Ho boy~ alot to impact here
So, the year was January 2002, and trying to find more of those Anime VHS aside of GaoGaiGar that dad had since I was bored in the house on a weekend, and the one that caught my eye were Fansubs of all completed series of Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z including the Movies with label like: Red Ribbon Army Arc or "Sayjin" Arc or even long titles like Toei Manga Festival Movie: Dragon Ball Z: The Strongest Man in the World!! I asked my dad about these VHS and what are these and he told me he tape them during the 90s while the toonami broadcast them; he also told me it was the good thing too, the dub didn't do too well with the fans during the 90s so he asked one of his friends if he can borrow the VHS and once he got them his friend said that he can keep all of them (what a steal too, there very rare to find now) So made myself deal: on Summer vacation I would watch all the VHS as much as I can. (crazy deal I know) I've told my only friend at kindergarten about my deal and he told me:"is that even possible?" And I responsed "I don't know, I'm about to find out!"
And So it was May 30th of 2002 and as soon as I returned home I got the first VHS Labeled: "Bulma and Son Goku: First Arc" and I put the tape in my VCR and got started and loved every minute of it: the weird characters, the colorful adventures and the good ol kung fu Action! Here's how I keep up with my deal: the tape are not one-by-one episodes; it's the whole are so I watch 2 episode on weekdays then it's bed time and 3 episodes on the weekends(Aswell the one or two Movies to watch), by October 2004 I was at the Cell arc and starting the Buu Arc (with was funny because Toonami finished with the series) and during the Buu watching ive heard about the new series called Dragon Ball GT.
Great!! That means more Arcs to watch!, but I didn't rush myself and stayed with my deal and during 2004 I watching the Buu Arc and the rest of the movies and let me the intense shift from Kung fu Adventure to Fighting Extraterrestrial beings Opera it was definitely a lot to take in, I still love every minute of it.
During 2004 and 2005 I was trying to make some friends in the fandom space and it was really hard, not because a little to no information (oh no, ive had enough of it.) But because I couldn't find any girls that also like Dragon Ball, it's wasn't until I found 3 jackpot:
First: i found two sites, one being an big all girl blog that love anime and has a separate blog called Cherry blossom Adventure and another forum called kanzenshuu; both giving me news updates on Video Games, Anime and pop culture as a whole.
Second: Fansites and there were plenty of them back in the 90s-2000s and found some cool ones like one dedicated to fanfic, fanart and characters and I can tell a girl did these sites if they dont add power levels (CAUSE WHAT EVEN IS POWER LEVEL AT THIS POINT!)
Third: DeviantArt (yeah I know) It's where I get half of fanart from aswell.
So from that moment on, ive found my place for now...
Around 2007 the fandom was still growing and me fitting my place rages on then, the Cherry blossom Adventure forum announced that they were moving to a new website called Tumblr to continue there blog, so I've decided to make an Tumblr account and keep on with the blog. And during those years I know I'm glad I found my people first because it's looks like the male fandom side is getting bad: complaining about: Characters, power levels, the story even poor Toriyama! To be honest I can't even tell if they love or hate (Hell, even till this day I cant tell) because I still like the series while even notice the good and bad while till giving some valid criticism. And ive learn that lesson from the girl blog. (Besides, only male side I liked was TeamFourStar and there Abridged Series)
Then on July 2012 something big was brewing: The Weekly Shōnen Jump's official website had a teaser page with a countdown to a "surprise" on Saturday, July 14 and once it was the 14th and Shenlong appeared and then disappears, revealing some minor information an upcoming film; including the premiere date, staff information, and companies involved in the production. The whole fandom was shaking the ground went this happen; then in August 2012 happened: they showed the teaser the Movie and that was then the fandom and even the whole world exploded, the video was viewed over 3.5 million times(now 5.8 million) marking this 17 years of a real new anime had been released, I guess after that Live action Movie happen Toriyama said himself:"part of me wanted to show my determination as the original author."
From that moment around the 2010 when Dragon Ball Z Kai begin airing and this movie coming out in 2014 in America, A new wave Dragon Ball Z fans begins! At that point I still stick was my woman crowd and even that grew, but unlike the girl side being fun, caring and the only sane one I was raised with, the male side grew to the point it became toxic, and just seeing all the toxicity I'm glad trusted my gut when I was a kid/pre-teen years.
But the Anime not over yet, infact this not even there final form: on 2015 it announced Dragon Ball was getting there 1st New TV Anime in 18 Years called "Dragon Ball Super!" The fandom exploded again with a new form this time!
Now with all the flack Dragon ball super was getting when episode 5 came out and it's other Arcs to show case all the lows, it still shows case all the great moments one being the Tournament of Power Arc; I mean what else can you witness the final episode for the first time with your family and friends aswell as Mexico seeing it on the big screen with a huge crowd! And after the final episode was over, a another new movie was announced and it feature an returning character that the fandom love or hate being Cannon! It was crazy!
Then on 2023 rumors around the internet saying a new series was being made and gonna be announced Called Dragon Ball Magic where all the characters all turn small!?!...trust me I didn't believe it at first too...the upcoming New York Comic Con at a Toei Animation panel they show the new Dragon ball Series Really called: Dragon Ball Daima with the same concept! Needless to say the fandom had mix reactions but not me I've was very excited to back to the adventure! Toriyama became very enthusiastic about this project and wound up "crafting the entire story", which described as having a "strong sense of adventure and lots of action". Trying to aim for viewers who watched Dragon Ball GT as children. It was lovely tribute for the fans.
Then on March 1, 2024 the whole world froze...
The News announced Toriyama passed away from an acute subdural hematoma in the brain,
It was very shocking. It was like loosing someone in your family.
So his last work being Dragon Ball Daima was like his Swan Song to us and pretty much has everything to be a Dragon Ball: Adventure, new Characters, large world building and lore, a catchy Opening and ending and (Of Course) the intense Action.
Till this day I am very grateful for this Anime and all his other works as well like: Dr.Slump, Sand Land, his many One-Shots even doing the character designs for Dragon Quest and Chrono Trigger he loved dearly.
And I've been keeping this confessions to my self, but...if Dragon Ball Daima and last chapter in Dragon Ball Super is his last and the company no longer show any Dragon Ball...that's find by me. Because the least you can do is let it been (though I got a strong feeling they MIGHT continue with the manga and WILL promote some merch here and there).
But as of right now, Be Passionate in what you really love, Make your Life Worth It and Stay Golden. 💛
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