How do you still keep the flame alive after 20 years?

[dbboxkaifan]

I admit that I'm still interested, but since many years ago it started dropping consistently to the point of not caring too much about it any more, it's not to do with fanboy wars or whatever, it's practically been the same thing for the past 20 years (Except DB Heroes), and Kai after Friеza's arc was disappointing.

The games I still have some interest though I wouldn't say I'd spend time playing them when I could play Call of Duty (MW2/MW3/BO2) online which is actually fun. If however, Namco Bandai made an effort to make an online Dragon Ball game online for 360/PS3 like Zenkai Battle Royale with 6v6 players at least (plus Party Game Chat), this'd be quite fun to play.

[Chuquita]

20 years...from my current perspective that's a long time. I've been around the fandom in some form or another for about 12½ (going on 13 in late summer) and BOG's pretty much the only big thing keeping the db-fandom part of me running atm outside of my personal like for my favorite db characters. I've decided to take some kind of quasi-break of sorts after BOG is over with and see where it takes me. Might come back in the future, might not, maybe I'll come back only to a sort-of degree, but it's something I feel I need to do so I can avoid complete burnout with the series.

[JulieYBM]

Well, I've been a fan for fifteen years. I suppose the best way to keep going is to go slowly. It's not like Dragon Ball is the only title I am a fan of. Right now I've been re-watching Bleach right after coming off a watching Twin Peaks and Lost (for the fifth or sixth time). Before that I was enamoured in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (which I already want to rewatch). All I do is read, watch, collect and discuss the series. The Kanzenshuu staff had dedicated a lot of their time to building websites based on the series. I would call that for more fire-depleting than what I do as a fan, so I don't think it's any surprise I've kept up with it.

I imagine once the Kami to Kami news heats up and I can see the movie my fandom will be even stronger, too.

[TheGreatness25]

The secret is "turning it off." You can't be all 24/7 Dragon Ball. Me, I would be into DB, forget about it for a while, then come back to it.

The problem is that I've seen it so many times and the episodes aren't very "stand alone," so even with all the merchandise I keep getting, I'm not really going to sit down and watch it. I just got Dragon Boxes and don't even really know how I'll view them. I don't want to watch the entire show agian, and not really able to think of any particular episodes I'd watch.

[Hellspawn28]

I still like DB (I won't be on the forum if I wasn't), but I like other franchises then DB. I hope with the new movie then it could make me the inter DBZ fan that I used to be from 2001 - 2005. I'm personally fine with new shows and movies since stuff like video games and toys can't last forever. The younger fans should be enjoying the newer games fine, but I'm not sure if most of the older DB fans care for new games or not ?

[ForestEquilibrium]

I've been in and out of the fandom for quite a while now (this is actually my first post in nearly 5 bloody years! ) and was inspired to come back after I realized the Dragon Boxes were getting scarce and made it kind of a life goal to own the whole series in a consistent, quality format (which the DBoxes certainly provide although I wish they kept it up with the Level BDs).

Honestly, even though I can get distracted with other phases I go through, DB is always something I tend to come back to since it was such a big part of my childhood and upbringing that I feel it's become a part of me in some way. There always seems to be new things to learn about it with such a vast universe and even as an adult I can still enjoy reliving the series even in spite of a sense of nostalgia. With Battle of Gods on the horizon now there's going to be even more to learn about and experience.

[Daimakku]

I lost interest in all things Dragonball in my late teens years (15 to 19 or so). After that I liked Dragonball again but didn't really watch the series, just talked about it once in a while. I didn't really get back to DB until I got Dragonboxes 1-6 in 2011. Then I joined this forum and have been back on the franchise ever since. I am currently watching the original Dragonball in japanese for the first time. I had only watched in spanish and english before. I must say, japanese (with english subs of course!) is the best version, if only simply because of the insert music that wasn't there in the other versions I watched. It came as a surprise to me to find out Dragonball has songs in them, like that Dragonball I got it! song or the Red Ribbon Army theme. Even the Tenakichi Budokai (is it called "Number one"?) songs are awesome.
Simply talking about the show without watching it is fun enough to me. I really dont know how I'm still so interested in this show, but I am. There's just something about the whole Dragonball universe that captives me.

As for the videogames, I havent bought one since Budokai 3 for the PS2. I felt the videogames got rehashed after that, and I didnt like the whole style of Tenkaichi Budokai where you could fly everywhere, so I didnt get them. I'm mainly interested in the anime only.

[Daimakku]

20 years...from my current perspective that's a long time. I've been around the fandom in some form or another for about 12½ (going on 13 in late summer) and BOG's pretty much the only big thing keeping the db-fandom part of me running atm outside of my personal like for my favorite db characters. I've decided to take some kind of quasi-break of sorts after BOG is over with and see where it takes me. Might come back in the future, might not, maybe I'll come back only to a sort-of degree, but it's something I feel I need to do so I can avoid complete burnout with the series.

Also this. I'm doing a Dragonball marathon right now in preparation for Battle of Gods (first ep of DB to last episode of DBZ, including movies and specials), but after Battle of Gods releases and I watch it, I plan on taking a big break from the franchise, if only to avoid a burnout. I also do this with my favorite videogames. I finish them, then I dont play them again for 2-3 years so when I do get back to them, they're still sort of fresh.

Like everything, balance is key. Too much of anything is never good.

[Sinestro]

I want to say I've been in this fandom for... 15 years? I've been hooked ever since I saw this weird show about blasting people into another dimension. :p

How do I deal with it? To me, it's not a 24/7 thing. I get my fill through this podcast and I'm satisfied.

[TripleRach]

Well, it's only been about 13 years for me, but I don't know. I guess I'm like Jacob in that I space it out between numerous other interests, though not necessarily on purpose. I tend to go through things in phases based on whims and new ideas. Like I guess Sailor Moon, Kamen Rider, and I Love Lucy are at the forefront right now for various respective reasons.

But somehow I always want to be doing something Dragon Ball. Even when I'm already doing something Dragon Ball! The series is so long and has such a big universe to delve into that I can always find some way to enjoy it, be it simply reading/watching, or a giant nerd project. I don't think I could get burned out if I tried.

[Smochi]

Everything I love has come into my life through DBZ. My involvement in martial arts, college, cosplaying, my friends, even my boyfriend. Realizing that, I never get sick of DBZ since I'm so grateful to it! I also run panels at conventions for DB and DBZ, so I hear stories like mine every time and always look at the show with renewed eyes.

[MCDaveG]

I dunno, I have so much hobbies and favorite franchises like Star Wars, Gundam and DC Comics, that I'm entertained everytime. So there's not thing like flame working.
Sometimes I buy some DB mechandise and now I'm back here for some newly found info or news about games or now the new movie.

[Kaboom]

I moderate a Dragon Ball forum, and I write fanfiction very, veeeeery slowly.

[penguintruth]

Arguing with you folks over trivial minutia of the franchise until I collapse in a heap of desperate self-loathing.

[dprez]

There is still a lot of the franchise that I haven't delved into yet, so I think I''ll be ok for a good while.

When it comes to watching and reading the series, I take long brakes in between, mostly because when I do pick it up again, I watch/read the whole damn thing. To get the full experience, this is the best way to do it imo. 24/7 is good if you've got a ton of Dragon Ball stuff to indulge in, but the series is better when you take a break from it, then come back later for a fresher experience.

[DBZ Mick]

I just casually watch an episode here or there, or flip through parts of the manga before sleeping- something I do a lot recently. I also watched the Kai Saiyan arc last week.

[Ginkasa]

I enjoy a lot of different franchises over various genres and industries. Which one I'm most interested in at any given time depends on multiple factors. Right now, DB/Z is fairly high on my list partially due to generic excitement over the new movie and the color versions of the manga along with just timing. The Dragon Boxes and the DB season sets started getting released right after I finished watching the series for the first time with my wife over various sources. I bought the season sets and DBoxes, but wasn't interested in watching all 500 episodes again so soon. Now, 4 years later, I started to feel like maybe I should actually enjoy those purchases.

When I watched them with my wife was also about 4-5 years after I really stopped watching Toonami, so maybe that's just the timeframe for me.

[Hellspawn28]

I think the video games and web sites like here keep the fan inside of me alive. I would likely stop caring for DBZ if it wasn't for the Internet.

[bleed0range]

One does not have to constantly pay attention to something they like to continue being a fan of it. If DB is not interesting to you right now, then go find something that does interest you. Eventually, with enough time, it will again. There's a LOT of material to Dragon Ball to sift through again later that will make it feel new again or at least interesting again after awhile. But I don't know how anyone could not be interested when we have a major animation motion picture on the horizon.

[Saiga]

There's still plenty of Dragon Ball for me to enjoy! The video games, Kanzenshuu, Team Four Star's Abridged Series, several other fanworks like GT:R and DBM, so it's rather easy for me to keep the flame alive. I do run into the problem of not being able to watch the series because the episodes aren't something I can watch on their own and and don't want to slog through the whole series. I wish I had the Z portion of the manga, because reading that would be much better.