How would you write a "Dragon Ball Next Generation" series?

Discussion regarding the entirety of the franchise in a general (meta) sense, including such aspects as: production, trends, merchandise, fan culture, and more.

Moderators: General Help, Kanzenshuu Staff

User avatar
Dragon Ball Gus
Advanced Regular
Posts: 1130
Joined: Thu May 12, 2016 4:51 pm
Location: Planet Sadla

How would you write a "Dragon Ball Next Generation" series?

Post by Dragon Ball Gus » Fri Apr 14, 2017 6:11 pm

So I just had an idea of How Dragon Ball Z Should've Ended. Instead of Goku going away to train some random kid from Africa, it ended with a match with Pan and Bra fighting each other with homages to the most iconic fights in the series, with Goku and Vegeta passing the torch to them. If you guys like this alternate ending, let me know.

And then I thought to myself, If this was the actual ending, and Toei were to follow that up with an anime focusing on Pan, Bra, Marron, and the children of all the Z-Fighters (Piccolo [He gets married to a female Namekian] , Tien Shinhan [He gets back together with Lunch], and Yamcha [He finds a new girlfriend]), how would that have been written and executed. But Unfortunately, we will never know because we have the Uub ending and we have Dragon Ball GT. That's why I wanna ask you guys, how would you write a "Dragon Ball Next Generation" series? In an alternate timeline where Dragon Ball Z ended with my alternate ending, and Toei were planning to make this series and hired you to write it, how would you write it?
Caulifla best girl! :)

User avatar
JulieYBM
Patreon Supporter
Posts: 16503
Joined: Mon Jan 16, 2006 10:25 pm

Re: How would you write a "Dragon Ball Next Generation" series?

Post by JulieYBM » Fri Apr 14, 2017 6:31 pm

The key is to write a main character very differently from Gokuu. If you can do that, you have yourself a new generation.
She/Her💕 💜 💙
progesterone princess, estradiol empress
Lucifer's bimbo daughter

User avatar
Jinzoningen MULE
I Live Here
Posts: 4405
Joined: Thu Mar 24, 2016 8:33 pm
Location: Salt Mines

Re: How would you write a "Dragon Ball Next Generation" series?

Post by Jinzoningen MULE » Fri Apr 14, 2017 6:39 pm

JulieYBM wrote:The key is to write a main character very differently from Gokuu. If you can do that, you have yourself a new generation.
That's one criteria, but a continuation of this nature would still need to feel like Dragon Ball. Star Trek proved that this can be done extremely well, but The Godfather proved equally that it can go over horribly.
Retired.

User avatar
sintzu
Banned
Posts: 13583
Joined: Fri Sep 02, 2011 1:41 pm

Re: How would you write a "Dragon Ball Next Generation" series?

Post by sintzu » Fri Apr 14, 2017 6:53 pm

JulieYBM wrote:The key is to write a main character very differently from Gokuu. If you can do that, you have yourself a new generation.
The character needs to be interesting and likable as well. Uub was different but he lacked what I mentioned.
July 9th 2018 will be remembered as the day Broly became canon.

User avatar
Dragon Ball Gus
Advanced Regular
Posts: 1130
Joined: Thu May 12, 2016 4:51 pm
Location: Planet Sadla

Re: How would you write a "Dragon Ball Next Generation" series?

Post by Dragon Ball Gus » Fri Apr 14, 2017 6:55 pm

JulieYBM wrote:The key is to write a main character very differently from Gokuu. If you can do that, you have yourself a new generation.
But, Pan was a lot like Kid Goku in the end of Z. She was carefree, but she can be serious at times.
Caulifla best girl! :)

User avatar
sintzu
Banned
Posts: 13583
Joined: Fri Sep 02, 2011 1:41 pm

Re: How would you write a "Dragon Ball Next Generation" series?

Post by sintzu » Fri Apr 14, 2017 6:58 pm

I think once the new Boruto anime has a few arcs under its belt we'll have a better idea about how to completely switch to a new generation.

Personally I don't think we'll get something like that cause it would require someone other than Goku being in the spotlight and I doubt the companies involved are interested in that.
July 9th 2018 will be remembered as the day Broly became canon.

User avatar
ABED
Namekian Warrior
Posts: 20276
Joined: Thu Jan 31, 2013 10:23 am
Location: Skippack, PA
Contact:

Re: How would you write a "Dragon Ball Next Generation" series?

Post by ABED » Fri Apr 14, 2017 7:03 pm

Can it be done well? Sure, but I don't have any interest in it. I prefer seeing the aging gunfighter's last ride to seeing the new generation take over. It's fine as a coda, but I don't want it as the focal point.
The biggest truths aren't original. The truth is ketchup. It's Jim Belushi. Its job isn't to blow our minds. It's to be within reach.
"You miss 100% of the shots you don't take - Wayne Gretzky" - Michael Scott
Happiness is climate, not weather.

User avatar
Jinzoningen MULE
I Live Here
Posts: 4405
Joined: Thu Mar 24, 2016 8:33 pm
Location: Salt Mines

Re: How would you write a "Dragon Ball Next Generation" series?

Post by Jinzoningen MULE » Fri Apr 14, 2017 7:04 pm

ABED wrote:Can it be done well? Sure, but I don't have any interest in it. I prefer seeing the aging gunfighter's last ride to seeing the new generation take over. It's fine as a coda, but I don't want it as the focal point.
I pretty much feel the same way. The closest thing I'd want to see to a Next Gen Dragon Ball would be the GT Special, and we already have that, so...
Retired.

User avatar
sintzu
Banned
Posts: 13583
Joined: Fri Sep 02, 2011 1:41 pm

Re: How would you write a "Dragon Ball Next Generation" series?

Post by sintzu » Fri Apr 14, 2017 7:06 pm

ABED wrote:I prefer seeing the aging gunfighter's last ride to seeing the new generation take over.
We'll eventually get their last ride so we can have both. weather the next generation can work or not will depend on what Kishimoto does with Boruto.
July 9th 2018 will be remembered as the day Broly became canon.

UltimateHammerBro
Advanced Regular
Posts: 1214
Joined: Thu Aug 01, 2013 11:50 am
Location: Spain

Re: How would you write a "Dragon Ball Next Generation" series?

Post by UltimateHammerBro » Fri Apr 14, 2017 7:47 pm

ABED wrote:Can it be done well? Sure, but I don't have any interest in it. I prefer seeing the aging gunfighter's last ride to seeing the new generation take over. It's fine as a coda, but I don't want it as the focal point.
This. The series was so focused on Goku that I doubt that taking that focus away would be successful. I bet they'd have to resort to using Goku again, just like in the Saiyan and Buu sagas.
Dragon Ball Gus wrote:Piccolo [He gets married to a female Namekian]
Waaaait...
So female Namekians are a thing now?
I'm a webcomic artist! Check out http://tapastic.com/series/Hearts

User avatar
Dragon Ball Gus
Advanced Regular
Posts: 1130
Joined: Thu May 12, 2016 4:51 pm
Location: Planet Sadla

Re: How would you write a "Dragon Ball Next Generation" series?

Post by Dragon Ball Gus » Fri Apr 14, 2017 7:54 pm

UltimateHammerBro wrote:
Dragon Ball Gus wrote:Piccolo [He gets married to a female Namekian]
Waaaait...
So female Namekians are a thing now?
I wish. :(
Caulifla best girl! :)

User avatar
ABED
Namekian Warrior
Posts: 20276
Joined: Thu Jan 31, 2013 10:23 am
Location: Skippack, PA
Contact:

Re: How would you write a "Dragon Ball Next Generation" series?

Post by ABED » Fri Apr 14, 2017 8:13 pm

UltimateHammerBro wrote:
ABED wrote:Can it be done well? Sure, but I don't have any interest in it. I prefer seeing the aging gunfighter's last ride to seeing the new generation take over. It's fine as a coda, but I don't want it as the focal point.
This. The series was so focused on Goku that I doubt that taking that focus away would be successful. I bet they'd have to resort to using Goku again, just like in the Saiyan and Buu sagas.
Toriyama resorted to using Goku in the Saiyan arc?
The biggest truths aren't original. The truth is ketchup. It's Jim Belushi. Its job isn't to blow our minds. It's to be within reach.
"You miss 100% of the shots you don't take - Wayne Gretzky" - Michael Scott
Happiness is climate, not weather.

UltimateHammerBro
Advanced Regular
Posts: 1214
Joined: Thu Aug 01, 2013 11:50 am
Location: Spain

Re: How would you write a "Dragon Ball Next Generation" series?

Post by UltimateHammerBro » Fri Apr 14, 2017 8:30 pm

ABED wrote:
UltimateHammerBro wrote:
ABED wrote:Can it be done well? Sure, but I don't have any interest in it. I prefer seeing the aging gunfighter's last ride to seeing the new generation take over. It's fine as a coda, but I don't want it as the focal point.
This. The series was so focused on Goku that I doubt that taking that focus away would be successful. I bet they'd have to resort to using Goku again, just like in the Saiyan and Buu sagas.
Toriyama resorted to using Goku in the Saiyan arc?
I should probably change Saiyan to Namek. I noticed a trend about trying to use Gohan more, then going back to Goku. It slowly started in the Saiyan arc, continued through Namek, skipped Cell and became really blatant in the Buu arc.
However, now that I think it, I thought it was more apparent in the Saiyan arc because of the anime filler focusing on Gohan. Toriyama trying to focus away from Goku in the manga wouldn't be as apparent until the Namek arc.
I'm a webcomic artist! Check out http://tapastic.com/series/Hearts

User avatar
TheDevilsCorpse
Moderator
Posts: 11378
Joined: Sun Jun 20, 2010 4:34 am
Contact:

Re: How would you write a "Dragon Ball Next Generation" series?

Post by TheDevilsCorpse » Fri Apr 14, 2017 8:58 pm

You don't want to alienate the fans who are really loyal to the old cast. You want to manipulate them into liking new characters and sticking around for their stories. So I would presume that the best way to handle it and retain potential viewers would be to introduce a new character, or a set of them, and have them act along the main cast for a period of time. That allows you to develop the new character(s) beside the old cast, so that fans can (hopefully) become attached to them while still enjoying their old favorites.

Then, once they're (hopefully) attached to the new cast member(s), you give said characters a chance to shine in their own arc. You create some kind of plot for the new guys to handle that's insignificant to the old cast, have the old cast go missing, or whatever. You get the idea. The goal is just to phase the old cast into more background roles and shift focus onto the new ones for a while.

Finally, you either take the plunge and hope that the viewers like the new cast enough that you can sever ties to the old cast entirely, or you play it safer and rotate old characters in and out of upcoming stories (this one features Piccolo and Kuririn, that one features Gohan, etc). Maybe with the final arc being the teamwork of the young blood after they've grown into themselves, and the legends of the past (not unlike Roshi in modern DB).
Direct translations of the Korean DB Online timeline and guidebook.
My personal "canon" and BP list. (Coming Soon)

User avatar
ABED
Namekian Warrior
Posts: 20276
Joined: Thu Jan 31, 2013 10:23 am
Location: Skippack, PA
Contact:

Re: How would you write a "Dragon Ball Next Generation" series?

Post by ABED » Fri Apr 14, 2017 11:01 pm

UltimateHammerBro wrote:
ABED wrote:
UltimateHammerBro wrote: This. The series was so focused on Goku that I doubt that taking that focus away would be successful. I bet they'd have to resort to using Goku again, just like in the Saiyan and Buu sagas.
Toriyama resorted to using Goku in the Saiyan arc?
I should probably change Saiyan to Namek. I noticed a trend about trying to use Gohan more, then going back to Goku. It slowly started in the Saiyan arc, continued through Namek, skipped Cell and became really blatant in the Buu arc.
However, now that I think it, I thought it was more apparent in the Saiyan arc because of the anime filler focusing on Gohan. Toriyama trying to focus away from Goku in the manga wouldn't be as apparent until the Namek arc.
That's not him going back on anything except in the final arc. In the Saiyan arc, he has to set up Gohan and make the audience invest in him. In the Freeza arc, it was always building towards Goku vs. Freeza. Gohan played an important role, as did Vegeta and Kuririn, but Goku was always going to be the one to fight and defeat the big bad.
The biggest truths aren't original. The truth is ketchup. It's Jim Belushi. Its job isn't to blow our minds. It's to be within reach.
"You miss 100% of the shots you don't take - Wayne Gretzky" - Michael Scott
Happiness is climate, not weather.

User avatar
MozillaVulpix
Regular
Posts: 669
Joined: Sat Dec 20, 2014 11:01 pm
Contact:

Re: How would you write a "Dragon Ball Next Generation" series?

Post by MozillaVulpix » Fri Apr 14, 2017 11:13 pm

You could always go so far in the future that none of the cast are actually alive except for these completely new characters. As opposed to having it be about Pan, Bra, Uub, ect. and having to come up with an excuse as to why Goku isn't showing up to help when whatever threats they have inevitably become planet-destroying.

If you do it that way....having a character who is literally a fanboy of the old cast could always work to make them relatable, even if it is in a very blatant way.

I'm finding it very hard to imagine something like it working, though. Maybe because the start of the Buu Saga felt like literally that series, and Toriyama didn't seem confident enough to stick to it.
I could have gotten into anything...and yet I chose the story aimed at young Japanese boys about martial arts, and later about super-powerful aliens punching each other really hard.

https://www.youtube.com/c/MozillaVulpix

User avatar
Dragon Ball Gus
Advanced Regular
Posts: 1130
Joined: Thu May 12, 2016 4:51 pm
Location: Planet Sadla

Re: How would you write a "Dragon Ball Next Generation" series?

Post by Dragon Ball Gus » Fri Apr 14, 2017 11:29 pm

MozillaVulpix wrote:You could always go so far in the future that none of the cast are actually alive except for these completely new characters. As opposed to having it be about Pan, Bra, Uub, ect. and having to come up with an excuse as to why Goku isn't showing up to help when whatever threats they have inevitably become planet-destroying.

If you do it that way....having a character who is literally a fanboy of the old cast could always work to make them relatable, even if it is in a very blatant way.

I'm finding it very hard to imagine something like it working, though. Maybe because the start of the Buu Saga felt like literally that series, and Toriyama didn't seem confident enough to stick to it.
Maybe Goku and Vegeta can be mentors to Pan and Bra. And Pan would constantly be talking about when she grows up, she wants to be just like her Grandpa.
Last edited by Dragon Ball Gus on Fri Apr 14, 2017 11:38 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Caulifla best girl! :)

User avatar
dbzfan7
Namekian Warrior
Posts: 13045
Joined: Sat Aug 04, 2012 3:55 am
Location: Earth
Contact:

Re: How would you write a "Dragon Ball Next Generation" series?

Post by dbzfan7 » Fri Apr 14, 2017 11:36 pm

I like this thread already. I just hope it doesn't turn into "I wouldn't I want Goku etc." It just feels like a pointless addition to the topic. I'd like to see how it would work for some, and how you'd do it. Not the opinion I've seen a bunch on things like "Would you like a Next Generation." This isn't about whether you'd like it or not, but how you'd personally do it.

For me I'd do what Devilcorpse pretty much said. To help ease people into a new lead, having the old characters around is a good idea to help. That way you can see where they've gone, they can help ease the new characters in, so long as they're at least likable on a base level.

If not that I'd have a spin off set years and years in the future like Online, and basically do my own thing. Don't have it be the only Dragon Ball content available and it's basically an inconsequential story you can ignore. Kinda like Metal Gear Rising. It's part of the timeline, but really it's so far out it's inconsequential. Batman Beyond did it pretty well too. Terry was no Bruce, But he still had great chemistry with him.
Why Dragon Ball Consistency in something such as power levels matter!

User avatar
ABED
Namekian Warrior
Posts: 20276
Joined: Thu Jan 31, 2013 10:23 am
Location: Skippack, PA
Contact:

Re: How would you write a "Dragon Ball Next Generation" series?

Post by ABED » Fri Apr 14, 2017 11:44 pm

The most I could do is have the next generation have more prominence in the story, but still not make them the main character(s). One show that's become one of my favorites is One Tree Hill and in the fifth season, we are introduced to two of the main characters' (Nathan and Haley) son (Jamie). The show is a lot about parents and children and Nathan's father was a terrible father who put too much pressure on Nathan to perform and rarely showed him love and understanding. If he scored 29 points, he'd criticize Nathan for not scoring 30. When Nathan becomes a dad, Nathan doesn't repeat his father's mistakes. He's proud of his son no matter what. Eventually Jamie desires to follow in his father's footsteps, but for his own reasons and because it makes him happy. It's a beautiful story and one that doesn't feel the need to push the focus off the current generation because Nathan is given goals beyond just being a good father to Jamie. I think that could work for DB and work better than focusing on Goten or Pan's generations.
The biggest truths aren't original. The truth is ketchup. It's Jim Belushi. Its job isn't to blow our minds. It's to be within reach.
"You miss 100% of the shots you don't take - Wayne Gretzky" - Michael Scott
Happiness is climate, not weather.

User avatar
MozillaVulpix
Regular
Posts: 669
Joined: Sat Dec 20, 2014 11:01 pm
Contact:

Re: How would you write a "Dragon Ball Next Generation" series?

Post by MozillaVulpix » Sat Apr 15, 2017 12:24 am

Dragon Ball Gus wrote:Maybe Goku and Vegeta can be mentors to Pan and Bra. And Pan would constantly be talking about when she grows up, she wants to be just like her Grandpa.
Now, see, I would be down for that. The only problem there is the GT issue and the "would girls sell?" issue. And I've always assumed Bra wouldn't turn out to want to be a fighter, but that's just my headcanon.
I could have gotten into anything...and yet I chose the story aimed at young Japanese boys about martial arts, and later about super-powerful aliens punching each other really hard.

https://www.youtube.com/c/MozillaVulpix

Post Reply