The latest addition to our “Press Archive” is another fun blast-from-the-past: an Internal Correspondence article from the April 1995 issue announcing the forthcoming syndication broadcast debut of the original Dragon Ball television series from FUNimation.
The article is also noteworthy for mentioning Viz’s ongoing negotiations for their Dragon Ball manga license, which was still almost three years off from this point.
Enjoy this article over in our “Press Archive” along with over 100 other historical articles and columns from trade publications as well as video game and anime magazines of the era.
Following the initial announcement back in February, Tubi has launched the full 74 episode run of the Dr. Slump franchise’s 1997 reboot television series on its free streaming service:
English subtitles are provided through the service’s closed captions functionality.
Based on Akira Toriyama’s 1980-1984 manga originally serialized in Weekly Shōnen Jump, the original Dr. Slump television series by Toei Animation ran from 1981 to 1986 on Fuji TV; it was replaced by the Dragon Ball television series after its conclusion. In a fitting switch, this 1997 Dr. Slump reboot television series took its original timeslot back following the conclusion of the Dragon Ball GT television series that November.
Arale and the Dr. Slump cast have made their way into the extended Dragon Ball universe many times over the years, beginning with a three-chapter crossover during the original manga’s Red Ribbon Army story arc. The 1997 series features its own original four-episode crossover from episodes 56 to 59.
Along with Dragon Ball, Harmony Gold dubbed a pilot production of Dr. Slump in the 1980s, though this attempt never resulted in a proper, continued broadcast of the series. The Dr. Slump television series has long had a complete episode listing on Amazon Prime, though the episodes have not been actually made available for streaming in America. The original manga, translated by Alexander O. Smith, is available in English from Viz both digitally and in print.
Each month, Toyotarō provides a drawing of a Dragon Ball character — as well as an accompanying comment — on the official Japanese Dragon Ball website. Following up on the wealth of characters already drawn, for his May 2021 entry, Toyotarō has contributed a drawing of Malaiko from the Afterlife Tournament filler arc of the Dragon Ball Z television series.
Malaiko
A competitor in the Afterlife Tournament, who appears to take pride in his monstrous strength. Kinda reminds you of Giran, doesn’t he.
Malaiko’s name (マーライコー Māraikō) is likely sourced from one pronunciation of Malay sponge cake, a southeast Asian food.
This drawing and comment set has been added to the respective page in our “Translations” archive.
Continuing onward from previous chapters, Shueisha and Viz have added the official English translation of the Dragon Ball Super manga’s seventy-second chapter to their respective Manga Plus and Shonen Jump services, continuing the brand-new “Granolla the Survivor arc”. Alongside other initiatives including free chapters and a larger archive for paid subscribers, this release continues the companies’ schedule of not simply simultaneously publishing the series’ chapter alongside its Japanese debut to the release date, but to its local time in Japan alongside its serialization in today’s July 2021 issue of Shueisha’s V-Jump magazine.
The Dragon Ball Super “comicalization” began in June 2015, initially just ahead of the television series, and running both ahead and behind the series at various points. The manga runs monthly in Shueisha’s V-Jump magazine, with the series’ seventy-second chapter coming today in the magazine’s July 2021 issue. Illustrated by “Toyotarō” (in all likelihood, a second pen-name used by Dragon Ball AF fan manga author and illustrator “Toyble”), the Dragon Ball Super manga covered the Battle of Gods re-telling, skipped the Resurrection ‘F’ re-telling, and “charged ahead” to the Champa arc, “speeding up the excitement of the TV anime even more”. Though the television series has completed its run, the manga continues onward, moving into its own original “Galactic Patrol Prisoner” and “Granolla the Survivor” arcs. Viz is currently releasing free digital chapters of the series, and began their own collected print edition back in 2017. The thirteenth collected volume is due this June.
The Dragon Ball Super television series concluded in March 2018 with 131 total episodes. FUNimation owns the American distribution license for the series, with the English dub having wrapped its broadcast on Cartoon Network, and the home video release reaching its tenth and final box set last year.
On the heels of yesterday’s inadvertent website reveals, the revamped Dragon Ball Official Site formally announced today that a new Dragon Ball Super film is in the works for a 2022 release.
The website posting contains a comment from original Dragon Ball author Akira Toriyama, presented both in English and Japanese. As with a similar comment posted in 2018 ahead of Dragon Ball Super: Broly‘s release, the official English comment — itself publicly accessible earlier today prior to the formal reveal — differs slightly from that as originally written in Japanese.
「ドラゴンボール超ブロリー」に続く劇場版の制作が決定し、進行中です！今回も僕がセリフも含め話を作り込んだ運身の一作となっています。内容はまだ内緒らしいので言えませんがちょっと意外なキャラが大活躍する激しく楽しい内容になっていると思います。ビジュアルも新鮮で、すごいことになっているみたいですからどうぞ期待して待っていてください！
(Kanzenshuu translation follows)
Production of a theatrical film following on from Dragon Ball Super: Broly has been given the go-ahead and is currently underway! Once again, I’ve poured my heart and soul into it, writing the story down to the dialogue itself. Apparently, its content is still under wraps, so I can’t talk about it, but I think it’ll be a real hoot, with a bit of an unexpected character playing a big role. It seems the visuals are going to be fresh and pretty crazy, so please look forward to it!
The website’s own English version reads as:
An all new movie since “Dragon Ball Super: Broly” is currently in the making!
Just like the previous movie, I’m heavily leading the story and dialogue production for another amazing film.
I really shouldn’t talk too much about the plot yet, but be prepared for some extreme and entertaining bouts, which may feature an unexpected character.
We’ll be charting through some unexplored territory in terms of visual aesthetics to give the audience an amazing ride, so I hope everybody will look forward to the new movie!
Akira Toriyama
The official website promises more information soon. For additional context regarding this announcement and the lead-up to the forthcoming film, please see our update from yesterday.
Earlier today, links to an unpublished article on Toei Animation Europe’s website appeared indicating a “surprise announcement” of a forthcoming Dragon Ball Super movie for release in 2022:
The article — made visible through “Similar Articles” functionality in the website’s content management system, now since removed — noted the announcement as coming on “Goku Day.” Though the article’s full title was cut off in a standard view, underlying code revealed its full headline as:
Toei Marks Goku Day with Surprise Announcement of New Dragon Ball Super Movie in 2022
Kanzenshuu was able to independently confirm and capture screens of this content before its removal later in the day. Content was also visible on Google’s cache of the page for some time, though this has also since updated to reflect the content’s removal.
UPDATE: An image hosted on the official Toei Animation website as of earlier this morning (May 8th) contained a quote from original Dragon Ball author Akira Toriyama. Like with the article data from yesterday, this image has since been taken down, but was saved by Kanzenshuu (presented below) prior to this removal.
An all new movie since “Dragon Ball Super: Broly” is currently in the making!
Just like the previous movie, I’m heavily leading the story and dialogue production for another amazing film.
I really shouldn’t talk too much about the plot yet, but be prepared for some extreme and entertaining bouts, which may feature an unexpected character.
We’ll be charting through some unexplored territory in terms of visual aesthetics to give the audience an amazing ride, so I hope everybody will look forward to the new movie!
Akira Toriyama
The designation of May 9th — now formally recognized in Japan — is a play on on “Gokū,” where the date’s representative numbers, “five” and “nine,” can be pronounced as go and kū, respectively. The unpublished article was referenced today, May 7th, two days ahead of Goku Day.
The “announcement” — if it can truly be called such — of a second Dragon Ball Super film originally came by way of comments from planner and head of Shueisha’s “Dragon Ball Room” Akio Iyoku, as well as producer Norihiro Hayashida, in an interview printed in a 60-page booklet accompanying the home video release of 2018’s Dragon Ball Super: Broly theatrical film:
Dragon Ball Super: Broly is the driving force for the next movie.
Iyoku: Preparations are now steadily underway for the next Dragon Ball movie. Broli was too powerful, so I think it will probably go in an entirely different direction next time. There were parts in the film where we ended up raising the bar, so we have to be careful to avoid burnout. I think Dragon Ball will continue on in the future, so I hope everyone looks forward to it.
Hayashida: A lot of things became apparent by raising the bar. The staffing and casting were on point to a level they’ve never been before, and though I feel that we did a great job, I’ll use this experience to aim even higher in the future!
Iyoku: There were some things that we weren’t able to execute this time, so I think the next one will turn out to be even more amazing. Please look forward to it.
Since the film’s home release in June 2019, there have been no further official statements or clarification regarding any future theatrical films or continuations of the series beyond the manga running in Shueisha’s monthly V-Jump magazine, where Dragon Ball Super has now entered its second additional story arc going beyond the original television series and manga storylines.
The Dragon Ball Super television series concluded in March 2018 with 131 total episodes. FUNimation owns the American distribution license for the series, with the English dub having wrapped its broadcast on Cartoon Network, and the home video release reaching its tenth and final box set back in January 2020.
The Dragon Ball Super “comicalization” began in June 2015, initially just ahead of the television series, and running both ahead and behind the series at various points. The manga runs monthly in Shueisha’s V-Jump magazine, with the series’ seventy-first chapter coming a few weeks ago in the magazine’s June 2021 issue. Illustrated by “Toyotarō” (in all likelihood, a second pen-name used by Dragon Ball AF fan manga author and illustrator “Toyble”), the Dragon Ball Super manga covered the Battle of Gods re-telling, skipped the Resurrection ‘F’ re-telling, and “charged ahead” to the Champa arc, “speeding up the excitement of the TV anime even more”. Though the television series has completed its run, the manga continues onward, moving into its own original “Galactic Patrol Prisoner” and “Granolla the Survivor” arcs. Viz is currently releasing free digital chapters of the series, and began their own collected print edition back in 2017. The thirteenth collected volume is due this June.
Columbia will re-release three vinyl records 28 July 2021, covering the Dragon Ball television series opening and ending theme songs, various Dragon Ball television series theme and insert songs, as well as the first Dragon Ball Z television series opening and ending theme songs:
“Mystical Adventure!” / “I’ll Give You Romance”
“Dragon Ball Hit Song Collection”
“CHA-LA HEAD-CHA-LA” / “Come Out, Incredible ZENKAI Power!”
In addition to the original 1980s vinyl versions, each product subsequently saw cassette and CD re-releases over the years. A later Dragon Ball: Complete Song Collection in 1991 expanded upon the original Hit Song Collection version, itself receiving a 2003 re-release with a rearranged track order.
These vinyl re-releases, announced by Shueisha as well as Columbia and Lawson by way of retailer HMV, come in conjunction with the Dragon Ball television series’ 35th anniversary this year, as well as the 7th anniversary of the opening of the HMV record shop Shibuya. Direct orders are currently only available through HMV in Japan.
Shunsuke Kikuchi, incidental/background music composer for the original Dr. Slump: Arale-chan and the Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z television series and films, has passed away at age 89 from aspiration pneumonia.
Kikuchi’s work on the Dragon Ball franchise has resonated with fans and helped shape the franchise for decades, subsequently appearing in works such as the Japanese versions of the Sparking! and Raging Blast series of video games in the 2000s, as well as being used in the 2008 Jump Super Anime Tour special (“Heya! Son Goku and Friends Return!!”). Following the removal of music by Kenji Yamamoto, selections from Kikuchi’s original score were placed back into the initial Saiyan, Freeza, and Cell arcs of the “refreshed” television series Dragon Ball Kai, originally aired from 2009-2011. An ongoing “Symphonic Adventure” series of orchestral performances toured Europe in 2017 and 2018, with a 2020 American performance unfortunately cancelled due to ongoing COVID-19 concerns.
Most recently for Dragon Ball, selections from Kikuchi’s vast catalog of work have been made available as downloadable content for video games such as Dragon Ball XENOVERSE 2 and Dragon Ball FighterZ, as well as being featured extensively in the score to last year’s Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot.
In a 2018 interview in conjunction with the Dragon Ball Super: Broly theatrical film, current Dragon Ball franchise composer Norihito Sumitomo remarked, “Dragon Ball Z‘s composer Shunsuke Kikuchi expertly utilized brass instruments, creating a unique world that could be classified as neither classical nor pop.”
In addition to the countless contributions across the aforementioned Akira Toriyama series, Kikuchi’s prolific work extended to franchises such as (but not limited to) Tiger Mark, Doraemon, Gamera, and Kamen Rider.
In 2015, Kikuchi was awarded the “International Award” from the Japanese Society for Rights of Authors, Composers (JASRAC), given to the domestic work with the most income generated by payments from foreign licensees. That year, the score to the Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball TV series took the #1 and #10 spots, respectively, with the scores to Dragon Ball Z generating payments from eleven foreign countries, including Italy and the United States.
As part of a cast and staff Q&A alongside the first “Dragon Box” DVD release in Japan in 2003, in response to a question about what he might wish for with the Dragon Balls, Kikuchi responded he would wish for, “…a peaceful world without lies or violence.”
Each month, Toyotarō provides a drawing of a Dragon Ball character — as well as an accompanying comment — on the official Japanese Dragon Ball website. Following up on the wealth of characters already drawn, for his April 2021 entry, Toyotarō has contributed a drawing of Arqua from the Afterlife Tournmanent filler arc of the Dragon Ball Z television series.
Arqua
Once again, it’s a competitor in the Afterlife Tournament. A warrior from the Eastern Galaxy, he apparently has the ability to turn any place into an underwater locale. Underwater fights are rare in the series, so it’s quite the precious ability he possesses.
This drawing and comment set has been added to the respective page in our “Translations” archive.
Continuing onward from previous chapters, Shueisha and Viz have added the official English translation of the Dragon Ball Super manga’s seventy-first chapter to their respective Manga Plus and Shonen Jump services, continuing the brand-new “Granolla the Survivor arc”. Alongside other initiatives including free chapters and a larger archive for paid subscribers, this release continues the companies’ schedule of not simply simultaneously publishing the series’ chapter alongside its Japanese debut to the release date, but to its local time in Japan alongside its serialization in today’s June 2021 issue of Shueisha’s V-Jump magazine.
The Dragon Ball Super “comicalization” began in June 2015, initially just ahead of the television series, and running both ahead and behind the series at various points. The manga runs monthly in Shueisha’s V-Jump magazine, with the series’ seventy-first chapter coming today in the magazine’s June 2021 issue. Illustrated by “Toyotarō” (in all likelihood, a second pen-name used by Dragon Ball AF fan manga author and illustrator “Toyble”), the Dragon Ball Super manga covered the Battle of Gods re-telling, skipped the Resurrection ‘F’ re-telling, and “charged ahead” to the Champa arc, “speeding up the excitement of the TV anime even more”. Though the television series has completed its run, the manga continues onward, moving into its own original “Galactic Patrol Prisoner” and “Granolla the Survivor” arcs. Viz is currently releasing free digital chapters of the series, and began their own collected print edition back in 2017. The thirteenth collected volume is due this June.
The Dragon Ball Super television series concluded in March 2018 with 131 total episodes. FUNimation owns the American distribution license for the series, with the English dub having wrapped its broadcast on Cartoon Network, and the home video release reaching its tenth and final box set last year.
