Is Yo! Son Goku and his friend return! Canon?

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Is Yo! Son Goku and his friend return! Canon?

Post by Aim » Wed Nov 03, 2021 5:47 am

Legitimately asking. I always thought it was, but I recently came across some threads from years ago and now I’m confused 😐

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Re: Is Yo! Son Goku and his friend return! Canon?

Post by PurestEvil » Wed Nov 03, 2021 6:16 am

Toriyama was credited for writing the first draft/concept of the plot. Make of that what you will.
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Re: Is Yo! Son Goku and his friend return! Canon?

Post by Dragon Ball Ireland » Wed Nov 03, 2021 9:03 am

Truth be told neither Toriyama, nor Shueshia or TOEI has ever, to our knowledge been concerned with the concept of canon. The closest we will ever get is statements like how Battle of Gods was part of the "official history", no such comment was made in relation to Yo! Son Goku and his Friends Return, although, like much of the new material we've received in the last 13 years Toriyama has had some level of involvement.

As the creators themselves don't discuss canonicity and are only concerned with what sells it is up to the fans to decide whetever Toriyama's contributions are relevant or not in this regard. I'd say Tarble being mentioned in the Battle of Gods movie, but not the Super anime emphasizes this sense of ambiguity.
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Re: Is Yo! Son Goku and his friend return! Canon?

Post by MasenkoHA » Wed Nov 03, 2021 10:07 am

Doesn’t Bulma off hand mention Tarble in Super/Battle of the Gods?

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Re: Is Yo! Son Goku and his friend return! Canon?

Post by Alruneia » Wed Nov 03, 2021 10:33 am

It doesn't seem to be very clear-cut right now, to be honest. There are a couple of off-hand mentions of Tarble scattered throughout modern Dragon Ball, though (mostly out-of-universe but what MasenkoHA mentions is also true for specifically the BoG movie), so I think Yo Son Goku is being taken into account to some degree. Personally I consider it to be canon and the first "modern Dragon Ball story" for now, but nothing's set in stone.
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Re: Is Yo! Son Goku and his friend return! Canon?

Post by Koitsukai » Wed Nov 03, 2021 10:36 am

MasenkoHA wrote: Wed Nov 03, 2021 10:07 am Doesn’t Bulma off hand mention Tarble in Super/Battle of the Gods?
Yeah, she asks Vegeta to get him for the ritual when they were one saiyan short, and he says he has no idea where he is at.

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Re: Is Yo! Son Goku and his friend return! Canon?

Post by Luso Saiyan » Wed Nov 03, 2021 10:36 am

MasenkoHA wrote: Wed Nov 03, 2021 10:07 am Doesn’t Bulma off hand mention Tarble in Super/Battle of the Gods?
Yes. Tarble is indirectly mentioned in Battle of Gods and Broly.

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Re: Is Yo! Son Goku and his friend return! Canon?

Post by Grimlock » Wed Nov 03, 2021 11:16 am

There is no canon in Dragon Ball. What will determine if the OVA is canonical to you is if you consider the movies continuity or the anime or manga ones.
Dragon Ball Ireland wrote: Wed Nov 03, 2021 9:03 am I'd say Tarble being mentioned in the Battle of Gods movie, but not the Super anime emphasizes this sense of ambiguity.
It may not be an ambiguity when you have two movies (and a promotional material) mentioning Tarble.
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Re: Is Yo! Son Goku and his friend return! Canon?

Post by SSJgogeto » Wed Nov 03, 2021 11:38 am

I think he might be canon.

Vegeta's brother is mentioned in some movies, but in those movies we never heard a name and we don't know his appearance. I think there's a slight possibility of Toriyama changing his name and/or design in the future.

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Re: Is Yo! Son Goku and his friend return! Canon?

Post by Robo4900 » Wed Nov 03, 2021 12:39 pm

It's deliberately a totally inconsequential story that fits into established canon but will never be referenced because it's so insignificant.

That is to say, who cares? :P
It's canon if you want it to be, just like any other Dragon Ball story.
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Re: Is Yo! Son Goku and his friend return! Canon?

Post by TheGreatness25 » Wed Nov 03, 2021 1:17 pm

There has to be a canon. All that canon means, is the continuity of the series. There are anchor points that the story uses to build upon--that's canon. Mind you, canon could change. In canon, the Potara fusion was permanent, but then, this canon was retconed, i.e. changed.

I believe that Table (I prefer to use this as his name to keep with his Saiyan roots lol) was written by Toriyama and as of Battle of Gods, he--and the Yo Son Goku special--was canon. But then, he was deliberately scrapped from Super, so then the special was no longer canon. But, apparently, Table was mentioned in the Broli movie (I don't recall), so then the special is part of the canon. Because if the series acknowledges Table's existance, that means that one one place where Table is introduced (the special) counts in the continuity.

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Re: Is Yo! Son Goku and his friend return! Canon?

Post by Demon Prince Piccolo » Wed Nov 03, 2021 1:22 pm

TheGreatness25 wrote: Wed Nov 03, 2021 1:17 pm There has to be a canon. All that canon means, is the continuity of the series. There are anchor points that the story uses to build upon--that's canon. Mind you, canon could change. In canon, the Potara fusion was permanent, but then, this canon was retconed, i.e. changed.

I believe that Table (I prefer to use this as his name to keep with his Saiyan roots lol) was written by Toriyama and as of Battle of Gods, he--and the Yo Son Goku special--was canon. But then, he was deliberately scrapped from Super, so then the special was no longer canon. But, apparently, Table was mentioned in the Broli movie (I don't recall), so then the special is part of the canon. Because if the series acknowledges Table's existance, that means that one one place where Table is introduced (the special) counts in the continuity.
Canon and continuity are not the same thing.
The story of DRAGON BALL starts from the moment Goku met Bulma. I don't really mind the Z, so long as it's understood that it's not the true beginning of the story.

I actually prefer the Goku vs Tenshinhan and Goku vs Piccolo Jr. rivalries to the Goku vs Vegeta rivalry.

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Re: Is Yo! Son Goku and his friend return! Canon?

Post by PurestEvil » Wed Nov 03, 2021 1:47 pm

TheGreatness25 wrote: Wed Nov 03, 2021 1:17 pm There has to be a canon. All that canon means, is the continuity of the series.
A canon is not a continuity, it is a set of work that are recognized to comprise a main body of a franchise. Continuity is objective whereas canon is subjective.
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Re: Is Yo! Son Goku and his friend return! Canon?

Post by SupremeKai25 » Wed Nov 03, 2021 1:49 pm

I'd say it's not canon since it doesn't fit into anything. It doesn't fit into the Original storyline (DB-DBZ/KAI) and it doesn't fit into the Revival storyline either (BOG-ROF-DBS).

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Re: Is Yo! Son Goku and his friend return! Canon?

Post by MasenkoHA » Wed Nov 03, 2021 2:00 pm

SupremeKai25 wrote: Wed Nov 03, 2021 1:49 pm I'd say it's not canon since it doesn't fit into anything. It doesn't fit into the Original storyline (DB-DBZ/KAI) and it doesn't fit into the Revival storyline either (BOG-ROF-DBS).
How does it not fit?
PurestEvil wrote: Wed Nov 03, 2021 1:47 pm canon is subjective.
Canon really isn’t subjective though.

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Re: Is Yo! Son Goku and his friend return! Canon?

Post by PurestEvil » Wed Nov 03, 2021 2:06 pm

MasenkoHA wrote: Wed Nov 03, 2021 2:00 pm
PurestEvil wrote: Wed Nov 03, 2021 1:47 pm canon is subjective.
Canon really isn’t subjective though.
What do you think is canon: the DBS anime or the DBS manga? Hint: it's a trick question.
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Re: Is Yo! Son Goku and his friend return! Canon?

Post by MasenkoHA » Wed Nov 03, 2021 2:09 pm

PurestEvil wrote: Wed Nov 03, 2021 2:06 pm
MasenkoHA wrote: Wed Nov 03, 2021 2:00 pm
PurestEvil wrote: Wed Nov 03, 2021 1:47 pm canon is subjective.
Canon really isn’t subjective though.
What do you think is canon: the DBS anime or the DBS manga? Hint: it's a trick question.
Both, the answer is both. Again not subjective.

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Re: Is Yo! Son Goku and his friend return! Canon?

Post by TheGreatness25 » Wed Nov 03, 2021 2:29 pm

Demon Prince Piccolo wrote: Wed Nov 03, 2021 1:22 pm
TheGreatness25 wrote: Wed Nov 03, 2021 1:17 pm There has to be a canon. All that canon means, is the continuity of the series. There are anchor points that the story uses to build upon--that's canon. Mind you, canon could change. In canon, the Potara fusion was permanent, but then, this canon was retconed, i.e. changed.

I believe that Table (I prefer to use this as his name to keep with his Saiyan roots lol) was written by Toriyama and as of Battle of Gods, he--and the Yo Son Goku special--was canon. But then, he was deliberately scrapped from Super, so then the special was no longer canon. But, apparently, Table was mentioned in the Broli movie (I don't recall), so then the special is part of the canon. Because if the series acknowledges Table's existance, that means that one one place where Table is introduced (the special) counts in the continuity.
Canon and continuity are not the same thing.
Not "continuity," but canon is the foundation that influences the story going forward. But there has to be that foundation. There has to be canon. It's not like a Buggs Bunny cartoon where every episode is its own story. There is clearly something constantly being built upon to form the future of the story. That's canon.

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Re: Is Yo! Son Goku and his friend return! Canon?

Post by Demon Prince Piccolo » Wed Nov 03, 2021 2:45 pm

TheGreatness25 wrote: Wed Nov 03, 2021 2:29 pm Not "continuity," but canon is the foundation that influences the story going forward. But there has to be that foundation. There has to be canon. It's not like a Buggs Bunny cartoon where every episode is its own story. There is clearly something constantly being built upon to form the future of the story. That's canon.
Except that in Dragon Ball, there's nothing to say what is official canon or not. Some people will say anything with Toriyama involved with the writing, but it's still fan conjecture. He's never come out and declared his works as canon; he probably isn't even familiar with the term.

Works constantly being built upon doesn't necessarily constitute a clear canon, unless you're defining canon as a collection of closely-to-loosely-related works that don't have to perfectly line up narratively. In which case...anything can fit, and it's up to you to decide what you want to go with.
Last edited by Demon Prince Piccolo on Wed Nov 03, 2021 3:11 pm, edited 1 time in total.
The story of DRAGON BALL starts from the moment Goku met Bulma. I don't really mind the Z, so long as it's understood that it's not the true beginning of the story.

I actually prefer the Goku vs Tenshinhan and Goku vs Piccolo Jr. rivalries to the Goku vs Vegeta rivalry.

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Re: Is Yo! Son Goku and his friend return! Canon?

Post by PurestEvil » Wed Nov 03, 2021 2:50 pm

MasenkoHA wrote: Wed Nov 03, 2021 2:09 pm
PurestEvil wrote: Wed Nov 03, 2021 2:06 pm
MasenkoHA wrote: Wed Nov 03, 2021 2:00 pm

Canon really isn’t subjective though.
What do you think is canon: the DBS anime or the DBS manga? Hint: it's a trick question.
Both, the answer is both. Again not subjective.
If it is definitively "both", then how come a large portion of the fanbase argues which one is more canonical than the other?
Sure, there are things that the fanbase agrees at large what is canonical, but for specific instances like these, it's a matter of opinion.
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