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HISTORY OF DRAGONBALL
In 1993 Dragonball made its first
official appearance in the US. It came in the form of the very first Dragonball feature movie. In 1996, Dragonball resurfaced, but the produces knew
that the real action would not be at Dragonball, but at DragonballZ. So
the following year DragonballZ was introduced to American audiences super
charged and ready for consumption. Sadly however its ratings were not good
as it was shown at 5:00 am in the morning. You wonder why it didn't do well!
But in 1998 Cartoon Network began to air the show in the afternoon and as
many of you know the rest is history.
As Dragonball begins it's romp in the United States, it has long ended at
the place were it all began: in the land of the rising sun (for all who
don't understand, its Japan). Dragon ball is the long running serialized
Manga created by Akira Toriyama in 1984. The story began as a comedy based
on the popular Chinese legend "The Monkey King". In the beginning, Dragon
ball was much like Toriyama's earlier stories (ie: Dr. Slump) filled with
its "toilet" humor and silly antics. But as the story progressed it evolved
into a adventurous, action packed, character motivated phenomenon, the likes
which no one has ever seen. With 508 episodes, it has become a world wide
phenomenon!
DRAGON BALL
Number of episodes: 153
Dates first aired in Japan: Feb 1986-April 1989
Main Characters: Goku, Bulma, Olong, Krillin, Yamcha, Puar and Master Roshi.
This is where it all
begins. The story starts with Goku at 12 when he first meets Bulma and is
introduced to the legend of the Dragonballs: who ever gets all seven Dragon
balls will have their wish granted by Shenron, the Dragon who resides within
the balls. As Goku goes along his adventure he meets other characters such
as Master Roshi, Krillin and others.
Number of episodes: 276
Dates first aired in Japan: April 1989-Feb 1996
Main Characters: Goku, Vegita, Gohan, Piccolo, Trunks, Krillin, Yamcha, and
Tein-Shinhan.
Part 2 of the Dragonball madness,
this story starts when Goku is an adult and introduces him to
his Saiyan origin. The main theme of Dragon ball Z is fighting although it
still retains aspects of the humor and adventure from the previous Dragonball series.
Characters develop as they grow, mature, and some even have
children! Many of Goku's former enemies become his friend they band together
to fight greater evils along the way.
Number of episodes: 64
Date first aired in Japan: Feb 1996-Feb 1997
Main Characters: Goku, Pan, Trunks.
After the Buu saga
ended in Dragon ball Z, Toriyama wanted to end the series and start on
another project. However Toei, the animation company wanted to continue the
Dragon ball series. Hence without Dragonball's main man, they developed a
new series called Dragonball GT "Grand Tour." The story focuses on Goku,
Pan and Trunks as they travel the galaxy in search of the universal black
star Dragon balls. When the series started, it went back to a similar
environment like Dragonball with humor and simplicity in mind. That proved
un popular among fans. As such they went back to the old "beat or be beat"
type of series fans so much adored.
