Is DBZ the best Manga/Anime In your opinion?

Discussion regarding the entirety of the franchise in a general (meta) sense, including such aspects as: production, trends, merchandise, fan culture, and more.

Moderators: Kanzenshuu Staff, General Help

User avatar
Gyt Kaliba
Kicks it Old-School
Posts: 8869
Joined: Fri Sep 28, 2007 1:38 am
Location: Arkansas
Contact:

Re: Is DBZ the best Manga/Anime In your opinion?

Post by Gyt Kaliba » Tue Feb 05, 2013 10:53 pm

Saiga wrote:I'm not even sure how you can distinguish from "best" and "favourite". It's not like there is any objective way to measure quality.
It's fairly easy, actually, at least for me. Just because I may like something - say, 'Ernest Goes to Camp' - more than something else - say, 'The Dark Knight' - doesn't mean I also think the former is better than the latter. Cuz it really, really isn't. :lol:
AniManga Travelogue - Currently Reviewing: Dragon Ball (Z)
Twitter
Switch Friend Code: SW-0745-6427-7791 (let's play some Dragon Ball: The Breakers!)

User avatar
Saiga
Kicks it Old-School
Posts: 8311
Joined: Mon Oct 31, 2011 8:36 pm
Location: Space Australia

Re: Is DBZ the best Manga/Anime In your opinion?

Post by Saiga » Tue Feb 05, 2013 10:59 pm

Gyt Kaliba wrote:
Saiga wrote:I'm not even sure how you can distinguish from "best" and "favourite". It's not like there is any objective way to measure quality.
It's fairly easy, actually, at least for me. Just because I may like something - say, 'Ernest Goes to Camp' - more than something else - say, 'The Dark Knight' - doesn't mean I also think the former is better than the latter. Cuz it really, really isn't. :lol:
Yeah, see, I don't understand that at all. Like I said, there's no objective way to measure quality, so wouldn't the best just be the most entertaining? That's what it's all about, isn't it?
I'm re-watching Dragon Ball GT in full on my blog. Check it out if you're interested in my thoughts on the series as I watch through it!

User avatar
Gyt Kaliba
Kicks it Old-School
Posts: 8869
Joined: Fri Sep 28, 2007 1:38 am
Location: Arkansas
Contact:

Re: Is DBZ the best Manga/Anime In your opinion?

Post by Gyt Kaliba » Tue Feb 05, 2013 11:02 pm

Saiga wrote:Yeah, see, I don't understand that at all. Like I said, there's no objective way to measure quality, so wouldn't the best just be the most entertaining? That's what it's all about, isn't it?
Well...to a degree, yeah. Something being entertaining is certainly more important to me than how deep or well written it is - it's for that reason that I enjoy stuff like Dragon Ball more than a lot of other things. But I can still tell when something is much better written

I guess it is a little silly to bother separating it out like that though, when you think about it.

And you're right, it'd never be objective really. It would always come down to a single person's opinion on something.
AniManga Travelogue - Currently Reviewing: Dragon Ball (Z)
Twitter
Switch Friend Code: SW-0745-6427-7791 (let's play some Dragon Ball: The Breakers!)

User avatar
JulieYBM
Patreon Supporter
Posts: 17626
Joined: Mon Jan 16, 2006 10:25 pm
Location: 🏳️‍⚧️🍉

Re: Is DBZ the best Manga/Anime In your opinion?

Post by JulieYBM » Tue Feb 05, 2013 11:03 pm

I certainly don't think anyone has managed to quite match Toriyama's fight scenes, other than maybe Kishimoto Masahi (for his important fights). Over all, though, I don't think Dragon Ball is the best comic. I think I'd rank is below Eyeshield 21, Death Note, Naruto, Rurouni Kenshin and Bleach in that regard thanks to their stories and characters. I'd say Pluto, while more story-based, sort of loses points for having a mostly unoriginal plot and weak battle scenes, so in an odd way I might put Dragon Ball above that in terms of overall quality.

It's a hard question!
💙💜💖💙💜💖💙💜💖💙💜💖 She/Her 💙💜💖💙💜💖💙💜💖💙💜💖
💙💜💖💙💜💖💙💜💖💙💜💖 Don't forget to take your estrogen! 💙💜💖💙

User avatar
Kuwabara
Regular
Posts: 689
Joined: Thu Jun 23, 2011 10:36 am

Re: Is DBZ the best Manga/Anime In your opinion?

Post by Kuwabara » Tue Feb 05, 2013 11:15 pm

It's definitely my favorite, but I've become extremely jaded with the franchise in general. I feel like Toei doesn't give Dragon Ball the love it deserves. Battle of Gods may prove me wrong, but I kind of doubt it. Give Dragon Ball to another studio (sans Pierrot) and they would make something truly great. And dare I say, even FUNimation could probably write and produce a great new Dragon Ball show or movie if they had better resources. Kind of fucked up to think about, I know. :crazy:
Saiga wrote:
Gyt Kaliba wrote:
Saiga wrote:I'm not even sure how you can distinguish from "best" and "favourite". It's not like there is any objective way to measure quality.
It's fairly easy, actually, at least for me. Just because I may like something - say, 'Ernest Goes to Camp' - more than something else - say, 'The Dark Knight' - doesn't mean I also think the former is better than the latter. Cuz it really, really isn't. :lol:
Yeah, see, I don't understand that at all. Like I said, there's no objective way to measure quality, so wouldn't the best just be the most entertaining? That's what it's all about, isn't it?
Of course there isn't an objective way to measure quality, but at the same time I still agree with Gyt Kaliba. There can be a very clear distinction between 'best' and 'favorite.' Dragon Ball might be among my favorite series, but there are numerous series I find much, much better. Whether or not those series are more 'entertaining' varies, I suppose.
This is the episode of when Gokuh enrages himself after Freezer talk shit about Kuririn

User avatar
JulieYBM
Patreon Supporter
Posts: 17626
Joined: Mon Jan 16, 2006 10:25 pm
Location: 🏳️‍⚧️🍉

Re: Is DBZ the best Manga/Anime In your opinion?

Post by JulieYBM » Tue Feb 05, 2013 11:29 pm

Kuwabara wrote:It's definitely my favorite, but I've become extremely jaded with the franchise in general. I feel like Toei doesn't give Dragon Ball the love it deserves. Battle of Gods may prove me wrong, but I kind of doubt it. Give Dragon Ball to another studio (sans Pierrot) and they would make something truly great.
Pierrot would do much better for Dragon Ball than Toei would now, if their current handling of One Piece and Saint Seiya Omega are any indication. Even the outsourced episodes of Naruto Shippuuden have actual battle animation (not to mention Chief Animation Supervisors).
💙💜💖💙💜💖💙💜💖💙💜💖 She/Her 💙💜💖💙💜💖💙💜💖💙💜💖
💙💜💖💙💜💖💙💜💖💙💜💖 Don't forget to take your estrogen! 💙💜💖💙

User avatar
Kuwabara
Regular
Posts: 689
Joined: Thu Jun 23, 2011 10:36 am

Re: Is DBZ the best Manga/Anime In your opinion?

Post by Kuwabara » Wed Feb 06, 2013 1:31 am

JulieYBM wrote:Pierrot would do much better for Dragon Ball than Toei would now, if their current handling of One Piece and Saint Seiya Omega are any indication. Even the outsourced episodes of Naruto Shippuuden have actual battle animation (not to mention Chief Animation Supervisors).
Maybe you're right, I don't keep up with Naruto Shippuden so maybe that's a sharper production compared to things like the first Naruto series, Bleach, Level E etc. Naruto had some nice animation during key scenes, but looked average on the whole. No episode I've seen of Bleach has ever impressed me, and Level E is one of the most horrendous productions I've ever seen. I'll always be of the opinion that Pierott peaked with Yu Yu Hakusho, but I speak from the perspective of someone who prefers cel animation over digital most of the time.
This is the episode of when Gokuh enrages himself after Freezer talk shit about Kuririn

User avatar
JulieYBM
Patreon Supporter
Posts: 17626
Joined: Mon Jan 16, 2006 10:25 pm
Location: 🏳️‍⚧️🍉

Re: Is DBZ the best Manga/Anime In your opinion?

Post by JulieYBM » Wed Feb 06, 2013 1:38 am

Kuwabara wrote:
JulieYBM wrote:Pierrot would do much better for Dragon Ball than Toei would now, if their current handling of One Piece and Saint Seiya Omega are any indication. Even the outsourced episodes of Naruto Shippuuden have actual battle animation (not to mention Chief Animation Supervisors).
Maybe you're right, I don't keep up with Naruto Shippuden so maybe that's a sharper production compared to things like the first Naruto series, Bleach, Level E etc. Naruto had some nice animation during key scenes, but looked average on the whole. No episode I've seen of Bleach has ever impressed me, and Level E is one of the most horrendous productions I've ever seen. I'll always be of the opinion that Pierott peaked with Yu Yu Hakusho, but I speak from the perspective of someone who prefers cel animation over digital most of the time.
Yuu Yuu Hakusho is good, but Naruto Shippuuden and Bleach have both gotten fair treatment. Even their worst episodes look better than Dragon Ball Z's worst. Not to mention they both got talented animators for their character designers. :P
💙💜💖💙💜💖💙💜💖💙💜💖 She/Her 💙💜💖💙💜💖💙💜💖💙💜💖
💙💜💖💙💜💖💙💜💖💙💜💖 Don't forget to take your estrogen! 💙💜💖💙

User avatar
Gyt Kaliba
Kicks it Old-School
Posts: 8869
Joined: Fri Sep 28, 2007 1:38 am
Location: Arkansas
Contact:

Re: Is DBZ the best Manga/Anime In your opinion?

Post by Gyt Kaliba » Wed Feb 06, 2013 1:40 am

Kuwabara wrote:No episode I've seen of Bleach has ever impressed me
Out of curiosity, did you ever see the first few Bleach episodes, especially the first one? I actually thought those were beautiful, they had this misty quality to them that really fit with the series, and I was disappointed when they seemed to drop that later on in.
AniManga Travelogue - Currently Reviewing: Dragon Ball (Z)
Twitter
Switch Friend Code: SW-0745-6427-7791 (let's play some Dragon Ball: The Breakers!)

User avatar
JulieYBM
Patreon Supporter
Posts: 17626
Joined: Mon Jan 16, 2006 10:25 pm
Location: 🏳️‍⚧️🍉

Re: Is DBZ the best Manga/Anime In your opinion?

Post by JulieYBM » Wed Feb 06, 2013 1:49 am

Gyt Kaliba wrote:
Kuwabara wrote:No episode I've seen of Bleach has ever impressed me
Out of curiosity, did you ever see the first few Bleach episodes, especially the first one? I actually thought those were beautiful, they had this misty quality to them that really fit with the series, and I was disappointed when they seemed to drop that later on in.
I've just finished re-watching the first 121 episodes. I do remember some of the earlier episodes having a little more effort placed into the line work and coloring, but Pierrot wisely dropped that as the series continued to focus on the battles. The last sixty-ish episodes saw a noticeable budget increase, too. Mother-fracking Kurita and Kameda. 8)


Er...uh...Dragon Ball. Yeah. So, uh...Toei sure did give it a big budget back in the day.
💙💜💖💙💜💖💙💜💖💙💜💖 She/Her 💙💜💖💙💜💖💙💜💖💙💜💖
💙💜💖💙💜💖💙💜💖💙💜💖 Don't forget to take your estrogen! 💙💜💖💙

User avatar
Hellspawn28
Patreon Supporter
Posts: 15502
Joined: Mon Sep 07, 2009 9:50 pm
Location: Maryland, USA

Re: Is DBZ the best Manga/Anime In your opinion?

Post by Hellspawn28 » Wed Feb 06, 2013 2:47 am

Not even a close. I like other anime/manga franchises much more then DBZ. I think DB might be pretty high up, but the Z era of the manga.
She/Her
PS5 username: Guyver_Spawn_27
LB Profile: https://letterboxd.com/Hellspawn28/

User avatar
Saiyan Prince Vegeta
OMG CRAZY REGEN
Posts: 979
Joined: Fri Jul 13, 2012 1:08 pm
Location: England

Re: Is DBZ the best Manga/Anime In your opinion?

Post by Saiyan Prince Vegeta » Wed Feb 06, 2013 3:20 am

DB is definetly my favourite, but as everybody else has said it's not the best.
The reason it's my favourite is hard to say, I can only really think of a few points at the moment. I love how the main characters must overcome limits throughout the story and have a never say die attitude, If they're knocked down they get straight back up. DB has always been a massive inspiration in my life for training and such as well :)

User avatar
Fizzer
Advanced Regular
Posts: 1444
Joined: Thu Apr 26, 2012 5:01 pm
Location: United Kingdom

Re: Is DBZ the best Manga/Anime In your opinion?

Post by Fizzer » Wed Feb 06, 2013 4:49 am

I'd say the difference between my favourite and (what I find to be) the best, is that my favourite makes me feel enjoyment or satisfaction, while the "best" impresses me, makes me think things like "this is really well written", "that plot must have taken a LOT of thinking about", or "this animation is brilliant".

To make an analogy, you could say that a painting that I think is "good" is one that has been painted masterfully, looks exactly like the artist envisioned, and could only be pulled off by the incredibly skilled, but a painting that I like could be one that is really badly painted but contains a joke that makes me lol every time I see it.

User avatar
Mewzard
I Live Here
Posts: 2009
Joined: Wed Apr 02, 2008 9:02 pm
Location: Oklahoma
Contact:

Re: Is DBZ the best Manga/Anime In your opinion?

Post by Mewzard » Wed Feb 06, 2013 7:05 am

Yeah, I love Dragon Ball, but it's so far from being the best. Maybe this is just my recent reading of over 5,000 pages of Osamu Tezuka manga, but I'd say his work is the best in terms of quality, thought provoking manga (and possibly anime, but I haven't experienced as much of it as I would like). Between his work and Akira, I'm starting to appreciate mature manga more.

Though, among jump manga, it's definitely in my top five. Dragon Ball, Saint Seiya, Fist of the North Star, Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, and Yu Yu Hakusho (Rurouni Kenshin, Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo, Yu-Gi-Oh!, One Piece, and Death Note would round out my top 10) would be my top for SJ manga.

Jump's certainly a fun magazine, it's just not always getting the deepest of reads. But, it gave me a number of series I still go back to for entertainment.
RIDER KIIIIIIICK!

User avatar
Kuwabara
Regular
Posts: 689
Joined: Thu Jun 23, 2011 10:36 am

Re: Is DBZ the best Manga/Anime In your opinion?

Post by Kuwabara » Wed Feb 06, 2013 10:25 am

Gyt Kaliba wrote:Out of curiosity, did you ever see the first few Bleach episodes, especially the first one? I actually thought those were beautiful, they had this misty quality to them that really fit with the series, and I was disappointed when they seemed to drop that later on in.
I actually know exactly what you mean, I take back what I said earlier. At that point, it was almost reminiscent of Mushi-Shi in terms of atmosphere and direction. I've heard similar reactions to the beginning chapters of the manga as well. I thought I was in for a radically new shonen series, only to be severely disappointed later on.
This is the episode of when Gokuh enrages himself after Freezer talk shit about Kuririn

User avatar
Kaboom
Moderator
Posts: 14472
Joined: Mon Jan 09, 2006 6:07 pm

Re: Is DBZ the best Manga/Anime In your opinion?

Post by Kaboom » Wed Feb 06, 2013 12:24 pm

Dragon Ball is my favorite anime/manga franchise, no doubt, and by far the one fandom of mine which I've dedicated the most time and effort towards. But the "best" series? No, I wouldn't say so. It has its glaring flaws, even though they don't detract from my own enjoyment in the slightest. Even still, the only series I actually follow that I would firmly claim as better is One Piece.
[ BlueSky | Bsky: DBS Plots | DeviantArt | Twitter (Depreciated) ]

[PSN/Steam: KaboomKrusader | Switch FC: SW-4304-7361-2824 | ACNH Dream Address: DA-1637-4046-7415 ("SlamZone") ]

hui43210
Not-So-Newbie
Posts: 99
Joined: Tue Jul 07, 2009 10:17 pm
Location: Winnipeg,Manitoba,Canada

Re: Is DBZ the best Manga/Anime In your opinion?

Post by hui43210 » Wed Feb 06, 2013 6:39 pm

Hellllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll no

User avatar
TheGreatness25
I Live Here
Posts: 4980
Joined: Fri Oct 19, 2007 9:36 am

Re: Is DBZ the best Manga/Anime In your opinion?

Post by TheGreatness25 » Thu Feb 07, 2013 9:53 am

In my opinion it is. It's not the best quality or anything, but I really can't stand anime and Dragon Ball is a very rare exception for me. Other than Cowboy Bebop and maybe the Street Fighter II Animated Movie, I can't think of any other anime that I like.Ooh yeah and Lupin. Otherwise, it's no contest. All these Death Note, Naruto, One Piece, Pokemon, Yu-Gi-Oh, and whatever comes on Adult Swim get annoying to me. Inuyasha, for example,blah.
They're all similar to me. Either a forest or space it school or some sort of high tech world with some close calls to cartoon porn which is stupid to me.

Anyway, that's my opinion. I'm sure DB isn't "the best," but it is to me.

User avatar
B
Born 'n Bred Here
Posts: 5561
Joined: Tue Dec 09, 2008 10:15 am
Contact:

Re: Is DBZ the best Manga/Anime In your opinion?

Post by B » Thu Feb 07, 2013 4:05 pm

"Best anime or manga" seems like such a silly question to me nowadays, considering only a droplet of it gets the treatment of translation. There's hundreds of anime and thousands of manga I will never read.
Keen Observation of Dragon Ball Z Movie 4's Climax wrote:Slug shits to see the genki

User avatar
Pretorious
Beyond Newbie
Posts: 200
Joined: Wed Jan 16, 2013 6:26 pm
Location: North Carolina

Re: Is DBZ the best Manga/Anime In your opinion?

Post by Pretorious » Fri Feb 08, 2013 8:53 pm

Dragon Ball is my favorite anime. No contest.
TheGreatness25 wrote:All these Death Note, Naruto, One Piece, Pokemon, Yu-Gi-Oh, and whatever comes on Adult Swim get annoying to me. Inuyasha, for example,blah.
They're all similar to me. Either a forest or space it school or some sort of high tech world with some close calls to cartoon porn which is stupid to me.
It's so weird for me to see Death Note grouped with those other titles. I haven't seen the anime, but the manga is nothing like those Naruto/One Piece-type adventure stories. Like...at all. It's essentially a cat-and-mouse detective story. With great art. And a farily intelligent, well-crafted plot. And the main character isn't exactly a hero. I even got my girlfriend to read it and she otherwise has no interest in manga/anime/comics, just good stories. She would never care about those other titles, though.

Sorry if I got off topic.

Post Reply