How do kids feel about the Kikuchi score in Kai?

[kei17]

Though adult fans like many of us tend to complain about the replacement Kikuchi score in Kai, do present-day kids in the English speaking countries also do so? Do they feel it's "uncool" because it's not "hardcore" like the past American replacement scores or it feels dated compared to other scores including Yamamoto's? On the Internet, I've never seen any actual kids complaining or even caring about it, so my guess is that they simply don't care music much. If you have very young relatives or acquaintances, have you ever heard their opinions about Kai's score(s)?

I ask you about this because I'd like to know whether the so-called Yamamoto incident actually hurt a business opportunity, and it can somewhat indicate whether the dub scores of Z and GT were really needed for the American market.

[VegettoEX]

Much like with the Faulconer Productions fans who were too young to voice their opinions until a decade later (and then suddenly showed up en masse to our surprise since we basically assumed none of them existed), I'm not sure we'll find out from these Kai-Kids for another decade or so and they find us and want to start engaging on a deeper level.

All the anecdotal stuff I've heard from teacher friends and families (more a year or so ago when it was still bigger) was that the kids just liked the show and the characters and the special moves. Ya' know, the stuff kids usually talk about.

Except for the kinds of kids we all were who compared voice actor and writing and music credits for all the cartoons we watched...

[Insertclevername]

I imagine the Kai generation will grow up and defend the music they are most familiar. So, in essence, unless it's really bad, the kids are fond with whatever you give them.

[Fionordequester]

Much like with the Faulconer Productions fans who were too young to voice their opinions until a decade later (and then suddenly showed up en masse to our surprise since we basically assumed none of them existed), I'm not sure we'll find out from these Kai-Kids for another decade or so and they find us and want to start engaging on a deeper level.

My goodness, that must have been a real contentious year in the fandom, huh?

[Cure Dragon 255]

I think kids liked the show just fine. Even the really dumbed down 4kids broadcast had lots of kids watching. And kids are watching Toonami's broadcast by DROVES. They really dont mind misplaced Kikuchi and I think they will grow to love Kikuchi as well. I do think they might not like the placements as they grow up though.

[thaman91]

I'd also be curious to know what they think. My guess is that the kids did notice something but were probably too invested in the characters and story to think too much about it. It's probably similar to how the Z dub score changed from Shuki Levy to Faulconer Productions; we noticed it, but were more concerned with how Goku was going to deal with the Ginyu Force.

During re-watches of the show, since we were no longer burdened with paying attention to the plot, we were able to focus on other details like the music, the voice cast, and the animation.

But today's kids watching Kai may not be able to have this experience since the Yamamoto score is sort of being erased from history. They may vaguely remember there being a score change at around episode 50-or-60-something but during re-watches, they would only hear Kikuchi (since all the new boxsets and TV airings have the replacement Kikuchi score). They may convince themselves that they were imagining things. Heck, I thought I had imagined watching History of Trunks with Faulconer music until Nicktoons brought that version back.

So in a nutshell, I guess what I'm saying is that today's kids may not get enough exposure to the Yamamoto score to even remember it very well. To them, the Kikuchi score is the music of Kai. And they like Kai. And so they like the Kikuchi score. Probably. But we'll see in 10 years lol

[SpiritBombTriumphant]

But today's kids watching Kai may not be able to have this experience since the Yamamoto score is sort of being erased from history. They may vaguely remember there being a score change at around episode 50-or-60-something but during re-watches, they would only hear Kikuchi (since all the new boxsets and TV airings have the replacement Kikuchi score). They may convince themselves that they were imagining things. Heck, I thought I had imagined watching History of Trunks with Faulconer music until Nicktoons brought that version back.

So in a nutshell, I guess what I'm saying is that today's kids may not get enough exposure to the Yamamoto score to even remember it very well. To them, the Kikuchi score is the music of Kai. And they like Kai. And so they like the Kikuchi score. Probably. But we'll see in 10 years lol

Similar thing happened to me. I don't even remember Goku or anyone's voice changing from season 2 to 3 of Z. I always thought that the ending theme that Shuki Levy composed was simply the ending for season 1 and 2 only. It wasn't until I read about contracts and whatnot that I realized they changed things. Right now when I listen to songs, the only one I can remember is the one that played during the episode title card. Anything else (except the rock the dragon song for the OP and ED) is lost.

[Lord Exor]

The music was a rather pivotal aspect of the series for me as a child. I remember being dismayed that the only music I could procure online at the time was the (in my opinion) horrendous Japanese soundtrack. I could clearly delineate the panoply of themes bestowed upon each character, and I hummed both Frieza and Cell's themes on many an occasion. As such, they were instrumental in building character identity in my mind.

Then again, perhaps I'm an odd duck. Incidental music always resonated with me, with DBZ and BTAS being notable examples of cartoons with particularly strong soundtracks; I would imagine that with most children, it's forgettable and ancillary to their indoctrination into pop music.

[One_Instance]

I was introduced to the show through Kai, but I'm not sure what range you're looking for when you 'kids', but I'm in my mid-teens, so I'll offer what insight I can. Anyway, I really enjoy the soundtrack, though, I do prefer the original. I listen to it from time to time and it does have a somewhat nostalgic feeling to it, but I know that there's better music out there. The songs really stuck to me though, whenever a song pops into my head from out of the blue it's usually Kai's soundtrack. I personally find it more fun and casual than the original. I like it a lot, but by no means do I love it like the stuff that came first.

[thaman91]

I was introduced to the show through Kai, but I'm not sure what range you're looking for when you 'kids', but I'm in my mid-teens, so I'll offer what insight I can. Anyway, I really enjoy the soundtrack, though, I do prefer the original. I listen to it from time to time and it does have a somewhat nostalgic feeling to it, but I know that there's better music out there. The songs really stuck to me though, whenever a song pops into my head from out of the blue it's usually Kai's soundtrack. I personally find it more fun and casual than the original. I like it a lot, but by no means do I love it like the stuff that came first.

Wait, I'm a little confused since "original" could refer to the original Yamamoto music for Kai or the original Z music (Kikuchi) being placed into Kai.
So do you prefer the Yamamoto music or Kikuchi music?

[One_Instance]

I was introduced to the show through Kai, but I'm not sure what range you're looking for when you 'kids', but I'm in my mid-teens, so I'll offer what insight I can. Anyway, I really enjoy the soundtrack, though, I do prefer the original. I listen to it from time to time and it does have a somewhat nostalgic feeling to it, but I know that there's better music out there. The songs really stuck to me though, whenever a song pops into my head from out of the blue it's usually Kai's soundtrack. I personally find it more fun and casual than the original. I like it a lot, but by no means do I love it like the stuff that came first.

Wait, I'm a little confused since "original" could refer to the original Yamamoto music for Kai or the original Z music (Kikuchi) being placed into Kai.
So do you prefer the Yamamoto music or Kikuchi music?

Sorry. By original, I'm the original series, Dragon Ball Z. But, I perfer the Kikuchi score over Yamamoto. Though, I enjoy that too, just not as much.