Visual Censorship: Guns turned into Lasers, Mr. Popos lips removed Gotens middle finger becomes a fist

Granted that both the manga and anime of DBZ was actually a continuation of Son Goku’s journey who started off as a monkey-tailed boy living in the wilderness, as a late bloomer to reading manga, I felt now is the time to Toriyama’s story that was originally serialized in Weekly Shōnen Jump magazine. When he meets the teenager Bulma – the first girl he has ever seen – Goku is recruited as her bodyguard to travel and find the wish-granting Dragon Balls. From its first chapter, Toriyama sets up the Journey to the West-inspired premise, the two unlikely protagonists and their dynamic that is, let’s say, dysfunctional. La calidad del dibujo es muy buena, creo que incluso es algo superior a otros mangas que he podido ver. Así que no solo es sencillo seguir la trama, sino que es un gusto hacerlo. Vol. 1: The Monkey King (1985) - I know absolutely nothing about Dragonball going into this. Since I read so much manga now I thought it would be good to introduce myself to some old school popular series and decided to give this a shot. I found this first volume absolutely hilarious and such a fun, compelling story with so much happening. Goku is so cute and naive that I loved him right away and the shots of him without his pants on are a riot because he looks like a toddler, even though he is 14 but soo unworldly. The interaction between him and Bulma is also a riot as he learns the difference between boys and girls. Lots of sexual innuendo but of the pre-adolescent variety that is was all just silly fun. The plot was also fun with all 5 main characters being introduced in this volume and them finding 5 (I think) of the 7 dragonballs. I had no idea what the plot was going to be going into this and was quite amused to get almost a whole quest just from this first volume. I have to say I did not expect to enjoy this as much as I did and am eager to read Vol. 2! (5/5) Dragon Ball was inspired by the classical Chinese novel, Journey to the West (or ‘Monkey’), attributed to Wu Cheng'en. In Journey to the West, the almost-invincible Monkey and his motley crew of friends travel (west) to India to seek sacred Buddhist sūtras and return after many adventures, trials and much suffering. Dragon Ball tells of the adventures of the almost-invincible monkey-tailed Son Goku and his own motley crew of friends, as he grows from childhood through to adulthood, trains in martial arts and searches for seven orbs known as the Dragon Balls which, when gathered, summon a dragon who will grant one wish.La historia es buena, pese a que ya todos la conocemos la verdad me da gusto encontrar detalles que fueron censurados en el ánime. Hay que mencionar que este tipo de publicaciones no serían bien vistas hoy en día, (vamos, que el Manga rompe la cuarta pared y se burla de su propia vulgaridad). Pero yo soy de mente bastante abierta, así que... What I liked: All three stories connect. Especially the first two arcs (volumes) is all about fun goofy adventures with Goku and crew. I really love the crude toilet type humor. It works so well. Also Goku being so innocent makes him the best burn master of all time. I also loved the simple art that still is memorable to this day. However, the final part is actually my favorite. When Goku meets Krillian and they have to work together training with their new Master Roshi. It's both entertaining and a bit more serious tone. After training they start the first tournament. Yes, it's filled with a guy who uses his pubic hairs/smell to beat people. It's insane and fun and honestly makes me love this series even more.

Vol. 2: Wish Upon a Dragon (1986) - Just what I had hoped for, more of the same. Lots of action, plenty of plot and characters. A few new ones are added who seem to be the type we'll see again in the future. The final dragonballs are found ending our first quest. However that doesn't mean all goes quite as planned leaving only one person pleased when all is said and done. Now they must wait a year for the dragonballs to be ready again so they can search them out and everyone has their own ideas and plans for what they will do. As for Goku, he is off to find The Invincible Old Master to finally start his promised training but he has to bring a treat for the old "pervert". Just as laugh out loud funny and I really enjoy all the main characters but especially Goku and Bulma. The monsters battled to date have all turned out to be quite interesting themselves as well. One more volume to go in this fun collection. (5/5) I can't help but be very disappointed with this book. My kids are fans of Dragon Ball Super, I grew up on Dragon Ball Z but never got round to watching the original. After reading the beginning I was glad I missed it. It was not till issue 14 that anything I liked from the series was even shown. Still good! Simple, shallow fun ( even with this much poop humor or panties ), is something I crave once in a while (especially, while or after reading something heavier).Dialogue: Mr. Satan is still called "H u r c u le" and all Sating (such as Satan City remain censored) It's also amazing how modern this story feels, considering that it is nearly FOURTY years old. If I were new to the series and you told me that this had just came out, it wouldn't be a stretch to believe it. I think that just proves how influential it is. So we're about half way through dragon ball and this is still the weaker part of it. Don't worry though, after this we getting into some good ass shit! Speaking of Goku, once he’s finally healed, he does not hesitate as he swiftly flies into the battlefield. Before his fight with Freeza, Goku shows some sympathy towards the defeated Vegeta and for the first time, seems to embrace his part as a Saiyan. He will always be Goku as he still has his quips when facing off against Freeza, who is now his final elegant form. What became the longest fight in the TV adaptation of DBZ, the Goku versus Freeza fight in the source material has been just as iconic, with every chapter giving us something new as these two super-powered figures are equal in strength, so the outcome can go either way. Based on the front cover, you notice that Goku goes his own transformation as we finally get the Super Saiyan and is glorious as he looks bad-ass and ditches the quips.

As Goku, Bulma and Kuririn travel across the world to find the seven Dragon Balls, they have other things to worry about, such as being hunted by General Blue of the Red Ribbon Army, who is also trying to gain the Dragon Balls for what we assume was for world conquest, only to be revealed later that its leader Commander Red wants to wish for something personal and frankly silly, in typical Toriyama comedy form.

Table of Contents

What makes this fight legendary is how big and massive, and how dire it all is, compared to most fights in this series. While the last one was great, this is the one to really hit when it comes to Goku and everyone else's life on the line. Not to mention this is the arrival of the Super Saiyan form, which is legendary in itself. The brutal fight is about to reach it's exciting climax when the volume ends right before the fight. Really annoyed at that. The first two-thirds of this title is taken up by the quest for the dragon balls, which is based very loosely on a classic Chinese novel, Journey to the West. As Goku and Bulma gather the dragon balls, they are joined by Oolong, the transforming pig, and the desert thief Yamcha and his companion Pu’ar, who can also transform. They also meet a lot of interesting characters: Kame Sen’nin, the Turtle Hermit, Gyu-Mao, Lord of Fry Pan Mountain, and the self-proclaimed Emperor Pilaf and his henchmen, who are also after the dragon balls. The quest ends happily, but not quite the way anyone expected. The last third of the book follows Goku as he goes to train with the Turtle Hermit and is joined by Kuririn, who also wants to train with Kame Sen’nin. Their training is made up of the mundane task of delivering milk, made difficult by having to cross alligator-infested rivers and outrun dinosaurs. They do so well, though, that they are allowed to enter in a famous fighting tournament.

Es bastante gracioso. En particular la mancuerna Son Goku—Bulma, y por supuesto el Maestro Roshi me sacar carcajadas (hablando de forma literal) y eso es poco común en este tipo de productos, así es claro que es un punto a favor. Opening this volume with Goten and Trunks fighting each other as finalists in the youth division of the 25th Tenka'ichi Budōkai reminds you of the early years of Dragon Ball when Goku and Kuririn were young buddies that were doing the same thing in the tournament years ago. The fight between the two half-Saiyans is cute and funny, but still as impactful as you would expect from Akira Toriyama. This is a nice palette cleanser – especially when the winner Trunks easily takes down the most annoying character, Hercule, in a publicised sparring match – before the next big arc begins. Great manga. After watching the show my entire life and finally reading the manga, It does a great job of telling the story in much greater depth. There are a few exchanges between characters where goku uses "americanized terms" that do not seem like it would be used by Toriyama? Then again, my first time reading the mangas, so I cannot say if this version truly is unedited. Regardless, I would recommend getting these mangas for any Dragon Ball fan. Cheap, and a great read.What I liked: Volume 8 as a whole is super fun, super serious at times, and really well done. Goku fights off against his strongest opponent yet. This bastard kills Goku's friend and then leaves Goku for dead. The little monkey boy uses his skills to climb the tower and become even stronger! It's a lot of fun and the end of this arc where Goku just destroys the red ribbon army made me happy and say "FINALLY!" lol. Also Bulma's BOOBS = 10/10. What I didn't like: Volume 7 and 9 had similar issues. A little too silly at times. A little TOO over the top with the jokes. Also weak main storyline. No risk, no worry, just know Goku will beat everyone and all will be good. Atleast volume 8 made you feel like he might lose for a bit. As Gohan and Kuririn are told by Goku to retreat, we come to the fight we’ve all been waiting for: Goku versus Vegeta, marking the start of a long-running rivalry that is at the heart of DBZ. By this point, it is simply good versus evil as Goku is fighting to protect the Earth, whilst Vegeta arrogantly believes his noble blood is what makes him superior to everyone else, especially when it comes to strength. The fight between these two is one for the ages as Toriyama’s illustrated action, you feel the pain that the characters go through, whilst the anticipation keeps ramping up as Goku and Vegeta are just unleashing special move after special move against each other. Legend has it that if all seven of the precious orbs called “Dragon Balls” are gathered together, an incredibly powerful dragon god will appear to grant one wish. Unfortunately, the orbs are scattered across the world, making them extremely difficult to collect. Enter 16-year-old Bulma, a scientific genius who has constructed a radar to detect the exact locations of the Dragon Balls. She’s on a mission to find all seven orbs, but first she must convince young Son Goku to join her on her quest. With a monkey tail, superhuman strength and a magic staff for a weapon, Son Goku is ready to set out on the adventure of a lifetime…