Dragon Ball tells the tale of a young warrior by the name of Son Goku, a young peculiar boy with a tail who embarks on a quest to become stronger and learns of the Dragon Balls, when, once a... Read allDragon Ball tells the tale of a young warrior by the name of Son Goku, a young peculiar boy with a tail who embarks on a quest to become stronger and learns of the Dragon Balls, when, once all 7 are gathered, grant any wish of choice.Dragon Ball tells the tale of a young warrior by the name of Son Goku, a young peculiar boy with a tail who embarks on a quest to become stronger and learns of the Dragon Balls, when, once all 7 are gathered, grant any wish of choice.
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Summary
Reviewers say 'Dragon Ball' is celebrated for its adventure, comedy, and martial arts action. Goku's quest for Dragon Balls introduces diverse characters, emphasizing friendship and perseverance. Goku's evolution from a naive child to a powerful warrior is notable, alongside significant growth in characters like Piccolo and Krillin. The series balances humor and serious moments, creating a dynamic narrative. Despite pacing issues and filler episodes, the overall reception is positive, highlighting its impact on the anime genre.
Featured reviews
What starts off as an unusual re-telling of a Chinese legend called "Journey to the West" immediately turns into into pure madness!! On a twisted version of earth, the amazingly strong child named Son Gokuu goes on a quest to find the magical dragon balls with his friends Bulma and Oolong. Once all 7 dragon balls are gathered and the dragon is called, the sky will darken and the dragon will grant any one wish within its power. Unfortunately, only one wish can be granted per year and after the wish is granted, the dragon balls scatter across the earth and turn into stones. Within 365 days, they will once again become magical dragon balls. Dragon Ball is the funniest anime I have ever seen. From Master Roshi and Oolong's hentai "problems" to Gokuu trying a Kamehameha for the very first time!
When the 1st episode of Dragon Ball kicks in, no one would even imagine where this is going to lead. That single episode led to near 500 episodes divided into 3 series, about 20 OAVs, real-life movies (one of them still being produced), hella-long mangas, mass hysteria when it ended, fan fictions all around, rumors about a new series that never arrived, several videogames and gadgets... did I forget something? Probably. Dragon Ball is what brought animes outside of Japan to the mainstream. And it did deservedly, as Dragon Ball, as a whole, is one of the best series ever made.
But let's focus on Dragon Ball, the famous prequel to the even more known Dragon Ball Z. Forget the extreme sci-fi from Z. Forget the huge muscles (well, do not, just imagine them smaller), put in loads of humor, and you get Dragon Ball, the first series. The story is funny, but smart and thrilling, and despite the obvious ending of all the parts, there's still some thrill to be had - mostly with the typical superhero scene where you wonder "How will they get out of this?" even if you know for sure they WILL get out of that. The characters are hilarious, but given the impressive amount of them, you'd better not start loving too many of them, because there could pass dozens of episodes without seeing certain people. This is quite a flaw in the Dragon Ball formula, in fact the power levels of the characters raise so fast that someone who appears to be the strongest person on the world, will be beaten by half of the cast about 50 episodes later.
The drawing style is very typical and good, although sometimes it's a little flawed - nothing bad though. Another flaw is that some sagas inside the story are quite boring - the last episodes are quite a filler that do not inflict the later storyline in any way, so it could have been avoided, and cut at the last fight. Otherwise, Dragon Ball all things considered is epic. You might watch it today and think "What's the fuss all about?" - you might not get it with today's eyes. But believe me, this thing was huge, and I could re-watch it anytime. And it leads to Dragon Ball Z, which is one of the best TV-shows ever made.
But let's focus on Dragon Ball, the famous prequel to the even more known Dragon Ball Z. Forget the extreme sci-fi from Z. Forget the huge muscles (well, do not, just imagine them smaller), put in loads of humor, and you get Dragon Ball, the first series. The story is funny, but smart and thrilling, and despite the obvious ending of all the parts, there's still some thrill to be had - mostly with the typical superhero scene where you wonder "How will they get out of this?" even if you know for sure they WILL get out of that. The characters are hilarious, but given the impressive amount of them, you'd better not start loving too many of them, because there could pass dozens of episodes without seeing certain people. This is quite a flaw in the Dragon Ball formula, in fact the power levels of the characters raise so fast that someone who appears to be the strongest person on the world, will be beaten by half of the cast about 50 episodes later.
The drawing style is very typical and good, although sometimes it's a little flawed - nothing bad though. Another flaw is that some sagas inside the story are quite boring - the last episodes are quite a filler that do not inflict the later storyline in any way, so it could have been avoided, and cut at the last fight. Otherwise, Dragon Ball all things considered is epic. You might watch it today and think "What's the fuss all about?" - you might not get it with today's eyes. But believe me, this thing was huge, and I could re-watch it anytime. And it leads to Dragon Ball Z, which is one of the best TV-shows ever made.
10klv17
There are no fights with people staring at each other for an entire episode, & 10 minutes turns into half of a saga as in the last half of the Frieza series. nor are there any ridiculous power levels.. No huge inaccuracies in the plot-lines, & lame filler that has you scratching your head.
Since when was Mercenary Tao a General? Since when did Dr. Gero lead the red ribbon army? He didn't.. It was Commander Red. Goku never met Dr.Gero, because he never existed.
I think the whole power level thing is great for video games, but makes for a "yaaawn" of a series.
Dragonball is actually believable, but fantastical all at once. You are never sitting & waiting & waiting for what you know is going to happen, because you simply don't know.
Always new characters, adventures, & twists in the stories that actually make for a fun series. Awesome humor, & magical places. Tests of strength & purity of character, & friendships built on realistic type events.
You see how Goku wins over the most evil of hearts & minds, From Yamacha, to Tien to Piccolo. All the characters are involved & help to solve the crisis at hand.
Do yourself a big favor if you're a fan of Goku & the crew, & make sure you watch this series from the very beginning. Don't just pick it up in the middle from seeing one episode & say yuck!!!
I did exactly that. Then when i saw how god-awful GT was, I decided to start here instead. Was well worth it. It really is so much better than Z hands down..
Since when was Mercenary Tao a General? Since when did Dr. Gero lead the red ribbon army? He didn't.. It was Commander Red. Goku never met Dr.Gero, because he never existed.
I think the whole power level thing is great for video games, but makes for a "yaaawn" of a series.
Dragonball is actually believable, but fantastical all at once. You are never sitting & waiting & waiting for what you know is going to happen, because you simply don't know.
Always new characters, adventures, & twists in the stories that actually make for a fun series. Awesome humor, & magical places. Tests of strength & purity of character, & friendships built on realistic type events.
You see how Goku wins over the most evil of hearts & minds, From Yamacha, to Tien to Piccolo. All the characters are involved & help to solve the crisis at hand.
Do yourself a big favor if you're a fan of Goku & the crew, & make sure you watch this series from the very beginning. Don't just pick it up in the middle from seeing one episode & say yuck!!!
I did exactly that. Then when i saw how god-awful GT was, I decided to start here instead. Was well worth it. It really is so much better than Z hands down..
Young Goku is here. Lovable, kind, and pure-hearted. Also discover the origin of how it all started. To be honest, this was the best anime cartoon I ever saw next to my other favorites, Akira and Galerians.They don't compare at all but its funny and perfect for the family. If you heard DBZ was good, watch this series. The best shows are the first two sagas, when Goku did the most comedy. Although this isn't REALLY recommend for kids, due to violence and nudity. I recommend this to ages 9 and up. Young Goku journeys with a girl named Bulma hoping to find the seven dragon balls. During there journey they run into enemies who also have the same objective. Will Goku and Bulma receive all of the dragon ball and summon the dragon or will there plan be a failure. The whole search rides on a dragon radar created by Bulma.
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IMDb's Top 50 Anime Series
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Did you know
- TriviaIn the original 1989 dub of Dragon Ball by Harmony Gold, Goku was renamed Zero.
- GoofsIn the original English dub for the episode The Kamehameha wave, Kamehameha is misspelled as Kamehameah on the title screen.
- Crazy creditsWhen FUNimation redubbed the original Dragon Ball in 2000, they kept the Japanese intro/outro credit songs, and had English speakers sing them. This was the first time FUNimation kept music from the Japanese version of a Dragon Ball series.
- Alternate versionsThere are four different distinct English dubbed versions of this series:
- a dub from Harmony Gold in 1989 that played very briefly in the US,
- a heavily edited dub from Kidmark in 1995 that played in several English-speaking countries,
- an uncut dub from Funimation in 2001 (played edited on US TV) that is shown in only in the US and Australia,
- and a slightly edited Canadian dub from 2003 that plays only in Canada and in the UK.
- ConnectionsAlternate-language version of Dragon Ball (1986)
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- 7 Viên Ngọc Rồng (Tiếng Anh)
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