Discussion regarding the entirety of the franchise in a general (meta) sense, including such aspects as: production, trends, merchandise, fan culture, and more.
Lord Beerus wrote:Old unmarked VHS videos of a bootlegged version of the show back in 94. I officially saw the series for the first time in 2000 on Toonami, and remained a fan ever since.
wow that's pretty hardcore How were the subs on those old VHS tapes (unless it was a bootleg of an already existing English dub...not too sure when the dub first started)?
The subtitles were pretty bad. I understood jack shit of what I saw but it looked so cool as a kid. I wish I still had that tape but it got lost among an assortment of VHS tapes many moons ago... and that assortment of tapes were thrown out of my garage a few years ago.
Spoiler:
Akira Toriyama wrote:My policy is to try and forget things once they’re over. Since if I don’t discard the old and focus on what’s new, I’ll overload my brain capacity. I still haven’t lived down going, “Who the heck is Tao Pai-pai?” that one time I was talking with Ei’ichiro Oda-kun. But the fact that there are still people reading the series after all this time… All I can say is; “thank you.” Really, that’s all.
Akira Toriyama wrote:Drawing Dragon Ball again reminded me of two things--how much I love it, and how much I never want to do it again.
Kunzait_83 wrote:And if you're upset because all this new material completely invalidates the tabletop RPG rulebook-sized statistical system and flowchart for the characters' "canonical Power Levels" that you'd been working on painstakingly for the last bunch of years now... well I don't think there's a kind, non-blunt way of saying this, but that's 100% entirely your own misguided fault for buying so deeply into all this nonsensical garbage in the first place. And that you also have IMMENSELY skewed and comically backwards priorities in what you think is most important and needed to make a good Dragon Ball story.
Zephyr wrote:Goodness, they wrote idiotic drivel in a children's cartoon meant to advertise toys!? Again!? For the ninetieth episode in a row!? Somebody stop the presses! We have to voice our concern over these Super important issues!
Kamiccolo9 wrote:Fair enough, I concede. Sean Schemmel probably has some kind of hidden talent. Maybe he is an expert at Minesweeper. You're right; calling him "talentless" wasn't fair.
Michsi wrote: ↑Mon Jul 04, 2022 11:29 amIn Super Piccolo got yelled off the stage by Vegeta in the U6 Tournament arc and lost to Jiminy Cricket in the ToP , he deserved 15 new transformations with his theme song played by Metallica in the background.
Damn, now I feel so stupid for posting that thread not too long ago.
Sorry I didn't notice this thread beforehand, but to quote myself earlier to answer this thread's question:
For me, I remember when I was little (I recall 5 or 6), I was introduced to Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z by my uncles. They were (And still are) major DB fans. I think the first episode they showed me was in the Android Saga. A little while later, they showed me the Freeza Saga (You could imagine how confused I was). However, the action and villains kept me hooked. Freeza scared me when I was little because of how he impaled Krillin, killed Dende, and even killed Vegeta, which shocked me to the point of Freeza giving me nightmares.
I was so hooked on the show thanks to my uncles but then problems arose. My parents tried to have me stay away from the stuff my uncles showed me. My mom grew up with my uncles, being the eldest of them all. She was sometimes forced into watching the show despite lacking interest in it. My uncles not only introduced me to DB and DBZ, but also South Park, all of which my parents disapproved of. While my dad didn't understand why, my mom was familiar with the show and knew of it's blood and sexual themes. She prevented me from watching it until I was about 10, where my mom just gave up and let me enjoy the series.
I remember when I was little, Gohan was indeed my favorite character, but when I watched Dragon Ball at 13, my favorite switched to Yamcha. I have to say, I really have to thank my cousins for introducing me to the show. I actually learned to draw better because at one point I became obsessed with drawing the characters and creating my own DB OCs. I would practice drawing more and wouldn't reach my skill in art if it weren't for it today. I also made many friends who I bonded with through discussing the show alone. Call me a geek, but I have to say; Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z actually helped improve myself a little bit.
PSN: Jak1739
I'm always up for Xenoverse battles!
Xenoverse character name: Aros
Race: Earthling
If I'm remembering correctly, Toonami began airing Dragon Ball Z in 1997 which would make me 6 years old at the time. I remember seeing the TV-Y7 rating in the corner of the screen and I thought it was just the bee's knees that I was getting away with watching something underage. One random day I caught the tail end of episode #1 and that was enough to keep me coming back ever since. Like all you guys, I remember what seems like the endless replays of the Saiyan arc up to the point when Goku was going to fight Butta and Jheese. Long story short: I watched the entirety of Z on Toonami without every picking up a VHS, DVD, or fansub. It just never crossed my young mind, not that I would have money to buy them at my age anyway. It wasn't long after my family got the internet in 2005 that I began collecting the manga. That's how I experienced all of the Piccolo Daimao arc and 23rd Tenkaichi Budokai arc.
The Dragon Boxes were the first and only purchased of the animated series. I'm glad I waited for the best, but it will never hold a candle to my love for manga, and that goes for more than the Dragon Ball series. There's something in knowing that you're reading the unmolested story behind a franchise that really appeals to my fandom.
Back in 1996 when an episode of the Saiyan saga was airing on a local WB affiliate. It was the Ocean dub of when Goku first enters Snake Way. I was immediately hooked.
I was subscribed to EGM, and kept seeing the ads for Super Battle Collection figures, and I think there was a piece on Final Bout (at the very least, I remember seeing game covers). Decided to check it out on Cartoon Network during the original 53 episode Ocean run. Goku was either on Snake Way, or Kaio's planet at the time.
I remember once playing Budokai 1 with my family, not even knowing that it was Dragon Ball Z, back when I was young. But, my first "real" introduction to Dragon Ball was when they reran the Danish dub of Dragon Ball Z. I remember that Troldspejlet (a Danish review show) announced it. I had completely forgot about Budokai, but I was very interested in seeing new anime at the time, and I was all like: "Oh, this is anime, isn't it? OH, I WANT TO WATCH THIS, EVEN THOUGH I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT IT IS!!" From the first episode, I was hooked.
Back in 2000 when I was 10 I was flipping channels and saw a scene between Nappa and Gohan. Thought Piccolo looked cool and liked the fighting so I kept watching from that point all the way to the end of the Freeza saga. Later I'd go to Barnes & Noble after school each day and spend a few hours reading from the DBZ manga they were selling there.
"We are Cooler's Armored Squadron!" *performs Sauza fighting pose*
I want to say I was like seven or eight years old, but I might have memories before that of seeing DBZ... my life when I lived in California (around age six or so) is very hazy now but I had a couple of cousins who I hung out with that liked "Japanese Cartoons" as they called them. I know this is how I found out about Sailor Moon and Gundam...
I'm gonna be safe and say it was when Toonami was a daytime block that I caught after school, 1998 more than likely as I didn't have cable immediately when I was living in Texas at the age of seven... but I did visit a couple of friends who did have it
In a world of approximately seven billion people, the irony is that wandering around... is the fastest way to get noticed
A girl in my first grade class back in Korea brought a box of DB crayons/oil pastels to class and it had a picture of Bulma on it. I thought younger Bulma with the braided ponytail was really pretty so I ended up asking my classmate about which series the character was from out of interest.
A while later, DB came on TV and I watched Goku meeting Bulma and eventually the rest of the gang. It was love at first sight1 *--*
In 2000, I went to my friends house and he was watching Goku's New Power (episode 66, uncut). I was thought it was pretty cool how Goku was dodging Jheese and Butta's punches so fast. I turned on the TV the next morning and from then on I was a fan.
How were the subs on those old VHS tapes (unless it was a bootleg of an already existing English dub...not too sure when the dub first started)?
I wish I still had that tape but it got lost among an assortment of VHS tapes many moons ago... and that assortment of tapes were thrown out of my garage a few years ago. 
