Art style discussion

[SSJ2FutureGohan]

I really would like to see the whole series done in the 2004 style, that'd be cool.

[Doctor.]

I really would like to see the whole series done in the 2004 style, that'd be cool.

Too many spikes in Goku's hair.

[SSJ2FutureGohan]

...I'm sorry you feel that way...?

[Doctor.]

Was just giving my 2 cents, not trying to put anyone's opinion down.

[SPRSYJN]

Isn't it pretty well-accepted that Minoru Maeda animated the best-looking and most tastefully stylized episodes?

[DBZAOTA482]

Isn't it pretty well-accepted that Minoru Maeda animated the best-looking and most tastefully stylized episodes?

No, the most overrated ones. He doesn't even animate the episodes himself.

[JulieYBM]

Isn't it pretty well-accepted that Minoru Maeda animated the best-looking and most tastefully stylized episodes?

Maeda Minoru only ever did key animation himself for Dragon Ball Episodes #22 and #29.

[Vegitofaxx]

I still find it incredible to compare Goku in Chap.1 and Chap. 519.

[Lord Beerus]

I still find it incredible to compare Goku in Chap.1 and Chap. 519.

Art styles always change over the years. Especially with long running shonen manga. Case in point:

One Piece:

Spoiler:

Bleach:

Spoiler:

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure:

Spoiler:

[Vegitofaxx]

I still find it incredible to compare Goku in Chap.1 and Chap. 519.

Art styles always change over the years. Especially with long running shonen manga. Case in point:

One Piece:

Spoiler:

Bleach:

Spoiler:

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure:

Spoiler:

Wow, I don't know jack bout' One Piece, but things looked weird in 07 (at least from that pic there)

[Doctor.]

I still find it incredible to compare Goku in Chap.1 and Chap. 519.

Art styles always change over the years. Especially with long running shonen manga. Case in point:

One Piece:

Spoiler:

Bleach:

Spoiler:

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure:

Spoiler:

I wonder if it's a feeling of nostalgia or what, but I always happen to prefer the earlier art styles of Shounen authors (Toriyama being the only exclusion, ahah). Especially Kubo's, his current art style looks so generic.

[SingleFringe&Sparks]

I'll say 05, 13 & 95 are what I see DBZ as. Thats my favourite; where characters were angular in terms of outline and outer shapes, but still had moderately rounded but proportinated oblongness to the facial features.

Isn't it pretty well-accepted that Minoru Maeda animated the best-looking and most tastefully stylized episodes?

That must be who I'm talking about. Namek episode 90 had the best looking Freeza i've ever seen and Goku there looked closest to his late Buu saga look which I like.

His colour toning makes the models stunning, when applied to the art style I like (TV specials) as opposed to how horrible the series looks now with the opposite. (Paleness, very bright single-toned colours and paled skin tones.)

[Doctor.]

I really like that some of the sloppy art style in the Boo arc was fixed with the Kanzenban. I mean, isn't this amazing:

Spoiler:

[Lord Beerus]

I really like that some of the sloppy art style in the Boo arc was fixed with the Kanzenban. I mean, isn't this amazing:

Spoiler:

And yet, we still haven't had an official English release of the Kanzenban edition of the manga. I guess we should chalk that up with the Blu-Ray Dragon Boxes as something that should happen, but never will.

[StrawHatPatriot]

I hate '84, because it was at that odd point where it looked as if Toriyama's artsyle was transitioning from some older style. Everything was rounded, but the facial features were small, and it felt like there was a lack of consistency sometimes (from what I remember).

You can read Chapter 1 here to see what I'm talking about.
http://www.vizmanga.com/reader/38-dragon-ball-1

It's off, somehow to me.


That's why 86-88 was the peak for the Dragon Ball era artstyle, in my opinion.

Spoiler:

Everything was big enough in proximity, and thus their expressions popped, and it was very nice to look at.

Early Z was still the same as Dragon Ball, but you started seeing some of the characters eyes become sharp. It was still good, but as it went on (like during the later portions of the Saiyan Saga and early Namek Saga), it started to reach another transitional phase, where characters like Goku had sharp facial features, but their faces were concave, and their ears were huge, and the faces were small for characters like Goku... and that's why I hate '89 and '90. It was Toriyama's artsyle at its worst, along with 84 Dragon Ball. Both looked off to me.

Spoiler:

Look at the third Goku.

By the late Freeza saga (like when Goku turned Super Saiyan), the artstyle became better, and things were finally moving away from the DB artstyle completely. But the hair was too big for some characters (like SSJ Goku...).

The Cell Saga, around 91 through 93, is one artsyle that I like a lot. The ears were of a good size, the faces had the right amount of curve in them, the edges were done really nicely, etc.

Spoiler:

Although, the issue of all the characters looking the same started arising.

Finally, the Buu, from 93-95. Everything was angular and had edges, and I actually love it. It's maybe my favorite, because Toriyama went all in this time aruond. The Buu Saga was all fighting, and the art help perfect that.

Spoiler:

I love 04 and 05 too, because it was a nice reimagining of how Dragon Ball could look like. It seemed to be a merger of 84 and 95, and I actually love it.

Spoiler:

(There was a thread comparing that picture of Goku and the crew of the buu saga, since it was drawn in the manga, the anime, and in the Kanzenban. If anyone can find it, I would really appreciate it.)

The 2013? I like it. I'm getting used to it more (since Toriyama hasn't drawn that much pictures of Dragon Ball in his current style) but I'm usually pretty open to many art styles, so I like it.

Overall, my favorites are probably 93-95, and 04-05. I like cell saga (91-93) a lot, and 86-88 DB I like as well.

[Dyno]

Could you be a bit more specific?

Sorry, haven't seen you had answered me.

1984 up to 2005, basically.

[Attitudefan]

My problem with 1991 and on wards is how Toriyama always draws the characters with their heads jutted forwards and their foreheads are at a 45 degree angle. They look very neanderthal like. That was not present in the pre-1991 art style. I vehemently disagree with his 1989/1990 art style being his worst. I love it for the fact that they have large ears, sharper eyes, yet retain the black line for the nose (and it is smaller compared to the Cell arc stuff), smaller jaws, and have larger than life facial expressions still with their mouths and eyes. Later, post-1991, their mouths and eyes never open wider than "realistically" possible. In 1989, you still see characters having those overly cartoony expressions, and on Vegeta, it makes him look more pissed off than he ever looked after!

But here's an interesting look of Goku from 1988-1990:

Spoiler:

You can actually see that Freeza arc Goku is starting to get that Neanderthal look, with the smaller forehead, thick neck and traps. Plus, the proportions of Goku changed dramatically in the Freeza arc compared to before, where Saiyan arc Goku has the same leg and arm length as he did in the 23rd Tournament.

But to compare that low angle of Goku and say his style was bad, I can't agree. It is very dynamic, and the lines flow along with his body. It's not rigid and stiff.

However, this Gohan, in the same angle, looks incredibly stiff, and yet, it is drawn later in the same angel. Gohan shows all the signs of the problems I have with the 90's onwards Toriyam: the Head is jutted forwards, the lines are rigid and don't flow, the proportions are very straight and rigid, the face shows very little exaggerated expression and looks dull and plain. The proportions are also kinda wonky in his post 1991 art, where the arms come up too short and the heads are jutted forwards, foreheads that are too short and angled, noses that are way too large along with large jaws. The 90's were the Neanderthal era of Dragonball! Presently, Toryiama's style in the 2010's are too skinny, with really large heads, the small forheads persist along with the head jutting forwards still. It is so ugly.

Spoiler:

As you can see, the anime actually fixes the weird head placement.

Spoiler:

That is not present in the earlier style. Also, expression is so much more visible here compared to the Cyborg/Cell arc. Plus, the anime uses the style so well in 1989, that it just looks so pleasing and high quality.

Spoiler:

This is probably one of the most recognizeable images of the Neanderthal era of Toriyama, and as you see their arms look weird, and their expressions don't change much within the manga compared to this neutral image. Shocking how much Toriyama regressed as an artist.

Spoiler:

PS I really hate how he drew Tenshinhan's eyes since the Freeza arc. It's so ugly!

Also, I noticed that One Piece in 1997 looked a lot like Toriyama's style in 1988/1989/1990 as they have similar facial proportions, especially with the rounded large eyes, the large ears, and similar black line for the nose.

[SingleFringe&Sparks]

I disagree with the first episode of the Saiyan arc having the better proportions, I never liked how stumpy Goku's limbs and torso looked.

[StrawHatPatriot]

@Attitudefan, you really like this style? (the manga Goku, specifically)



I don't know, I felt it worked better with the circular eyes as seen in Dragon Ball (which is why I called it a "transitional" style, since Toriyama was beginning to move away from them).

In regards to the hunchback, I felt as if the anatomy was actually better as the show went on (outside of that)

I mean look at how short and compact Goku's torso is in that picture above.

[StrawHatPatriot]

And yeah, the artsyle for early One Piece definitely was like Dragon Ball.

http://otaku.com/files/images/fullsize/83343H2.JPG