Dragon Ball #1-15

Dragon Ball #1-15

Originally released in 1984

Written by Akira Toriyama

Art by Akira Toriyama

When I originally covered Dragon Ball, it was from a point that was nearly 200 chapters into the manga (the story arc that introduced Gohan and Raditz began in chapter 195).  Today, I'm going back to its humble beginnings, where Goku was a kid and Bulma was a teenager, and the quest to find the Dragon Balls took up a whole arc rather than being something that could casually be done off-screen.

Unlike the action-packed later arcs, Dragon Ball started out as a comedy, with a lot of emphasis on toilet humour.  There are a lot of gags about characters having to use the washroom, and given that he's lived in the wilderness his whole life, Goku can't tell what gender people are without patting them on the crotch.

The story starts out with Bulma, a teen genius, running into Goku in the wilderness.  Literally - she hits him with her car by accident, and when he attacks the car thinking it's a monster, she shoots him to defend herself.  It's a weird start to a generation-spanning friendship, though Goku's so tough (even at this age) that bullets merely sting.

Bulma is searching for Dragon Balls after discovering one in her basement, finding an old legend about them, and building a handheld radar to track their energy.  Goku has one, so she talks him into being her bodyguard.

While searching for the Dragon Balls, they meet a zany cast of characters, most of whom will go on to become major figures in the coming arcs.  Goku rescuing a turtle leads to him encountering Master Roshi, a perverted old hermit and a legendary martial arts master.

In exchange for a glimpse at Bulma's underwear, Roshi gives Goku and Bulma a Dragon Ball that he had, along with a magical flying cloud known as Kinto'un.  Only the pure of heart can ride it, which means that it only works for Goku. (Bulma's vanity and Roshi's pervertedness disqualify them)

The duo also encounters Oolong, a perverted shape-shifting pig, who is forced to work with them because Bulma thinks that his powers could come in handy.  This is by far the most relevant that Oolong will be in the series - after the first hunt for the Dragon Balls is completed, he doesn't do much.

The three of them are later followed by Yamcha, the desert bandit who has a crippling fear of women, and his cat-like friend Puar. They also meet up with the menacing bandit Ox King and his daughter Chi Chi.  The Ox King definitely changes quite a bit from Dragon Ball to Dragon Ball Z, going from a heavily armoured king to a doting grandfather.

Meanwhile, Chi Chi mistakes Goku's insensitivity for a romantic interest, leading to Goku agreeing to take her hand in marriage when they get older without really knowing what he's agreeing to.  Still, the two of them get along well, and I kind of wish that Chi Chi had stayed with the group for longer.

This series definitely marks a transition for Toriyama's style, serving as a midpoint between the pure comedy of Dr. Slump and the action that Dragon Ball Z is known for.  Even this early on, the action is well-choreographed, such as when Goku fights Yamcha, while still taking time to incorporate humour, like when Goku hits Yamcha so hard that it breaks the edge of one of the panels.

The chapters are short, ranging from 11 to 14 pages, and it goes by at a quick pace.  However, by chapter 14, we are introduced to the signature technique of the entire series, or even anime as a whole: the Kamehameha.  When this first appears, and we see Master Roshi power up to his full strength, it takes up an entire page, making it clear to the audience that this is going to be a big deal.

Once the attack is actually used, the result is the first double page spread of the series, making it clear how big of an occasion this is meant to be even without the advantages of hindsight.

Some of the comedy arguably hasn't aged the best (the subject matter can get uncomfortable at times), and it definitely feels like some of the material here wouldn't be published today.  Still, the vast majority of the series is a lot of fun, even this early on.  It's clear that Toriyama didn't take long to find his footing, and Goku and Bulma make for entertaining protagonists that contrast well with each other. (Goku is uneducated but used to living in the wilderness, while Bulma is brilliant but spoiled, resulting in her freaking out when she loses the capsules that can create shelter for her)  If I had more time, I would have kept going until the end of the arc (which ends in chapter 23); even without nostalgia associated with it (since unlike Dragon Ball Z, I didn't watch/read the original Dragon Ball until I was much older), I had a good time with re-reading these chapters.