The Genki Dama Explained - Reveals the Cultural Connections

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The Genki Dama Explained - Reveals the Cultural Connections

Post by DerekPadula » Mon Apr 22, 2013 4:01 pm

Here's a new in-depth article about the Genki Dama that fully reveals all of its cultural connections to Daoism.

http://thedaoofdragonball.com/blog/mart ... explained/

I did my absolute best to be as thorough as possible in explaining it. Enjoy!
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Re: The Genki Dama Explained - Reveals the Cultural Connecti

Post by Legendary Saiya-Jin » Mon Apr 22, 2013 4:15 pm

Wow... Thanks! This is very interesting! :D

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Re: The Genki Dama Explained - Reveals the Cultural Connecti

Post by DerekPadula » Mon Apr 22, 2013 4:35 pm

You're welcome! Glad you like it.
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Re: The Genki Dama Explained - Reveals the Cultural Connecti

Post by TheMightyOzaru » Mon Apr 22, 2013 5:23 pm

Woah woah woah woah woah, if the Genki Drama is comprised of subcomisc energy, how they hell did Freeza and Vegeta survive? Is Ki not physical matter or something?
Vegeta: "Funny... I seem to recall Kakarot being fed the same information right before he transformed; the distinct look on your faces when he went Super Saiyan didn't exactly inspire confidence. One does not predict or calculate power like ours."
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Re: The Genki Dama Explained - Reveals the Cultural Connecti

Post by DerekPadula » Mon Apr 22, 2013 5:43 pm

TheMightyOzaru wrote:Woah woah woah woah woah, if the Genki Drama is comprised of subcomisc energy, how they hell did Freeza and Vegeta survive? Is Ki not physical matter or something?
Remember that even North Kaio is shocked that Vegeta and Freeza survive the Genki Dama. He shouts out, "They're dead!" because they logically should be. And then, oh, wait, no they aren't dead.

Now that said, I could also pose the concept of Ki that surrounds the body and protects it from damage, and is also comprised of sub-microcosmic particles. If their Ki is suddenly brought out for the sole purpose of protecting themselves, and it proved to be more dense than the Genki, then the Genki wouldn't be able to find its way into those interior dimensions and break their bodies apart.

In the end it comes down to storytelling and Toriyama wanting to show how incredibly tough Goku's opponents are. He has to keep upping the intensity and providing Goku and his friends with more challenges. It's also the sometimes paradoxical nature of DBZ. Toriyama being Toriyama (i.e. inconsistent).

But I would have been remiss if I didn't define Genki (YuanQi) properly.
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Re: The Genki Dama Explained - Reveals the Cultural Connecti

Post by TheMightyOzaru » Mon Apr 22, 2013 5:47 pm

Interesting... I hate to be that guy but... That Genki Drama formed Kamehameha should have killed Superman since he doesn't have ki protecting his body from these subcomsmic particles.
Vegeta: "Funny... I seem to recall Kakarot being fed the same information right before he transformed; the distinct look on your faces when he went Super Saiyan didn't exactly inspire confidence. One does not predict or calculate power like ours."
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Re: The Genki Dama Explained - Reveals the Cultural Connecti

Post by Saiyan Prince Vegeta » Mon Apr 22, 2013 6:01 pm

Now this was an amazing read! Well done! :clap:

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Re: The Genki Dama Explained - Reveals the Cultural Connecti

Post by DerekPadula » Mon Apr 22, 2013 6:09 pm

TheMightyOzaru wrote:Interesting... I hate to be that guy but... That Genki Drama formed Kamehameha should have killed Superman since he doesn't have ki protecting his body from these subcomsmic particles.
I don't disagree that Superman is over powered. But to be factual, Superman does have a layer of energy that surrounds his body and clothing, as powered by the Sun. Sun dipping evidently increases those layers of energy. They don't call it Ki, but the barrier is not much different in this sense.
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Re: The Genki Dama Explained - Reveals the Cultural Connecti

Post by TheMightyOzaru » Mon Apr 22, 2013 6:21 pm

DerekPadula wrote:
TheMightyOzaru wrote:Interesting... I hate to be that guy but... That Genki Drama formed Kamehameha should have killed Superman since he doesn't have ki protecting his body from these subcomsmic particles.
I don't disagree that Superman is over powered. But to be factual, Superman does have a layer of energy that surrounds his body and clothing, as powered by the Sun. Sun dipping evidently increases those layers of energy. They don't call it Ki, but the barrier is not much different in this sense.
Saiyan Prince Vegeta wrote:Now this was an amazing read! Well done! :clap:
Thanks! Please share it with your friends.
The suns energy isn't comprised of subcosmic particles though. The Genki Drama should rip right through him.
Vegeta: "Funny... I seem to recall Kakarot being fed the same information right before he transformed; the distinct look on your faces when he went Super Saiyan didn't exactly inspire confidence. One does not predict or calculate power like ours."
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Re: The Genki Dama Explained - Reveals the Cultural Connecti

Post by InfernalVegito » Mon Apr 22, 2013 6:33 pm

I highly enjoyed this. Never really looked at the Genkidama being this much of an interdimensional technique actually.
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Re: The Genki Dama Explained - Reveals the Cultural Connecti

Post by DerekPadula » Mon Apr 22, 2013 6:50 pm

TheMightyOzaru wrote:The suns energy isn't comprised of subcosmic particles though. The Genki Drama should rip right through him.
Sure it is. Everything has Genki, and that's why North Kaio says Goku can absorb Genki from the earth's Sun.

The real question that I think you were getting at, is does Superman have the ability to absorb energy from the Sun at that level of particle, and is the Genki that Goku absorbs smaller and more refined that what Superman absorbs? That I don't know since I'm not a Superman expert.

In any case, I don't disagree that Superman should have been rocked by that Kamehameha. Freeza was able to push through a Kamehameha straight on, but it wasn't a Genki Dama powered Kamehameha. But then again, Superman is overpowered, so I really don't know. :crazy:
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Re: The Genki Dama Explained - Reveals the Cultural Connecti

Post by Rocketman » Mon Apr 22, 2013 7:25 pm

TheMightyOzaru wrote:The suns energy isn't comprised of subcosmic particles though.
Uh...yes it is?

Also,
No other form of energy was microcosmic enough to reach that dimension. Neither Goku’s Kamehameha, nor Vegeta’s self destruction technique, could do the job.
Image
Last edited by Rocketman on Mon Apr 22, 2013 7:33 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: The Genki Dama Explained - Reveals the Cultural Connecti

Post by TheMightyOzaru » Mon Apr 22, 2013 7:31 pm

Rocketman wrote:
TheMightyOzaru wrote:The suns energy isn't comprised of subcosmic particles though.
Uh...yes it is?
I thought subcosmic meant capable of destroying any piece of physical matter based on how it was used in Derek's summary of the Genki Dama. I clearly misunderstood.
Last edited by TheMightyOzaru on Wed Apr 24, 2013 5:36 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: The Genki Dama Explained - Reveals the Cultural Connecti

Post by DerekPadula » Mon Apr 22, 2013 8:01 pm

TheMightyOzaru wrote: I thought subcosmic meant capable of destroying any piece of physical matter based on how it was used in Darek's summary of the Genki Dama. I clearly misunderstood.
That's only because in Dragon Ball it's being used as a weapon. Otherwise it just exists like that all the time and isn't a destructive force. For example, you, the chair you're sitting in, the computer you're using right now, are all composed of matter, and that matter has Genki inside it (way, way down the chain of particles).
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Re: The Genki Dama Explained - Reveals the Cultural Connecti

Post by TheMightyOzaru » Thu Apr 25, 2013 7:34 pm

So Derek, do you have any articles on Ki itself and how it works?
Vegeta: "Funny... I seem to recall Kakarot being fed the same information right before he transformed; the distinct look on your faces when he went Super Saiyan didn't exactly inspire confidence. One does not predict or calculate power like ours."
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Re: The Genki Dama Explained - Reveals the Cultural Connecti

Post by Kakarot88 » Thu Apr 25, 2013 10:41 pm

DerekPadula wrote:
TheMightyOzaru wrote:The suns energy isn't comprised of subcosmic particles though. The Genki Drama should rip right through him.
Sure it is. Everything has Genki, and that's why North Kaio says Goku can absorb Genki from the earth's Sun.

The real question that I think you were getting at, is does Superman have the ability to absorb energy from the Sun at that level of particle, and is the Genki that Goku absorbs smaller and more refined that what Superman absorbs? That I don't know since I'm not a Superman expert.

In any case, I don't disagree that Superman should have been rocked by that Kamehameha. Freeza was able to push through a Kamehameha straight on, but it wasn't a Genki Dama powered Kamehameha. But then again, Superman is overpowered, so I really don't know. :crazy:

Yes you are quite right about what should have happened even given Superman's bio electric aura. See, a lot of people don't understand Superman's capabilities and just assume that a human could never harm him. Equus has human DNA and easily bypasses Superman's durability.

Human DNA
Image

Easily bypassing Superman's durability on more than one occasion making him bleed
Image
Image
Image
Image

And given that the Genki Dama is clearly more subatmoic than that, it too would bypass Superman's durability, considering when low on solar radiation being stored in his cells even a previously sun dipped Superman can be incinerated after red sunlight exposure (which would be equivalent to being worn down in a battle and losing solar reserves) Image

Great article btw!
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Re: The Genki Dama Explained - Reveals the Cultural Connecti

Post by DerekPadula » Thu Apr 25, 2013 11:22 pm

TheMightyOzaru wrote:So Derek, do you have any articles on Ki itself and how it works?
Not specifically. That article has been a long time coming. The best I can do for you right now is one on the Kaio-Ken and the Kiai.

In response to Kakarot88's post of Superman images, it makes me wonder if the outcome of Goku Vs. Superman would have been different if the Genki Dama article had been written before the fight while Ben and Chad were still doing their research. It would have helped their conceptual understanding.

Ultimately I doubt it would change the outcome since there is no quantifiable way for them to measure the Genki Dama's "power level" and they relied mostly on numbers to determine the winner. But still, ya never know.
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Re: The Genki Dama Explained - Reveals the Cultural Connecti

Post by Kakarot88 » Thu Apr 25, 2013 11:36 pm

DerekPadula wrote:
TheMightyOzaru wrote:So Derek, do you have any articles on Ki itself and how it works?
Not specifically. That article has been a long time coming. The best I can do for you right now is one on the Kaio-Ken and the Kiai.

In response to Kakarot88's post of Superman images, it makes me wonder if the outcome of Goku Vs. Superman would have been different if the Genki Dama article had been written before the fight while Ben and Chad were still doing their research. It would have helped their conceptual understanding.

Ultimately I doubt it would change the outcome since there is no quantifiable way for them to measure the Genki Dama's "power level" and they relied mostly on numbers to determine the winner. But still, ya never know.
I think it definitely would have helped, but there is only so much you and VegetoEX could have done to bring them up to speed, especially when they do not tell you their final analysis. Yeah, unfortunately or I guess fortunately depending on how you look at it, they ended up doing their final rationale based on plot devices and "character core" rather than numbers, which Ben said were "arbitrary." So it is what it is, and what it is...is entertainment.

Oddly enough I thought the "unquantifiable nature" of the Genki Dama would have somehow tipped in Goku's favor because Ben always enjoys doing a little twist in his analysis [If you have not seen the Death Battles and do not want endings ruined read no further :Spoiler Alert:] Such as Wonder Woman losing becuase of her outfit, or Vegeta winning becuase he can take a beating, or Leonardo winning becuase Raph would tire out and Leo would play up on that...all of that made sense at least.
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Re: The Genki Dama Explained - Reveals the Cultural Connecti

Post by Kamiccolo9 » Thu Apr 25, 2013 11:40 pm

DerekPadula wrote:
TheMightyOzaru wrote:So Derek, do you have any articles on Ki itself and how it works?
Not specifically. That article has been a long time coming. The best I can do for you right now is one on the Kaio-Ken and the Kiai.

In response to Kakarot88's post of Superman images, it makes me wonder if the outcome of Goku Vs. Superman would have been different if the Genki Dama article had been written before the fight while Ben and Chad were still doing their research. It would have helped their conceptual understanding.

Ultimately I doubt it would change the outcome since there is no quantifiable way for them to measure the Genki Dama's "power level" and they relied mostly on numbers to determine the winner. But still, ya never know.
It wouldn't change anything. For the Death Battle, the characters are bloodlusted, and fight to the death. The video is just for entertainment; the fight is won by the numbers. And regardless, even if the Genki Dama could harm Superman, can you see him standing there, waiting for Goku to gather the energy for it?
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Re: The Genki Dama Explained - Reveals the Cultural Connecti

Post by TheMightyOzaru » Fri Apr 26, 2013 12:02 am

Well if Superman ends up spending time in the Sun due to energy loss, Goku would have time to charge it then. However like Derek said we don't know if Superman absorbs sunlight at a sub cosmic level.
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