Customer Reviews

Dragon Ball Z, Volume 1 (Dragon Ball Z (Viz Paperback))

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This series is an exqusite work of art, and Viz Communications is doing an excellent job with their production! The nature of this manga is action and adventure. While the framework is rather simple, and the drawings a cartoony style, the expressionism is delivered in a BANG-O! In this story, the main character, Goku discovers his true past when his evil brother, Raditz, arrives from outer space. What secrets shall be revealed in this tale? Purchse this product and read to find out. Whether you are a newcomer or DBZ veteran, this production is a sheer delight!

I'm a big fan of DB/DBZ and I just loved this book. Toriyama is the master of all the mangas ever! Viz have done a great decision by releasing the DB/DBZ books in their original reading format (Right to Left). The story is interesting, the fighting scenes have never seemed more fast-moving action-packed than in any comic book (Graphic Novel..!) I have seen, Toriyama knows the job and he does it well, his drawings are far more than well, they're huge!!! The only problem that bothered me is (not Toriyama..) the translation of Viz, words like "to", "the" and "him" are replaced with a "shortcut"(?) like "t'", "th'" and "'im", a small problem, it doesn't matter much but it's a bit annoying. besides that, Viz have done a great work in the overall, and so did Toriyama, the king. I reccomend this book to everyone, it has all in one - Comedy, Drama, Action and all the other genres that I don't know. For you DBZ fans who already seen the TV show, you havn't seen anything if you didn't see the original thing.

First off, I would like to say, the reason its backwards, is because thats how they read over there. DragonBallZ is an awesome story all the way to Buu. The Sagas have awesome fights(especially uncut). This book is really great because we get to learn where Gokou came from, and you also get a little taste of Gohans'(my favorite)power.A great buy for the Casual or hardcore DBZ fan.

Dragon Ball Z Volume 1 published by Viz is in my opininon a great book, of course thats not suprising since it's by Akira Toriyama one of the greatest ever. This book tells of the beginning of Dragon Ball Z (which takes place 5 years after the original Dragon Ball). It explains many things to come and gives answers to some of the mysteries of Dragon Ball at the same time kicking off one of the greatest Manga series ever to be made. It starts off with an Alien named raditz coming to Earth and seeking out his long lost brother named Kakarot (Kakarot is the one we know as our hero Goku) ands winds up with huge twists and finishes with a Battle for the ages. Any true Toriyama should own this book. Two enthusiasic thumbs up from a Dragon Ball z fanatic! A definite score!

In Japan the comic came before the show, so this isn't cheap mechantdice. In fact, it's way better than the show, even though the plot is exactly the same. Why? Becuase the translation is not cut, it still has sex jokes and blood, plus the words are much smoother. The charcters talk like normal people, and each has the own speech style. Piccolo talks like a king, while goku is kinda hick. And compare translations.
This is a real scene from teh DBZ Freiza Saga:
Funimation Dubbing:
Vegeta: What is that THING?
Gohan: A watch
Vegeta: Mighty clunky to be a watch

Viz on the other hand translates much more smoothly with each
character having there own way of talking.
(Piccolo and Vegeta both sound royal, while Goku is a little hick)
Viz manga translation:
Vegeta: What's that in your hand, WHELP!?
Gohan: It's a wattcch, sir.
Vegeta: Heh...Earthlings! Just smart enough to find their way across
space...but not smart enough to make a watch smaller than that!

I loved this manga edition! It is very carefully drawn by the talented Akira Toriyama himself. This is an important edition because it introduces you to the more mature versions of the Dragonball gang that we all know and love. All in all, this is definetly worth the read!

This volume's great, as is pretty much anythihng from Viz. One strange thing though, is that the translation is a bit funky; not quite as on-target as Dragonball (as in before Z). The art is great as always, the story is on the level you'd expect (not very deep, but engrossing, fast-moving, and action-packed): When Raditz comes to earth, he, after telling Goku of his true origins, threatens to kill his son unless Goku himself kills 100 people, and hauls all their bodies to the spot where they met. Mostly Raditz did this because he was peeved that Goku had forgotten his true mission which he was to carry out on Earth, which was to destroy it. But, anyhow, Goku just can't bring himself to slaughter innocents, so he and Piccolo team up to try to defeat Raditz, and get back Gohan...The batlle is well-orchestrated, and is definately the highlight. I'd give this 4.5 stars, more exactly, but I gave it 5 to boost it's overall rating...>:@Bwahaha...........

When I read through the reviews I noticed that one of them said to avoid the book because it was backwards. I own manga comic books published by Viz and it states right in the front cover (U.S front that is) that the comic is published with the Japanese format and it even has instructions on how to read the comic. It also states that most Japanese manga comics are flipped for easier reading BUT it involves reversing all of the pages. Many manga artists agree that the reversing process can distort pictures. You have to remember that the artist has probably put a little of their heart and soul into their work and to see it distorted can be painful. If you have trouble reading this type of book but still enjoy such art and stories, simply review the instructions on how to read it, take a pencil and lightly number the pictures before you settle down with your book. Please do not avoid books that use this format, you are missing out on some great artwork. As for this paticular manga, I have been a DBZ fan since I was fourteen years old and I still love the show and the manga. Mr. Toriyama has done a fantasic job of depicting the story of Goku and his many adventures. Don't miss out on this great story!

Personal note: You are never too old for cartoons. This is not really suited for young children either.

Viz Comics does a good job keeping the original Japanese format. It is unfortunate that anime like dbz is targeted towards kids when it is really for teenagers to adults. Due to this fact some of the funny and controversial humor has been removed as well as what the fighters really say to eachother. The manga by viz however is much better than the rendition produced on television by funimation. This book is for a true fan of dbz. The manga does differ slightly from the tv episodes (even the japanese ones) so that is why it is a good addition. It is a cheap alternative to buying all the dvds and individual manga as well. It also includes at the end all the covers for the manga which was a nice bonus.

BUY THIS MANGA!! I don't care if you just got into anime or manga or if you know all there is to know about dbz! This entire series of manga, Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z is great!! Plus, your aren't going to find it much cheaper here in the U.S.