Start with Z or the Beginning

[TheAldella]

As I've NEVER seen someone start out Shippuden without the original Naruto..

*Raises hand*
You can thank video games for that.

...Woah. Well, er...I've been morally defeated by one man. xDDD But I meant just jumping into the TV series.

[Quebaz]

As I've NEVER seen someone start out Shippuden without the original Naruto..

*Raises hand*
You can thank video games for that.

...Woah. Well, er...I've been morally defeated by one man. xDDD But I meant just jumping into the TV series.

Oh, in that case then no, your argument is valid.

[ABED]

I think the fight against Nappa and Vegeta is a high point for Z, but still believe DB's fights are better overall. Another feather in DB's cap is how Toriyama makes better use of all the characters. Goku is definitely the hero, but everyone else is given something to do, by and large.

[DBZAOTA482]

For authentic feel, the Beginning is the way to go though starting with Z wouldn't cause any trouble.

[DBZGTKOSDH]

Starting from Kai has nothing to do with the fights & battle powers or its popularity, it's about the plot. The interesting plot starts with Piccolo Daimao arc, since before that all the series had was DB hunting, tournaments, fights, and gags, without any serious plot or any big plot twists. However, the Daimao & 23rd TB arcs are connected to the previous events more than the DBZ/Kai arcs are connected with the DB arcs. Kai's recap of the events of DB is short & simple, yet explains every important event that happened before, without the new audience having any questions like "What's the relation between all these characters? Why are all these guys so strong? Why are Goku & Piccolo enemies? Why is the show called "Dragon Ball"? What are those Dragon Balls?... etc" You start Kai, and you know everything you need to know, with plot twists and dangerous enemies appearing from the beginning, all that in 98 (+40-60 episodes with Boo arc in the future) instead of watching 444 episodes.

[ABED]

Starting from Kai has nothing to do with the fights & battle powers or its popularity, it's about the plot. The interesting plot starts with Piccolo Daimao arc, since before that all the series had was DB hunting, tournaments, fights, and gags, without any serious plot or any big plot twists. However, the Daimao & 23rd TB arcs are connected to the previous events more than the DBZ/Kai arcs are connected with the DB arcs. Kai's recap of the events of DB is short & simple, yet explains every important event that happened before, without the new audience having any questions like "What's the relation between all these characters? Why are all these guys so strong? Why are Goku & Piccolo enemies? Why is the show called "Dragon Ball"? What are those Dragon Balls?... etc" You start Kai, and you know everything you need to know, with plot twists and dangerous enemies appearing from the beginning, all that in 98 (+40-60 episodes with Boo arc in the future) instead of watching 444 episodes.

The plot is thin, it's big bad shows up and hero has to deal with him. I could explain ALL the important events to your friend and save her many hours of viewing. You make it sound like those early episodes are a chore. Yeah you can get the important plot points in the recap but why not show DB and then tell her what happens in Z? A recap isn't at all the same as watching the series. And you can know what Goku's relation to Piccolo is but it's not the same as experiencing it so when Piccolo makes a split second decision to save his enemy's son, it means so much more. Then there's Kuririn. You can know what Goku's friendship with Kuririn is like but it's not the same as experiencing it from the beginning.

[DBZGTKOSDH]

Of course it's not the same, but these are not necessary things to understand what's going on in DBZ/Kai. And if someone wants to see the whole series quickly, and then watch other things (like DB), there is also that choice. Watching DBKai first (which has most of the interesting stuff in a fast pace), and DB later as a prequel to completely understand the origins of Goku & co. isn't a bad idea. It's a different experience of course, but not a bad experience. However, you can't do the same with other parts of the story, since the Saiyan/Freeza/Cell arcs are connected, and Boo arc is the final arc, and there are too many important events before it. However, there aren't many things you need to know if you start from the Saiyan arc, and everything important that happened is explained in the recap of Kai.

[sangofe]

Depends on what you like. DB has better story and character development, while DBZ has better over the top action.

[ABED]

Of course it's not the same, but these are not necessary things to understand what's going on in DBZ/Kai. And if someone wants to see the whole series quickly, and then watch other things (like DB), there is also that choice. Watching DBKai first (which has most of the interesting stuff in a fast pace), and DB later as a prequel to completely understand the origins of Goku & co. isn't a bad idea. It's a different experience of course, but not a bad experience. However, you can't do the same with other parts of the story, since the Saiyan/Freeza/Cell arcs are connected, and Boo arc is the final arc, and there are too many important events before it. However, there aren't many things you need to know if you start from the Saiyan arc, and everything important that happened is explained in the recap of Kai.

But getting a recap isn't seeing the whole series quickly, they aren't seeing the series. You could do the reverse and show them Dragon Ball. I didn't say it's a bad experience, but many will concur that DB is the better show. I know about the recap, but I have no idea why you would want to start with DBZ. It's like starting Harry Potter at book 4 and having someone recap what happened in the previous books. Sure you can catch up, but you'd be missing out on a lot of great stuff that you just can't get from a recap. Why are you trying to speed to the end anyways? Stories are meant to be enjoyed not just sped through.

[AgitoZ]

Why waste all that time reading or watching the first two Lord of the Rings when you could just skip to Return of the King?

Why stop there?

Just skip the first third of the movie/book and get to the good parts.

[NessMudkip]

In this day and age there is literally no reason to not start at the beginning when it comes to Dragon Ball. Like many people have said, while you're at it, you may as well jump onto Naruto starting at Shippuden, or One Piece starting at the New World arc. The last thing we need is more people assuming Z is the main portion of the series and leaving the original, and in many people's opinion better portion of the series as an afterthought, or considering it a 'prequel', only briefly glancing at it out of mild curiosity for what happened in Goku's childhood. It's a real shame, if Toei hadn't decided to rebrand Dragon Ball 'Dragon Ball Z', then I doubt we'd be in the current situation where they are treated as two entirely separate series. The notion that the original portion isn't the place to start is one of the worst in the entire fanbase, and the Dragon ball fanbase is one with many bad notions. Of course, I do understand that it originally came about because Z became more popular in the US and all, but if you're coming into the series as a new fan, there is no reason to skip the original portion.

[ABED]

I fear some people may see or will see Dragon Ball a prequel like the prequel Star Wars trilogy. Even if you don't think the prequels are crap they are written so the maximum effect happens if you don't see the prequels first. That's not the case with Dragon Ball, a linear story.

[Quebaz]

Only things that kinda bothers me is how some people don't even know DB besides Z, one friend of mine was actually suprised that there was "a season that featured Goku as a child".

[TheOverlyMadHatter]

I for one would strongly advise starting from the very beginning (No, not with the Bardock Special as someone suggested above). There really is no reason to think of the Dragon Ball anime as a prequel to Z. Jumping into DBZ and skipping the first series would pretty much be like skipping the Light vs. L portion of Death Note and starting from the post-5-year-timeskip arc. That being said, yes, both series are very different from one another in many respects, and if you got into DBZ for the bone-crushing battles and the long-drawn beam struggles, chances you might be disappointed by DB. The fact that DB was, to some extent, promoted as a prequel to DBZ as opposed to what came before it doesn't help. Nevertheless, I stand firm when I say you'd be missing a lot by skipping the first third of the series.

Only things that kinda bothers me is how some people don't even know DB besides Z, one friend of mine was actually suprised that there was "a season that featured Goku as a child".

There's a lot of "DB was made after DBZ as a prequel" people out there. You'd think they'd notice the supposed "de-evolution" of the animation and art.

[Shiyonasan]

Unless the crude humor in the first arc of Dragon Ball really turns off someone from watching the rest of Dragon Ball, I would advise someone to start with Dragon Ball and go through the anime chronologically (release date or in-universe, not counting the Bardock special).

I recently had a friend start from the beginning of Dragon Ball, and he's enjoyed it so far. I didn't know how he'd take the humor in the first arc, but he laughed during most of the funny scenes.

[TheGmGoken]

GUYS, GOKU VS CELL WAS WICKED. NEED I REMIND YOU? Haha, anyway, it feels like all members of Kanzenshuu cherish the 23rd Tenkaichi as solid gold,

Goku vs Krillin was better IMO. The best arc is King Piccolo and Freeza. I think Freeza had the best fights.

I think you should start from the beginning. Never understood why some people didn't. Not counting them growing up on it. I don't see how you could't start with DB. For one you don't know who's King Piccolo(Mention in EP 1), Goku, Chi Chi, and how the hell does Goku know Piccolo. You don't know why Goku and Piccolo was rivals. You don't know how important Goku's tail was to the plot of the first arc of Z. You don't understand Piccolo's character growth. If you start from Z all you know is Goku is the main character and Piccolo was his rival. That's all. Then everyone say they cried for Piccolo when he died but you don't know who Piccolo is/was in the past. It would make the scene more emotional. Hell during Freeza fight.
"KRILLIN CAN'T BE BROUGHT BACK A SECOND TIME!". Umm most who start with Z would't know that Krillin died once already. Neither do they know what Dragonballs are and that Chaozu died.

You miss A LOT OF relations grow and devolp that plays an important role in DBZ. Why did Krillin dying effect Goku so much? Should't Piccolo made Goku turned SSJ? I mean Piccolo was Goku's rival. You see how that sounds? Now if you watch or read from the start you'll see how much Goku loves Krillin. Lastly you miss the Dragonball adventures. You don't know what the Dragonball are. You don't know Shenlong. You don't know Kami-God, and you don't know 90% of the cast.

I know I already said lastly but.....lastly you would miss out on Goku before he wasn't cool:

Spoiler:

[Fionordequester]

Honestly, considering how long the series is when you consider Dragon Ball as a part of it rather than just Z, I think you'll have a much easier time getting them to watch Z rather than Dragon Ball. Mainly because Z (or at least, Kai), moves so much faster and has more action, while Dragon Ball takes a little while to get going.

I mean, you don't want your friends to lose interest in the series before they even get started, right? I for one, know that I don't have a ton of friends who actually have that kind of free time.

EDIT: And heck, my friend who LOVES Dragon Ball Z Kai? She described Dragon Ball as "yeah, that was pretty okayish. That was very adequate!". In fact, she hardly even remembers any of it (though, if FUNI originally skipped the very first chapters in their dubbing, she may have missed that. I would've thought she'd have remembered how crass the humor was after all).

EDIT2: Then again, considering how much FUNI improved since the DB dub and the Kai dub, her opinion might've been subconsciously influenced by that too, so...who knows? Either way, it seems like kind of a lot to ask your friend, outta the blue "hey dude! Wanna watch a 417 Episode long series with me?!"

[DBZGTKOSDH]

Like many people have said, while you're at it, you may as well jump onto Naruto starting at Shippuden, or One Piece starting at the New World arc.

You can't start Naruto from Shippuden because the story of the 2 anime series are very connected, and while the One Piece story arcs are mostly episodic & independent, there is too much backstory for the main characters that has been told before.

Why waste all that time reading or watching the first two Lord of the Rings when you could just skip to Return of the King?

Why stop there?

Just skip the first third of the movie/book and get to the good parts.

You have completely missed my point. Dragon Ball Kai is made as a stand-alone series. It wasn't targeted only to the old fans, it was also targeted to new fans who haven't watched the series before. They didn't air DB before Kai.

With LoTR, the movies are made so that you will watch the 3 LoTR movies first, and then watch the 3 Hobbit movies. With the books though, Hobbit is meant to be read first, and then the 3 LoTR books. Same case with Kai. The original manga & anime are meant to go DB-->DBZ-->DBGT. Kai however goes alone, so that the new fans that will watch this will then watch DB to discover Goku's origins, GT to discover Goku's further adventures, DBZ for a more detailed version & new stories, the manga for the original version, and the games to have fun. DBKai is made to be watched first.

I think you should start from the beginning. Never understood why some people didn't. Not counting them growing up on it. I don't see how you could't start with DB.

Not everyone can sit & watch 444 (DB/Z) or ~300 (DB/Kai+Boo arc) episodes. My point is that for such people, skipping DB and starting with DBKai (not DBZ or chapter 195 of the manga) is also a good option to get into the series, since the most important stuff happen in that portion of the story. DBKai is currently 98 episodes, and it will probably go to around 150 episodes. This is much less than watching both DB & DBKai, not to mention DBZ or even DBGT.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that DB doesn't deserve to be seen or that it's not good, it's awesome. It's just that the most important stuff happen in DBZ/Kai, so new fans that are in a hurry to see the important stuff can easily skip DB for the beginning, start with Kai, and if they want to, watch & read everything else. But starting with DB is a much better choice if you can sit & watch hundreds of episodes.

For one you don't know who's King Piccolo(Mention in EP 1), Goku, Chi Chi, and how the hell does Goku know Piccolo. You don't know why Goku and Piccolo was rivals.

You know all these stuff if you start from Kai.

You don't know how important Goku's tail was to the plot of the first arc of Z.

We learn & experience everything about the tail in the Saiyan arc.

You don't understand Piccolo's character growth. If you start from Z all you know is Goku is the main character and Piccolo was his rival. That's all. Then everyone say they cried for Piccolo when he died but you don't know who Piccolo is/was in the past. It would make the scene more emotional. Hell during Freeza fight.

You know exactly who & what Piccolo was, why he hated Goku, and his ultimate goal if you start with Kai.

"KRILLIN CAN'T BE BROUGHT BACK A SECOND TIME!". Umm most who start with Z would't know that Krillin died once already. Neither do they know what Dragonballs are and that Chaozu died.

We learn all about Kuririn & Chaozu having died once & the Dragon Balls not being able to bring someone back for a 2nd time during the fight with the Saibaimen & Nappa.

You miss A LOT OF relations grow and devolp that plays an important role in DBZ. Why did Krillin dying effect Goku so much? Should't Piccolo made Goku turned SSJ? I mean Piccolo was Goku's rival. You see how that sounds? Now if you watch or read from the start you'll see how much Goku loves Krillin. Lastly you miss the Dragonball adventures. You don't know what the Dragonball are. You don't know Shenlong. You don't know Kami-God, and you don't know 90% of the cast.

There is barely any character development in Dragon Ball.

[Kid Buu]

There is barely any character development in Dragon Ball.

Well we have Yamcha overcoming his fear of girls, Bulma being less selfish and manipulative, and Tenshinhan stop being assassin. So there is development, but it is just not compelling or deep.

[DBZGTKOSDH]

There is barely any character development in Dragon Ball.

Well we have Yamcha overcoming his fear of girls, Bulma being less selfish and manipulative, and Tenshinhan stop being assassin. So there is development, but it is just not compelling or deep.

That's my point. The changes aren't significant like with Vegeta or Piccolo.