Anyone's opinion of Goku change after watching subbed?

[skatezeppelin]

I always loved Vegeta growing up. I still do. However, after watching DB then Z fully in Japanese I have to say he is now my favorite character. Super ruins him a bit, it does with Vegeta and Future Trunks as well, but Goku is really bad. Obviously a lot of it is Supers writing. I've watched the Manga summaries of Moro and Granolah and hopefully it gives a different feel in the anime as well.

I just love that he is a more of a flawed man then a Superman type like in the dub. So many badas moments, Nappa/Vegeta, coming to Namek, Frieza. Saving Tien/Piccolo from Cell, teleporting Cell away, fighting Yakon, holding off Buu/Babaidi with SS transformation, etc.

The movies/GT so many the Bojack punch, the Son Family Kamehameha in movie 10, going SS3 in Hell in movie 12. Killing Hildegarn in Movie 13.

SS4 Goku is just badass. I love the maturity Goku has in GT whilst still being whimsical at times.

Did Goku become anyone's favorite after watching Nowazas performance and the original writing? Perhaps after reading the Manga?

Also, perhaps growing up I identified more with Vegeta but as an adult I love Gokus attitude.

[kemuri07]

my goto response is: If you think Super is an accurate representation of Goku--you should probably read the original Dragon Ball manga. Because I'm going to assume that you have not read Dragon Ball.

[The Dark Knight]

Super never made me view Goku negatively in the grand scheme of things, for the simple fact that Super is an all around bad show, be it from a writing or production point of view. That show didn't just ruin Goku, it ruined every character, both major and minor. I will say that after watching the original trilogy in Japanese for the first time recently, I have found a new appreciation for the writing in general, not just Goku's.

[kemuri07]

Super never made me view Goku negatively in the grand scheme of things, for the simple fact that Super is an all around bad show, be it from a writing or production point of view. That show didn't just ruin Goku, it ruined every character, both major and minor. I will say that after watching the original trilogy in Japanese for the first time recently, I have found a new appreciation for the writing in general, not just Goku's.

You're not wrong, but I think by virtue of being the "face of the franchise" means that Goku gets the worst of it. Because it's not just the fact that Super is filled with bad writing (because it is) but it's the fact that it dropped the ball so hard on Goku's character that it fundamentally shifted how a large portion of the anime community saw that character. When people were putting out stuff like "Is Goku an anti-hero" on youtube, clearly something has gone wrong. And I don't know how you do that without completely misunderstanding the appeal of Dragon Ball as a franchise, and Goku as a shounen main protagonist.

[Zephyr]

Did Goku become anyone's favorite after watching Nowazas performance and the original writing? Perhaps after reading the Manga?

Yeah, when I first got into the series in 1998, and was a dubbie for the next decade, Goku was never in the conversation for my favorite character. People often compare Schemmel's Goku performance to Superman, but the more I think about it the more it sounds to me like your friend's dad who is also a youth pastor. Just some real fucking "hey sport, how's it going?" vibes that I'm not here for. I also never found Nadolny's Goku endearing at all, and think that laugh she gave him was atrocious. Importantly I wasn't a fan of Nozawa's Goku either from the scattered bits I caught during this era.

Eventually I acclimated to Nozawa's Goku voice, and her performance as him is endearing as fuck. Just this insanely smug and chaotic energy, all the time, when he's a kid. Started watching the subbed version in 2010, and stopped looking back by 2017. During this time Kid Goku specifically was one of my favorite characters.

Around 2018 I started engaging with the manga more, and thinking more closely about Goku's character arc throughout it, and that has resulted in him now being my favorite character. I still enjoy Kid Goku, but it's the way he's written as an adult (willing to take morally dubious gambles for the love of the game) that makes him my favorite, without Nozawa even needing to do any lifting.

Super's writing is annoying in a few ways for a few reasons. I don't mind Goku being written more wacky and dense when it's slice of life and social situations he's an idiot about, but his bouts of martial duncery undermine the very fuel source of his morally dubious gambles for the love of the game (being so good at this shit that it's his only recourse). I mind that less when I view Dragon Ball Super as a wholly separate work from Dragon Ball which also acts as a sort of reboot, but I mind it a lot more when it wants me to treat it like a part of Dragon Ball and think it compatible with its ending (where Goku is so good at this shit that Oob is his only recourse).

[super michael]

I didn't have any problem with Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball GT when I watched it in English and Spanish dub, while I watched the Japanese sub version. DBS Japanese sub on the other hand the writing is awful compared to the past, I don't know how the other dub are like. As for DBS Broly movie the English dub they made it so Goku forgot to bring the senzu beans, instead of simply not bringing it.

DB Goku = Great
DBZ Goku = Great
GT Goku = Great
DBS Goku = Awful

[The Dark Knight]

I didn't have any problem with Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball GT when I watched it in English and Spanish dub, while I watched the Japanese sub version. DBS Japanese sub on the other hand the writing is awful compared to the past, I don't know how the other dub are like. As for DBS Broly movie the English dub they made it so Goku forgot to bring the senzu beans, instead of simply not bringing it.

DB Goku = Great
DBZ Goku = Great
GT Goku = Great
DBS Goku = Awful

What are your thoughts on Daima's Goku ? I personally think he was a major step in the right direction from Super's version, better than GT's, but still not as good as DB & Z. Out of the three sequels we got, I think Daima's writing as a whole was the closest to DB & Z, which was likely due to Toriyama actually being involved this time, rather than just signing off on whatever was put in front of him like he did most of the time with Super.

[super michael]

I didn't have any problem with Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball GT when I watched it in English and Spanish dub, while I watched the Japanese sub version. DBS Japanese sub on the other hand the writing is awful compared to the past, I don't know how the other dub are like. As for DBS Broly movie the English dub they made it so Goku forgot to bring the senzu beans, instead of simply not bringing it.

DB Goku = Great
DBZ Goku = Great
GT Goku = Great
DBS Goku = Awful

What are your thoughts on Daima's Goku ? I personally think he was a major step in the right direction from Super's version, better than GT's, but still not as good as DB & Z. Out of the three sequels we got, I think Daima's writing as a whole was the closest to DB & Z, which was likely due to Toriyama actually being involved this time, rather than just signing off on whatever was put in front of him like he did most of the time with Super.

I think Daima Goku was good, he is a huge improvement over DBS Goku for sure. The things that he does in Daima is actually funny. It isn't perfect, but it was good none the less.