First time watching DB...EVER!

[geektacular]

Yes everyone, brace yourselves...I'M 27, AND I NEVER SAW A SINGLE EPISODE OF ANY DRAGON BALL SERIES UNTIL APRIL 2012!

The Kanzenshuu podcast actually got my interested in watching Dragon Ball. I stumbled upon it randomly (as I am a fan of geeky podcasts), and I thought it was pretty entertaining despite the fact that I knew nothing about DB. I got tired of not knowing what Mike & Co. were talking about, so I ordered the Dragon Ball Season 1 blue brick in April 2012. I decided to watch everything in the DB universe in order of release, so as of 10 months later, I have subsequently purchased and watched DB Seasons 1-5, DB Movie Pack, DBZ Seasons 1-8, DBZ Movie Packs 1-3, and the Bardock & Trunks OVAs.

I'm currently in the middle of DBZ Season 9, and I'm really looking forward to the ending of DBZ and seeing what all of the contention regarding GT is all about. When I get into something new, I usually get deep into it. I LOVE the Kanzenshuu microcosm, including the guides, forums, and the podcast, so I'm happy that I finally feel like I know enough to get involved now. When I finished DB and was ready to move on to Z, I spent almost a solid week deciding whether or not to watch Z or Z Kai. I have a busy life and a full time job, so dedicating time for almost 300 episodes is a big commitment for me. After reading tons online, including a lot on Kanzenshuu, I decided to go with the original Z. I would never be able to judge Kai properly, I felt, unless I watched the original series first...so here I am halfway through the final DBZ season! (However, I did disobey the community's writ of "no orange bricks", but that's a topic for a different thread maybe, ha...)

I have so many questions about random events that I've seen so far in the series that it's ridiculous. I'm sure that everyone else has had 10+ years to stew on things, but I am literally seeing everything for the very first time! I'm glad that there are a variety of forums here where I can posit silly yet poignant questions that sometimes crop up as I'm watching. (Such as: "Why do the Z fighters ever even spend time walking or running away from something when they can all just fly everywhere??") After I finish with DBZ and the rest of the DB/DBZ movies, I'll move on to GT and watch those two seasons, plus the extra OVAs, rounding out my viewing experience. I hope to get this done by April 2013, making it a one-year adventure. At that point, I will FINALLY be in the know regarding all things Dragon Ball (at least for the TV series/not the manga), and maybe I can make some good contributions to the community that I've been using as a resource for the last year or so.

Basically, I just wanted to thank Mike & Co. for getting me into the DB universe, and to let you know that your podcast literally created, from scratch, a brand new Dragon Ball fan for life!

[VegettoEX]

Time spent on podcast validated. Mike enters weekend happy with self. Expects royalty checks from franchise holders any day now.

[Hujio]

Ya know, I love these stories! Really makes everything worth it.

[Bussani]

That's just awesome. I kind of wish you'd come by and posted about it as you watched (like someone else has been doing), but I can't blame you if you were trying to avoid spoilers. I'm sure everyone would love to hear your thoughts when you're finally done!

[hleV]

Yes everyone, brace yourselves...I'M 27, AND I NEVER SAW A SINGLE EPISODE OF ANY DRAGON BALL SERIES UNTIL APRIL 2012!

But I envy you. Would be so awesome to read/watch it for the first time...

[Ryuman]

This is just awesome. Kinda reminds me of how the Podcast got me into the Japanese side of things through pushing my curiosity. A decision that has changed the way I see Dragon Ball entirely.

[Gyt Kaliba]

Off topic, but first off - high five for the Castle gif hleV. I love that show.

I always love hearing about new people getting into the fanbase, be they young, old, or somewhere in-between. That's one of the best things about this series to me, it's got something for someone of any age to enjoy. It's fun to see how certain opinions and thoughts on certain characters and elements will change over time too.

[fogdark]

So yesterday I posted in a thread which made me realize I've been a fan of Dragon Ball for 17 years, and today I read about you, good sir, starting Dragon Ball for the first time almost a year ago. Wow, kinda puts things in perpective
Well, I applaud your decision , and welcome you to this memorable series. I'm not surprised at all that Kanzenshuu created a new fan, since it certainly is a great site. I'm looking forward to hear you thoughts about the overall series when you finish with everything, though!

[Hellspawn28]

Better late then never. I enjoy reading stories of people that are new into the series.

[DBZGTKOSDH]

I would love to have the ability to magically delete my memories of Dragon Ball temporary, and then re-watch the whole thing again. Oh, and welcome to Dragon Ball!

[geektacular]

Thanks for the encouraging words everyone, and extra thanks for mentioning me on this week's podcast!!

I might take Bussani's advice and create a thread for the remainder of the show that I still have to watch (DBZ S9 + GT S1 & S2) so you all can hear my reactions as I'm first watching everything, ha. I considered something like that earlier, but in a lot of cases my questions are answered a few episodes after I think of them. Such as: "How do you tell if someone is actually SSJ2 vs. just a really psyched up SSJ1?" And then Goku just randomly comes out and schools everyone explicitly on what an SSJ1/2/3 are a few episodes later, ha. But as it sounds like fun, I may start one up soon...if so, I'll link it here too. Thanks again for the kind comments...you guys rock!

[geektacular]

Also, FYI - Just finished watching DBZ Season 9 today...all done! I was a little put off by the couple extra episodes tacking onto the end of the series...I wish they had just skipped the whole egg fiasco. I didn't so much mind the Uub episodes, as I thought that was kind of interesting. I thought that Goku's wish before he blew up Kid Buu was just something nice to say, so I was pleasantly surprised when they actually brought it back up and used it to transition into a new story arc (which I'm assuming will continue through the beginning of GT?)

I'm a bit behind on my movies, but I'm hoping to watch Movies 10-13 this weekend (Broly: Second Coming/Bio-Broly/Fusion Reborn/Wrath of the Dragon), plus I've been putting off "Path to Power" so I can watch it in production sequence. GT Season 1 is on its way, so hopefully I'll get to start on that next week. I also ordered the English release of Daizenshuu #1, as kind of a gift to myself for finishing DBZ, ha. Looking forward to seeing what GT has to offer compared to DB & DBZ!

[Insertclevername]

Just wondering, do you watch the dub or do you watch it subbed?

[geektacular]

Just wondering, do you watch the dub or do you watch it subbed?

I've been watching the English dub. I know that a lot of people prefer it subbed since it showcases the original voices and dialogue, etc., and I considered it. I sort of wanted the traditional North American experience, like people who watched it on US TV when it first aired here, so that's mostly why I picked the dub.

I kind of feel like that I've watched so many seasons (14 of them between DB & DBZ) that the Japanese voices for the characters seem wonky to me now, if that makes any sense. I'm sure if I watched it subbed the whole time, I'd probably feel the opposite way though, ha. Once I finish GT, I'm considering maybe going back and watching some of DB/Z/GT subbed just to get that experience also. (Probably not every single episode, but at least my favorites/the most prominent ones...suggestions for any particularly different scenes/sagas/episodes are welcome.) I can't stand dubs in some things I've watched because they can be pretty bad sometimes, but I rather enjoy the Funimation dubs for all the DB series, personally. I haven't read the manga yet either, which is something else I might like to do after I finish the anime also...

[linkdude20002001]

What makes you decide if an English dub? For me, it needs to be accurate. I honestly can't consider their "reversionings" as "Dragon Ball". I mean, if you change the dialogue the author wrote, then it's not really the same thing anymore (not that I'm saying animated adaptions aren't different from the comics).

[geektacular]

What makes you decide if an English dub (is good)? For me, it needs to be accurate. I honestly can't consider their "reversionings" as "Dragon Ball". I mean, if you change the dialogue the author wrote, then it's not really the same thing anymore (not that I'm saying animated adaptions aren't different from the comics).

I understand that reasoning, for sure. I don't really care to get into an extensive debate on that particular topic, but suffice it to say that I'm one of those people who is okay with some revision during translation. It doesn't really bother me, personally. As long as the feeling of the story remains in tact and the voice acting is of a good quality, then I generally have no qualms. I respect the original Japanese dialog and the English dub both as different entities.

Also, as I mentioned, I kind of wanted the more popular North American experience to begin with, similar to others I know who have seen DB/Z/GT on TV, etc. in the US. Thus, I decided to watch it in the "Typical 'Merican!" way first. I'm glad that the DVDs also all contain the original Japanese audio, as I'll likely go back and partake in that at some point as well (in addition to the manga too, hopefully).

[linkdude20002001]

Aw... No debate? Hahaha. Just kidding. I get enough of that with my friend Dakota everytime we talk about anything related to Japanese cartoons.
Anyways, as long as you like a version of Dragon Ball, then you're cool as far as I'm concerned.

Just don't be like this one guy I knew that would yell at me every time I pronounced things "incorrectly" from how they were pronounced in Funimation's English reversioning (goh-koo instead of goh-koo, sahy-yuhn instead of sey-yuhn, bool-mah instead of bul-muh, vee-del instead of vih-del).

And then things like "Invincible Old Master" instead of "Master Roshi", "Kaioh" instead of "King King", "God" instead of "Kami" would bother him too.

[geektacular]

Aw... No debate? Hahaha. Just kidding. I get enough of that with my friend Dakota everytime we talk about anything related to Japanese cartoons.
Anyways, as long as you like a version of Dragon Ball, then you're cool as far as I'm concerned.

Just don't be like this one guy I knew that would yell at me every time I pronounced things "incorrectly" from how they were pronounced in Funimation's English reversioning (goh-koo instead of goh-koo, sahy-yuhn instead of sey-yuhn, bool-mah instead of bul-muh, vee-del instead of vih-del).

And then things like "Invincible Old Master" instead of "Master Roshi", "Kaioh" instead of "King King", "God" instead of "Kami" would bother him too.

Hehe, that is a good tip. I vow to respect the Japanese verbiage so help me Kami (err, I mean...God)!

[linkdude20002001]

Yay! Haha. I never understood why they would only semi-translate titles like that.

"Kaioh" means "Lord (or King) of Worlds", "Fortuneteller Baba" is actually "All-Seeing Crone" or "Fortunetelling Hag" (something to that effect), and then you've got "Master Roshi" which when fully translated means "Master Master"... In Japanese he's "Muten Rōshi". They translated Rōshi (Old Master), but not Muten...then they kept in they already translated word... >_>

Hmm... I wonder if you'll be able to finish DBGT. I couldn't get through the Dark Dragon Ball arc (wait, aren't they called "the Ultimate Dragon Balls" in the show itself?). Hahaha.

[JP6GAMER]

Hmm... I wonder if you'll be able to finish DBGT. I couldn't get through the Dark Dragon Ball arc (wait, aren't they called "the Ultimate Dragon Balls" in the show itself?). Hahaha.

Was it too crappy for you?