DragonBall AF: The Prank (Revealed)

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VegettoEX
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DragonBall AF: The Prank (Revealed)

Post by VegettoEX » Fri Apr 02, 2004 12:57 am

This is it, folks. We're telling you EVERYTHING. All your IHOP are belong to us.

Yes, DragonBall AF was a prank (as if you couldn't figure it out from being April 1st, and all!). Yes, we spent a crapload of time on it. Yes, we're gonna give you complete translations of E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G (the print-ad, the commercial... anything you want, we've got).

I think the first title card in the commercial spells it out the best:
"What the hell is this crap!?" – Akira Toriyama

So here it is... the complete, un-edited, full-length, translated... blah blah blah, yadda yadda yadda... here it is, folks. Have a fuckin' blast~!!!

Let us know what you thought. Did you manage to translate any of it yourself? Have any further questions we can answer? Did your 8 year old sibling believe it to be truth, and even though we've now got all this stuff up, they're never going to believe that AF is not real? Discuss~~~!!!
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Post by Deus ex Machina » Fri Apr 02, 2004 1:36 am

I loved this prank, expertly done too. You're going to have one hell of a time trying to top this next year though.

Even leaving the date aside (April 1st) I noticed a few little things that gave it away. For one, the pint ad using an old and very well known 'AF' picture.

Second being the commercial. Make no mistake, it was excellent, and that's what gave it away. It had DVD quality for something that was supposedly taped off the television (and who the heck tapes commercials?).

:lol:

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Post by VegettoEX » Fri Apr 02, 2004 1:40 am

Deus ex Machina wrote:Second being the commercial. Make no mistake, it was excellent, and that's what gave it away. It had DVD quality for something that was supposedly taped off the television (and who the heck tapes commercials?).
The shit that's taped off of Japanese TV these days is all digitally recorded over digital cable, though; that's why fansubs of stuff like Naruto can look so good, even though it's just airing on television. So... uhh... yeah! ^^;;
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Post by Jr Goku » Fri Apr 02, 2004 2:56 am

Daizenshuu Ex wrote:"Don't sue us!!!,"
If they're any lawyers here then they should look into that.

Its just copying an April Fool's joke that other sites have been using for ages. DragonBall Unlimited used it last year and I'm sure therell be another stupid site that think they can pull it off next year.

Straight away as soon as you got on the site it said it was posted on April 1st at 12am so it was obvious anything written below was fake. Had it been at any other time it would have been more spontaneous.

For people like myself, April Fools Day had already been. These people like you from Stupid/Dopey foreign countries like America piss me off.

I HOPE IRAQ BLOW YOU UP!!

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Post by Jerseymilk » Fri Apr 02, 2004 3:05 am

Uhhhh, ya, sure there buddy. :?
Aaaaaannnnnyyyyywwwaaaaayyyy,

Great read EX! Dang it all though! I knew I recognized the voice Kusao Takeshi was doing from somewhere! I knew it was from a series where he was an evil character, but I couldn't remember! Shoot, I still would have liked to have figured that one out on my own before I read your explanation. Oh well. I got Luffy right at least. 8) I think putting comments about what people were saying on other boards is a nice touch too. That one guy that said that the commercial aired after the final episode of One Piece, did you notice that his online name is "Milarkie"? :lol: I think my favourite part though was reading your explanation of what you guys really put in the kanji writing for the print ad, and especially the title cards in the commercial! That's just too rich!! :mrgreen: Once again, spectacular job guys and who cares if this gives new fuel to that silly rumour, if people can't lighten up and take a joke, that's just their problem. :wink:
Last edited by Jerseymilk on Fri Apr 02, 2004 3:09 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by VegettoEX » Fri Apr 02, 2004 3:09 am

Jr Goku wrote:
Daizenshuu Ex wrote:"Don't sue us!!!,"
If they're any lawyers here then they should look into that.

Its just copying an April Fool's joke that other sites have been using for ages. DragonBall Unlimited used it last year and I'm sure therell be another stupid site that think they can pull it off next year.

Straight away as soon as you got on the site it said it was posted on April 1st at 12am so it was obvious anything written below was fake. Had it been at any other time it would have been more spontaneous.

For people like myself, April Fools Day had already been. These people like you from Stupid/Dopey foreign countries like America piss me off.

I HOPE IRAQ BLOW YOU UP!!
Sorry to hear you had such a problem with it. I'd certainly be frightened to hear what you'd have to say if a new DragonBall series actually came out!

Sure, DBAF has "been done before"... that's the whole entire point of the prank. We're taking advantage of what other people have said before, and touching it up to the point where, if you follow the links we provide, people honestly couldn't be sure one way or the other, even though they knew it was April Fool's Day! I'd love for you to point out to me an example where someone has gone to the extent we did: full Japanese video commercials and print-ads.

And why would we want to randomly be spontaneous on some other day? We're not out to trick people any ol' time of year; we like to think we're a very intelligent, respectable site. Pulling crap like this on any other day would certainly not be acceptable ^^.

I'm also sad to read that you'd like Iraq to blow us up. I'll pass that along to all the families of victims from 9/11 in New York, and the recent tragedy in Madrid.
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Post by Jerseymilk » Fri Apr 02, 2004 3:18 am

I'm really sorry about that ignorant pinhead above EX. You and Julian need to give yourselves a pat on the back for the good job you did. I know you already know this but people who say things like that, are just too stupid to say anything intelligent and thought out. 8)
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Post by VegettoEX » Fri Apr 02, 2004 3:24 am

The vast majority of responses I saw on the internet today were really amusing. I can't say it was an eye-opening experience, but it certainly was interesting.

Some of my favorites are:
  • The people who knew it was April Fool's Day, but were so convinced by the ad and commercial, they were debating with themselves whether or not to believe it
  • The typical DBZ haters who didn't care one way or the other whether it was a prank, and just used it as another excuse to bash the show
  • The people who get so furious because AF pranks have been done before. *knocks* Hellooooooo.... this is the whole point... ?
  • The ones that managed to translate some of the text in the print-ad, and get a hell of a laugh out of it
  • The ones who say they could have done a better job... :roll:
I guess that's it. Hehe. I've got a bookmark folder the size of Texas with links to all the message boards that linked to us regarding the prank; a good 20% of them are in non-English languages, too! Awesome!

I should really go to bed. I've gotta get up in 5 1/2 hours for my Networking class... I'm too high-strung from reading all the referrals and crap people have to say, though :P.
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Post by Jerseymilk » Fri Apr 02, 2004 3:35 am

I've got a bookmark folder the size of Texas with links to all the message boards that linked to us regarding the prank; a good 20% of them are in non-English languages, too! Awesome!
That's great. :) Off to bed for me too. I'm looking forward to reading everyone else's thoughts tomorrow. 8)
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Post by majinboogc » Fri Apr 02, 2004 3:59 am

Wonderfull job you guys I laughed all day long and tried to spread the rumor. I cant read kanji but I knew enough to recognize the names Maiku and Jyurian. Awesome, truly and utterly brilliant. Two thumbs WAY up!!! :lol: :D
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Post by omae no kaasan » Fri Apr 02, 2004 6:16 am

I've officially retired from the April Fools stunts after four fun years of screwing with fans,**Note: 4 Years of half-assed pranks and they still never caught on** , but this was really cute, particularly the print ad.

I was half-filled with dread and fascination when I saw the video link. I realized that it could be extremely convincing and supply enough coal and oil for a decade of fanboy ramblings. Meanwhile I was interested to see the video. I somewhat question the regulars who were fooled since even I know that Mike is an award-winning AMV artist so you technically should have approached with some apprehension.

I say this was cute because the ad was really a laugh. For those who know real Japanese television (and for that matter Japanese) then the video was a hoot not only because of the text screaming that it was fake, but also that lovely feeling you get on the inside knowing that fanboys are falling for something that would not pass as a real Japanese CM. When present, during the meat of a commercial, Japanese text (not necessarily foreign) is commonly reduced to almost unreadable size and commonly in the case of animation commercials, particularly new ones, a constant bar of text stating when and where the show will air appears at the bottom of the screen halfway through. Mike obviously knows this and although he could have added it relatively easily for the effect, the fact that he accomplished what he did with that makes it a particularly nice slam dunk.

The print ad was really nicely put together. In fact, that is THE first gag Japanese ad I have EVER SEEN that actually utilizes real grammatically (sp? *irony*) correct sentences as opposed to a 12 year old playing with a kanji program. That alone deserves applause and is for me, the most impressive part of the gag.

Although this is without question a winner, I still think FF:Gaiden will always be, for me, the greatest 4/1 prank of all time.

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Post by tablet the eunuch » Fri Apr 02, 2004 6:28 am

It just bled quality damnit. So very damn amazed :D

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Post by sangofe » Fri Apr 02, 2004 6:54 am

Done very professionally and I had a great laugh for at least 5 minutes yesterday :)

I still hadquestions about wich Voiceactors you took voices from.
And found my answers in the great "After the prank guide", or whatever to call it :D

The little "document" you made after the joke was even more interesting than the "news announcement" itself :D

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Post by TripleRach » Fri Apr 02, 2004 8:39 am

I guess I was in the crowd of people who understood some of the Japanese. I got a real kick out of the nervous little Toriyama bot yelling like that in the print ad. :D
omae no kaasan wrote:I've officially retired from the April Fools stunts after four fun years of screwing with fans,**Note: 4 Years of half-assed pranks and they still never caught on** , but this was really cute, particularly the print ad.
You know, I actually fell for the one where you said Mr. E was going to become a staff member at your site.

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Post by VegettoEX » Fri Apr 02, 2004 9:39 am

Something I should have added and talked about more than in just a forum reply thingie...

I based the commercial off of the commercial for DBZ movie 7. Said commercial's at the beginning of my movie 7 fansub, and it's actually on the domestic movie 6 DVD as a little hidden "extra" at the end of the Japanese track to the movie. It's a collection of footage from the first six DBZ movies, with the traditional "Ossu! Ora Goku!" dialogue over top. He goes on to say that they've got a new movie coming out this summer, blah blah blah. The clips are totally random, not synched up to any dialogue, and are just there to be pretty while you listen to Goku talk. Did the same thing in my commercial :P

Also, I thought throwing in some footage that's not yet domestically available on DVD would help a little bit, too (SSJ2 Gohan transformation).

So... yeah! ^^;;
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Post by omae no kaasan » Fri Apr 02, 2004 10:30 am

I based the commercial off of the commercial for DBZ movie 7.
If you made it to resemble a movie trailer then it's right on dude!
You know, I actually fell for the one where you said Mr. E was going to become a staff member at your site.
See, that's what I mean about half-assed. I was just sitting around going through hell with Chem and had no motivation to do anything so I was just like, "Eh, why not through this out there." I still think the best response I ever got was the fake Stryker series which caused several site owners to send a mail to me requesting me to post that it was a prank. But the one I liked the best was my very first, which I can't remember anyway, I just remember I liked it =o=

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Post by Jerseymilk » Fri Apr 02, 2004 11:03 am

VegettoEX wrote:Something I should have added and talked about more than in just a forum reply thingie...

I based the commercial off of the commercial for DBZ movie 7. Said commercial's at the beginning of my movie 7 fansub, and it's actually on the domestic movie 6 DVD as a little hidden "extra" at the end of the Japanese track to the movie. It's a collection of footage from the first six DBZ movies, with the traditional "Ossu! Ora Goku!" dialogue over top. He goes on to say that they've got a new movie coming out this summer, blah blah blah. The clips are totally random, not synched up to any dialogue, and are just there to be pretty while you listen to Goku talk. Did the same thing in my commercial :P

Also, I thought throwing in some footage that's not yet domestically available on DVD would help a little bit, too (SSJ2 Gohan transformation).

So... yeah! ^^;;
Yes, I have that commercial on my fansubs too and it is right on!
Your commercial actually also reminded me of the one I have for movie #8 on my movie #8 fansub. It was just clips taken of Gohan and Goku during the Cell saga when they emerged from the Room of Spirit and Time, and had Goku and Gohan talking to one another and the fans. It was the same thing, no new clips just T.V. scenes and talking back and forth. 8)
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Post by Sun_Wukong » Fri Apr 02, 2004 11:09 am

I just want to point you to this link,
http://www.dragonballtoys.com/forums/sh ... php?t=8012

note: I'm Son_Bardock over there.

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Post by Adamant » Fri Apr 02, 2004 11:10 am

Is it just me, or did what was supposed to be Kuririn sound more like Yajirobe (Yes, I know they have the same seiyuu.)?

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Post by Jerseymilk » Fri Apr 02, 2004 12:07 pm

Adamant wrote:Is it just me, or did what was supposed to be Kuririn sound more like Yajirobe (Yes, I know they have the same seiyuu.)?
Ya I thought that too at first, I knew it clearly wasn't the way Kuririn speaks, the speech pattern was too quick and "jivey" if you know what I mean. So then I gave it a listen again and right away I thought "That's sounds exactly like Tanaka's Luffy from One Piece!"
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