"Why are you watching a kids cartoon show?"

[Insertclevername]

I'd say none of the series really feel mature but if I had to pick, Z.

[jaywonder]

Someone recently asked me what was so great about Dragonball and anime in general because from what he saw, it was just "crap kids animation like Thundercats and He-Man" and couldn't understand why an adult would watch.

I could tell he was trying to annoy me but I just shrugged and said "It's just not for you". If you're going to criticize something just from a brief look, do you really have a valid point about the subject?

[Adamant]

Someone recently asked me what was so great about Dragonball and anime in general because from what he saw, it was just "crap kids animation like Thundercats and He-Man" and couldn't understand why an adult would watch.

I could tell he was trying to annoy me but I just shrugged and said "It's just not for you". If you're going to criticize something just from a brief look, do you really have a valid point about the subject?

It's not like the comparison is invalid, though. Thundercats, He-Man, Dragonball, Naruto, Bleach, various other of these English-dubbed airs-on-TV shows Joe American would be most likely to know of... it's all juvenile action-adventure in roughly the same vein. If he's seen Thundercats and considers it "crap kids animation", there's nothing about Dragonball in specific that he's failing to see that would validate it as "great" in his eyes.

[TripleRach]

It's not like the comparison is invalid, though. Thundercats, He-Man, Dragonball, Naruto, Bleach, various other of these English-dubbed airs-on-TV shows Joe American would be most likely to know of... it's all juvenile action-adventure in roughly the same vein. If he's seen Thundercats and considers it "crap kids animation", there's nothing about Dragonball in specific that he's failing to see that would validate it as "great" in his eyes.

Well, Dragon Ball isn't exactly Shakespeare, but I'd say the writing quality is a slight step up from Thundercats (at least the original 80s version). Thundercats has almost no character development or plot progression, and there's rarely any major drama or consequence, outside of the occasional multi-part episodes. But that's mostly because the staff probably wanted to make the show less serialized so it could be more accessible to new viewers, and there are plenty of Japanese kids shows with "problem of the day" style production too. Overall, Dragon Ball's only major advantage over problem-of-the-day toy cartoons is the fact that the story is serialized. The world changes, the main cast shifts multiple times, there are multiple villains who are around for varying lengths of time, etc.

But serialization vs problem-of-the-day isn't unique to kids shows either. A lot of adult-centric serialized shows in the US actually have trouble succeeding, because it's harder for new viewers to join in part way through. The most successful shows seem to be either police/lawyer dramas with cases-of-the-day, or sitcoms with their sillier problems-of-the-day. I guess the fact that Dragon Ball could succeed with that writing style makes it pretty special, since kids are (supposedly) less patient than adults.

[Adamant]

Well, Dragon Ball isn't exactly Shakespeare, but I'd say the writing quality is a slight step up from Thundercats (at least the original 80s version). Thundercats has almost no character development or plot progression, and there's rarely any major drama or consequence, outside of the occasional multi-part episodes.

Fair point regarding those specific examples, I guess. It's not something that sets "anime" and "Dragonball" apart from western shows, though. Someone who looks at Dragonball and says it's just the same as the "crap kids animation" he's familiar with probably includes more plotty stuff like Transformers, the 90s Marvel shows, etc under that label, too.

[OutlawTorn]

I could tell he was trying to annoy me but I just shrugged and said "It's just not for you".

I like this outlook and it's so true. Some things just aren't someone's cup of tea and I'm sure the reverse would likely happen where there's material he enjoys but you're not to fussy about and neither one is "wrong" as there is no correct answer when it comes to personal taste.

For the record, though, I happen to enjoy the classic Thundercats and He-Man cartoons for what they are. I also feel the most recent He-Man cartoon fell short in comparison to the original. I think my biggest criticisms were the bland soundtrack as well as the obsession with filling time by having the characters continually twirling their weapons.

[Hellspawn28]

I think it's bad enough that DB fans would find ways telling people that its not a kid show and it's really deep. I guess some people get over the fact that they enjoy something made for all ages .

[shonenhikada]

I think it's bad enough that DB fans would find ways telling people that its not a kid show and it's really deep. I guess some people get over the fact that they enjoy something made for all ages .

Why do you bash dragon ball so much and call people wankers ?

[Hellspawn28]

What are you talking about? If I hated the series then I won't be on this site. I said that it's just as bad when you have fans trying to say that Dragon Ball is not a kids show when it's a kid shows. There is nothing wrong with liking something that is made for all ages. The Star Wars movies, the Godzilla movies (Expect for the original), Disney films and most Nintendo games are made for all ages. They can be enjoyable for adults as well.

[Gounks]

Oh gosh! Absolutely hate it when someone asks me that.

Generally my reply is "why do you read?"
I get really strange looks and then we go on to have this (mostly rant filled) chat.
In fact, I believe there is not much difference between watching anime/cartoons than there is reading a book. Right down to it, they're all just stories that people are telling us and it so happens to be shared/expressed differently. Would they be asking the same thing about *DBZ*(or anime in general) if it was an actual solid book and not a manga?

I honestly dislike it when people think it's childesh to watch animated movies in general. Animation is a work of art. Many people have put in a lot of time and money into creating something. I'm pretty sure we all take it for granted in the end. But the fact that it's animated isn't an excuse to call it childesh or something for kids. The plot and characters is what decides if it's made for children or not.

As far as DBZ is concerned, I have never been asked why I still watch DBZ nor has anyone told me it's childesh. Most of my friends and family are okay with it; probably because majority of them have seen it as kids and they tend to get back into it if they watch it again. So.. as someone said above, it's also to do nostalgia. For me, it's because I love it and it always brings a smile to my face. It brings back memories and gives me inspiration to keep drawing.