Thoughts on the Beckett DBZ Magazines..

[goku the krump dancer]

So the topic title really says it all. HellSpawn28's thread about the first japanese movie you saw got my memory jogging a little bit. But yeah, I started my year subscription around the same time I saw Movie 8, I got the book that had Future Trunks on it and it was silver with the entire Super Battle Collection inside back in November or December of 2000. I subscribed and got my first book in January.

Even back then, I thought the art on the front covers and posters were a bit icky at times but I still enjoyed every issue I got and hung every poster on my wall.

[chaosyoshimage]

I used to buy these for Dragon Ball Z, Pokemon, Digimon, and Yu-Gi-Oh! as a kid. I didn't have the internet until 2003, so for awhile, these were my main source of news for this stuff. I recall that they were way better than the alternative. As mediocre as their art was, it was better than what a similar publication, Ghostmasters did. Not only was it a poorly sourced magazine that never seemed to know what it was talking about, much of their art was stolen from sites, official sources, and fans. I don't know if they ever did a Dragon Ball Z magazine, but they did Pokemon and Digimon ones and they were terrible. Oh! Pojo was a thing too, but I was too young when I was reading those to remember their quality. I know they still have a site going for card games.

[MagicBox]

They published my Gohan fanart in their very first issue. Every kid on the playground treated me like a celebrity.

Aside from that, those magazines are *very* difficult to look back on.

[Hellspawn28]

I used to get these in the mail when I first started becoming a DBZ fan. Before I discover Planet Namek, these magazines were my only source for DBZ info. I do remember that one time were I send my DBZ vs. Powerpuff Girls drawing but it look like it never went through. I also had the Pokemon, Digimon and Yu-Gi-Oh Beckett magazines before they became Beckett Anime. I guess Beckett died out by the mid 2000's due to the Internet. That's how magazines die out these days due to the Internet.

[Dalesy]

Oooh, I remember those things. I think I had more for YuGiOh than I did for DBZ though. Can't seem to remember very many particulars aside from the fan art, and then the card listings and articles. Good times.

[DBZ Mick]

I remember having an enjoyable afternoon long drive back home as a kid reading their character guide in that issue with the gold SSJ Goku. Good times.

[Dalesy]

Just perusing Google Images for covers from these magazines, and I remembered this issue. Definitely had this one growing up.

[Insertclevername]

I remember how cool these magazines used to look... Now? Not so much.

[DarkPrince_92]

Oh shit. My childhood...

[ForestEquilibrium]

Quite fond memories, I didn't have too many issues but the ones I did I coveted for quite awhile, I recall having the very first issue (w/ a deformed looking Goku, even then as a 7 Year old I knew the art was bbaaaaddd), an original DB throwback issue (the one w/ little Goku, Chi chi, and Kuririn on the cover), the one w/Gohan in his Kaioshin outfit and finally the last one was in 2003 with a bizarre Piccolo/Hulk crossover(which I still own while the others have been lost to time...). I was really into them as it was my introduction to a lot of the Japanese terms and puns and made me aware of some of the Japanese merchandise as well (one of those issues had a good article on Hyper Dimension, if not about the other Super Famicom games in general), I was especially intrigued by some of the GT stuff (in 2001 it still felt a long ways away til the dub release). But of course, it also showed some of the Score cards and Irwin toys already in the North American market inspiring me to beg my dad more Brings me back to when we used to buy magazines at my local Blockbuster alongside all those video game strategy guides.... oh those were the days.....

[Nazi Cola]

I have a box with every issue. They were a huge part of my childhood and helped me get into art and comics in the first place.

Looking back now, they're not too accurate...

[Hellspawn28]

I remember one of their contest had them give away a free Gameboy Advance with a Gameboy version of Dragon Ball GT Final Bout. They were pretty much giving out a bootleg copy of a video game .

[Thanos]

I enjoyed them based on the fact that there was a monthly Dragon Ball magazine, but it didn't take long for me to catch on. I don't know if it's because I knew more about the series or if the quality declined overtime, but I remember at a certain point face-palming at it. The one that really stands out was the issue with an article called, "25 (or something) Things You Didn't Know About DBZ" and that was the worst. It was things like, "Seven years after the defeat of Cell, Krillin actually grew hair!" and, "Gohan took on a super hero alter-ego, calling himself the Great Saiyaman!". And a lot of the art in the magazine was just terrible.

Despite that, I credit it for really getting my teeth into the series. It was at a point (2000) when my parents didn't let me use the internet and I didn't have cable yet, so really, the majority of my information came from those damned magazines. I remember the issue (might've been the shiny Trunks one) where there was a competition to win the entire Super Battle Collection. I remember sending in my entry. Good times... This was also before I even knew about Dragon Ball GT, so obviously seeing the Kid Goku/Pan one confused the hell out of me. I remember thinking since it was spelled 'Gokou', it was pronounced "Go-cow" and in my 10-year-old mind I decided that was another one of Goku's kids. Oh, and there was a picture of Gohan after receiving the Mystic power-up, wearing the Kaioshin uniform... so at that point I decided Gohan had fused with Kaioshin.

[dprez]

I used to collect them via subscription as a kid. They were the best. Loved checking the prices of the cards and all the info and artwork inside. I remember being inspired to learn how to draw DBZ characters by the artist who always did the covers. Wish I would've kept them...

[Scarz]

I brought them despite hating the art, even then. I was super into Dragon Ball by the time these were out, I purchased most (if not all) of the magazines until the end of its run. I remember disliking the cover art and the original art a lot even though my artistic skills at the time weren't any better. I remember I tried to copy the cover art thinking I could make it better. Of course, it didn't work out as well as I hoped but the kids at school thought it looked pretty cool.

[fps_anth]

Used to read these things religiously. Especially that Future Trunks issue. These magazines introduced me to the Super Battle Collection. Thanks to them, my room is now somewhat full of said toys

Didn't Greg Werner write for them?