Back when it was about “straight hands” and “Pure Martial Arts”

[MasenkoHA]

The faster pacing makes the comedic first arc more enjoyable than it’s animation

I agree. I don't think it makes sense to introduce Pilaf so early in the story. I think it creates a false expectation that he'll be a major villain, when that's not the case. Ultimately, it takes away from the joke a bit.
That said, the changes can actually be pretty fun for longtime manga readers. I lost count of how many times I caught myself thinking “WTF?” while watching the anime, not because it was bad, but because it was so different or just plain weird. One scene that always sticks with me is the pinball segment in Pilaf’s castle. It drags on a bit, sure, but it’s hilarious. Honestly, it feels like something straight out of Mario Kart or something.

I don’t necessarily think it was a bad decision to introduce them early, just that it slows the story down a bit.


I also have to question the decision to make Mai the one explaining how the dragon balls work to the audience and Pilaf. It makes more sense to learn it from Bulma explaining it to Goku (instead she tells him offscreen). It’s not a big deal it’s just a weird decision having your central plot device exposition delivered by a comic relief villain’s second in command.


And yes the last four episodes are easily the weakest part of the anime’s version of the first arc. The pinball and attack dogs fight being the biggest offenders. Seems like they just really wanted to end the first story on 13 episodes and needed to stretch it out

[JulieYBM]

The faster pacing makes the comedic first arc more enjoyable than it’s animation

I agree. I don't think it makes sense to introduce Pilaf so early in the story. I think it creates a false expectation that he'll be a major villain, when that's not the case. Ultimately, it takes away from the joke a bit.
That said, the changes can actually be pretty fun for longtime manga readers. I lost count of how many times I caught myself thinking “WTF?” while watching the anime, not because it was bad, but because it was so different or just plain weird. One scene that always sticks with me is the pinball segment in Pilaf’s castle. It drags on a bit, sure, but it’s hilarious. Honestly, it feels like something straight out of Mario Kart or something.

I don’t necessarily think it was a bad decision to introduce them early, just that it slows the story down a bit.


I also have to question the decision to make Mai the one explaining how the dragon balls work to the audience and Pilaf. It makes more sense to learn it from Bulma explaining it to Goku (instead she tells him offscreen). It’s not a big deal it’s just a weird decision having your central plot device exposition delivered by a comic relief villain’s second in command.


And yes the last four episodes are easily the weakest part of the anime’s version of the first arc. The pinball and attack dogs fight being the biggest offenders. Seems like they just really wanted to end the first story on 13 episodes and needed to stretch it out

If I had to guess, Ozaki and friends probably thought that Pilaf and gang would be recurring antagonists—or could serve as one in the anime, which they kind of were—so I imagine that the thought process was, "We're investing in our future by setting them up now." Ultimately, I'm not sure it was the best idea given that the anime became closer-and-closer hewn to the comic, but alas, it happened.

[Yellow Flower King]

I think even Toriyama got into the idea, dont forget the much much much more involved with the main cast in the revival.

[BernardoCairo]

I don’t necessarily think it was a bad decision to introduce them early, just that it slows the story down a bit.

I think they could’ve introduced him a little earlier, yes, but not too early. He already appeared within the first few episodes, and that ended up being pointless since he does very little in the story before his actual grand debut at the end of the arc. In my opinion, it also takes away from the "adventure" aspect of the story. The first arc was always about Goku and Bulma traveling together, meeting new people, and getting into strange situations. Pilaf was only meant to be the final challenge, just another obstacle on the road to the Dragon Balls. The joke was precisely that he wasn’t even a good fit for that role, being a complete coward. That’s why I don’t really like the idea of making him the "main antagonistic force" of the arc.
He did show up later, but always as a joke. He always comes close, but Goku simply outclasses him like it's nothing. So much so that he doesn't even remember who Pilaf is in Super.

[GokuHater]

The faster pacing makes the comedic first arc more enjoyable than it’s animation

I agree. I don't think it makes sense to introduce Pilaf so early in the story. I think it creates a false expectation that he'll be a major villain, when that's not the case. Ultimately, it takes away from the joke a bit.
That said, the changes can actually be pretty fun for longtime manga readers. I lost count of how many times I caught myself thinking “WTF?” while watching the anime, not because it was bad, but because it was so different or just plain weird. One scene that always sticks with me is the pinball segment in Pilaf’s castle. It drags on a bit, sure, but it’s hilarious. Honestly, it feels like something straight out of Mario Kart or something.

I don’t necessarily think it was a bad decision to introduce them early, just that it slows the story down a bit.


I also have to question the decision to make Mai the one explaining how the dragon balls work to the audience and Pilaf. It makes more sense to learn it from Bulma explaining it to Goku (instead she tells him offscreen). It’s not a big deal it’s just a weird decision having your central plot device exposition delivered by a comic relief villain’s second in command.


And yes the last four episodes are easily the weakest part of the anime’s version of the first arc. The pinball and attack dogs fight being the biggest offenders. Seems like they just really wanted to end the first story on 13 episodes and needed to stretch it out

I think part of this is the fact that in animation a scene in which two characters talk and nothing more isn't very convincing to watch.
While in a manga, panel composition, text used or even bubble shape can make the scene more lively, in animation we don't have that and most of the time animators include something in a scene to not disrupt it's pace but to make it more lively - eg. the characters walking, one of them doing something in the background, them meeting someone and greeting etc.
Here they added a scene with Pilaf. It never really bothered me, it gets the job done, introduces two "factions" hunting for DB and make a little edit so that it is clear for the viewer, Bulma told Goku the same thing.

Even if so much material was added, I sometimes get the vibes, the early filler stuff was treated with a lot more care and planning than some of Z portions.