Dragon Ball Z "Seasons" On Blu-ray: News & Discussion

[kei17]

....what's #7 meant to mean?

Many people had already got tired of AKB nonsense at the time and didn't get why they're involved even with Dragon Ball. Their ending song became an object of hatred among the fandom. Especially, releasing 11 or so -whatever- different versions of the CD single of Kokoro no Hane was severely criticized and many fans accused Toei of being a bunch of mammonists.

[DBZGTKOSDH]

1) The beloved Kikuchi score got replaced.
2) Unmei no Hi ~Tamashii vs Tamashii~ is gone.
3) Some of the original voice actors have become too old that their performances are underwhelming compared to those in Z.
4) Needless recasts
5) Wakamoto's unserious performance
6) Yamamoto threw dirt at the series.
7) AKB48

Do they prefer the replacement Kikuchi score to the Yamamoto score? And before the Yamamoto scandal, what did they think about it?

[Kaboom]

It's a bit funny to think that Kai did a lot more for DBZ in English-speaking territories more than in its country of origin.

It spurred some good VA replacements that actually needed to happen, instead of being disappointing or just "guest star" publicity stunts. It allowed for a new and accurate dub where the voice actors were enthusiastic to finally do things right, as opposed to the waning performances of some of the Japanese cast who have been saying the "right" lines for decades. And in doing all of this, it brought in droves of new fans who have and will continue to experience "DBZ" for the first time in a way that actually does it justice.

[TheOverlyMadHatter]

I guess the original Z would sell more than Kai. Kai is disliked there more than you think.

Just curious, why is this the case? I've heard the reasons as to why some American fans dislike Kai, but not any from the Japanese side.

1) The beloved Kikuchi score got replaced.
2) Unmei no Hi ~Tamashii vs Tamashii~ is gone.
3) Some of the original voice actors have become too old that their performances are underwhelming compared to those in Z.
4) Needless recasts
5) Wakamoto's unserious performance
6) Yamamoto threw dirt at the series.
7) AKB48

From what I've heard Kai does pretty well in Japan, I didn't think it'd be that unpopular.

Yeah, it did so well that each Blu-ray box sold less than 1,000 copies and did not increase merchandising sales.

Could this mean we might get an HD release of the original series in lieu of the Manga's 30th Anniversary? Or is it still too soon for that?

[kei17]

Do they prefer the replacement Kikuchi score to the Yamamoto score? And before the Yamamoto scandal, what did they think about it?

From what I've seen and heard, the replacement score version is received well and many people say that they shouldn't have produced a new score from the beginning. As for the Yamamoto score, it had been strongly bashed immediately after the first episode aired, but there seemed to be some people liking it, who have become completely silent after the scandal. It was not really liked from the beginning. The soundtrack CDs never got any reviews on Amazon.co.jp except for mine.

Think about all the Faulconer fanboys on YouTube becoming Kikuchi fans. That's the Japanese fandom.

Could this mean we might get an HD release of the original series in lieu of the Manga's 30th Anniversary?

I don't think so. Toei is smarter than FUNi when it comes to releasing schedules.

[sangofe]

Do they prefer the replacement Kikuchi score to the Yamamoto score? And before the Yamamoto scandal, what did they think about it?

From what I've seen and heard, the replacement score version is received well and many people say that they shouldn't have produced a new score from the beginning. As for the Yamamoto score, it had been strongly bashed immediately after the first episode aired, but there seemed to be some people liking it, who have become completely silent after the scandal. It was not really liked from the beginning. The soundtrack CDs never got any reviews on Amazon.co.jp except for mine.

Think about all the Faulconer fanboys on YouTube becoming Kikuchi fans. That's the Japanese fandom.

Could this mean we might get an HD release of the original series in lieu of the Manga's 30th Anniversary?

I don't think so. Toei is smarter than FUNi when it comes to releasing schedules.

Hmm, Kei, when would you predict Toei make a HD release?

[dbboxkaifan]

From what I've seen and heard, the replacement score version is received well and many people say that they shouldn't have produced a new score from the beginning.

They really enjoyed that horrible limited replacement? I thought the Japanese fans would've been more smarter than this it's kinda disappointing, honestly.

Toei Animation advertised Kai as a modern series so it makes sense to have given it a new score, too bad the picture quality was more or less the same with Paint drawings thrown it.

[Ajay]

They really enjoyed that horrible limited replacement? I thought the Japanese fans would've been more smarter than this it's kinda disappointing, honestly.

Think about all the Faulconer fanboys on YouTube becoming Kikuchi fans. That's the Japanese fandom.

I think that pretty much answers it

Can you imagine if Funimation released Kai with randomly generated Faulconer songs thrown in at random points?! They'd eat it up.

[kei17]

Hmm, Kei, when would you predict Toei make a HD release?

Are you talking specifically about DBZ? If so, I guess it will take five or so years at least considering that the Buu arc of Kai is newly coming at this time. The original DB or GT would be released earlier.

They really enjoyed that horrible limited replacement? I thought the Japanese fans would've been more smarter than this it's kinda disappointing, honestly.

They know it's not perfect, but the Kikuchi score sounds much more comfortable for their ears that they can ignore some flaws.

[EA575]

1) The beloved Kikuchi score got replaced.
2) Unmei no Hi ~Tamashii vs Tamashii~ is gone.
3) Some of the original voice actors have become too old that their performances are underwhelming compared to those in Z.
4) Needless recasts
5) Wakamoto's unserious performance
6) Yamamoto threw dirt at the series.
7) AKB48

That sounds terrible, especially 2, 5, and 7. I thought the Japanese fans didn't like that Kai was just Z with less filler and not a whole new animation, but this is pretty bad.

[KingofWisdom]

I don't know, as much as I enjoy Kai for the dub, I have very little interest in the Japanese version. I agree that the voice acting isn't up to snuff, and it's just too low budget. I kinda look past that when it comes to FUNimation's releases, because it just might be the best English dub we get for the Z TV series. Some of the Yamamoto pieces were flat-out bad, and I didn't like the music placement's lack of breathing room. It was almost in the vein of the Faulconer Productions placement, with wall to wall music, except for a few short breaks every so often. Instead of letting the impact of some scenes speak for themselves, the music was obtrusive and felt like it was there to tell you how to feel. There was that one song that got used every time a main character died, or when a scene was really dramatic (Requiem ~To Those Who Meet Their End~). Then, when the scandal happened, it made Kai feel almost entirely pointless.

[Attitudefan]

I don't know, as much as I enjoy Kai for the dub, I have very little interest in the Japanese version. I agree that the voice acting isn't up to snuff, and it's just too low budget. I kinda look past that when it comes to FUNimation's releases, because it just might be the best English dub we get for the Z TV series. Some of the Yamamoto pieces were flat-out bad, and I didn't like the music placement's lack of breathing room. It was almost in the vein of the Faulconer Productions placement, with wall to wall music, except for a few short breaks every so often. Instead of letting the impact of some scenes speak for themselves, the music was obtrusive and felt like it was there to tell you how to feel. There was that one song that got used every time a main character died, or when a scene was really dramatic (Requiem ~To Those Who Meet Their End~). Then, when the scandal happened, it made Kai feel almost entirely pointless.

If you watch any new anime, it seems that long music-less portions of a scene is not practised as much any more. It's more wall to wall music with things happening so fast it makes your eyes spin.

I think that for mainstream productions of modern anime don't use music they way they did in the old days. It's much more of an American approach.

[sangofe]

Hmm, Kei, when would you predict Toei make a HD release?

Are you talking specifically about DBZ? If so, I guess it will take five or so years at least considering that the Buu arc of Kai is newly coming at this time. The original DB or GT would be released earlier.

They really enjoyed that horrible limited replacement? I thought the Japanese fans would've been more smarter than this it's kinda disappointing, honestly.

They know it's not perfect, but the Kikuchi score sounds much more comfortable for their ears that they can ignore some flaws.

You really think they'd do DB, then GT and then Z? That sounds strange as Z was the clearest popular portion of the series, plus they started with that for the Dragonboxes. And in five years... Do you think that means they'd go directly to 4K?

[KentalSSJ6]

It's a bit funny to think that Kai did a lot more for DBZ in English-speaking territories more than in its country of origin.

It spurred some good VA replacements that actually needed to happen, instead of being disappointing or just "guest star" publicity stunts. It allowed for a new and accurate dub where the voice actors were enthusiastic to finally do things right, as opposed to the waning performances of some of the Japanese cast who have been saying the "right" lines for decades. And in doing all of this, it brought in droves of new fans who have and will continue to experience "DBZ" for the first time in a way that actually does it justice.

And yet a near overwhelmingly large part of the fanbase demonizes it for those exact same reasons.

"No old Gohan and Freeza voice?! No Faulconer soundtrack?! Dragonball Z Kai is the devil!"

Stupidity. Pure and simple. Nostalgia Goggles have become Nostalgia Full Body Armor.

[UltimateHammerBro]

Stupidity. Pure and simple. Nostalgia Goggles have become Nostalgia Full Body Armor.

Some people will need a Tropese-to-English dictionary.

[falle]

You really think they'd do DB, then GT and then Z? That sounds strange as Z was the clearest popular portion of the series, plus they started with that for the Dragonboxes. And in five years... Do you think that means they'd go directly to 4K?

The 3 animated Dragon Ball series were made on 16mm film of which you can only gain 2K out of.

[Tenken]

"No old Gohan and Freeza voice?! No Faulconer soundtrack?! Dragonball Z Kai is the devil!"

The funny thing is that's exactly why I plan to purchase kai. Gohan and Freeza's voices are so much better in the Kai dub IMO.

[Gaffer Tape]

Off-topic, but Hattiesburg, MS? I grew up in Jackson and went to college in Oxford!

[kei17]

You really think they'd do DB, then GT and then Z? That sounds strange as Z was the clearest popular portion of the series, plus they started with that for the Dragonboxes. And in five years... Do you think that means they'd go directly to 4K?

Yeah, Z is the most popular portion, but my guess is that they don't want to saturate the market. With Kai, there's little point in releasing the "Z" era in HD again, especially when even new volumes of Kai are going to be released. The original DB or GT would be fresher and an upgrade in audio can be a major sales point when it comes to GT.

[Jaruka]

I have Season 1 sitting next to me, ready to open and I'm not sure if I should or return it. This is, of course, due to the generally negative attitude of many of the people on this forum.

Still, the only other Dragon Ball Z box set I own is Kai (also Blu ray) and it's really a toss-up. You guys seem to think this looks somewhat worse than Kai but at the same time due to this being my only collection I would like it to be complete end-to-end, filler filled Dragon Ball Z.

Is it really that bad?