The Spawn of Dragon Ball

April 11, 2009 – If this weekend's release of Dragonball: Evolution has left you in the mood to look up some similar manga and anime, we've rounded up some of the stories that followed in Dragon Ball's footsteps. Shônen manga, aka boys' manga (the #1 category in the unapologetically gender-targeted world of... More »

The Colorful Art of Dragon Ball

April 10, 2009 – Before there was Dragonball Evolution, there was Akira Toriyama's crisp, colorful art. His work seems taken from children's books rather than a gut-punching martial-arts tale, but incongruity is what makes his manga appealing. More »

What do Dragon Ball fans think of the live-action version?

April 8, 2009 – With any movie adaptation of a popular story, there are criticisms. One fairly thorough list of differences between the anime and manga is here. Here are some of the main points: * In the film, Goku is a semi-normal high school student, rather than a childish monkey-boy with a tail who lives... More »

What is Dragon Ball?

April 8, 2009 – In its original form, Dragon Ball is a manga (Japanese comic) written and drawn by Akira Toriyama from 1984 to 1995. Published by Shueisha, one of the three biggest Japanese publishers, it was the most popular series in Weekly Shônen Jump, a 400+ page comic anthology which features about 20... More »

So is it Science Fiction or Fantasy or What?

April 8, 2009 – The quick answer is: (1) yes, (2) both and (3) as long as your definition of "science fiction" isn't too particular. The world of Dragon Ball is full of high technology, most notably the convenient pocket-sized capsules (as seen in the trailer) which pop open into motorcycles, houses, guns or... More »

Isn’t Dragon Ball just a bunch of speedlines and ripped dudes with bad hair screaming “It’s over 9,000!”

April 8, 2009 – Yes. No. Sort of. Many of the stereotypes about Dragon Ball come not from the original manga but rather from the anime adaptations, particularly Dragon Ball Z. More »

What is Dragon Ball Z/Dragon Ball GT/Dragon Ball Kai/etc.?

April 8, 2009 – In Japan, the original manga is, and always has been, Dragon Ball. (The original Japanese title is the phonetic English words "Dragon Ball,.") However, when the series was optioned for TV, things got complicated. The original Japanese anime series, based on the manga, was also called Dragon Ball. More »

Bulma, Goku, Piccolo, Chichi – what’s up with the names?

April 8, 2009 – Silly names, usually involving foreign words, are a trademark of Japanese manga for children. It's sometimes easy to forget that Dragon Ball was originally printed in a magazine for junior high students (the average age of Weekly Shônen Jump readers is approximately 12-14). More »

What exactly are the Dragon Balls? (Minor Spoilers)

April 8, 2009 – The Dragon Balls are seven magic orbs about the size of baseballs, each with a number of tiny glowing stars in them, from one to seven. An ancient legend explains their powers: More »

Dragon Ball 101

April 8, 2009 – The movie Dragonball: Evolution opens Friday, and complaints among fans make the arguments about Watchmen look like nitpicks about Dr. Manhattan's genitals. More »

We Come from the Future
More Stories…