The nature of Goku is irrepressible!!Ĭlearly, this kodomo has some strange stuff going on, and you’ll discover his secrets as the series progresses.
He’s based heavily on the legendary Monkey King from the Chinese novel Journey to the West, both possessing incredible strength, a magical staff, the ability to ride clouds, and a monkey tail to boot.
Which is handy, because he’s affable, likeable and often hilarious. Right from the get go, Goku is established as the most important character in the adventures to come. To be honest, I really didn’t want to type the words ‘Dragon Ball’ that many times anyway.
In the interest of readability, we’ll refer to each individual series as DB, Z, GT and Super from here on. We’ll come back to the subject of canon in a bit. It is based on the manga of the same name by Toriyama and Toyotarou, and as such, is considered to be canon to the overarching timeline. The most recent iteration, Dragon Ball Super, sits neatly within Dragon Ball Z’s continuity, adding more content right before its epilogue. He did come up with the snappy title, though! The events of this series are not based on Toriyama’s manga, and Toriyama himself had no involvement beyond creating some of the initial designs. The next series created was Dragon Ball GT, which takes place several years after Dragon Ball Z’s conclusion and acts as something of a reset to Goku’s dizzying power.Īfter a rogue wish turns him back into a child, he teams up with his granddaughter to obtain a new form of Dragon Balls and set things back into place. Its success led to multiple movies, a ton of games and merchandise, alongside more memes than you could shake a power pole at. Now in his adulthood, Goku’s origins are unveiled, and the results of his battles have the entire planet at stake. This is succeeded, of course, by Dragon Ball Z - the series that truly spawned a global phenomenon. His quiet, simple life of solitude is upended one day when he first meets Bulma, who enlists him on her mission to collect the Dragon Balls.Īlong the way, they meet a fantastic group of friends and foes, and Goku acquires training and techniques that increase his power beyond what he had ever imagined. The original series, Dragon Ball, begins with Goku as a child. An English dub arrived as early as 1989, but it wasn’t until the late 90s that the franchise picked up major traction in the west. It was initially created as a manga by Akira Toriyama in 1984, and an anime adaptation premiered two years later. Many of the story arcs are centred around the eponymous Dragon Balls - seven orbs that, when collected, can summon a dragon that will grant one wish. Don’t worry, before long you’ll become familiar with the wars of the Saiyans, Namekians and lousy humans.ĭragon Ball follows the exploits of Son Goku, a free-spirited warrior with unfathomable power and a mysterious past. Each of the anime iterations offers something a little different, and though its duration may seem intimidating at first, it’s actually quite accessible and easy to enjoy.Įspecially because your friends at AnimeLab have lovingly prepared this primer to help newcomers get an idea of what to expect. If that’s the case, or even if you just need a refresher, you’re in for a real treat. If you’re here, you surely know at least a little bit about it.īut maybe you never took the opportunity to give it a try, and you’re keen to start. Make no mistake, the Dragon Ball franchise is an institution in Japanese culture.Ī beloved manga that spawned multiple anime series, an entire generation has grown up with the tales of Goku and his friends.