Dragon Ball's Popularity with Teens and Children

[Wrigglything]

I believe there was a thread about this a while back, but I thought I'd share some encounters some time ago while I was at the mall checking some anime merch.

Obviously it's not some obscure franchise even here in my country, where most anime merch stores I go to would usually have a section dedicated to Dragon Ball. Some have more than others, but it shows that there is a demand for this franchise even after all these years, though one could make the argument they come from adults nostalgic for the series, hence its lower supply compared to others.

But my focus is on the popularity of the franchise regarding their main demographic, kids. Because I think that's a fascinating part there too, since there were two instances where they were looking for or spotting something Dragon Ball related. The first incident I recall was a pair of teenagers looking for a figure of maybe Vegeta, and the second were young children identifying one of those key chain picture things of Gogeta as something Dragon Ball related. So that makes me wonder just how popular is it with kids worldwide still. Is it really just good circumstances given the place I was at, or is the franchise still doing well with children?

[Dragon Ball Ireland]

In my experience Dragon Ball's popularity among kids and teens is as noticeable as something like Pokemon or even Yu-Gi-Oh, but it is there, at least here in Ireland.

I remember when Super was airing one Sunday morning I was taking a bus and overheard the sound of TOEI Animation opening music followed by Limit Break X Survivor coming from some kid's loose headphones. I was pleasantly surprised they were watching the Japanese version, just goes to show how much the wait for an English dub led to fans of all ages giving it a chance.

More recently I went to see Super Hero in theatres, although I was the only person at the screening. After walking out of the movie I saw a mother and her kid, and the kid pointed at the Super Hero poster saying something about "Dragon Ball Z", which tells me that's still the most prolific brand name despite Super's rise.

The odd time there's a kid or teen out and about wearing a Dragon Ball shirt or hoodie. I can't speak for how hyped they are for the toys though, as I don't go to those kind of stores, but I'd assume they sell well because they are constantly being stocked.

[jjgp1112]

Here in the states it's still hugely popular among teenagers and kids. I still remember going to Super Broly and being floored by how many teenagers were there. It's kinda surreal to see DB just as popular now as it was when I was in school....if not bigger And that was twenty damn years ago! (Jesus fucking Christ) Not only does it have the kids, but it's endured nostalgically in a way that few kid's cartoons from its era have.

[bkev]

I think DB is a legacy product in English-speaking countries at this point a-la a Hanna Barbera cartoon. We all know about it, and even if the obsession isn't there, you've got more general knowledge about the franchise than other products that came from the era (80s etc.)

There's still a ton of merch but I tend to assume it's marketed toward twentysomethings nowadays.

[PurestEvil]

Here in the states it's still hugely popular among teenagers and kids. I still remember going to Super Broly and being floored by how many teenagers were there. It's kinda surreal to see DB just as popular now as it was when I was in school....if not bigger And that was twenty damn years ago! (Jesus fucking Christ) Not only does it have the kids, but it's endured nostalgically in a way that few kid's cartoons from its era have.

Given how much of a meme Dragon Ball became on the internet and the general rise in anime consumption among young Americans, it makes sense that a lot of teens would get hooked into the franchise...just like how I did!

[MasenkoHA]

It also sounds like Dragon Ball got a recent resurgence with kids and teens because of some Fortnite cross promotion thing?

[Saiya6Cit]

It is popular with the children because it was popular with the parents and there are products available at the store that the parents are willing to purchase.

Of course I can only speak about Mexico here (born and raised) and I can tell you dragon ball never really left here, yeah people overlooked DBGT but in mexico DBZ is a beloved as El Chavo (local show) or the Simpsons (a show that thanks to some dub liberties it is very well ingrained to our culture) but ever since 2017 and thanks to Dragon Ball Super whenever you go to the supermarket the kids clothes section has dragon ball, when there is the back to school there are dragon ball backpacks and suppplies. At any anime or comic store they have dragon ball figurines etc. At the piñata stores, they have GOKU and VEGETA!! they would have blue hair but still, it is them!

To me that means the franchise is current, it means the children recognize it and support it. I have seen 2 year olds watching DBZ and pretending to blast ki immediately after, DB is immortal, it is like Superman, which kid would not want to be the kind of Hero that Goku is?