If you took the nostalgia out, would you still like DB?

[ABED]

While there are times I can get bored if I watch something over and over, I simply take a break from it for a while. I've watched some shows and read certain books over and over. It's great because I either see things I missed before or just new life experiences make me see familiar things through a new lens. I often learn things on this forum about DB or Japanese culture in general that make me see DB in a new manner.

[huzaifa_ahmed]

I have plenty of nostalgia for Dragon Ball, but no, I would not say it's a deciding factor in my overall enjoyment. I was fairly old when I first got into the series, so it definitely isn't some silly thing from my childhood like 80s Thundercats and Ninja Turtles.

I've also shed all ties to the first version of the series I watched (English dub). Actually, that's a thing I do with other franchises too when bad translations are involved. Nostalgia always loses that battle with me.

Anyway, I like Dragon Ball because I enjoy the characters and story. Sometimes I just want to look up a specific quote or scene, and I accidentally read or watch much more than I intended.

Right! I dislike Funimation's first dub as well.I was only a toddler when this was airing on TV, so I recall the overall atmosphere and the voices, but since I wasn't quite part of the "phenomenon" of Z circa 2000, I think I have some valid experience.

Back in 2004, an older friend of mine showed me his collection of American Shonen Jump. I'd seen 4kids' Yugi-oh before, and was immediately turned on by the cover. Never mind SSJ Goku yelling at me through the page. As the years moved on, I kept collecting SJ's, became interested in this comic, and eventually checked out the entirety from my library.
Circa 2007. Saw one or two DVD's (ultimate uncut edition) from the library as I couldn't afford the Orange Boxes.

Would not touch Dragon Ball for 5 years.Would not touch anime from 2010. Queue January 2014. Little cousin mentioned something from Naruto. Queue nostalgia->new Naruto marathon->HxH marathon (used to love this manga before hiatus)->Digimon->Anime, including...Dragon Ball Z:Kai.

"WTF is this music? What happened to that rock music? Where is 'Dragon, dragon, fuck the dragon, *DRAGON BALL Z*!"

It grew on me as I went along the story. I had the greatest eargasm hearing the Super Saiyan line. Could not believe it. Fast forward a year, and I'm looking into anime again. I watch this for motivation often. I keep a few eps on me all the time.
And here I am now.

I can watch it over and over (English Kai, I mean) and even the Japanese Kai, neither of which I was a young child seeing, is great. I can't say the same for Digimon or Shaman King or Cardcaptor Sakura or Beyblade or even unedited Yugi-oh. Nor the later stuff like Bleach, Naruto, One Piece, etc. And I have nostalgia for Naruto (mostly the manga) from around the same time I was into DB manga.

[Deathbringer]

I don't actually have nostalgia for Dragon Ball, I was born in 1998 and growing up I knew of DBZ but never really saw it, but I remember a few years ago I used to like watching YouTube videos of the funny moments in the show and it was in my mind for a while, I got properly into anime in 2013 and then I decided in 2014 to make the leap and watch the whole of Dragon Ball and then watch the whole of Dragon Ball Z. I wouldn't say that I forced myself to like it or anything but in the first few eps I was just waiting for it to pick up and get good (this was before I was made aware of the abundance of filler slowing down the pacing) but then I just loved the series for what it was, fun action with a lot of character and I don't regret watching it at all but I wouldn't watch it again, it's too long I would rather watch something I haven't seen. However I would love to read the manga in fact I'll probably get the 3-in-1 volumes off amazon regardless of how bad the translation is (I mean it can't be that bad and it is mostly uncensored anyway)

I've seen the whole of Bleach and I think that Dragon Ball is the better series and I have no childhood nostalgia for either series (soul society arc is still amazing though to give the series credit where it's due)


Edit: oh and I only saw 2 of the movies, dead zone and world's strongest and I thought they were both meh and just feel really strange when compared to the actual storyline of the series, don't care much for the Garlic Jr and otherworld tournament arc either...at least the bardock and trunks specials made sense

How did I just forget this but I did see battle of Gods and thought it was a good film, if that's the direction Toriyama wants to take the series in with Dragon Ball Super then I'm up for it, I'll make sure to watch DBS when it comes out just to see what happens but I have this sad feeling that most of the fanbase will just hate it and argue over every episode

Never seen GT, I just can't be asked, I hate the design of SSJ4 as well just wtf is that thing...I think one day I'll probably just cave in and watch it, similar to Terminator 3 I'll just think to myself "I guess I can't hate it until I've seen it" and then subject myself to it...

[Theophrastus]

Would I still like it? Sure. Would it have the special place in my heart that it does now? Nah.

If the original manga were running today, every chapter exactly the same as they currently exist, it would basically be up there with Fairy Tail or Bleach for me in terms of "Eh, the writing's...not always the best...but it's still a fun series and worth taking the small amount of time it takes to read each week".