets many other characters - Oolong, a perverted pig who can change his shape, Master Roshi, the incredibly powerful (and equally lecherous) martial arts master, Yamcha, a former desert bandit turned good guy, Krillin, Goku's fellow martial arts student who always lives in Goku's shadow, and a variety of others. In a number of cases, Goku's foes become his friends and fight alongside him in later episodes. The series progresses on for over a hundred episodes, before Dragon Ball Z begins.
REVIEW OF SERIES:
Dragon Ball is an amazing series. Adventure, comedy, action, romance (to a lesser extent) - pretty much everything you could want in a series, Dragon Ball serves it up over and over again. Toriyama's characters are incredible, and certainly evolve over the course of the series to keep things interesting. While I don't quite like the original series as well as the more popular Z series (most fans share this opinion), it is still awesome, and it's a shame that it has to live in the shadow of the more popular sequel. Even if you've already seen Z, it's worth going back and watching the original Dragon Ball - you get to explore the origins of many of the characters (and if you have only seen Z but never the original, you'll be in for a shock at how many of Goku's allies used to be his enemies!) Regardless of who you are, Dragon Ball is well worth checking out.
REVIEW OF DVD:
Let's not sugar coat it. FUNimation's DVD releases of the DBZ series are crap. They charge twenty-five bucks for a measly three episodes and no extras other than trailers - totally unforgivable even if the episodes are uncut.
To put it bluntly, FUNimation has handled the original series WAY better.
Each one of these sets is around thirty-five to forty dollars, and in these sets you get usually somewhere between twelve and eighteen episodes! A much better value than those rip-off Z sets. The menus are well designed and easy to navigate.
However, the extra features are just about as lacking as the Z DVDs. They're a slight step up but nothing major.
Likewise the picture quality is not the greatest, but it's about as good as you can do for a twenty-year-old cartoon, so that isn't really FUNimation's fault.
THE DUB:
Anyone who knows me knows damn well I am not a fan of FUNimation's dubbing of the Dragon Ball series, be it the original series or Z. Fortunately, their redubbing of the original series isn't terrible. It's butchered in a few places, and I won't deny that - a major change being that Master Roshi's pervertedness is toned down severely. However, it's definitely a better dub job than they did for Z. Still, I'll be sticking with my sub track.
OVERALL:
Overall, I am very satisfied with the DVD releases of the original Dragon Ball - more more so than I am with the Dragon Ball Z DVD releases. Why didn't FUNimation give this same treatment to the Z series? Oh, well. These sets are Dragon Ball done right. If you're a fan, don't hesitate to pick them up.
EDITION NOTES:
These sets are fairly recent releases, and as such, most major video/multimedia stores tend to have most of the sets in stock.
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| "BEST of te red ribbon sagas" | 2004-10-16 |
| - Reviewed By User: A3UN6WX5RRO2AG |
| I almost stayed up all night waching whis movie it is about a guy named genral blue who wants to get a dragon ball and so dose goku this is the most suspenceful saga in dragon ball and no fans should miss it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! |
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| "What an extraordinary set of episodes" | 2004-01-15 |
| - Reviewed By sasha_slutsker |
| This set of 12 uncut Dragon Ball episodes really does aim to please. The General Blue Saga is one of the best sagas in Dragon Ball and there is a reason for this. It has incredibly fun to watch episodes detailing Goku, Bulma, and Krillin's adventures. They go into a pirates cave from long ago, search for treasure, and fight General Blue. There is even three episodes at the end of the saga which really stand out because they are when Goku comes to Penguin Village, Arale's town. Arale is a girl (robot really) from Akira's first successful manga, Dr. Slump. For people who have read the manga, this is a real treat. Not to mention that getting 12 episodes for just over $30 dollars is an incredible deal. Don't pass up the oppurtunity to get this truly spectacular DVD set. The General Blue Saga is not one to be missed. |
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| "First of the Second Third" | 2003-08-05 |
| - Reviewed By stevenpeck |
In case you hadn't noticed, Funimation is releasing the second part of Dragon Ball last on DVD. First came the DVD's with Emperor Pilaf, the Tournament Saga, and the Red Ribbon Army, which made up the first (about) 1/3 of the series. Then came all those King Piccolo/Piccolo Jr. DVD's, which made up the last 1/3 of the series. Now comes the middle child of the Dragon Ball troika, starting with General Blue.
At the time the General Blue saga was originally being released, Funimation was still doing it on video. Round about the first Tien Shinhan tape, Funimation figured that DVD was the way to go and phased Dragon Ball VHS's off the market. For some reason, most of the General Blue episodes weren't released very widely on video, so most people (like me) didn't see them.
Which is a shame, because the General Blue episodes were some of the most fun of the series. An old pirate fortress full of traps and a killer robot. A squad of Red Ribbon soldiers who live to regret taking Master Roshi and Launch hostage. And Penguin Village, the whimsical setting of Akira Toriyama's first manga/anime series "Dr. Slump." As a coup de grace, "Dr. Slump's" central character, Arale, gets to headbutt nasty General Blue out of Goku's life forever.
Well, that's it for General Blue. Stay tuned for the Commander Red, Fortune Teller Baba, and Tien Shinhan Sagas. |
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