January 31, 2003 - Arghh... damnit, I want my Dragonball AF!!!

By The Critic
unrivaled.info

I remember when I got my first Dragonball Z fansub back in 1993. I always read how great Dragonball was in the issues of Electronic Gaming Monthly when they would cover import games. Back then, a magazine like EGM mentioning a anime title was golden; it had to be good. So one day I decide to check this anime out. To be perfectly honest back then I wasn't really into anime too much. Although did I have my Fist of the North Star and Akira videos on hand, anime was more of a niche for me. I like a handful titles and it was only the best I considered worth watching. So this "Dragonball" had to be killer since everyone was talking about it. Was it better than the gushing blood in North Star or the silky smooth animation in Akira? I had to find out. I went to a local video rental store called Kim's Videos in New York City where they would sell bootleg fansub anime tapes. There I found one Dragonball Z fansub with only two episodes on it. The tape was labeled episodes 188 and 189 but it actually had episodes 178 and 179 (the second or third episode of Goku VS Perfect Cell in the Cell games). Yeah, you could imagine my reaction when I first put this tape in my VCR. The rest is history and I've been hooked on Dragonball ever since.

Since that time Dragonball Z has become a pop phenom here in the states. Funimation finally  licensed and released Dragonball Z in 1997. Although it had a slow start due to the fact that it was airing in limited location at 5am on Sunday mornings (I actually woke up and watched each episode till it was canceled, and they didn't even show all the available episodes ....! >_<), it finally picked up steam after being repeatedly airing weekday afternoons on Cartoon Network in 1998. Drones of fans quickly flocked to popular Dragonball sites in the tens of thousands, literally! I remember Planet Namek logging over 20000 hits daily (Unrivaled Dragonball didn't quite reach that level, but 15000 wasn't too shabby eh?). Although Dragonball Z  is still talked about among many today, it's popularity has waned since Cartoon Network aired its last episode early 2003. And with Dragonball GT failing to fill the void, Many fans are left wondering what else out is there.

Come on admit it, you are one of those fans and have seen every Funimation Dragonball Z  episodes dub in existence. Hungry for more aren't you? Dragonball GT sucks, and there is no, nor will there ever be a Dragonball AF. It's been quite a while since I've seen anything match the popularity of Dragonball Z which bring us to the question we've all been asking: what is the next BIG thing from Japan? There are many titles in Japan that may be able to fit those big shoes that were once filled by Toriyama's work. But is there anything that could continue the momentum? Push the limit of fans imagination? Reach a power level higher than Super Saiya-jin Goku 4?! Here we look at the potential titles that could very well accomplish this, in no particular order.

Ruroni Kenshin: Nobuhiro Watsuki's Kenshin has been popular among otaku fans for years; it's an excellent series with incredible art, animation, voice acting and stories. I could argue it's better than Dragonball Z, but there are a few things that prevent Kenshin from reaching Dragonball's popularity. For one, only two of the 3 manga arcs were animated as they left out possibly the best arc of them all (the last Jinchuu arc). Two, the heavily ingrained Japanese historical culture threaded into the anime hurts its cause, alienation many mainstream U.S. fans. Three, the English voice dub by Media Blasters was horrible; it’s a wonder it did any good on Cartoon Network (their Japanese sub is superb however). And finally, it just too short; Dragonball Z spanned over 295 episodes, while Kenshin only lasted a meager 95 episodes. Had Fuji TV finished animating the third arc, I would hail Kenshin as the best anime and manga series EVER, but because it’s incomplete, I don’t consider it a contender to becoming as popular as Dragonball Z.

Naruto: Naruto has certainly caused up a big stir within the otaku community and rightfully so. The story is well done; it's good enough in the begining to keep the casual reader interested. But what sets this series apart from the rest is the progression of the main characters. Masashi Kishimoto was very smart with the way he laid out the groundwork for each character to bloom beautify in their own way, and this works very well, with a good story to boot! Naruto is a big hit and has currently replaced Dragonball as the most popular anime title in the US. My only grip with this series is the quality of the anime. I started following Naruto from the anime since I didn’t bother to follow the bootleg scans available on the web. I didn’t realize how bad the art in the anime is at times however, until after getting my hands on un-translated tankobans printed in Japan. Let get this point out the away: the manga's art will always be supreme to the anime's art in every respect. It's always that way, even with the best anime titles out there. But that is not what I'm talking about here. All long running TV anime series have lower quality sequences in them as the animation studio needs to budget the whole production. But in Naruto's case it's so bad, the charm of the author's art is often lost through the translation (and I'm not talking about the animation in general, it’s the artwork of the Cels; you really begin to see the quality dip during the Chunin exams). Sometime I don’t know if whether I'm watching Naruto or The Simpsons! Okay okay, I'm exaggerating a bit but for me to even think of the comparison is horrible, especially since Naruto is such an awesome title. While I do sometimes notice this type of discrepancy in other top animes such as One Piece, Dragonball and Kenshin, it's not nearly as bad as I see it in Naruto. Don’t get me wrong: I really don’t think this will affect the title's popularity. I presume Naruto will continue to air in Japan till next year and will be licensed in the US soon. For me the anime is simply a vehicle to promote the series... Despite my opinion on the anime, Naruto's popularity will continue to soar.

One Piece: When Funimation announced the licensing of One Piece back in 2002, many people dubbed it as the next big thing from Funimation since 1) its popularity in Japan is well established and 2) Funimation has the resources to churn out 50 episodes per year. That talk slowly died as it became apparent Funimation did not "really" have the rights to the anime (and we broke this story back in July of 2003). Although the manga has been received well in the U.S. ala Shonen Jump USA, One Piece has become an anime with limited popularity below the likes of Dragonball, Naruto, Yu Gi Oh and Shaman King. One Piece whips the hell out of Yu Gi Oh and Shaman King and competes well with Naruto and Dragonball so what the hell is wrong. The anime and manga are both stellar but its comedic/pirate theme will throw most casual fans off. So for One Piece to really take off here in the states, the anime needs to be licensed by the right company who has the power to promote the title and produce it properly. If that happens I believe One Piece will really do well here, and in the long run beat out Naruto. Call me crazy if you will: Naruto is one hell of a title, but One Piece is slightly better (that’s right I said it, so what)!

Shaman King: Since 4Kids licensed and released the Shaman King anime here in the US, it has become popular among the youth; the same generation of fans who like the butchered Yu Gi Ho and Sonic X anime. I've enjoyed reading both the manga in Shonen Jump USA and fan-subtitled anime episodes from Japan; they are both very good and well done. Despite this, it's not nearly as good as One Piece or Naruto. To be fair I haven’t seen or read all of Shaman King to judge and compare it to other big titles, but if it's popularity in Japan is any indication of how well it will do here, I should be right on target. The Shaman King anime did well when it first aired in Japan, but it got canceled at only 64 episodes: a telling sign of how much it kept fans interested in the manga adaptation. Although this will be enough for 4 kids and Shonen Jump USA to keep interest in the series for a couple of years at least, for the title as being as big as Dragonball Z it's highly unlikely. It will be over too soon before it can do any damage, likely becoming a fad.

Yu Yu Hakusho: Back when the explosion of Dragonball was at its peak, Funimation licensed this title hoping, I suppose, it will hit big since it was in the same genre. And although it has been well received by the anime community in general, its popularity was never was able to amount to what Dragonball was. Yu Yu Hakusho has its moment from time to time, and it's manga to anime adaptation is excellent (one of the rare few time the art in the anime seems better than the manga). But its characters just don’t have the same charm Dragonball has. It too bad Funimation slowed production of the videos and DVDs in favor of completing other anime series such as DBGT and Detective Conan; Yu Yu Hakusho definitly deserves better treatment than having one disk being released 4 times a year. But Dragonball Z it's not...

Detective Conan: This title has been doing really well in Japan clocking at over 324 episodes and counting! WOW! I can’t remember another title running longer than that except Dragonball. Anyhow, I'm not really sure what was the reasoning behind Funimation licensing Conan... perhaps the lost of the One Piece license had them grasping for straws looking for a worthy replacement. Not that Conan is a weak title, but this is an odd choice for Funimation, who'd you think would be looking for a big time title to replace Dragonball Z. Most will not be familiar with the series as it has yet to debut here in the states. Shinichi Kudo at age 17 is a super genius and famous detective. Because he was a witness to a crime he was assaulted and given an experiment pill that would recede his age and make him young until he disappeared killing him in the process. Although the pill worked somewhat, it never worked completely making him a young as a grade school kid. Until Shinchi can figure out whom the perpetrators were, he decides to stay in hiding under the alias name Conan Edogawa. While he plays the role as the young Conan trying to figure out who did this to him and why, he solves crimes and goes on many adventures. Detective Conan is a great title, worthy of the attention Funimation is giving it. They licensed the entire series and the first 50 episode are on their way this year, first airing on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim. But in the end it will only accomplish reaching the niche market much like Yu Yu Hakusho. The problem I have with Conan is it’s targeted towards teens that are probably looking for a Dragonball fix. Not exactly the kind of anime right up their ally. I could be totally wrong, perhaps Dragonball fans will open their minds to a different type of anime and embrace the concept Detective Conan offers. If so, this series could be a dark horse and come out on top.

So what will be the next big thing? It's not as clear cut as you think as things change every year. But no matter what happens, it's a good time to be an otaku as there are lots of excellent titles out there. If I had to give you my personal opinion I think the answer is clear: Naruto is they type of anime Dragonball fans will love, and its popularity is getting huge by the minute. Although there is plenty of room for other titles to share the stage, none of them will be able to compete with Naruto given the right circumstances.