How would you introduce Dragon Ball to Gen Alpha?

[Jord]

I actually recently introduced my nephews to DB. We just started with DB and will eventually move onto Z and GT.
Surprisingly, Roshi's wacky antics are a big hit with them. It's actually the favorite character of one of my nephews. Can't wait to see how they react to Jacky Chun.

[Dragon Ball Ireland]

I used to like Roshi but the older I get the more disturbing his antics are. Even in a more recent, tamer show like Super there is a whole episode in the Tournament of Power arc where Roshi runs around, chasing a girl (who is horrified and no one tries to help) and trying to rape her, only for it to be revealed she is the villain with a plot involving Tien's dojo, and Roshi is the one who tries to stop her, so his acts are seen as heroic and his desires are glorified. This episode also aired mostly uncut in the UK, really wish Pop (or any other channel that aired Super) did something to edit this.

[Cure Dragon 255]

I used to like Roshi but the older I get the more disturbing his antics are. Even in a more recent, tamer show like Super there is a whole episode in the Tournament of Power arc where Roshi runs around, chasing a girl (who is horrified and no one tries to help) and trying to rape her, only for it to be revealed she is the villain with a plot involving Tien's dojo, and Roshi is the one who tries to stop her, so his acts are seen as heroic and his desires are glorified. This episode also aired mostly uncut in the UK, really wish Pop (or any other channel that aired Super) did something to edit this.

Dont you worry. Latin America got you covered. I think Cartoon Network Latin America removed that scene after complaints about it. But then Cartoon Network Latin America stopped airing Super and Warner Channel just aired it uncut. Sighhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

[Dragon Ball Ireland]

Dont you worry. Latin America got you covered. I think Cartoon Network Latin America removed that scene after complaints about it. But then Cartoon Network Latin America stopped airing Super and Warner Channel just aired it uncut. Sighhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

Yeah, I heard.

The worst part is that in the dojo episode Goku just shut the door during Roshi's fight with Yurin. People complain about Goku being a lot more stupid in Super but this was TOEI's one chance to show him making a sensible decision. It would have been character development for Goku too, as before he would obviously have been too naive about anything sexual to know when it's threatening to women, and, again someone other than Roshi would have been seen as the hero of the episode for taking a stand against attempted rape.

What's even more frustrating is TOEI didn't learn their lesson, as during the Tournament of Power when Roshi is pulling the same stunt against Caway and she says she will be "undesirable" as a wife if he does so, and again the fact Roshi wins kind of justifies the tactic.

[SuperSaiyaManZ94]

Dont you worry. Latin America got you covered. I think Cartoon Network Latin America removed that scene after complaints about it. But then Cartoon Network Latin America stopped airing Super and Warner Channel just aired it uncut. Sighhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

Yeah, I heard.

The worst part is that in the dojo episode Goku just shut the door during Roshi's fight with Yurin. People complain about Goku being a lot more stupid in Super but this was TOEI's one chance to show him making a sensible decision. It would have been character development for Goku too, as before he would obviously have been too naive about anything sexual to know when it's threatening to women, and, again someone other than Roshi would have been seen as the hero of the episode for taking a stand against attempted rape.

What's even more frustrating is TOEI didn't learn their lesson, as during the Tournament of Power when Roshi is pulling the same stunt against Caway and she says she will be "undesirable" as a wife if he does so, and again the fact Roshi wins kind of justifies the tactic.

It's seems that Toei Animation is run by a bunch of out of touch corporate suits who apparently can't see for themselves how messed up this kind of stuff is, their thought process with scenes like this and others is likely something along the lines of "lol omg that's so funny, put it in" and clearly it says that they either simply don't care or legit don't see such things as problematic in the story meetings. I'd bet that nobody in the room went "Um, yeah...maybe this isn't such a good idea" but if they didn't learn their lesson with that first scene they're never going to. I know that in Japan they have different standards in regard to a great many things compared to elsewhere in the Western sphere, but there are some things which really makes you question their views in regard to aspects like this in animated productions.

[GhostEmperorX]

Although that in itself still depends on who you're dealing with, since no group is necessarily a monolith.
In the first place, anime in general is still a very stigmatized field in that same country, believe it or not.

[Dragon Ball Ireland]

anime in general is still a very stigmatized field in that same country, believe it or not.

My issue is that the poor treatment of sexuality in anime does nothing to tackle that stigma. In fact it only supports it as we see so many examples of women being objectified, jokes about guys being perverts (in many cases even grabbing breasts to the extent its an unfunny cliche), I've also heard Gurren Lagann fetishises a 14-year old girl , which leads a lot of people to stereotype anime fans as being loners who live in their mother's basement and will never have a girlfriend. It's for these reasons I hate hentai because all of this awful stuff we see in anime is turned up to 11.

Getting back to Dragon Ball I'm glad that while these Roshi moments really take you out of the experience I'm glad they are only a few episodes out of hundreds and a lot of anime are around 26 episodes long, so at least with Dragon Ball the episodes when Roshi's perviness gets out of hand can be skipped without missing a whole lot of story.

[JulieYBM]

anime in general is still a very stigmatized field in that same country, believe it or not.

My issue is that the poor treatment of sexuality in anime does nothing to tackle that stigma. In fact it only supports it as we see so many examples of women being objectified, jokes about guys being perverts (in many cases even grabbing breasts to the extent its an unfunny cliche), I've also heard Gurren Lagann fetishises a 14-year old girl , which leads a lot of people to stereotype anime fans as being loners who live in their mother's basement and will never have a girlfriend. It's for these reasons I hate hentai because all of this awful stuff we see in anime is turned up to 11.

Getting back to Dragon Ball I'm glad that while these Roshi moments really take you out of the experience I'm glad they are only a few episodes out of hundreds and a lot of anime are around 26 episodes long, so at least with Dragon Ball the episodes when Roshi's perviness gets out of hand can be skipped without missing a whole lot of story.

'Otaku' (which I am using only to describe Japanese fans of anime, manga, games, light novels, etc.) are well-aware of the stereotypes. They actually enjoy pushing those stereotypes as part of their self-deprecating shtick. This is why these things continually repeat themselves throughout various works. As for never having girlfriends...well, yeah. They don't necessarily all want to date real women. Heck, some Otaku even go so far as holding wedding ceremonies between them and their favorite fictional character.

With regards to pornographic works—actually made for an 18+ crowd, and not for kids like Dragon Ball—I mean...it's literally meant for a certain purpose: masturbation. Dragon Ball isn't an 18+ work (although, I'd certain take officially 18+ Dragon Ball), so it's depiction and treatment of women and sexual assault are in fact really bad, most especially when you consider the target audience of children. I understand not liking non-con in erotica, but it's hardly a specifically Japanese thing.

[Adamant]

Surprisingly, Roshi's wacky antics are a big hit with them.

Yeah, it sure is surprising that the target audience finds a character the target audience is meant to find funny to be funny.

[sangofe]

Surprisingly, Roshi's wacky antics are a big hit with them.

Yeah, it sure is surprising that the target audience finds a character the target audience is meant to find funny to be funny.

My daugther found Kamesennin and Oolong the most funny ones when she was between 6 and 9. They were the biggest reason she kept watching. She stopped at Vegeta vs Zarbon. However, we/she did finish the Dragon Ball manga.

[GhostEmperorX]

My issue is that the poor treatment of sexuality in anime does nothing to tackle that stigma. In fact it only supports it as we see so many examples of women being objectified, jokes about guys being perverts (in many cases even grabbing breasts to the extent its an unfunny cliche), I've also heard Gurren Lagann fetishises a 14-year old girl , which leads a lot of people to stereotype anime fans as being loners who live in their mother's basement and will never have a girlfriend. It's for these reasons I hate hentai because all of this awful stuff we see in anime is turned up to 11.

And it's not as if they somehow "need" those to stick, be successful, memorable, and so on either. Lists can be made of JP series which don't have such elements (or at the least don't really focus on portraying them) but still made it big. In just about any era you can think of, whether it's a manga adaptation or a TV/Video original.
Personally speaking, I can do just fine without it being present.

[Jord]

I used to like Roshi but the older I get the more disturbing his antics are. Even in a more recent, tamer show like Super there is a whole episode in the Tournament of Power arc where Roshi runs around, chasing a girl (who is horrified and no one tries to help) and trying to rape her, only for it to be revealed she is the villain with a plot involving Tien's dojo, and Roshi is the one who tries to stop her, so his acts are seen as heroic and his desires are glorified. This episode also aired mostly uncut in the UK, really wish Pop (or any other channel that aired Super) did something to edit this.

Dont you worry. Latin America got you covered. I think Cartoon Network Latin America removed that scene after complaints about it. But then Cartoon Network Latin America stopped airing Super and Warner Channel just aired it uncut. Sighhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

Yay for censorship!
Glad people in Latin America don't have to decide for themselves whether they want to watch that scene or not.

[NeoZ Duwang]

You know what's better than censoring stuff? Not writing it at all

Kids have acess to internet, you can't censor stuff away from them anymore. I know I sure as hell didn't fall for the LA American dub saying that Muten Roshi wanted more... innocent things from girls, like when he asked the mermaid's shoe instead of her panties

Not blaming Cartoon Network for censoring it, but I can't believe there's going to be anybody that won't found out how those episodes were orginally

[Cure Dragon 255]

I used to like Roshi but the older I get the more disturbing his antics are. Even in a more recent, tamer show like Super there is a whole episode in the Tournament of Power arc where Roshi runs around, chasing a girl (who is horrified and no one tries to help) and trying to rape her, only for it to be revealed she is the villain with a plot involving Tien's dojo, and Roshi is the one who tries to stop her, so his acts are seen as heroic and his desires are glorified. This episode also aired mostly uncut in the UK, really wish Pop (or any other channel that aired Super) did something to edit this.

Dont you worry. Latin America got you covered. I think Cartoon Network Latin America removed that scene after complaints about it. But then Cartoon Network Latin America stopped airing Super and Warner Channel just aired it uncut. Sighhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

Yay for censorship!
Glad people in Latin America don't have to decide for themselves whether they want to watch that scene or not.

I just told you Warner Channel airs it uncut lol.

[JulieYBM]

Why censor a finished project when they can just label the series 18+ and include a content warning at the beginning of each episode stating "We’re fucking idiots and hate women and queer people and thought it was a smart idea to make that apparent in this series but we know better now sorry"

[MasenkoHA]

I used to like Roshi but the older I get the more disturbing his antics are. Even in a more recent, tamer show like Super there is a whole episode in the Tournament of Power arc where Roshi runs around, chasing a girl (who is horrified and no one tries to help) and trying to rape her, only for it to be revealed she is the villain with a plot involving Tien's dojo, and Roshi is the one who tries to stop her, so his acts are seen as heroic and his desires are glorified. This episode also aired mostly uncut in the UK, really wish Pop (or any other channel that aired Super) did something to edit this.

Dont you worry. Latin America got you covered. I think Cartoon Network Latin America removed that scene after complaints about it. But then Cartoon Network Latin America stopped airing Super and Warner Channel just aired it uncut. Sighhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

Yay for censorship!
Glad people in Latin America don't have to decide for themselves whether they want to watch that scene or not.

Yay for not knowing what censorship is!

[90sDBZ]

Part of me wants to say start with DB then go onto Z. But then I think of the pacing issues, and that the Pilaf era isn't necessarily the best representation of the larger series.

Those episodes could easily put potential new fans off. I like them well enough, but the series didn't really get going until the 21st Tournament. And then the RRA arc has its own pacing problems.

If someone asked my opinion I honestly think Kai would be my go to response. At the very least it does give a recap of DB's major events, and the Saiyan arc is one of the best there is. Kai's version is very fast paced, and quickly shows you what to expect from the show going forward.

If someone enjoys Kai they have option to go back and watch OG DB/Z/GT, or just continue onto Super immediately.

[Dragon Ball Ireland]

Part of me wants to say start with DB then go onto Z. But then I think of the pacing issues, and that the Pilaf era isn't necessarily the best representation of the larger series.

Those episodes could easily put potential new fans off.

That may be true, and as I say, while many aspects of original Dragon Ball don't hold up it is still in the viewer/readers best interest to build up a familiarity with Toriyama's characters.

Even if someone starts with Kai it means nothing to them when Yamcha, Tien and Chaoitzu show up, and their deaths in the Saiyan arc don't carry the same weight because you don't go through the times when they were Goku's enemies (well maybe not Chaoitzu, but definitely Tien and Yamcha). They're just a bunch of fighters you have a vague notion are Goku's friends, which becomes solidified as you continue watching/reading, but it's never ideal to lack context when you first see these characters.

It also helps to watch the Piccolo arc because Piccolo is still evil when Raditz shows up and it can feel like more of an unexpected surprise to new viewers that he even considers teaming up with Goku. And then of course you have the gradual redemption built up when he trains Gohan and develops that bond with him, which obviously adds to the sense of loss when he sacrifices himself to save him.

There's also the added tension with characters like Chaoitzu and Krillin who die a second time, making the wish on the Namekian Dragon Balls that much more crucial.

It's easy for us to say because most of us in English-speaking countries started with Z and turned out fine so there is a natural bias, but there's no way of knowing for sure would things have worked out better if we hypothetically saw the original series first.

For these reasons and more I wish there was a Kai of original Dragon Ball so new viewers did have a faster paced alternative.

[TheGreatness25]

I feel like introducing my kids to Dragon Ball would be work for me. Like what age we talking? I don't have kids yet, so let's say they're... 5-8 by the time they start watching? I doubt they'd care. I might not be in touch with today's kids, but did kids in the US care about Super? I feel like the US version (at least) was kind of released on the nostalgia platform.

If I were to decide to take on this task, I would want to start with Dragon Ball, but I can just imagine the torture I would be putting them through. I made this mistake with my wife--started on Dragon Ball and she tapped out by the Red Ribbon arc. I realized then that I should've probably started her off at Kai. I feel like kids might be bored by at least half of Dragon Ball and it would be awfully hard to keep telling them, "The good stuff is coming up!"

Of course, when the series brushes on certain topics that I don't athletics of, I would likely just tell them how terrible that character was for doing what they did, but that's about it. I think that as long as the parent teaches their kids general right from wrong, they'll be fine. I have an older brother and definitely have been watching things that were highly inappropriate for my age. Rated R movies at 6, playing GTA 1 at 9, etc. And yet, I never once thought to go out shooting people or harassing women (even if 90's culture was radically different in its views on women). I mean, just look at how women were portrayed in late 90s wrestling, etc. So, my hope is that as long as I generally teach my kids right from wrong, they won't be picking up life lessons from an old cartoon. I also feel like it might be good to get ahead of that train in a controlled environment than to shelter them from all controversial media and having them stumble onto it themselves as teens or young adults. Because, let's face it, they will come across crazy things in their lives and I would rather have built a foundation for them on how to view and handle those things properly.

So, most likely, it would end up being Kai, Super, Daima. And then if they want to watch Dragon Ball at any point, by all means. But I think it helped me as a young viewer to get invested in the characters through the "Yeahhh, hardcore action, rock the dragon, Dragon Ball Z!!!" and then go back out of curiosity to watch what happened before then. If I'm being truthful, I don't know if the original Dragon Ball would hold my interest as a kid (at least until the 21st Tenka'ichi Budokai).

[super michael]

I would say to watch it in this order:

Dragon Ball
Dragon Ball Kai
Dragon Ball GT
Dragon Ball Z BoG Movie
Dragon Ball Z RoF Movie

Dragon Ball Super it is better to read the manga and watch the movie only. Better to skip the anime.