Dragon Ball A-Z

[Bomber Greek]

You see, I have a good memory, and I also used to get Nickelodeon magazine. Right when I became a Dragon Ball fan, I remembered one thing: an article about Dragon Ball in Nickelodeon Magazine. I used to shun Dragon Ball and pretty much skipped the whole thing.

So, yesterday, I went into my desk drawer and saw a Nickelodeon Magazine, which was crumpled on the bottom part (In case you're wondering, it was the April 2005 issue, and nicknamed "The Cartoon Issue"). I knew the magazine had been there, but I just ignored it.

Last night, I decided to see what was in the magazine out of boredom... and I saw it: Dragon Ball A-Z. I took a crappy picture of it (sorry I don't have a scanner) and I'll write everything it said. Here is the picture:



Most of the things in here you all probably know, but it's cool to read it, I guess. Here is what it said:

"Dragon Ball is a manga, a Japanese comic book series, about Goku. It was created by Akira Toriyama in 1984. Dragon Ball Z is a manga and hit TV show that's a continuation of that series. Here's an A to Z guide to help you navigate Goku's world.

A is for Akira Toriyama, the creator of Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z.

B is for Bulma, a mechanical whiz and Goku's oldest friend.

C is for Cell, one of Goku's most dangerous enemies. Cell is a warrior who was made from the DNA of the most powerful fighters in the universe.

D is for dragon balls, the magical balls scattered all over the galaxy that the characters are trying to get. Whoever collects a set of seven dragon balls will be granted a wish by a dragon.

E is for Earth, the planet where Goku grew up.

F is for forty-two, the number of volumes of Dragon Ball comics in Japan. The series ran in Weekly Shonen Jump, a Japanese magazine, from 1984 to 1985.

G is for Goku, the hero of the series. He was modeled after Son Goku, the Monkey King, a battle-loving monkey from a 16th-century Chinese tale. In Dragon Ball, Goku is a super strong little boy with a monkey tail and the power to change into a giant monkey. In Dragon Ball Z, Goku is an adult, his tail has been cut off, and he learns about his alien Saiyan heritage.

H is for hair. Full-blooded Saiyans like Goku have naturally pointy hair that never changes until they become more powerful and turn into Super Saiyans. Super Saiyans' hair is often golden and long.

I is for immortality, which means "living forever." Sine characters in the series hope to collect a complete set of dragon balls, so they can gain immortality.

J is for Journey to the West (also called Monkey), the Chinese tale that inspired Dragon Ball. The story follows Son Goku, who helps a priest find sacred writings and loves to ride on a flying cloud

K is for King Kai, one of the greatest martial arts masters in the universe. When Goku trains under Kai, he gains nearly unstoppable fighting skills.

L is for love. Goku is happily married to warrior princess Chi-Chi, whom he met when they were kids.

M is for Master Roshi, a great martial arts master and Goku's first teacher. The seemingly frail old man lives on a tiny desert island with his pet sea turtle, which is why he's called the Turtle Hermit.

N is for Namekians, the aliens from Namek who created the dragon balls.

O is for other manga by Akira Toriyama. His most recent one, Sand Land, is set in a desert world where humans and demons fight for water.

P is for Piccolo, Goku's worst enemy, from the planet Namek. They later join forces.

Q is for quest. Many characters organize quests for dragon balls, traveling all over the galaxy.

R is for Raditz, Goku's long-lost brother. Raditz comes to Earth looki9ng for Goku, who was sent there as a baby to take over the planet.

S is for Saiyans, war-loving aliens who invade the Earth at the beginning of Dragon Ball Z. Goku is a Saiyan warrior who defends humans instead.

T is for Trunks, the son of Bulma and Vegeta. Trunks travels back in time to stop a disaster in his own era.

U is for underwear. In Japanese, Bulma means "bloomers," a type of old-fashioned girls' underwear. And Bulma's dad's name is Dr. Brief. Maybe that's why Bulma named her son Trunks, a term for boxer shorts.

V is for vegetables. Many Dragon Ball Z characters are named after vegetables, such as Raditz (radish) and Kakarrot (carrot). And there's Vegeta himself.

W is for Weekly Shonen Jump, the Japanese magazine in which the Dragon Ball manga originally appeared. Shonen is Japanese for "boys." Shonen Jump sells 3 million copies a week.

X is for xenophobia, the fear of foreigners, which some humans develop after space aliens attack the Earth n Dragon Ball Z.

Y is for Yamcha, a former bandit and one of Goku's friends.

Z is for... zilch. The Z in Dragon Ball Z doesn't stand for anything. It was added because it sounds cool.

[JohnnyBoy_Z]

Z is for... zilch. The Z in Dragon Ball Z doesn't stand for anything. It was added because it sounds cool.

Is that a fact?

[MajinVejitaXV]

Z is for... zilch. The Z in Dragon Ball Z doesn't stand for anything. It was added because it sounds cool.

Is that a fact?

Yep. I'm shocked that got that fact right ;p

-Corey

[XxAtarisCorexX]

X is for xenophobia, the fear of foreigners, which some humans develop after space aliens attack the Earth n Dragon Ball Z.

Haha, Xenophobia? What the hell?

[Bomber Greek]

I guess X is a hard letter...

[Kaboom]

Pssshhh. X is for Xicor, of course!


All in all, this is a pretty good article! I'm a bit surprised at the several references to Weekly Shonen Jump and Journey to the West and the like.

[bkev]

H is for hair. Full-blooded Saiyans like Goku have naturally pointy hair that never changes until they become more powerful and turn into Super Saiyans. Super Saiyans' hair is often golden and long.

Z is for... zilch. The Z in Dragon Ball Z doesn't stand for anything. It was added because it sounds cool.

Quote 1 = the cheeziness I expect in an article from Nick.

Quote 2 = Wow, they got it right.

[SuperSaiyan3Goku]

UNREAL. I remember this so damn much! I must of saw this in the same Magazine!

[Kirbopher]

Wasn't the Z suggested into the anime title by Toriyama to signify that it was (supposably at the time) coming closer to the end of the story?

[Death-T]

I just noticed that the/one of the main characters of Sand Land is on that page. (I forget his name) Kinda interesting that they'd have that in there to.

[Carrie]

It's really weird that Nick Magazine would promote something that they don't own or air on tv, and therefore wouldn't make them any money. Since the people at Nick are a bunch of whores.

[Jerseymilk]

I just noticed that the/one of the main characters of Sand Land is on that page. (I forget his name) Kinda interesting that they'd have that in there to.

Beelzebub

[Bomber Greek]

It's really weird that Nick Magazine would promote something that they don't own or air on tv, and therefore wouldn't make them any money. Since the people at Nick are a bunch of whores.

They talk about many other shows in the magazines that aren't on Nickelodeon, even is they aren't cartoons. They talked about the Apprentice, Survivor, Naruto... So, in general, it's not rare for Nickelodeon to talk about shows that aren't theirs.

[Godo]

I just noticed that the/one of the main characters of Sand Land is on that page. (I forget his name) Kinda interesting that they'd have that in there to.

Beelzebub

But maybe it would give rise to a confusion to the new fans of Dragonball? Remember, Piccolo also called himself Beelzebub in the tournaments.

[SonGokuGT]

Julian-sensei did it better!

[Vegard Aune]

But maybe it would give rise to a confusion to the new fans of Dragonball? Remember, Piccolo also called himself Beelzebub in the tournaments.

I don't think he did in the original. There, he apparently called himself "Ma Junior".