The Community.

[BrollysKin]

We tried to speak out to the reps but it made no difference. I am just going to have to deal that I will probably never have a good complete dub.

[Sebastian (SB)]

I haven't bought a Season Set since the first one, nor do I plan to continue doing so. To be honest, I just bode well with the video games, movies, & manga (Hercules, Dijinns, Vegerots, etc., aside). It's not nearly as half as bad with what we've getting with FUNimation for the past....geez... 12 years now? Also, I can't stand the majority of Dragon Ball fans today either, but I'm willing to tolerate I suppose.

Nowadays, Dragon Ball has become more & more of a nostalgic pastime for me than something I was a bit more passionate about say, a year or two ago. Thus, I'm becoming a bit less active in these forums. With the live action movie coming about, I really don't know what to think anymore. Waiting and hoping for the best is all there is.......if there's any.

[Captain Awesome]

I've got to give props to SSJ Kaboom,

Everything I wanted to say, he basically said.

I live in Australia, I was burned by the UUE's, our bilingual dvd's don't kick in (consistantly) until the start of the Buu saga, there aren't any other options for me, I can't afford the Dboxes, or even the overpriced out of print US dvds, so I am really sick of the communities attitude towards this, I'm sick of seeing people that like the season sets get spoken down to for "feeding the flames of the dark fire that is FUNimation"

I really don't care how "in the know" anyone is about the problems with the season sets, if it bothers them that much, set up a website, to inform people instead of subjecting everyone here to the same stale rhetoric time and time again.

[desirecampbell]

I really don't care how "in the know" anyone is about the problems with the season sets, if it bothers them that much, set up a website, to inform people instead of subjecting everyone here to the same stale rhetoric time and time again.

I might just do that...

[Captain Awesome]

I might just do that...

I honestly would love to see that, a site with technical information, clear image comparisons, and alternative ways to purchase the show.

I know my last post made me sound sort of pro-season set, which is sort of incorrect (I reluctantly own the first two) I'm more against the heckling of those that own them, hell if I liked them I wouldn't be spending $200 on GT instead of just waiting for the cheaper season sets.

[SatoSky]

I really don't care how "in the know" anyone is about the problems with the season sets, if it bothers them that much, set up a website, to inform people instead of subjecting everyone here to the same stale rhetoric time and time again.

I might just do that...

If you want lossless screencaps from the Spain DVD's drop me a PM.
Plus I also have the first three Ultimate Uncut volumes if you don't have those.

[Victator Supreme]

I got season one at the start of November. I've been watching and loving all the episodes with the original bgm. I'm upto when Goku confronts Nappa. I would not have noticed the cropping if I had not heard about it here.

The dub itself has been fine, there have been a few changes that have raised an eye brow. But nothing worth pitching a fit over.

My biggest complaint is Cha Head Cha La not being on the dub/jp bgm track. Is the song really that expensive? I fond it strange in that all the arguing that went on earlier this year, that was not mentioned once.

[Conan the SSJ]

I got season one at the start of November. I've been watching and loving all the episodes with the original bgm. I'm upto when Goku confronts Nappa. I would not have noticed the cropping if I had not heard about it here.

I've pointed this out in another thread and I believe Sato/SaiyamanMS agrees with me on this, the footage amount of the season sets appears to be equivalent to the previous FUNi single releases when viewed on television format. I compared the first few episodes on Ultimate Uncut volume 1 and Season 1 very recently, so I'm speaking with a fresh mindset on this. The only shots I've caught that appear to have more cropping is the ending shot in Zenkai Power (a dragon's eyes being cut off that Gohan stands on) and Kui's head in a later Namek saga flashback. Sato's even pointed out to me that he's noticed more footage present on the top and bottom at times in his Season 1 set than on his Ultimate Uncut volumes, when watching on his television setup. I'm well-aware of the aspect that these releases have less detail, some frame bleeding, and an overall brighter color scheme than intended; but the cropping itself really isn't as bad in comparison to previous releases now that I've examined closely on my home set (I guess the combination of the zooming-in and natural TV overscan of the 4:3 releases is to blame for that). Yes, this is within the confines of comparing FUNi's releases, the Dragonboxes will obviously always be topnotch; I've contributed what I needed to.

As for Corey, he's a great guy, indeed; I like to think he's a good online friend I've made in the last year. But hell, a lot of us did send letters pleading with FUNi not to go the route they were last year. I've never openly said this, but even I did, and I was at-first all for these releases. Now my opinions are honestly so-so. FUNimation, with every single anime license of theirs that doesn't have a Z at the end, have released them decently/good/great and proven to be some of the best R1 anime DVDs on the market today. So really what I see FUNi is at fault for above all is extreme ignorance and bad taste in knowing what they think is good for the DB fan community and literally constantly quadruple-dipping the endless amount of releases, each with its own flaws. They've demonstrated they're fully competent at releasing full-quality anime, yet all they seriously seem to care about regarding DragonBall is making a quick buck in the cheapest manner possible. That does make me look at them with a disdain, but in the end, maybe I will be able to live with the season sets. Releasing DBZ movie 1 for the uptinth time on DVD next year, as well as GT in apparent season sets, I guess that just goes to show how downright scary their milking of the series is at this point.

[FindKenshi]

I don't care about the cropping or color saturation or anything like that. I honestly can't really even tell the difference unless I make it a note to pause a scene and study it very carefully. You're splitting hairs with that one.

The one thing I can't stand about Funimation is their murder of the character: Freeza.

Why the voice? Why the homoerotic dialoug? God, I hate Funimation Freeza. Why did they ruin my favorite character of all time? (Not just of Dragonball, but of all fiction.) Why would it have been so hard to actually have an English Freeza who sounds/acts a BIT like the Japanese one?

[KinoFourpaws]

As for Corey, he's a great guy, indeed; I like to think he's a good online friend I've made in the last year. But hell, a lot of us did send letters pleading with FUNi not to go the route they were last year. I've never openly said this, but even I did, and I was at-first all for these releases. Now my opinions are honestly so-so. FUNimation, with every single anime license of theirs that doesn't have a Z at the end, have released them decently/good/great and proven to be some of the best R1 anime DVDs on the market today. So really what I see FUNi is at fault for above all is extreme ignorance and bad taste in knowing what they think is good for the DB fan community and literally constantly quadruple-dipping the endless amount of releases, each with its own flaws. They've demonstrated they're fully competent at releasing full-quality anime, yet all they seriously seem to care about regarding DragonBall is making a quick buck in the cheapest manner possible. That does make me look at them with a disdain, but in the end, maybe I will be able to live with the season sets. Releasing DBZ movie 1 for the uptinth time on DVD next year, as well as GT in apparent season sets, I guess that just goes to show how downright scary their milking of the series is at this point.

Maybe selling Dragonball re-releases is FUNi's way of fundraising?

*goes back to studying*

/pointless post

[bkev]

I really don't care how "in the know" anyone is about the problems with the season sets, if it bothers them that much, set up a website, to inform people instead of subjecting everyone here to the same stale rhetoric time and time again.

I might just do that...

dbaf.info :p

[Victator Supreme]

Why the voice? Why the homoerotic dialoug? God, I hate Funimation Freeza. Why did they ruin my favorite character of all time? (Not just of Dragonball, but of all fiction.) Why would it have been so hard to actually have an English Freeza who sounds/acts a BIT like the Japanese one?

I fail to see much difference in original/english Frieza.

[Artificial Human #887]

I refuse to feel inferior because I choose to take the Season Sets for what they're worth and enjoy them.

Are they the best thing out there? No. Could Funi do a much better job? Yes. Are the colors/masters/voices perfect? Of course not. Am I personally going to take time out of my life to learn Japanese specifically to be able to understand every line of a Dragon Box DVD? Hell no. Am I going to spend tons of money I don't have seeing as I have bills to pay on DVDs I don't really need? Again, Hell no.

I love DB/DBZ. But I also think a lot of the fanbase is filled with elitism in the worst way. Who cares if some of us like/don't like the Funi dub, the season sets, or whatever else is going on? It doesn't make anyone any less of a fan, or an idiot for that matter because of the aforementioned things. It would be great, wonderful, fantastic if Funimation could give us an amazing re-dubbed, Toei/Dragon Box quality box sets. But they know that's time and money they don't need to spend. They have plenty of other things to bank on. And I'm okay with that. I'll deal with inferior quality if it means I can sit home on a Sunday afternoon and watch DBZ with my boyfriend without having to worry about going bankrupt over a 20 year old anime.

I have as much of as the next fan over making fun of some of the poor Funi translation, but I think sometimes, it's RIDICULOUS how anal everyone is about everything. It's a TV show, it's not THAT serious.

[Orochi_Rockman]

I agree with SSJ Kaboom.

Up until Funi started releasing these season sets owning all of DBZ seemed like an impossible dream. I just didn't have the money to shell out for every one of their DVD Singles with WTF 3 Episodes per disc. That's close to 100 volumes in total.

I'm thrilled to death that I can get these sets for $30.00. The cropping? Don't care. The atrocious writing in the english dub? I watch it in Japanese and just be thankful that I get proper subtitles. The colors? God...how would I even know the freaking difference. I'm just happy that I can finally add the whole of Dragon Ball Z to my anime collection.

I mean really, what do you want Funi to do? Go back and try to re-re-re-release season sets of the 290 something episode series with each episode remasterd to fit the standards of that 5% of the fanbase that just can't be satisfied? Get all those voice actors together and redub all those episodes with an entirely new script? And do all of this for one of their properties that is more or less dead?

I'm not going to hate on Funimation and say that they're incapable of good releases I mean look at how well they handled Fullmetal Alchemist. DBZ was just unlucky, that's all. If the show was just now coming out in the US and its popularity was back up then I believe that things would have been handled differently with its release.

I'll never be able to afford owning all of the manga, so I have my season sets and I'm thankful that Funi even released the show like this at all.

[JAPPO]

Oh please, if you don't like the sets go waste all your money on the Japanese DVDs. End of story.

There are other options. And it's not like most fans care about absurd things that are just nitpicking. The only thing I agree with is we should have an option for full screen on these season sets, but you can always track down the old DVDs.

[Lavender Saiyan]

I've been one of the so called "Idiots" who love the Season Sets. Despite it's obvious shitty faults, I bought most of my Z Era collection on VHS. I would like to have them on DVD, I would like to see it in Japanese. But I do not want to spend prices still at 15 bucks a piece for 3 Episodes per DVD for the out of print single DVD releases of a show that I already own most of. I'm not even out of High School yet (Senior Year), I don't have that kind of cash. In my opinion, near $1 an episode for these Season sets...I'm paying a price worth what I'm getting. If these Sets were going for say $60-70 bucks a piece, I may reconsider the single DVD releases.

With that said, I've been someone who has loved the releases this past year. The fandom has gotten on my nerves though, too much fighting. People at each other's throats, it's 1999/2000 all over again. It seems that every time things seem to calm down between Dubbies & Purists something sparks a new fight. It's a real pain in the ass, which is why I've stopped the debating on the Season Sets after Season 2. Both sides hold valid points are will never budge, it's not worth the fighting. There's really no right or wrong in this whole matter. Just egotistical people who want to get their point across. Nothing more.

You may think I'm stupid for loving FUNi's recent releases. Though give them some credit, the Season 3 picture quality and colors were quite nice and a huge step up from Seasons 1 & 2. One more thing I'd like to say is, EX is right. There's no real need for me to defend my purchase. Thanks to people like EX and many of the Season Set haters, I knew what I was getting myself into well before Season 1 released. I know all of the obvious faults and problems with these sets. But I accept it regardless because I feel it's worth the money and still an enjoyable watch. To me, DragonBall is DragonBall. Regardless of what FUNi does to the picture. So I feel that unlike someothers who blindly dismiss the Sets faults as people just being pricks. I myself am not an ignorant buyer, I know exactly what it is and what's wrong with it. It just doesn't bother me. I'm not going to let other people's opinions on the sets cloud my own personal judgement. That judgement being...I want to view the series in Japanese, and I want to view the series with the voices that I know and love (being FUNi's cast) with the original music. The cropping doesn't bother me, it doesn't ruin the picture for me. So I'll buy them.

[Mike D]

That judgement being...I want to view the series in Japanese, and I want to view the series with the voices that I know and love (being FUNi's cast) with the original music.

I'm just happy to have the original BGM but they still could have left the wide screen for something else.

[MajinVejitaXV]

Wazoo. I vent in a post, mainly referring to people who don't post here, and everyone kicks into "I must defend my purchase" mode. That wasn't my intent.

Am I a little...err, preturbed by people buying the sets at all? Yes, I am honestly. I don't think it makes me hypocritical in the least, or elitist. I bought FUNi's releases, got tired of their shit and went on a 2 year DragonBall-less streak in terms of purchasing. I waited for a better product, domestic or otherwise, and ended up going with Toei. For me, a 19 year old at the time who was paying rent, a car and living expenses on a ~$24k salary...it wasn't outrageous. Especially since, at that time, FUNi's discs for Z cost more, had stupid errors and were incomplete.

And no, the DragonBoxes aren't perfect. There's glaring stuff, like no credit scroll for Episode 64 of GT and a wraparound error on one of the episodes of DragonBall. It is, however, a better release. It's on par with well-done R1 releases, both in terms of cost and quality. I mean, seriously, there's a reason the only things I own in terms of DVD from Region 2 are the DragonBoxes, the EVA movies and Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children.

Do I feel like I'm some God made of platinum as a result? Hell no. I come on here occasionally and give my opinions, yes a lot of times involving the DragonBoxes because I own them and can compare things in a technical manner. And yes, I do it somewhat passionately, because...let's face it, DragonBall forum. We all care about the show on differing levels. Though, I admit, it's amusing to see people say I care too much when my post count is 1/3rd or less of theirs ;p

My whole point? People are dumb, and that comes from someone who is admittedly somewhat of a misanthrope. My annoyance about this whole affair was recently reignited based upon FUNi flaunting their sales numbers on these sets and the fact that Geneon shut down because their damned-near-flawless releases weren't selling. Seriously, watch Samurai Champloo or Hellboy Ultimate...then watch DragonBall Z's "best selling of 2007" sets. Hell, watch some of their other releases. Damned near everyone agrees that FUNimation isn't the best when it comes to doing digital encodes. Why? They don't try.

End of the world? No. Annoying? Hell yes.

Did some people try to voice their opinion? Yes. Would every single person here in unison have swayed them? No. Was my original post referring to people here? No. I made a point of saying almost none of the "idiots" I was referring to were on this forum, mainly because I was referring to people who are stating that widescreen is better for anything and everything and that Japan is ghey and other crap that Mike would ban them for in a single second here.

I'm just venting in this thread. I'm annoyed at a number of things, and DragonBall Z being a catalyst for "hey, if it's cheap they'll buy it no matter what you give them" mentalities in the anime industry, which just might become the latest trend in anime now thanks to Geneon falling, is just another domino in the line. I'm a little peeved that people would buy the releases at all, but I can accept that they're cheap and available with no alternative. My problem lies with the idiots who talk about how they're so great, quoting FUNi's propaganda and ignoring that FUNimation has insulted them blatantly.

Oh well, standards when it came to DragonBall releases were never the community's strong point, no?

-Corey

[Kaboom]

Okey doke, then. Guess I overreacted a bit myself.

I have been to other forums, and seen the people you're talking about, so I agree with you on that.

[Lavender Saiyan]

We all care about the show on differing levels.

You're not trying to say people who buy the sets are aren't good/real fans are you? I'm not sure what you were implying by that comment. But you're way too smart of a guy to make lame childish comments like "You're not as good of a fan as me because you buy this product that isn't up to my standard". Hopefully I am just interpriting what you said incorrectly.