How violent will the new movie be?

[Nex Carnifex]

I can't really add anymore that has already been touched upon on the fact that Dragonball is a the product of a 80's-90's shonen kids show from Japan. It certainly has it's dark, even shockingly-violent moments, but overall has the standard amount of action violence of the time, nothing grotesque. No doubt though that I can't expect this movie to be as "violent" as some of the more shocking moments in the manga/anime, epecially since Toriyama states that he himself doesn't like things to get too dark (even if an argument can be made how twisted his dark humor appeared to be at times in the manga).

However, this ISN'T the manga or TV anime, it's just a movie. The first movie in 17 years to be exact! I doubt the general Japanese audience wants the first Dragon Ball movie in 17 years to be an awfully dark and depressing one filled with Evangelion-esque themes like bloodshed and despair. They generally want the more lighthearted One Piece type of fun/amusement with epic action and colorful characters; which is what I gathered from the trailers. That's more-or-less the route taken with most shonen series nowadays and I feel this movie will be a prime example of that. After all, Toriyama did mention it would be Dragon Ball with a modern flare, right? I just can't imagine more anymore "violence" in this movie aside from the usual blood trails from the mouth or face, given the intensity of the characters getting beaten up.

One piece is pretty damn violent

[worldmonsters]

- Mr. Satan finally gets killed when he tries to him.

Now I want Mr Satan to die, because he's the only one EVER to not have died a single time Kill Satan!! Come on!!

[Saiga]

Well, he was going the "dark and edgy" route with heavy sarcasm...

Yamcha is too nice to kill a injured Vegeta anyway. Ten on the other hand...

I know, I was trying to join in, acting as though what you said was unbelievable and penguintruth's wasn't. I didn't make that clear enough

And the fanfic comment is just because I'm seen so many fanfics about Yamcha doing that or fans wishing he had xD Even Budokai 3 gets in on it a little, it just doesn't end well for Yamcha.

[Nex Carnifex]

So I heard this movie is going to be G and not PG-12..can we draw any conclusions about the violence content from that? I was hoping it would at least me like Princess Mononoke, like the anime, what was that rated? Whats putting me off is the bright colors and seeming lack of grit or tension in most of the screenshots. I'm all for goofy humor and seeing the characters fuck around for fun, but like that needs to be balanced with some pretty serious content like it was with FMA:B or the original Dragon Ball anime, I just hope it isn't going to be like a really kiddy movie...I know it is for kids but common, its still Dragon Ball Z.

[Ketchup_Revenge]

- Mr. Satan finally gets killed when he tries to him.

Now I want Mr Satan to die, because he's the only one EVER to not have died a single time Kill Satan!! Come on!!

Funniest part about that is that Chris Sabat said that Mr. Satan was his favorite character in the show. He said he was the most "realistic" and "human" in the series. I will say that because of Mr. Satan's entertaining dumbassery, I don't find him entirely unlikeable either.

[Sin]

So I heard this movie is going to be G and not PG-12..can we draw any conclusions about the violence content from that? I was hoping it would at least me like Princess Mononoke, like the anime, what was that rated? Whats putting me off is the bright colors and seeming lack of grit or tension in most of the screenshots. I'm all for goofy humor and seeing the characters fuck around for fun, but like that needs to be balanced with some pretty serious content like it was with FMA:B or the original Dragon Ball anime, I just hope it isn't going to be like a really kiddy movie...I know it is for kids but common, its still Dragon Ball Z.

Same here, even One Piece Film Z was a PG12.

[xXInfinite026Xx]

One piece is pretty damn violent

Yes it can be, but it's NOT a show just about violence, but rather colorful characters and fun adventure. If you look at the covers of the tankōbon, most of them feature Luffy giving his shonen-type smile/grin rather than having the characters battered in blood. His and Goku's personality, along with their cast of friends is what fuels the series.

So I heard this movie is going to be G and not PG-12..can we draw any conclusions about the violence content from that? I was hoping it would at least me like Princess Mononoke, like the anime, what was that rated? Whats putting me off is the bright colors and seeming lack of grit or tension in most of the screenshots. I'm all for goofy humor and seeing the characters fuck around for fun, but like that needs to be balanced with some pretty serious content like it was with FMA:B or the original Dragon Ball anime, I just hope it isn't going to be like a really kiddy movie...I know it is for kids but common, its still Dragon Ball Z.

[/quote]

The G rating only proves my statement before that this movie isn't going to have great amounts of gratuitous violence. I do expect this movie to be as epic as ever even without extremely violent scenes. Remember action doesn't always mean violence.

[Nex Carnifex]

One piece is pretty damn violent

Yes it can be, but it's NOT a show just about violence, but rather colorful characters and fun adventure. If you look at the covers of the tankōbon, most of them feature Luffy giving his shonen-type smile/grin rather than having the characters battered in blood. His and Goku's personality, along with their cast of friends is what fuels the series.

So I heard this movie is going to be G and not PG-12..can we draw any conclusions about the violence content from that? I was hoping it would at least me like Princess Mononoke, like the anime, what was that rated? Whats putting me off is the bright colors and seeming lack of grit or tension in most of the screenshots. I'm all for goofy humor and seeing the characters fuck around for fun, but like that needs to be balanced with some pretty serious content like it was with FMA:B or the original Dragon Ball anime, I just hope it isn't going to be like a really kiddy movie...I know it is for kids but common, its still Dragon Ball Z.

The G rating only proves my statement before that this movie isn't going to have great amounts of gratuitous violence. I do expect this movie to be as epic as ever even without extremely violent scenes. Remember action doesn't always mean violence.

It's a lot about violence and doing damage to an opponent, that's what people think when they think of Dragon Ball Z or just shonen stuff in general. I don't think there's much room for fun adventure in this Dragon Ball at this point, they are too strong and now its just about fighting, getting from one place to another will never pose any challenge for someone with instant transmission. So I'm just hoping the fighting isn't dumbed down, haven't seen a trace of blood in any screenshot as of yet, if there is no blood or anything its going to look stupid just people punching and blasting each other with no sign of what all this intense combat is inflicting on them. The worst case scenario is even the fight itself is dumbed down and made to look not so intense. If this movie ends up being as lame as it could end up being, I'll probably finally accept GT as it is as my preferred continuation of the plot.

[Attitudefan]

Need I say more?


It's kind of ironic that you guys are talking about Dragonball being all full of adventure, yet some of the most violent moments come from the Dragonball portion of the series and even early Z. Holes through people's bodies, lost limbs, decapitations, broken bones, faces covered in blood, and characters being crippled. I think because DB has become so corporate, the violence has been toned down considerably.

[Insertclevername]

Well you have to realize that the manga is over (which had far more violence than the anime. Compare Gohan killing the Cell Jrs. and you'll see what I mean). The anime (which is still present with BoG and whatever else may come out in the future) is naturally less violent than it's manga counterpart.

And there is that whole decline in Dragon Ball stuff. With Kai fizzling out, along with sales, it's best to have the new big movie be able to generate more viewers with a "G" rating. Maybe one day Dragon Ball could return to it's former glory and we'll see the return of all that gratuitous violence!

[xXInfinite026Xx]

I too can list of many of the most violent, gory scenes that do exist in the manga and anime, however I would be getting off topic.

The question was about how violent we think the new movie will be, and I still say not as much as it used to be i.e. late 80's Dragon Ball. I do agree with AttitudeFan that the series (and popular shonen anime in general) has become corporate nowadays that general violence has been toned down from the days of old. Which is why I don't expect Birusu to do something as drastic as impale Vegeta's throat or something to that effect. Judging from the trailer, Birusu looks like he'd rather humiliate his opponents rather than straight on murder them, as if he's having fun swatting flies. Again, we won't know the extent of the violence in the fighting until we see the movie.

I expect the violence to be on par with something like Episode of Bardock, which at least features the main character bleeding at least (and even keeps the neck snapping from the manga )

[Nex Carnifex]

So they say the only blood is when Videl gets shot, does this bother anyone but me? I can deal with it for this movie, but if its this way for all future Dragon Ball stuff, I'll probably get pretty tired of this watered down violence.

[dbzfan7]

So they say the only blood is when Videl gets shot, does this bother anyone but me? I can deal with it for this movie, but if its this way for all future Dragon Ball stuff, I'll probably get pretty tired of this watered down violence.

Just you and some toonami fans. I personally don't care about blood at all. It doesn't make the show IMO.

[xXInfinite026Xx]

I'd really hate to come off as rude sounding so please don't take this the wrong way, but several of your last posts about blood in the new movie really seems a bit too...juvenile to me. I mean, I get it, when I was 11-14, the main thing on my mind while watching DBZ was how uncut this was compared to the Funimation/Toonami TV edits. It was invigorating at the time because you feel like you'd be watching the true product and not a watered down version of the show shown on TV. Hell, I even had my parents purchase the VHS copy of the episodes with Freeza beating down Vegeta on my 12th birthday to compare side-by-side to the violence in the manga (even when it clearly stated "for ages 13 and up" on the sticker). I felt so much more "grown up" because my favorite anime/cartoon had so much "violence" and was unheard of at the time to have something so popular with kids be so violent.

But over the years, the memories of those "sense of wonder" days with the uncut versions had become more of a funny pastime when thinking about it. How the violence drew you in as a kid became irrelevant to me because I still came to love the series for what it truly is as a whole: A fun, epic, shonen tale of a strong boy from the wild who grew up to become a grandfather and how he grouped with so many interesting characters along the way. That is what Dragon Ball is to me now! Yes, it's mostly a fighting show and as a result sparked the series' "HARDCORE!!!" advertisement in America, but Dragon Ball will always have more impact on me overall than other, more violent fighting shows like Baki the Grappler. When I look at the whole picture, it's because all the different elements combined that what makes it so great: It's funny, serious, epic, and yes, even violent at times.

When it came to this new movie, I knew instinctively right off the bat that this movie wouldn't be as violent as the the series, but what difference would it have me to me whether it was violent or not? Nothing. Maybe my 12 year old self would be disappointed, but now I just want to watch a new Dragon Ball movie that engages me with the story elements and modern movie-quality animation, not so much shock-value violence.

Take for example, my enjoyment of DBZ Movie 1. It was a fast paced, engaging film that I still enjoy watching, but was it violent like some scenes in the main seires? No. Even so it didn't take away from my enjoyment and had plenty of thrills and great choreography to the fight scenes. However DBZ movie 8 was a longer, even darker film than most of the other ones which even had a shocking moment of baby Broly being stabbed (a scene I think is one of the most violent ones from the movies). However, even as a 13 year old when I first saw it, my enjoyment of the film withered every time I watched it. Even today I still find it long with uninspired fight scenes and a mediocre plot.

Basically what I'm trying to say if that to me, violence in a Dragon Ball movie doesn't make the movie, and full-on conversations about wanting more violent levels of blood in modern DBZ animation just comes off more juvenile to me even if it's not the intent.

[dbzfan7]

I'd really hate to come off as rude sounding so please don't take this the wrong way, but several of your last posts about blood in the new movie really seems a bit too...juvenile to me. I mean, I get it, when I was 11-14, the main thing on my mind while watching DBZ was how uncut this was compared to the Funimation/Toonami TV edits. It was invigorating at the time because you feel like you'd be watching the true product and not a watered down version of the show shown on TV. Hell, I even had my parents purchase the VHS copy of the episodes with Freeza beating down Vegeta on my 12th birthday to compare side-by-side to the violence in the manga (even when it clearly stated "for ages 13 and up" on the sticker). I felt so much more "grown up" because my favorite anime/cartoon had so much "violence" and was unheard of at the time to have something so popular with kids be so violent.

But over the years, the memories of those "sense of wonder" days with the uncut versions had become more of a funny pastime when thinking about it. How the violence drew you in as a kid became irrelevant to me because I still came to love the series for what it truly is as a whole: A fun, epic, shonen tale of a strong boy from the wild who grew up to become a grandfather and how he grouped with so many interesting characters along the way. That is what Dragon Ball is to me now! Yes, it's mostly a fighting show and as a result sparked the series' "HARDCORE!!!" advertisement in America, but Dragon Ball will always have more impact on me overall than other, more violent fighting shows like Baki the Grappler. When I look at the whole picture, it's because all the different elements combined that what makes it so great: It's funny, serious, epic, and yes, even violent at times.

When it came to this new movie, I knew instinctively right off the bat that this movie wouldn't be as violent as the the series, but what difference would it have me to me whether it was violent or not? Nothing. Maybe my 12 year old self would be disappointed, but now I just want to watch a new Dragon Ball movie that engages me with the story elements and modern movie-quality animation, not so much shock-value violence.

For example, my enjoyment of DBZ Movie 1. It was a fast paced, engaging film that I still enjoy watching, but was it violent like some scenes in the main seires? No. But even so it didn't take away from my enjoyment and had plenty of thrills. However DBZ movie 8 was a longer, even darker film than most of the other ones which even had a shocking moment of baby Broly being stabbed (a scene I think is one of the most violent ones from the movies). However, even as a 13 year old when I first saw it, my enjoyment of the film withered every time I watched it. Even today I still find it long with uninspired fight scenes and a mediocre plot.

Basically what I'm trying to say if that to me, violence in a Dragon Ball movie doesn't make the movie, and full-on conversations about wanting more violent levels of blood in modern DBZ animation just comes off more juvenile to me even if it's not the intent.

Thanks for sharing and I agree completely. I don't look at dragonball as "OMG da blood is wheres tis at", and I don't care about censorship (for the most part). Dragonball isn't really hardcore to me as well. HNK and Hellsing fit that description much more.

[Nex Carnifex]

I don't see my view on it as juvenile, I like violence just like I like some swearing in my music, I'm 18 I'm not a kid its just I prefer stuff to be a little dark and on edge, I can't stand watered down products. And I've always appreciated the humor in Dragon Ball but for me it was all about the combat and the more on edge aspects of the story, and for me and I think many other humans, the blood and disturbing scenes really added to the overall effect of the show, Frieza became so much more serious after what he did with his horn to Kuririn, Cell became so much more serious when he started sucking up people's insides, same with Buu's various disturbing deeds, same with the old couple getting shot, same with just the general bloodiness and brutalness of the fights in general, ribs getting crushed, necks snap, etc. Take that away, I lose something in the show, even my dad thought it was hilarious with some of the more over the top scenes, and he was like "damn this show is messed up, Japan is crazy" with some of the more brutal scenes, it made it memorable, it really did. Fine, I'm juvenile I guess, you're so mature for not caring about violence violence is for children ok, but it was part of Dragon Ball for me and I think it was for plenty of people and they're gonna notice and probably complain, we'll see, good day~