Dragon Ball Z Subtitled in Japanese Uploaded to Crunchyroll and VRV

[TheGreatness25]

Thats kind of my thing too now. The way Dragon Ball was meant to be seen is not too far off of playing some of KEIs Betamax clips on a crt. Thats it.. I think there is a little more wiggle room for the movies but I feel the same way with the Batman TAS Blurays. While not perfect they are an upgrade over the DVDs but the DVDs offer a more legitimate experience.

Like I've said before, I've gone crazy over finding the best release and there was always somthing small (even if it's as small as a slight color shift). It can make you nut and not enjoy Dragon Ball, and enjoying it is ultimatly what got us here to begin with.

I pop my level is once in a while and am sad it was never completed but at the end of that day I still turn them off mid episode because I've seen the series too much, regardless of how good or bad the restoration is.

Agreed. And it really did take putting the Level sets side-by-side with the 30th anniversary sets for me to see what made the Level sets so good and the 30th anniversary sets so bland. But, in the same core that would make me want to see the "perfect" release, doesn't it bother you also to know that the Level sets were simply the best that Funimation could do based on what they had and if still would't be the "perfect" release?

The only way it could ever be released perfectly, is if Toei takes their film, doesn't crop anything, and just gets rid of scratches and dust. And that's never happening.

But be that as it may, Dragon Ball was intended to be seen on a 1980s'-1990s' TV. So, what is the "perfect release"?

I was just thinking how the first time I saw early namek uncut was the orange bricks and it didnt bother me. It was just cool seeing what was cut and watching it in Japanese for the first time and that was by far the worse release lol. Perhaps I'm just not hardcore enough or am just tired but I would like to have that feeling of joy back.

I was talking to a friend about how sometimes the fun is in the what ifs. Dragon Ball was a blast when it was new. Now i've seen it so much that it just isnt the same.

I honestly can relate. I reached a sort of indifferent period with the series around 2005. I had collected some of the singles at that point, but the series was basically dormant. Nobody I knew was talking about it, everything finished airing (except for the Ultimate Uncut episodes that I didn't really keep up with). And then, I was in Times Square after work one day and saw the newly-released first orange brick. And I don't know what it was, but it made me excited to buy it. And I took it home and had a blast watching that terrible thing lol And of course, that led me to this forum where I found out all about how garbagey it really was lol But yeah, I had good times with it.

[eledoremassis02]

Agreed. And it really did take putting the Level sets side-by-side with the 30th anniversary sets for me to see what made the Level sets so good and the 30th anniversary sets so bland. But, in the same core that would make me want to see the "perfect" release, doesn't it bother you also to know that the Level sets were simply the best that Funimation could do based on what they had and if still would't be the "perfect" release?

The only way it could ever be released perfectly, is if Toei takes their film, doesn't crop anything, and just gets rid of scratches and dust. And that's never happening.

But be that as it may, Dragon Ball was intended to be seen on a 1980s'-1990s' TV. So, what is the "perfect release"?

I was just thinking how the first time I saw early namek uncut was the orange bricks and it didnt bother me. It was just cool seeing what was cut and watching it in Japanese for the first time and that was by far the worse release lol. Perhaps I'm just not hardcore enough or am just tired but I would like to have that feeling of joy back.

I was talking to a friend about how sometimes the fun is in the what ifs. Dragon Ball was a blast when it was new. Now i've seen it so much that it just isnt the same.

I honestly can relate. I reached a sort of indifferent period with the series around 2005. I had collected some of the singles at that point, but the series was basically dormant. Nobody I knew was talking about it, everything finished airing (except for the Ultimate Uncut episodes that I didn't really keep up with). And then, I was in Times Square after work one day and saw the newly-released first orange brick. And I don't know what it was, but it made me excited to buy it. And I took it home and had a blast watching that terrible thing lol And of course, that led me to this forum where I found out all about how garbagey it really was lol But yeah, I had good times with it.

That is basically my story to a T ahahhaa. Those comparison threads really were fun.

[MasenkoHA]

Thats kind of my thing too now. The way Dragon Ball was meant to be seen is not too far off of playing some of KEIs Betamax clips on a crt. Thats it.. I think there is a little more wiggle room for the movies but I feel the same way with the Batman TAS Blurays. While not perfect they are an upgrade over the DVDs but the DVDs offer a more legitimate experience.

Like I've said before, I've gone crazy over finding the best release and there was always somthing small (even if it's as small as a slight color shift). It can make you nut and not enjoy Dragon Ball, and enjoying it is ultimatly what got us here to begin with.

I pop my level is once in a while and am sad it was never completed but at the end of that day I still turn them off mid episode because I've seen the series too much, regardless of how good or bad the restoration is.

Agreed. And it really did take putting the Level sets side-by-side with the 30th anniversary sets for me to see what made the Level sets so good and the 30th anniversary sets so bland. But, in the same core that would make me want to see the "perfect" release, doesn't it bother you also to know that the Level sets were simply the best that Funimation could do based on what they had and if still would't be the "perfect" release?

The only way it could ever be released perfectly, is if Toei takes their film, doesn't crop anything, and just gets rid of scratches and dust. And that's never happening.

But be that as it may, Dragon Ball was intended to be seen on a 1980s'-1990s' TV. So, what is the "perfect release"?

I was just thinking how the first time I saw early namek uncut was the orange bricks and it didnt bother me. It was just cool seeing what was cut and watching it in Japanese for the first time and that was by far the worse release lol. Perhaps I'm just not hardcore enough or am just tired but I would like to have that feeling of joy back.

I was talking to a friend about how sometimes the fun is in the what ifs. Dragon Ball was a blast when it was new. Now i've seen it so much that it just isnt the same.

It doesn't make the orange brick less shit for what they did to the show but I think a lot of the hardcore fans gloss over that a lot of fans bought the orange bricks without any issues. Many of them were new to the show or hadn't watched it since 2003 so stuff like bad cropping and DNR'd to hell was less noticeable to them. A former Funimation brand manager even noted the bricks were still outselling Kai when it first came out

Again,it doesn't give the orange bricks a pass. All the criticisms levied against them are on the money (though I do sigh heavily when fans bitch about the Dragon Boxes too) It is just worth noting how little of an issue it was for consumers in the grand scheme of things.

[TheGreatness25]

Agreed. And it really did take putting the Level sets side-by-side with the 30th anniversary sets for me to see what made the Level sets so good and the 30th anniversary sets so bland. But, in the same core that would make me want to see the "perfect" release, doesn't it bother you also to know that the Level sets were simply the best that Funimation could do based on what they had and if still would't be the "perfect" release?

The only way it could ever be released perfectly, is if Toei takes their film, doesn't crop anything, and just gets rid of scratches and dust. And that's never happening.

But be that as it may, Dragon Ball was intended to be seen on a 1980s'-1990s' TV. So, what is the "perfect release"?

I was just thinking how the first time I saw early namek uncut was the orange bricks and it didnt bother me. It was just cool seeing what was cut and watching it in Japanese for the first time and that was by far the worse release lol. Perhaps I'm just not hardcore enough or am just tired but I would like to have that feeling of joy back.

I was talking to a friend about how sometimes the fun is in the what ifs. Dragon Ball was a blast when it was new. Now i've seen it so much that it just isnt the same.

It doesn't make the orange brick less shit for what they did to the show but I think a lot of the hardcore fans gloss over that a lot of fans bought the orange bricks without any issues. Many of them were new to the show or hadn't watched it since 2003 so stuff like bad cropping and DNR'd to hell was less noticeable to them. A former Funimation brand manager even noted the bricks were still outselling Kai when it first came out

Again,it doesn't give the orange bricks a pass. All the criticisms levied against them are on the money (though I do sigh heavily when fans bitch about the Dragon Boxes too) It is just worth noting how little of an issue it was for consumers in the grand scheme of things.

I think the success of the orange bricks was a double-edged sword. On one hand, I truly believe that this release funded Funimation's acquisition of the Dragon Boxes. I also think it was great for casual fans (or any who just wanted to own the series)--it was inexpensive and packed in so many episodes per release. And if that were the end of it, then that would be cool. But instead, the flip side is that it signaled to Funimation that it was acceptable to mess with the series. From colors to DNR to cropping--this release showed Funimation that all of this was okay and that it would sell well anyway. Then, when they released the Level sets at a higher price tag, less episodes per disc, and oh yeah, right after a string of Dragon Ball Z releases, they played the data as if fans were rejecting a good DBZ release in favor of cropping and heavy picture correction.

[Dragon Ball Ireland]

In theory I'd agree that's a possibility. The thing with the orange bricks is after redubbing the missing uncut episodes Funimation could have just repackaged the singles. With the DNR and cropping added they put in more work for an inferior product.

[eledoremassis02]

Agreed. And it really did take putting the Level sets side-by-side with the 30th anniversary sets for me to see what made the Level sets so good and the 30th anniversary sets so bland. But, in the same core that would make me want to see the "perfect" release, doesn't it bother you also to know that the Level sets were simply the best that Funimation could do based on what they had and if still would't be the "perfect" release?

The only way it could ever be released perfectly, is if Toei takes their film, doesn't crop anything, and just gets rid of scratches and dust. And that's never happening.

But be that as it may, Dragon Ball was intended to be seen on a 1980s'-1990s' TV. So, what is the "perfect release"?

I was just thinking how the first time I saw early namek uncut was the orange bricks and it didnt bother me. It was just cool seeing what was cut and watching it in Japanese for the first time and that was by far the worse release lol. Perhaps I'm just not hardcore enough or am just tired but I would like to have that feeling of joy back.

I was talking to a friend about how sometimes the fun is in the what ifs. Dragon Ball was a blast when it was new. Now i've seen it so much that it just isnt the same.

It doesn't make the orange brick less shit for what they did to the show but I think a lot of the hardcore fans gloss over that a lot of fans bought the orange bricks without any issues. Many of them were new to the show or hadn't watched it since 2003 so stuff like bad cropping and DNR'd to hell was less noticeable to them. A former Funimation brand manager even noted the bricks were still outselling Kai when it first came out

Again,it doesn't give the orange bricks a pass. All the criticisms levied against them are on the money (though I do sigh heavily when fans bitch about the Dragon Boxes too) It is just worth noting how little of an issue it was for consumers in the grand scheme of things.

It doesnt. My point being that I didnt care cause I was just happy to watch that part uncut (and in Japanese). I'm sure thats what keept those sets afloat. Also this was around the time where a lot of companies were trying to format 4:3 for newer TVs (somthing thats still happeing today *to different results*)

In all honesty, I was more happier watching the orange bricks than I have been watching any other release because now I over analyse things (even down to FUNimations DBOX compression issues). But I think that also comes down to just seeing the show too much.

[ABED]

It feels incredibly odd that anyone talks about "the finer things" in relation to Dragon Ball.

There are finer things, my friend. Finer things that goes beyond just "being presentable and proper aspect ratio". It's a strange thing that some of you want to discard this option outright without even knowing about it first fully. Although I respect your school of thought, you are in the minority, which is countable on fingers regarding this issue. If you explore other DB communities and talk with DB fans all around the world or with potential new fans who want to watch it, regarding the matter of acquiring a better version available in many aspects than any physical media released, they will happily appreciate it. That's a fact, and no one argues a fact.

I know that some people don't want to explore different routes other than buying legal physical media, and I respect that, but my point is that we shouldn't force our opinion on anyone. If we have the privilege and opportunity, then we should let everyone know, we should let everyone have the option and information regarding the versions of the DB series available and the way they can watch it. It's up to everyone to decide how and what they will watch.

How do you know I'm in the minority on this? I doubt I'm in the minority in being fine with what we have and think "never accept anything less than the best" mentality over a cartoon from the 80s is kinda silly. Quality costs money and I'm not alone in saying that what we have that isn't cropped is fine Anything after VHS and DVD is a bonus.

I've been called a bootlicker for this opinion, but I am and think others should be thank we live in an era where the cost of watching DB, wrestling, and most TV shows shown at a reasonable quality cost a few subscription fees. I lived during an era where VHS releases of 3 or 4 episodes a piece (and cost $19.99 per video) was the norm. 7 episodes per disc was a bargain. I also lived during the era of the video store where renting old movies, wrestling videos, or anime was a crap shoot, and slim pickings. I was fine with that if that's how it always was but alas, progress. And people grow accustomed to these sorts of circumstances very quickly. Other than fraud or not getting what was advertised (e.g. "DBZ the way it was meant to be seen"), I'm very content about the era we're living in.

The fact that the DBox footage is on Crunchyroll and even on FUNimationnow makes me happy. I bought the DBoxes when they came out but a handful of my DVDs have experienced issues through no fault of mine. The fact that one of my discs being ruined even though I did nothing bothers me a lot. Crunchyroll making that a non-issue makes me so happy. I simply want a good quality way to watch the DB in its proper aspect ratio.

[Majin Man 101]

First of all, I do not understand the argument that I see from many people that Dragon Ball was intended to be seen on a 1980s tv, or that it was a cheaply made cartoon or some other excuse like that.

Classic films from the 1920s-2000s were technically never made with the intention to be shown on a 4K UHD TV. However, you can put a film from the 1950's on 4K and it looks beyond fantastic, capturing all the detail that was there and always existed on that film. Dragon Ball is no different, it was captured on film. WE ALL KNOW that Dragon Ball looks fantastic when scanned into HD properly. The 2018 movie remasters look good, even if the colors are a little off, and the two tv specials look great. And of course, we all know about the level sets.

While I can respect the fact that some fans are happy with the Dragon Box releases, and have no desire for an HD remaster, we shouldn't be making poor excuses as to why it isn't necessary or something. We should also stop making excuses for why Toei and Crunchyroll continue to do the crappy things that they do. There is no reason that all of the problems with the Japanese language version on crunchyroll should be there at all.

The fact that we as a community can sit here and say, "Well back in my day I watched the show on a VHS tape and it was a copy of a copy of a copy of a copy to the tenth power, so you should just be appreciative and shut up"

Get out of here with that crap. It's 2022 and there is no reason that Crunchyroll shouldn't have Dragon Ball Z on their site ripped from Dragon Box DVD's properly. Yet again 10,000 more issues that need to be explained to some poor soul who is looking to watch the show in consistent and decent quality.

It's whatever though, Just ANOTHER chapter in the "What could have been great" book of Dragon Ball home media/streaming releases. A true comedy in itself.

[TheGreatness25]

First of all, I do not understand the argument that I see from many people that Dragon Ball was intended to be seen on a 1980s tv, or that it was a cheaply made cartoon or some other excuse like that.

Classic films from the 1920s-2000s were technically never made with the intention to be shown on a 4K UHD TV. However, you can put a film from the 1950's on 4K and it looks beyond fantastic, capturing all the detail that was there and always existed on that film. Dragon Ball is no different, it was captured on film. WE ALL KNOW that Dragon Ball looks fantastic when scanned into HD properly. The 2018 movie remasters look good, even if the colors are a little off, and the two tv specials look great. And of course, we all know about the level sets.

While I can respect the fact that some fans are happy with the Dragon Box releases, and have no desire for an HD remaster, we shouldn't be making poor excuses as to why it isn't necessary or something. We should also stop making excuses for why Toei and Crunchyroll continue to do the crappy things that they do. There is no reason that all of the problems with the Japanese language version on crunchyroll should be there at all.

The fact that we as a community can sit here and say, "Well back in my day I watched the show on a VHS tape and it was a copy of a copy of a copy of a copy to the tenth power, so you should just be appreciative and shut up"

Get out of here with that crap. It's 2022 and there is no reason that Crunchyroll shouldn't have Dragon Ball Z on their site ripped from Dragon Box DVD's properly. Yet again 10,000 more issues that need to be explained to some poor soul who is looking to watch the show in consistent and decent quality.

It's whatever though, Just ANOTHER chapter in the "What could have been great" book of Dragon Ball home media/streaming releases. A true comedy in itself.

Yes and Toei doesn't seem interested in doing anything about it. They gave us their version of a remastering with the Dragon Boxea and Kai. Funimation did... what they did.

However, this was not a movie meant to be presented in the best way possible (on a theater, trying to maximize the fullest capabilities of the film), this was a cartoon series meant to be seen once on TV. The only way to have seen it was with the technology at the time--it was never intended to be released on home video. And to that point, we saw what Toei and Funimation put out over the years. So, everyone on the face of the Earth that saw the series either saw the series through old TVs or whatever Toei or Funimation put out. So, how can people make claims like "this is unwatchable in this way!" when everyone who has ever seen the series watched it in one of the ways that I mentioned before?

Nobody's saying that Toei and Funimation can't make it better or should make it better, but "better" has never existed before. So, to make it seem like the version up on Crunchyroll right now is "unwatchable" in favor of the free version, is just a shallow excuse.

I think that's the point--I don't want to speak for anyone but myself.

[Robo4900]

So, to get this all straight...

• DB and GT use footage from the Season sets
• Z uses Dragon Box footage, but stretched to widescreen
• Some episodes are missing on VRV, but they're all there on Crunchyroll
• Only the US and some other territories have this; the UK doesn't have any of it unless you use a VPN

Is that correct?

If so then, frankly, all things considered, this is just about the only convenient (and the only not-awful, non-pirate) way to watch the shows in Japanese and, despite some annoyances whose significance shouldn't be downplayed as far as we--the very big fans--are concerned, this is a perfectly okay option for any casual fans, and I'm very glad it's there.

I just wish it wasn't premium only; Dragon Ball really is as old as sand at this point!

[OmegaRockman]

So, to get this all straight...

• DB and GT use footage from the Season sets
• Z uses Dragon Box footage, but stretched to widescreen
• Some episodes are missing on VRV, but they're all there on Crunchyroll
• Only the US and some other territories have this; the UK doesn't have any of it unless you use a VPN

Is that correct?

If so then, frankly, all things considered, this is just about the only convenient (and the only not-awful, non-pirate) way to watch the shows in Japanese and, despite some annoyances whose significance shouldn't be downplayed as far as we--the very big fans--are concerned, this is a perfectly okay option for any casual fans, and I'm very glad it's there.

I just wish it wasn't premium only; Dragon Ball really is as old as sand at this point!

It's only stretched to widescreen after 253, though allegedly there is the odd episode before that that uses Orange Brick footage. The dub is also exclusively Season Set footage (though I'm not sure if it's the Season BDs or the Orange Bricks).

[SuperSaiyaManZ94]

I'll say this, at least FUNi had the good sense to have the Japanese audio track default to the Dragon Box Z video on the service. So if you are a sub fan at least for the vast majority of the series (last part of Buu arc and the single episode sourced from the Orange Bricks aside) you have an acceptable presentation in 4:3 so that's certainly a good point. Sucks for those who watch the dub because it's the garbage fake widescreen version on the whole run, but still they put at least that much thought into it.

[TheGreatness25]

Really not getting the point of uploading two separate video formats. Why not just use the Dragon Box video with two audio tracks instead of literally uploading two separate versions of the show? What, to preserve the dub title cards?

[eledoremassis02]

So, to get this all straight...

• DB and GT use footage from the Season sets
• Z uses Dragon Box footage, but stretched to widescreen
• Some episodes are missing on VRV, but they're all there on Crunchyroll
• Only the US and some other territories have this; the UK doesn't have any of it unless you use a VPN

Is that correct?

If so then, frankly, all things considered, this is just about the only convenient (and the only not-awful, non-pirate) way to watch the shows in Japanese and, despite some annoyances whose significance shouldn't be downplayed as far as we--the very big fans--are concerned, this is a perfectly okay option for any casual fans, and I'm very glad it's there.

I just wish it wasn't premium only; Dragon Ball really is as old as sand at this point!

Yea, I say its a big win and I'm glad the japanese track used the Dragon Box and not the orange bricks anymore. Its a nice nod to fans.

[ABED]

Hopefully they can fix the DBox in widescreen issue. That's my only real complaint.

[MasenkoHA]

What, to preserve the dub title cards?

That would be my guess, that and they can't bare the thought of the end credits not listing their cast and crew

[TheGreatness25]

What, to preserve the dub title cards?

That would be my guess, that and they can't bare the thought of the end credits not listing their cast and crew

But don't they just do the Japanese version for a bunch of anime? I feel like I watched Yu Yu Hakusho and all of the text was in Japanese (I think). So strange... Dragon Ball (Z, in particular) never gets a fair shake anywhere lol Dub fans have to suffer through the dub and the video format (that's right... lol)

[Robo4900]

It's only stretched to widescreen after 253, though allegedly there is the odd episode before that that uses Orange Brick footage. The dub is also exclusively Season Set footage (though I'm not sure if it's the Season BDs or the Orange Bricks).

Glad to hear it.

The odd episode being Bricks isn't great, but whatever.

I think overall this is most certainly a good thing!