Customer Reviews

Dragon Ball Z - The Saiyan Conflict (Boxed Set I - Episodes 1-25)

5 star:		(71)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(12)

 

 

Dragonball Z is the best anime ever. However I was a bit dissapointed to see that all the episodes are edited and even if you buy the uncut videos it still isnt as good as the original. Despite that this saga is one of the best. It starts off with Raditz, Gokus older brother, coming to earth to find him. But he ends up fighting Goku and Piccolo. Raditz tells them that Vegeta and Nappa will come for the Dragonballs. So all of the Z warriors train for them. When they arrive on earth the action starts. The fight with Nappa, Piccolo, and Krillen is great. The best part is where Goku comes and Vegeta goes mad because Goku has a really high power level and the fact that he takes Nappa out. The fight with Goku and Vegeta is also very good and it makes you want to see the next episode. This is worth buying!

I love this whole series so I'm hard-pressed to say anything negative about it...but. The Saiyan Conflict is the opening of DragonBall Z. This series really should have been offered uncut and included the original Japanese language versions. In some ways, the editing and the occasionally sappy (not to mention inaccurate) English translations change the characters' personalities and some of the finer (and not-so-fine) points of the story itself. OK, the violence of the uncut versions can be intense even for us elders (I'm a mom) but let's not miss the point, either. Some of the most important and emotional interactions were cut out. I had to fill in the gaps with fansubs and Japanese websites. I would have given a solid 5 stars to some of these episodes if they were uncut and the original was included as I would some of the Frieza DVD's and many others, but in this case the editing took an edgy, interesting story filled with diverse and complex characters and turned it into a somewhat bland little kid's cartoon. Overall, I wouldn't have missed it, though I would've saved the money and watched it on Cartoon Network. If the uncut version comes out with the original included, I'd buy it.

INTRO: To put it simply, I do not know why this is still being sold. This DVD set was released by Pioneer when they originally had the rights to DBZ. They edited the series so bad that its down below an average kid's level of watching. This DVD set contains English-only episodes without the original Japanese audio tracks, so don't bother with it if you are a Dragon Ball Z otaku. Normally I would go into detail about the DVDs but why bother in this case?

SUGGESTION: Toei in Japan is planning on releasing the original Dragon Ball Z episodes on DVD in mid 2003 and will be in two complete DVD box sets. Each box set will contain 26 discs and split the series in half. Whether or not they will have english at all on the dvds is too far to tell right now. Each box set will cost a whopping 850$ though, so it might turn off some buyers. My suggestion if you're not willing to shell out 1000$+ for DBZ on DVD at once, just buy the US DVDs, they have unedited versions of the original Japanese episodes as well as the new English version. Also, FUNimation (the new holder of DBZ in america), has obtained the rights to do the first saga of DBZ over and uncut (fixing what Pioneer did). So hopefully this little suggestion essay wasn't too confusing. Well, good luck!

I have to say first that, like many things, my friend reccomended this to me and I was extremely skeptical. "I don't know...Isn't DBZ for little kids?" I questioned. Finally I watched it, got the hang of it, and was glued to the screen. I loved the Saiyan Saga. For a cartoon, it's quite well done. At first what may seem like cheesy dialogue leads into superb, gripping action followed by dramatic emotional scenes which aid in character development. While I noticed they refer to death as "moving to the next dimension". This does not detract from the experience, but simply gives you a different way of looking at death. The good guys are heroic yet human, making it easy to relate to their inner turmoil. But the bad guys blew me away. When you hate them, that's the sign of a good film When you actually can find yourself able to see from their perspective and realize why they commit their evil deeds, that's the sign of a godly film. A stependous mixture of action and drama and humor, this set is a perfect addition to anyone's collection--not just anime lovers.

Unless you're looking for exactly what you saw on Cartoon Network, then don't buy this. It's censored just as much, and contains absolutely no extras.

Not what I expected to see at all, instead of viewing one of the greatest anime of all time, I saw what is a disgrace to any true otaku. All this box set brings is hours of dubbed anime. Though, this should be obvious to any anime lover when they see the rating (G). I just know there's no way in hell that the true DBZ could be rated (G) in America.

I saw this first part to the brilliant series on UK tv. I never thought how brutal these people were to it, I read somewhere that they edited so much outof this version they cut out about 20 episodes of footage! Wait for the Uncut Special Editions to all come out, I will!

I have to somewhat agree with what most people are saying about the unedited blah, blah, blah....grumble grumble, blah, blah, blah. That said, most people seeing these now have to realize this show was edited and intended for kids when it was first released in the US, like the Transformers was in the 80's; it was toned down to reach a wider audience and television then hadn't begun to allow the incredible crassness most people are used to nowadays. What needs to be appreciated here is the quality of voice talent and sound. Though the all-around audio and special effects of the newer "Funimation only" (after the series lost it's Pioneer counterpart) eventually picked up, the voice acting remained terrible. I mean, Sean Schemmel, who does the voice of Goku in the newer episodes after Pioneer stopped producing them, sounds monotonous when he talks and as if he's trying to have a bowel movement that he's pent up for a week when he does Goku's powering up. None of the other new voice actors have much talent either. Although I know this is all opinion, I must at least implore people reading this review to at least compare the voices and original music/sound on youtube if nothing else before they completely dismiss these older US versions of the show.

What I can't stand the most is the fact that Funimation went back and redubbed all the Saiyan Conflict and Namek Saga with all the new voices, and though they included much that was left out when Pioneer and Funimation were working together, they also destroyed the only good piece of US Dragonball Z that was left. Meaning now...most people will never get to experience Brian Drummond's amazing Vegeta voice over along with any of the other original voice talents. Instead they will get voices from people who sound like they took acting lessons from Ben Stein.

Alas, because Dragonball Z didn't pick up in the US until after Pioneer stopped producing it, people will have to venture to other anime series such as Gundam Wing to experience a lot of the lost talent. Scott McNeil (Duo, Gundam Wing/Piccolo, Dragonball Z) and Brian Drummond (Zechs Marquise, Gundam Wing/Vegeta, Dragonball Z) just to name a couple.

Either way, I recommend just buying the new "Seasons" Funimation has been producing as of late for a reasonable price and watching the original Japanese versions with the English subtitles because, Pioneer or no Pioneer, these versions will always remain the best.

Well in this 8 box set has the best fight scenes of all time in animation. The Saiyan Saga was one of the best sagas of DBZ since it tells the story of Goku's past. I'm like a big fan and when it comes down to choose the best saga I have to pick the Saiyan Saga or The Cell Games.

After being a DBZ fan for quite some time, I finally decided to get the videos, and I must say, I LOVE them. You no longer need to bother with commercials and such... these videos will rock your world.