Things you adore and appreciate

[ekrolo2]

I like that Goku's such a selfish shit bag personally. In a sea of boring protagonists who don't have anything resembling a personality, it's refreshing to have one fairly popular guy be unapologetically selfish about why and how he does things.

[Michsi]

I think you are dropping context. ""I decided to bite the bullet and make it all about the fighting. Once that decision was out of the way, I felt a lot better." You linger on the first part of this kind of statement, the part about biting the bullet, but seem to disregard the last sentence.

It might not have been his idea to change the direction of the story but came around to it. As for not wanting to draw DB again after ending it, can you blame him? He met an ambitious weekly deadline for 10 straight years! This coming from a guy that considers himself lazy. And yes, it wasn't a passion project like for some author's, but Toriyama said straight up that he got into drawing manga for the money.

Again accusing of someone cherry picking for the sake of their argument? No, I didn't drop context, I simply think my interpretation of that part is different from yours. As in it wasn't that he suddenly enjoyed the new direction it was going in, but rather that he felt better once he stopped fighting against it and simply accepted it. It was piece of mind thing, not a change of heart thing. I think "never want to draw Dragon Ball again" is a statement far more weighty and telling than the other quote and together with all the other instances he went on record with how he likes gags and not action paints a certain picture. I'm not going to start citing every single interview, he had a lot over the years.

I still think DB is his best work, and I am sure it has a special place in his heart, especially now, but again, outside influences and conformity should to be acknowledged.

[ABED]

I think "never want to draw Dragon Ball again" is a statement far more weighty and telling than the other quote and together with all the other instances he went on record with how he likes gags and not action paints a certain picture.

But Toriyama speaks off the cuff and tends to be self deprecating. He considers himself lazy even though he clearly wasn't. I don't think you can take his words at face value.

outside influences and conformity should to be acknowledged.

Yes (not sure what you mean by conformity in this context), and I think you understand that artistic integrity doesn't mean artists work in a vacuum with no outside influences. DB was no less Toriyama's singular voice because he took suggestions from his editors. I read and watched DB for years before I knew much about the behind the scenes stuff beyond the name of the writer, and the editorial changes aren't apparent. The change from the wacky road story to the slightly more earnest tournament to the big bads all felt like a series of organic changes to keep the story fresh and exciting for the readers. Even the changes in the cyborgs to Cell all felt organic. Not for a second did I believe he was building up to 19 and 20. In the interview I quoted, Toriyama said one of his biggest skills is to make things fit and I agree. While Goku wasn't originally intended to be an alien, it feels like an organic reveal. It's a skill of his that I think is overlooked.

[Michsi]

But Toriyama speaks off the cuff and tends to be self deprecating. He considers himself lazy even though he clearly wasn't.

I also think he is selling himself short a lot of the time, but this statement isn't derived from that. If anything, it seems a form of harsh honesty that I think most fans wouldn't have wanted to know. I know I was a little saddened when I read that.

Yes, and I think you understand that artistic integrity doesn't mean artists work in a vacuum with no outside influences. DB was no less Toriyama's singular voice because he took suggestions from his editors.

That goes without saying, but I have to repeat again, what I called into question was his obstinacy to get his way and the notion that popularity didn't influence his work on Dragon Ball, not his flair or that his talent wasn't the main reason behind DB success.

[floofychan333]

The effort put into writing and drawing each panel of the manga, and the effort put into drawing and colouring the anime frames. Also, all the great music related to this franchise that we can listen to.

[sintzu]

I'm not saying he hated working on DB, but that he treated it as a job. It wan't a passion project like Oda's One Piece.

Everything including One Piece is done first and foremost as a job for a living. No one does that kind of work to be nice. Sure they may like their job like Oda and even Toriyama but putting food on the table and a roof over heads will always be the main reason for doing work.

[Michsi]

I'm not saying he hated working on DB, but that he treated it as a job. It wan't a passion project like Oda's One Piece.

Everything including One Piece is done first and foremost as a job for a living. No one does that kind of work to be nice. Sure they may like their job like Oda and even Toriyama but putting food on the table and a roof over heads will always be the main reason for doing work.

I'm not sure what being nice has to do with it, but I fully disagree with the idea that no one goes into this line of work being driven first and foremost by their passion and desire to create what they want. Look at Kubo's recent interview - he plainly states that he never did anything he didn't want to do, and that Bleach went more or less exactly how he always intended it to. Or Kohei Horikoshi (MHA) - he stated in his first volume that in this story he was going to basically do what he wanted and he proved that by refusing to change All Might's design even though everyone told him to because it looked weird. There are a lot of people willing to risk mainstream popularity, and their pay check, for the sake of keeping true to the original concept of their work.

[ABED]

I think plenty of artists are driven primarily by their love of the work. Sure, most would probably not be working for peanuts for decades, but I'm certain that all of them would still be drawing for free on their own.

[sintzu]

I fully disagree with the idea that no one goes into this line of work being driven first and foremost by their passion and desire to create what they want.

I'm not saying they don't, just that they also do it to make a living.

[Michsi]

I fully disagree with the idea that no one goes into this line of work being driven first and foremost by their passion and desire to create what they want.

I'm not saying they don't, just that they also do it to make a living.

Yeah, but there is a difference between "I'm gonna do what I want to do regardless of whether or not it brings me success" and "This isn't my cup of tea, but that's what sells, so bottoms up!"

[TheBigBoy]

The fact that there's a new Dragon Ball show airing weekly and has English subtitles and can be watched for free the same night it airs.

[Wezenheim]

Among other things mentioned by people here already, I adore just how visually interesting across the board the manga is. Not just Toriyama's wonderful character designs and world, but also his lovely panel layouts and wonderfully-executed action scenes.
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That example above is just one very standard example among many of just how great and easy to read Dragon Ball's action is. It's certainly not even close to being the greatest page of action in the series, but it shows off many of the things I love about many of Toriyama's fights. It's easy to follow, the impacts feel painful even when you don't necessarily see them connect (note Piccolo's face), and the action lines really help to convey the weight of characters being tossed around/moving at high speeds. The background distortion is always a great touch as well. There's also lots of little character moments I never quite noticed my first time reading, such as these sequence of panels involving Namu in the 21st Tenkaichi Budokai:

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That last one of Namu reflecting on his loss to Goku is a surprisingly subtle and effective way of visualizing his despair by putting a bit of a spin on the first two panels. Prior to the fight, Namu's determination is unwavering. His gaze is upwards and his head isn't even placed inside the panel. After his defeat, he has now been constrained inside the "box" and the drawings of his village that typically accompanied his thoughts before have been replaced with a black background. I dunno, I think that stuff's neat. Long story short, Dragon Ball's a fantastic comic.

Also, I love "Toriyama-isms." Shots of people running, for example, practically never get old to me.
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[Robo4900]

Original: I love the lighthearted fun when things just started out. Everything from the music to the art to the whimsical story is simply a delight. The wham episode with Krillin's death completely destroys me every damn time, and Piccolo is the best villain there has ever been.
DBZ: The Cell arc is probably the best story arc there has ever been in Dragon Ball. Vegeta is the best. Freeza is also the best(And his Japanese VA... 25/10). And I love that things sort of end where they began, with Boo bringing a return to the more whimsical, weird style of the original series, with very little of the sci-fi Z leaned on quite heavily showing up in that last arc.
GT: The best music Dragon Ball has ever had, some of the best animation outside of the movies, a perfect ending, and everything about that last arc is amazing.
Super: I love that Super is really funny, I adore the Krillin 2-parter from just before this new arc started, and Beerus and Whis are two of the best characters in all of Dragon Ball.

The original series movie trilogy: Everything about this trilogy presses all the right buttons for me; the animation, the music, the art, the stories... This is some of the most beautiful stuff you'll see in Dragon Ball, and Sleeping Princess in particular is an absolutely classic piece of Dragon Ball. I mean, how can you go wrong with a vampire trying to blow up the sun with a laser beam?
The Z movies: These movies basically distill the style of the series at their time of release down to an easily-digestible standalone film with gorgeous animation. There's a lot to criticise, and the movies were a bit hit and miss overall, but damn did those hits hit hard.
Path To Power: Probably the best Dragon Ball has ever looked, with the glorious music of Akihito Tokunaga, and the lighthearted fun of the original series... I'd have a hard time finding something that wasn't great about this movie.

[MozillaVulpix]

The Great Saiyaman portion of the manga. It didn't go on for that long, and also didn't get a chance to have its own climax, but it was Toriyama deciding to introduce the massive change in status quo by giving everyone downtime. It's probably the first time in the entire manga where the characters just sit around and interact like they're actually family. Not people who only stick together when the world is in danger. In particular, all the scenes with Gohan visiting Bulma's house. They have this sense of familiarity that makes it feel like they have actually been seeing each other during the 7 years of peace. Plus, high school Gohan is adorable, Videl is a lot of fun, and the return of the classic DB/Dr. Slump 'superpowered kid in ordinary situation' gags felt really nostalgic.

Oh, yeah, and Toriyama actually attempted to give Gohan and Videl chemistry before pairing them up and getting them married. That's pretty crazy from Mr. "I don't know how to write romance".

[Ripper 30]

There are many things about Dragon Ball which I adore and the first thing that comes to my mind is, it's unique setting which consists of a mix of Traditional Eastern and Modern Setting, sci-fi in it, unique Character designs and the puns after which they are named.

it's simplicity and Charm is what gives it a distinctive feel from other Shows. it doesn't try to take itself too seriously for the most part and manages to be entertaining at the same time. the characters. the Characters in Dragon Ball may not be deep or Complex but still they are enjoyable and likable for me because not all animes have to be Dark, complex or Mature to be called a good Anime which is the point many haters of it don't understand.

it had a Phenomenal Japanese cast consisting of some of the Best Seiyuus in Japan and its Musical Score specially the one by Shunsuke Kikuchi gives the series a very unique Wuxia-themed feel which suited it perfectly. I have always loved the Kikuchi Score and also, the Sound Effects by Hidenori Arai are some of the best I have heard in Animes. the Songs by Hironobu Kageyama were Awesome and always elevated the scene in which they were played or even his Openings and Endings.

It's Staff too did a great Job for making the show this big, specially the likes of Daisuke Nishio the Director and awesome Animators like Tadayoshi Yamamuro (in his prime), Naoki Tate, Masaki Sato, etc. and Shigeyasu Yamaguchi did a great job for Story Boarding so the Production may not be the most consistent still it did a good job overall.

[Michsi]

The fact that there's a new Dragon Ball show airing weekly and has English subtitles and can be watched for free the same night it airs.

This, a thousand times. I had to struggle to get to watch DBZ.

[DragonBallKing]

Character designs are one of the things I adore and appreciate most about Dragon Ball and many other anime/manga series. I'm not even an aspiring artist but I just love cool looking or visually appealing characters.

[sintzu]

I appreciate that DB and manga in general are the work of one person that has a clear beginning and ending. They don't go on forever and be passed on from one writer to another.

Another thing from DB is the fights, to this day I think they're among the best in Shonen. I also like how Toriyama took his time with each arc and gave it his full attention before moving on to the next one.

The anime's Buu arc is also worth praising as Toriyama at that point was clearly very tired and was rushing through some elements but they more than made up for it with great art, animation, moments and fights. The arc was still very dense when it came to plot points, just as much as the previous ones so although he was tired, he still didn't hold anything back.

[DragonBallKing]

I adore how cool Nozawa sounds when Goku is in Ultra Instinct, not just voice but the roar effect during screams.

[DragonBallFoodie]

There’s quite a lot I admire and appreciate in the DB saga.

I enjoy how a charming fantasy comedy wuxia tale became one of the most influential and iconic anime stories in history.

I enjoy the overall loose and easygoing tone of the story. Its lack of rigid rules enables a fantasy world/universe where all sorts of beings can exist together (talking animals, aliens, androids, angels, demons) and any kind of adventure can happen. While Toriyama couldn’t stop the characters evolving (Goku and Bulma eventually grew up and got their own families) and he was eventually overcome by the rising power scale, he was able to maintain the tone and keep it up as long as possible.

I enjoy and appreciate the overall humorous tone of the story. Characters are named after objects, everyone acts goofy at some point, and certain situations are based on famous film/TV scenarios (Journey to the West, Superman, Terminator, etc). It’s clear that Toriyama’s experience as a gag artist helped him a great deal to find a way to use a situation’s conventions and twist them around for surprise – while a few situations are a source of great discussion and debate which may have just been done for a joke/surprise, they still add to the appeal and fascination of the saga.

I enjoy how simple but appealing the artwork is, and its unique emotional empathy. Everything looks cartoonish and laidback, then when things get hardcore the art switches to become intense and tough, I hope that makes sense.

I enjoy how quirky and appealing the characters are – Goku is an wonderful character IMO. He is both man and child, both alien being and a mythological being (he was based on the Monkey King), and despite being a grandfather at DBS he is still a fun character and a great shonen protagonist. All the characters, both heroes and villains, have their fun enjoyable moments (the villains especially, the Ginyu with their poses, Frieza and his banter, Vegeta and his pride) which makes them memorable and fun to see.

I enjoy both the Japanese/English voice casts, who adds something unique to their version of the DB character.

I enjoy the theme tracks the saga has created (Rock the Dragon, Hero Flow, Mystic Adventure, Romantikku Agero Yo, Cha-La Head Cha-La, Boogie Back, Limit Break X Survivor)


The link below explains in a better form the things I admire/appreciate about DB.
h[url]ttps://www.animenewsnetwork.com/house-of-1000-manga/2011-03-10[/url]