At AnimeNEXT 2004, we ran a panel entitled Dragon Ball: 20 Years of Fandom. It was a fun panel where we discussed all the latest merchandise coming out in Japan, went over a bunch of rumors, and had a general good time. We wanted to do another panel for 2005, but were not sure what we could do. Another general panel would not be very interesting, especially for those who had come the year before.
So how about combining information with things to watch? Presto!
Going through years’ worth of old VHS fansubs and raw videos, cleaning out the old CDs, finally getting those darn Japanese games to load again (and hitting up friends with the Dragon Box sets!), we were able to put together an awesome one-hour presentation of material new and old alike, which we entitled The DBZ You’ve Never Seen.
With this feature, we are going to take you through our panel with some text and images. We will not actually be putting up the video files, since those were the special perk of actually being able to attend the panel — but regardless, enjoy checking out some things you did not even know existed in the first place!
01: “Makafushigi Adobenchā!” (2nd animation)
Sometimes it makes the most sense to start at the beginning. Used from episodes 102 to 153, this is actually the second animation of the first TV series’ opening theme. FUNimation was not given this animation, and as such, used the first animation throughout their entire release of the series. For our presentation, we mixed in a stereo version of the song from a CD. What is neat about this animation is the shadowy Piccolo-Daimaō and some cool shots of other characters (Tenshinhan, Yamcha, Chiaotzu, Yajirobe, etc.).
SOURCE: Dragon Ball “Dragon Box” DVD set
02: Scene from Live Action Movie
Many a fan still does not know that a live action movie has been made, already! Made in Taiwan and released in 1989, this feature has actually been released in the US as Dragon Ball: The Magic Begins (originally titled Xin Qi long zhu Shen long de chuan shuo (“New Dragon Ball: The Legend of Shenlong”). The scene we chose to show is of the ever-lovable and ever-perverted Kame-Sen’nin. Amazingly, as cheap and hokey as this movie is, Kame-Sen’nin is probably the closest to the original character out of them all! He is absolutely insane, cannot wait to get laid, and… err… dances around…?
SOURCE: Dragon Ball: The Magic Begins American DVD Release
03: Commercial for Famicom Gaiden Game
It would not be one of our panels unless we got into the subject of the “OVA”. We started off our three-part explanation with a commercial for the original NES game that started it all, Dragon Ball Z Gaiden: Saiya-jin Zetsumetsu Keikaku (“Dragon Ball Z Side-Story: The Plan to Eradicate the Saiyans”). The game was released for the Nintendo Famicom in August 1993, and featured an exclusive new storyline featuring the return of a Tsufruian and his plan to enact revenge and exterminate all of the Saiyans.
SOURCE: Dragon Ball Z “Dragon Box” DVD set # 2
04: Opening to Famicom Gaiden Game
Taking it a step further, we also showed the opening sequence from the actual Famicom game! We took it a step further than that and even subtitled it. We see some rocks drifting out in space, and read a message from someone cursing the Saiyans for their own destruction. However, someone is willing to grant their wish for revenge…!
SOURCE: Dragon Ball Z Gaiden: Saiya-jin Zetsumetsu Keikaku Gekan NES Game
05: Scene from Gaiden “Official Visual Guide” VHS Release
We would not leave people hanging — if we were talking about this all-new storyline featuring some of their favorite villains, it would be absolutely cruel not to actually show them some of it! We did not disappoint. Not only did we show a clip, but we subtitled it, too! As you probably know from reading the respective section here on our site, after the Famicom game was released, two volumes were released to VHS in Japan as “Official Visual Guides” for the game, featuring full animation and voice acting from the original cast. Another year later, this footage was recycled for use in a remake of the original NES game for Bandai’s Playdia video game system (the game was released in two parts, in September and December of 1994). The scene we chose shows the arrival of Freeza and all the other movie villains (Coola, Slug, Tullece) to taunt our Earth heroes. Of course, we had to somewhat be jerks about it, and ended the clip just as the fighting began.
SOURCE: Dragon Ball Z “Dragon Box” DVD set # 1
06: Commercial for Super Gokū Den
Going into our segment on video games, we decided to show a couple of short commercials. First up was a commercial for the Super Famicom game Super Gokū Den. Why this commercial? Besides some awesome new animation to start of the commercial, it ends with Ginyu, Freeza, and Vegeta playing video games. It just does not get much better than that.
SOURCE: Dragon Ball Z “Dragon Box” DVD set # 2
07: Commercial for Shin Butōden
Shin Butōden was the powered-up version of Ultimate Battle 22 released for the Sega Saturn. The commercial begins with the faces of all the game’s characters moving into each other, as seen in one of the oldest DBZ animated GIFs I can remember seeing online, which is the reason this commercial is so notable.
SOURCE: DragonBall Z “Dragon Box” DVD set # 2
08: Opening to Idainaru Doragon Bōru Densetsu
Of the three PS1 games released in Japan, only two (Ultimate Battle 22 and Final Bout) ever made it to the United States. Easily the best of the three (and certainly one of the most interesting and innovative DBZ games ever released) was Idainaru Doragon Bōru Densetsu (“Mighty Dragon Ball Legend”), more commonly referred to as “Legends” by fans. Also unlike the other two PS1 games, this game’s opening sequence was mostly done in 3D, with the summoning of Porunga from the Dragon Balls.
SOURCE: Idainaru Doragon Bōru Densetsu; JP PS1
09: Commercial for Dragon Ball: Final Bout
Not even an awesomely epic Japanese commercial can make Final Bout look like a good game.
SOURCE: VHS of raw DBGT episodes taped from Japanese television in 1997
10: Opening to Dragon Ball: Final Bout
Final Bout may have been an awful game, but it had a pretty good opening sequence! Featuring all of the immediately-selectable characters in the game in an all-out brawl, the opening also showcased the vocal talents of Hironobu Kageyama. For some time, this would be the last item from the Dragon World that Kageyama would contribute to (it would not be until 2003 and the second Dragon Ball Z / Budokai game that we would hear him again). As such, it was quite notable. The vocal song was removed for the US release of the game, and replaced with a random rock-instrumental (which also did not contain any sound effects, unlike the original Japanese version).
SOURCE: Dragon Ball: Final Bout; JP PS1
11: Commercial for Dragon Ball Z 2
As mentioned, we thought Final Bout in 1997 would be the last time we ever heard from Hironobu Kageyama in the Dragon World. Shocking us all, in came Dragon Ball Z 2 / Budokai 2 in 2003 with an all-new vocal opening theme from the game himself! Featuring some interesting special effects and a snippet of the song, this short commercial for the video game aired on Japanese television.
SOURCE: Dragon Ball Z 3; JP PS2
12: Music video for “Kusuburu Heart ni Hi o Tsukero!!”
The dual-soundtrack for Dragon Ball Z & Dragon Ball Z 2 (Budokai & Budokai 2) came with a bonus DVD showcasing some music videos of game footage, and some behind-the-scenes of production for the game’s opening theme. The disc ends with a “music video” to the full-length version of the vocal theme, showcasing the talent of nearly everyone involved, including Hironobu Kageyama (vocals), Steve Lukather (guitar), Tower of Power (horns), and more!
SOURCE: Dragon Ball Z & DragonBall Z 2 OST
13: Commercial for DBZ Pogs
Remember how all those fans online tell you that DBZ is not meant for kids? If you ever want something to show them, here you go. Starting off a three-part showcase of commercials, here you have some DBZ Pogs! Collect them all!
SOURCE: Dragon Ball Z “Dragon Box” DVD set # 2
14: Commercial for DBZ Children’s Eyedrops
Only in Japan can you go swimming in a pool with the animated versions of Kuririn, Gohan, and Oolong. And hey, if you get some eye irritation, Goku will be there with the eyedrops to help you!
SOURCE: Dragon Ball Z “Dragon Box” DVD set # 2
15: Commercial for Koizumi DBZ Desk
Study hard to be a great scholar, just like Gohan! It has all sorts of compartments, a really neat (and extraordinarily small for Japanese children) chair, and… well, that is about it.
SOURCE: Dragon Ball Z “Dragon Box” DVD set # 2
16: Hyper Dragon Ball Anime (CG Short)
Created for an exhibition across Japan in 1993, this is a short (approximately three minutes) feature showcasing traditional 2D animation (some taken directly from the show and movies) mixed in with all-new 3D animation. The CG was done on the Silicon Graphics-brand Indigo Elan, and was quite advanced for its day! The production took three months to create. With some interesting music, characters fight (and dance!) in a style you have definitely never seen before.
SOURCE: Dragon Ball Z “Dragon Box” DVD set # 2
17: Scene from Dragon Ball Z Movie 12
Everyone in North America is looking forward to the official release of DBZ movie 12 — even the fanboys who have never seen it before cannot stop saying “Janenba!” everywhere you look! With this in mind, what better to show than a scene from this highly-anticipated movie? We also translated and subtitled the footage for our English-speaking audience. As before, we ended the clip just as the going gets good…! Look for DBZ Movie 12 to be released in the US from FUNimation sometime in 2006; no official date has been set yet.
SOURCE: Dragon Ball Z Movie 12 Original Japanese VHS
18: English Dub Comparison – Dragon Ball Z Episode 1
With the release of FUNimation’s “Ultimate Uncut Edition” beginning in 2005, we now have two completely different English dubs (from the same company!) of the first two seasons. If they were going back to re-dub the episodes, why would they not completely re-write the script? We have asked ourselves this question time and time again, as have so many other fans. Advertising this as “Ultimate” and “Uncut” is certainly a way to get attention (especially for releases that have technically already been out for ten years), but if you are a dub fan, you are really getting the short end of the stick. Far from being an “uncut” dub (in terms of dialogue and music), we set out to showcase a side-by-side comparison of a scene beginning with the original Japanese version, FUNimation’s English dub from 1995, and their re-dub from 2005. Before it began, I asked the audience to pay attention to Piccolo’s dialogue in both dub versions. The loud “WTF?!” reaction to hearing Piccolo say, “I have no interest in starting a fight!!” just cannot be duplicated in online writing. For more information, check out our previous feature.
SOURCE: Dragon Ball Z domestic DVD releases (Arrival [1999] & Saiyan Showdown [2005])
19: Early DBZ Extravaganza AMV
To conclude the panel — and simultaneously keep rocking with the spirit of fun and informative — we showed a music video I created exclusively for this panel at AnimeNEXT entitled “Early DBZ Extravaganza”. Set to The Entry of the Gladiators by Julius Fucik (the most generic and classic circus music you can think of), the video is a completely juvenile exercise in silliness: extreme violence, slapstick nudity, and just WEIRD stuff, all set to music! With a barrel of laughs we finished our panel!
SOURCE: Dragon Ball Z Episodes 001 to 067
Thank You!
And thus concluded our The DBZ You’ve Never Seen panel at AnimeNEXT 2005! We could have shown a ton of other things (other video game openings, commercials, dub comparisons, etc.), but alas, we had but only an hour. We would like to thank everyone who showed up Friday at the convention to check us out, and we hope you had an awesome time. See you all next year!