Where did the horizontal DBZ logo come from?

[demonontheleft]

Hi, I've been looking into this topic for the past few days and the only other people asking about this were on reddit but that one didn't really have any conclusive answers and a lot of it was wrong.

Spoiler:

This logo has been used internationally since the 90's, earliest example I could find of it being used in japan was the first DBZ arcade game by banpresto. But it's also used in the french openings for dbz which debuted earlier than that 1993 arcade game.

Was this logo made by toei for use in international markets? What was it first used in?

[Rafa Fast]

I would like to know it too just as I would like to know where this classic art of Goku comes from, it's been in the internet for nearly 2 decades and I just cannot find any info or source on its exact origin

Spoiler:

[GhostEmperorX]

What was it first used in?

Ever since day 1, actually.

Spoiler:

Granted, it has one small difference between 1989 releases and the present day, with a 1990 article colouring in the part that's missing in "G".

Spoiler:

[VegettoEX]

What was it first used in?

Ever since day 1, actually.

Spoiler:

Some other things off the top of my head dating back to 1989, in addition to the Dragon Ball Z: Hit Song Collection (volume 1) linked above, include the Famicom games and even early TV series promo art.

What's especially cool I think is the "Dragon Ball 3" game logo on Famicom... which is absolutely just the "Dragon Ball Z" logo with the "3" replacing the "Z"! That game hit almost exactly six months to the date after the DBZ TV premiere, so it's just a kinda notable, interesting tidbit.

[demonontheleft]

Ever since day 1, actually.

Spoiler:

Granted, it has one small difference between 1989 releases and the present day, with a 1990 article colouring in the part that's missing in "G".

Spoiler:

Hey I didn't know about these!! For a while I thought the logo was something Toei or Shueisha made for international markets.

What's especially cool I think is the "Dragon Ball 3" game logo on Famicom... which is absolutely just the "Dragon Ball Z" logo with the "3" replacing the "Z"! That game hit almost exactly six months to the date after the DBZ TV premiere, so it's just a kinda notable, interesting tidbit.

I'm surprised to see it in a pre-z game! When I was on this big search initially I found the viz monthly comics release of Dragon Ball used a variation of this logo!

Spoiler:

Thank you both for helping me out!

[GhostEmperorX]

Thank you both for helping me out!

Welcome

Some other things off the top of my head dating back to 1989, in addition to the Dragon Ball Z: Hit Song Collection (volume 1) linked above, include the Famicom games and even early TV series promo art.

It's even on the original OP/ED single of CHA-LA HEAD-CHA-LA, dated 1989-05-01 (transparent part of "G" and all).

Spoiler:

Guess it might be that the logo first came out slightly incomplete (where the "G" is concerned) since it's also like that in the promo art.
And then it was filled in the next year.

[TechExpert2021]

I believe there are three versions of the horizontal DBZ logo. One is the original version used outside the original DBZ anime, the second one is a slightly altered version with the original colors (used in episode title cards in the FUNimation in-house dub of DBZ from Garlic Jr. saga onwards, on covers of FUNimation's "singles" releases of episodes 68-291 (54-276), and in logos of DBZ games outside Japan from the 2000s (except Super DBZ)), the third is the same as the second one but with a yellow-to-orange vertical gradient (used in the FUNimation/Ocean/Saban dub, the pre-Buu FUNimation in-house dub, the Westwood dub, and on covers of Pioneer's releases of the original FUNimation/Ocean dubs of DBZ and the first three movies).

Original Logo (Outside the original anime)

Spoiler:

Original FUNimation Logo (Yellow-to-Orange Vertical Gradient Logo) (FUNimation/Ocean/Saban dub, pre-Buu FUNimation in-house dub, Ocean/Westwood dub, and on covers of Pioneer's releases of the original FUNimation/Ocean dubs of DBZ and the first three movies)

Spoiler:

Second FUNimation Logo (Episode title cards in the FUNimation in-house dub of DBZ from Garlic Jr. saga onwards, on covers of FUNimation's "singles" releases of episodes 68-291 (54-276), and in logos of DBZ games released outside Japan from the 2000s decade (except Super DBZ))

Spoiler:

[Dragon Ball Ireland]

Cartoon Network UK also had their own variation of the logo with the Z positioned in the middle.

I could be mistaken but I don't recall seeing this used elsewhere.

[Kendamu]

Cartoon Network UK also had their own variation of the logo with the Z positioned in the middle.

I could be mistaken but I don't recall seeing this used elsewhere.

It was used on the VIZ release of the DBZ manga, too.

[Dragon Ball Ireland]

Cartoon Network UK also had their own variation of the logo with the Z positioned in the middle.

I could be mistaken but I don't recall seeing this used elsewhere.

It was used on the VIZ release of the DBZ manga, too.

Forgot about that, was always wondering where Cartoon Network UK got the logo they used from. Always associate it with those airings from the early 2000s as it felt unique.

I was thinking of the logo on the US single volumes, which is also similar but with "Dragon Ball" in blue.

[demonontheleft]

I was thinking of the logo on the US single volumes, which is also similar but with "Dragon Ball" in blue.

I always wondered why they ended up going with this logo when they decided to publish Dragon Ball in graphic novel format, also I'm surprised that they used the viz logo for cartoon network. That seems like a weird place to pull the logo from.

[Saiya6Cit]

Spoiler:

What is the meaning of the kanjis(?)/symbols inside the yellow circles, below the DBZ logo?

Please

[CodeOfMe]

What is the meaning of the kanjis(?)/symbols inside the yellow circles, below the DBZ logo?

Please

It's just "Dragon Ball" written in katakana.

[Luso Saiyan]

I thought it was one of the variants Toriyama came up with, but I guess not: