#majin real ball z

[nonenoodle]

João e Maria x Chapeuzinho vermelho 🇧🇷

Hansel and Gretel x Little Red Riding Hood 🇺🇲

[turtletoads]

so many tails

[cornplateur-fritz]

Buu saga sucks but i like whatever Buu and Mr. Satan had going on. Good for them good for them

[duhragonball]

I like to think that part of the appeal of Dragon Ball is the fact these random martial artists keep on taking on world-ending threats, because they are the only ones strong enough to do it. For that reason, do you think Dragon Ball would have gotten as good as it did if none of it's villains could blow up the world?

No, I don't think that would have affected the quality of Dragon Ball.

To be sure, blowing up the whole world is a cool way to raise the stakes. It's awesome how Vegeta tried to ragequit his invasion of Earth, and Goku had to stand his ground because the entire planet would have been destroyed if he didn't try to repel that world-ending Gallick Gun. It's also awesome that Frieza tried to destroy Namek because it was easier than fighting a Super Saiyan. It's awesome that Cell had a self-destruct feature, and the only way to foil it was to take him to a different planet with a smaller population. And of course, it's awesome that Majin Buu just went ahead and destroyed the Earth, and no one could stop him, and the story just kept on going anyway. Those are all big impressive story beats, and Dragon Ball might be poorer without them.

All that said, I don't think taking them out would make the story worse. The Red Ribbon Army arc was great, and the height of their power was that they could probably conquer the Earth with the right leadership and resources. The King Piccolo stuff was great, and the most he could do was to subjugate the Earth and perhaps wipe out its population.

I think it says a lot how the Piccolo Junior arc was such a classic, and yet the stakes were basically the same as the arc before it. Piccolo is back, and if Goku can't stop him then he'll just repeat what he did before. It works. The only real difference there is that Piccolo Junior was stronger and laser focused on eliminating Goku.

Radditz threatened to kill everyone on Earth and sell the empty planet to the highest bidder, which is cool because it goes beyond even what Piccolo had planned for it, which reinforced the notion of Piccolo and Goku teaming up to stop him.

Now you could stop right there, and continue the story with that same limit on "How bad could it get?" and things still work. Frieza planned to destroy Namek after making his wish, so that no one else could use the Dragon Balls, but he needn't have bothered, since killing Guru and the other Namekians would settle that just as easily. Cell's self-destruct could have just been some sort of biological agent that would kill everyone without damaging the planet itself. Kid Buu could have just fought Goku and Vegeta on Earth, though admittedly that's a tough call. You set this guy up as a planet-destroying monster, so it strains credibility that he's stuck on Earth for two days and never goes through with it.

Still, I think there's more to the story than just blowing up planets. Look at Super Hero, where all the major players are much, much stronger than the "planet busters" of Z, and yet it never comes up. Nobody in the story wants to destroy the Earth, so the fact that they can doesn't come into play. Cell Max seems to be nearly mindless, but he also knows how to fight pretty well, so he must have some rudimentary control over his power, which keeps him from wrecking the earth every time he goes berserk. I assume his self-destruct is designed the same way. It's contained to destroy whatever killed him, but it doesn't blow up the whole world because Dr. Hedo isn't as nihilistic as his grandfather was.

"The whole world might be destroyed!" is just a tool, one of many that Akira Toriyama had in his toolbox. The fact is, once he introduced that level of power, he couldn't really raise the stakes much higher. Villains like Buu or Zamasu could destroy every planet, but it basically amounts to the same thing, so Dragon Ball has been on that same level of stakes ever since Vegeta fought Goku for the first time 35 years ago. And if the stories have been all right over those past 35 years, then there really isn't a need to raise the stakes any higher, is there?

Likewise, if he had kept that notion off the table, and the worst Vegeta could do was to render the Earth uninhabitable or something, then we'd have 35 years of that being the worst anyone could do, and I don't think it would make that much of a difference.

To come at it from a different direction, I don't think "villains who can blow up the world" is what made Dragon Ball good. It was already good well before that came into play. And if Toriyama could tell a great story without that angle, then he's no worse off with or without it.

I was thinking the other day about how irritating it gets when fans argue over whether "O.G. Dragon Ball" is better or worse than "Z". They're the same story, after all. It's like arguing over which half of a movie is better. But it struck me that this is a big part of Toriyama's legacy. Dragon Ball is such a classic that fans talk about it like he made two classics and debate which one is the best. That's pretty damn impressive.

I think it proves that there's not some single "special ingredient" that makes the story work. Way back in the beginning, it was made clear that martial artists have a duty to use their special skills to help people, and that's been the through-line of Dragon Ball. Saving the entire planet from some world-busting menace is taking that idea to the extreme, but the idea still works, even if it's just Goku helping a sea turtle get back home, or tackling the Red Ribbon base to wish Upa's dad back to life.

[blvckentropy]

Hey lovies, my name is Bee. Respectfully I don't share my real name unless I'm really cool with you. Close friends do call me by my gamer tag name Mask/Masquerade 🤗 YT: Masquerade

Age: Adult (take that however, don't believe it, that's your problem) | She/her | Introvert | Writer | Black Simmer | Gamer | 18+ (Mature Content)

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[yamcha-thelonewolf]

How would you feel if Toriyama made Yamcha a fighter again and was actually stronger this time? I'll always be thinking how when he smacked Beerus in the back he made a face. What if he wasn't taken just by surprise that he did it but by the power behind it?

Like what if Toriyama did Yamcha dirty and decided he's not strong unless he does not want to fight?

Good question. Yamcha is still a fighter, for me. He never really gave up, even though what DBS showed us seems to say otherwise. I can't accept the fact that he threw in the towel, that was never like him. Yamcha always shows to us, in his own way, that he still has a passion for martial arts. Get it? Martial arts. That thing that long ago in Dragon Ball was the leitmotif of the whole story.

However, I don't think Yamcha has really stopped believing in his potential. It is virtually impossible to do so after reaching such a power level that makes him literally one of the strongest human beings in the world. Plus if we consider the fact that, between him, Tien and Kuririn, Yamcha's features are the most "normal" (he's got a nose and only two eyes) we can also safely say that Yamcha is the strongest human being in the world.

Okay, this is a bit of nonsense that I sometimes like to bring up.... But think about it, it might as well be so if we have to be really precise.

«JUST LOOK HOW SERIOUS HUMAN MY FACE IS!»

So, I would just be happy if his warrior attitude, that was never really buried, was put on display again. Even a little sentence, a hint, a tiny scene where he is seen fighting or training with one of his friends... That would be enough for me.

Yeah, something like that... Dragon Buddies.

For example, I am so glad that he made his return in Moro Arc as a Z-Fighter; I would like to see the animated version of his moment. Unfortunately, I think this is not the beginning of his rebirth. I have always thought that Yamcha's only enemy is Yamcha himself, and partly so, but the truth is that the real villain of his story is Akira Toriyama himself. It pains me to admit it, but it is so. I can't understand why he is pandering so much to the idiocy of the DB fandom making fun of Yamcha.

Yamcha laughing at memes about Yamcha knowing that he could destroy everyone with one finger.

The hell, even in Majin Buu Arc he was amazing. All right, I know, they're fillers, but you want me to be honest? The fillers took better care of him than the canon episodes and the manga. I mean, at the beginning he was presented to us as a 40-year-old man who had now given up martial arts for good, wearing a banana yellow suit, expensive and sadly unsuitable for battles. He just doesn't seem to want to hear about it. But then, after several episodes of him goofing off or being a fanboy in the stands, like everyone else Yamcha dies, and it is in the afterlife that his will to fight is reawakened after so long. As it was with King Kai before. For those who have followed him from the beginning of Dragon Ball, to be able to see Yamcha again happy, excited and strong, with his uniform on like the old days, is a joy to behold.

Relative joy.

Guys, I can't accept the fact that Yamcha has to be dead to feel even more alive, or even worse that his existence depends only on fillers. Yes, I know, it's still better than nothing, though...

Another good job was also done by the OVA Dragon Ball: The Return of Son Goku and Friends!, probably the last work that remembers that Yamcha also exists and especially treats him as a very valuable fighter. I'll talk about it.

This moment is still one of my favorite. It is one of the most badass things about Yamcha, plus it reminds me so much of a scene where Tarzan does the same...

Look! On one side we have the ape man (no, not a saiyan), on the other side the wolf man... Damn, I love it! Well, maybe I'm digressing, but it is curious to notice how the act of undressing is cathartic for both characters. They both strip off a garment that does not really belong to them and wildly bring out their true nature, their animal instincts, but most of all their desire to protect those they love. That's Yamcha. After all, who says Yamcha has to save the world to redeem himself as a character? He can also do so by protecting someone. That is something he can do very well, and I will prove it to you. Anyway, I sincerely hope that his role in the world of Dragon Ball will also be recognized in DBS. I also hope he can use again even his sword, but unfortunately he became a meme and, apart from the Moro Arc, we only saw him slaughtered and humiliated even by his own friends. This is the saddest thing that could have happened, also because in OG Dragon Ball it would NEVER have happened. There is no more demeaning thing than seeing Goku completely ignore one of his close friends, one of the first, and treat him as if he were worth less than zero. Seriously... WTF?! The Goku I love would never have done that.

Alright, that's the real Goku! Thank you!

I mean, maybe Goku wouldn't have invited him to the Tournament anyway, but at least he would have stopped in front of him to say a few comfortably words. As he once did.

Because, you know, that's what you do with friends and those who have been there for you in the good and in the worst of times. Let us remember that Yamcha took care of Goku together with Chichi when the virus struck him in the heart...

Well, I try hard to think that this is all a joke, though I doubt it. I strive to think that the whole attitude that the characters have had in DBS toward Yamcha is just the result of a studied plan to piss him off and spur him to undress again and howl like he used to. But... I know it's not.

Therefore, even though Moro Arc slightly brought our Z warrior back to the forefront and confirmed that Yamcha is still very strong, I still do not consider myself satisfied. What I would like more than anything else is just a confrontation between him and the protagonist, Goku, in which the saiyan helps him believe in himself again. And if it is not Goku, someone else is fine as long as Yamcha is reconsidered with dignity.

I don't think I'm asking for that much. Goku has helped so many people, dinosaurs, mice, monkeys, strangers he has met only once in his life, even bad guys... So why not help the first character who consciously believed in his abilities?

...Guess I have started a new topic. I will definitely talk about the relationship between Yamcha and Goku as soon as I can. Being the main character, a positive assessment of Yamcha by Goku could change the current idea of this character and make him much stronger as a result. I mean, Goku is the Mr. Satan of the real world. What he says is the truth, so it is only up to him to make sure that Yamcha can come back stronger than before.

Thanks for asking! 💕

[strawberrycakelove]

About Vegetto and why he is one of my favorite DragonBall characters

Vegetto is one of my favorite Dragonball characters, (I also like Gogeta and in my point of view Gogeta and Vegetto are basically the same character and have the same personality, they just appeared in different contexts).

But what I like most about Vegito, especially in his first appearance against Buu in Dragonball Z, is how selfish he is and puts his own interests first, which doesn't differ from Goku and Vegeta essentially, both are selfish and always seek their own interests first, they are different only in those interests.

The universe is under threat and can be destroyed by Buu, but as soon as he is "born", his first priority is not to defeat Majin Buu as quickly as possible, much less save the universe, as would be (more or less) Goku's priority , as Goku was just desperate to repair the damage he had done by not defeating MajinBuu once and for all when he had the chance when using his SSJ3 transformation for the first time.

But his first priority is to save his children Gohan, Trunks and Goten, because at this moment these 3 are technically his children and I'm sure Vegetto felt it fully, since he considered his fusion to be certain and permanent, and his friend Piccolo's, his friendship inherited from Goku, which shows that neither Goku nor Vegeta were dominant in their fusion, he was his own person, but with the memories and feelings inherited from Goku and Vegeta.

Did Vegito need to worry about that? Theoretically not, because just as he thought there might be a way to remove these 4 from MajinBuu's body, he could have thought about killing MajinBuu first and then resurrecting them separately from MajinBuu with the Dragon Balls, in terms of risk , it would be the same, but he CHOSE to try to rescue them first, which shows that his decisions were made purely by his feelings and not for a cold, pragmatic reason, which he could have done, but I like this because it shows that Vegetto didn't sees himself at this moment as a play or a wild card, he sees himself as a real person (unlike Gogeta who many say is going "straight to business", but Gogeta knows that it is a temporary existence and that it will only last 30 minutes, he NEEDS to be more pragmatic, unlike Vegetto in his first appearance.)

He proved to be playful, calm, peaceful, tactical, manipulative and unafraid of taking risks like Goku and cold, calculating, analytical, intelligent, strategic, sarcastic (and sometimes sadistic) like Vegeta, but without the latter's anxiety about uncertainty ( not that Vegeta doesn't accept risks, but he is much less tolerant of risk and uncertainty than Goku) and without Goku's extreme recklessness (the latter is carefree to the point of giving enemies chances just for fun or to "educate" children (his children and Trunks) as warriors - I think that here, Goku lets his instincts as a Saiyan speak louder than reason and get the better of him (like cats that teach their kittens to hunt by showing them live prey, but Goku, different of cat moms, forgets to weaken his preys first, which doesn't happen with Vegeta as he is still able to calculate risks, he even took Trunks and Goten off the battlefield).

And with this willingness to take big risks, and also a hint of indifference to the fate of the universe (which I credit to Vegeta here lol), because his loved ones are currently dead and he doesn't want to kill MajinBuu with his children and Piccolo absorbed in his body this time, he risked being absorbed by MajinBuu without being sure that his plan would work just to try and rescue them.

It's one of the things that makes me like his character, he wasn't just there to kill Buu, He wore his “heart on his sleeve” Even though he's not clearly expressive about it (neither Goku nor Vegeta emotionally express their feelings, either) but his actions speak for him and I don’t think many realized that.

But that's one of the reasons why Vegito is one of my favorite DragonBall characters, apart from his personality and design, of course.

[secretsofdbz]

Oh hi there, it's been a minute!

Sooo NYCC panel happened, and Dragon Ball Magic/Daima is real!

Under the read more for the links, images, and some of my thoughts, analysis, etc...

First, the name: Daima 大魔 can be translated as big magic, large sorcery, big magic trick...And that 魔 symbol should look familiar to you guys, because it's the same MA from Piccolo DAIMAo, from MA Jr., from MAkkankosappo, from MAsenko, and from MAjin (magic people/population). It's the same word used for magic, sorcery, witchcraft, and hocus pocus style stuff. So... with or without demon connotation, just supernatural magic stuff :p

Then the continuity. When does this happen? There's no DBS refs at all in it, so there's speculation about it happening before DBS (but after the Buu saga since the Buu events are the origin of the story it seems). However... Kibito and Shin are defused. Did they defuse because of the wish? Or is it happening sometime after they get defused in DBS (different versions depending on manga or anime).

We don't know. I would say: we don't care. "Canon" is a lie. Official content (games, anime, manga, movies, tv specials, one shots, promo material, etc..) tend to steal from each other and reuse whatever is interesting for the following stories. Content is recycled and reused and readapted to fit whatever narrative of the current story beat (or arc/saga if we're generous) and that's it.

Oh btw you can watch it online, since Toei put it out!

Anyway let's get back to the plot:

Pretty sure these guys are Bibidi-Babidi related, and they hold a grudge against the gang because of the Buu situation (this is what they're watching).

They make a wish to make everyone young, and there's no transformations (!) so.. Goku has to use the PowerPole.

There's also a message from Toriyama himself, delivered by Iyoku:

Hello. I’m Akira Toriyama. I’m currently working on a new Dragon Ball. The Title is “Dragon Ball DAIMA”. Due to a conspiracy, Goku and his friends are turned small. In order to fix things, they’ll head off to a new world! It’s a grand adventure with intense action in an unknown and mysterious world. Since Goku has to make up for his petite size, he uses his Nyoibo to fight, something not seen in a long time. I came up with the story and settings, as well as a lot of the designs. I’m actually putting a lot more into this than usual! Things will unfold that close in on the mysteries of the Dragon Ball world. Hope you enjoy these different-from-usual battles that are cute and powerful!! — AKIRA TORIYAMA

He's far more involved in this than he ever was in DBS, sooooo.. !! Who knows. It's going to be similar to his modern style though, like Dragon Quest or SandLand.

Everyone's designs look amazing!

Look at Trunks and Goten! They will never age, they get CTRL-Z lol Same for Marron actually, she got back to being her Buu saga toddler self :o (note how Trunks is back at being purple, and not Blunks anymore...)

Anywaaaay!

The animation looks STUNNING. However! Goku's hair looks very stiff :(

Other than that, the series started production right when Dragon Quest Dai ended: that's what the animators are transitioning from.

And some new and old names!!

https://x.com/ag_sanda1/status/1712564193344311549?s=20

Nakatsuru at the character design and corrections, Aya Komaki and Yoshitaka Yashima in the direction roles. Art direction is Takahashi Kurahashi (big background artist, did Yo SonGoku a while ago), and some GOATED names for the animation: Chikashi Kubota, Naohiro Shintani, Yuya Takahashi, Takeo Ide, and Miyako Tsuji. Kubota is the guy who did the 2D section of the intro for DBSSH btw. Kubota My beloved.

Anime AJAY did a whole thread about the production info he has so go check it out.

Kid versions of everyone look super cute, but there was no Gohan on sight. It has to take place "after the Buu saga", but considering the designs, I do think this is kinda meant to be before Pan and Bra were born.

Also I smell Demon lore.

Much interest on my end because it looks amazing even if it's not the serious type of story I usually enjoy. But it looks so good!

Also yeah, DBS Broly and DBSSH is "let's reuse the OG Broly Trilogy", so this is let's reuse/repurpose GT?

Prolly.

[danganronpasurvivoraskblog]

I wonder if Class 77 watched a certain Dragon Ball Z episode where Majin Buu adopts a puppy.

Gundham did...And he did NOT like that episode at all.

Can you blame him? Even for the Ultimate Breeder, it's never nice when the dog dies.

I bet in his mind, if something like that happened to the Four Dark Devas in real life, he would claim his evil and good self split.

Gundham has never claimed to have a good side. Let's be real.

You're right, you're right...

[smokeybrandreviews]

Glass Slipper

I’ve been a fan of Dragon Ball Z for decades. One of the arguments i keep hearing among the fandom pertains to Majin Buu. Which form is the strongest version of Buu? The correct answer is Buuhan, the form Super Buu takes after absorbing Ultimate Gohan. That power boost is real potent considering that version of Gohan was able to solo a Super Buu that had absorbed a Super Saiyan 3 Gotenks. If that’s not the objective answer, i don’t know what to tell you. However, if we are just talking base forms? Just regular ass Majin Buu forms, no absorption to buff a dude? Then it’s Kid Buu, all day. How can it not be? This little motherf*cker soloed the entire divine hierarchy of the Dragon Ball universe. Dude wrecked the strongest Supreme Kais in history, absolutely embarrassing the quintessential deities of Universe Seven. It took the Grand Supreme Kai getting absorbed to stop this dude, and that sh*t took the form of a debuff! Buu absorbing Grand Supreme Kai made him weaker, and that’s the crux of this argument: Every other version of Majin Buu had the Grand Supreme Kai debuff.

Here me out; if GSK weakened Buu enough to be sealed, then it stands to reason that the debuff was substantial, right? Well Fat Buu is that debuff incarnate. Fat Buu is inherently weaker than Kid Buu. Evil Buu is a version of the malevolence that drove Kid Buu but, a the same time, he’s still bound by the debuff GSK forced upon Kid. When Evil Buu absorbed Fat Buu, he just switched personalities. The debuff from GSK, in terms of strength, was still there because he was still trapped withing Fat Buu. The only thing which happened after Evil Buu ate Fat, was a switch in personality. I would argue that Super Buu isn’t technically stronger than Fat Buu, just more malevolent. This is why Super Buu looks more like Kid Buu, his purest from, and not the tainted and weaker Fat Buu. Super Buu probably did get a buff in strength, similar to the same thing Majin Vegeta got when he gave in to the latent malice in his heart, but the taint of that fat ass Kai wasn’t completely shook just yet. The influence of GSK was still dragging Buu’s full potential down. Even after absorbing Gotenks and Piccolo, i don’t think Super Buu was even close to Kid Buu’s pure strength because GSK was still in there, holding him back. It wasn’t until Ultimate Gohan’s ridiculous strength got absorbed that Buu was able to finally exceed the GSK debuff. Buuhan is, unequivocally, the strongest Buu had ever been up to that point and he got manhandled by Vegeto. And that brings me to my next point: Buuhan was also a debuff. Buuhan is, undeniably, the strongest Buu there is. Canonically. However, that’s as far as it goes for Buuhan. He’s peaked.

There is no increasing that power because it’s not his power. It’s just on loan. Fat Buu was as strong when he fought the Z warriors, as he was when he was sealed millions of years ago. That tells me there is no room for growth once a fusion takes hold. Buuhan is it, unless he can absorb a stronger entity and, outside of Vegeto, there was no one else. He can’t adsorb Beerus because dude is too strong. He can’t absorb Whis because dude is stronger than Beerus. Buuhan is peak Buu. But i argue it’s not peak Kid Buu. It’s been demonstrated that Fat Buu can train and become stronger in Super. I understand that this statement contradicts what I just said about Buu's power being capped, but Fat Buu is an entirely different entity at this point. He is, effectively, a second, brand new Buu, once he is freed from inside Buuhan by Vegeto. The fusion of Grand Supreme Kai is so complete, they are basically a brand new hybrid being, taking on characteristics of both. I think this weirdly unique existence allows Fat Buu a margin of evolution akin to a Saiyan, and I’m inclined to believe that Kid Buu could do the same. Imagine a Kid Buu who was pushed to actually develop his power. How strong would he have become? Well, you don’t have to guess because f*cking Uub exists! That dude was able to solo a god ki Goku at the end of Dragon Ball Z. Goku took that dude under his wing and raised him to be a straight up powerhouse. Even if that ending isn’t canon, Uub made an appearance in the Super manga, giving his chi to defeat Morrow. It was his contribution that turned the tide and took out the old billy goat. Based strictly on strength, alone, the strongest Buu is definitely Buuhan. However, if you take into account potential, it’s Kid Buu, hands down.

[nonenoodle]

corrupted brothers

[buubuu-sedai]

Introduction to my Love for Wheel of Time + Re-read Blog Announcement

Greetings various beings! I am here today to awkwardly ramble my way through an introduction and my intentions of starting a re-read blog of my beloved Wheel of Time. (TLDR I guess)

First things first!

A bit about myself ->->->

In reality I'm a 36 year old non-binary asexual person who is pretty neurodivergent (albeit undiagnosed). I have a deep nostalgic love for the 90's which pairs well with my cynical and existential nature. I am a liberal user of cuss words which has only been exacerbated by working in a kitchen (I'm a baker/line cook).

In virtual reality, buubuu sedai is all of those things plus gets to be a cat-person as well which is pretty rad, not gonna lie. Also they're Aes Sedai because I say so. Purple Ajah because ever since I discovered I was Ace the color purple has slowly overtaken my life lmao. Buubuu is a name for a character i created in high school after watching a lot of Dragon Ball Z. Majin Buu -> booboo -> buubuu. I don' t know it tickles my brain.

How I was First Introduced to Wheel of Time

My mother and her two sisters all love to read and their book interests varied from romance to fantasy to suspense and everything in between. They traded books between themselves pretty regularly and when I was maybe 10 or 11 (or maybe younger I dunno my memories are fuzzy) I got to be a part of that book trading group. I was already an avid reader as a child (I once got left on the playground after recess in elementary school because I was sitting on a swing reading Charlotte's Web) I loved borrowing books from the school library and would read whatever I could get my hands on. I did have an early preference for fantasy cuz I though wizards and elves were really cool (still do).

Around 13-14 one of my aunts had been reading WoT and they brought us the first 7ish books? Maybe 8. I was hooked pretty hard right from the beginning. As a kid I was extremely impressionable and I latched on to the characters straight away. I felt really attached to the story and world as it was an escape from my social awkwardness and my tumultuous home life. What a great escape it was holy cow.

Any time a new book came out my aunt would read it and then let us borrow it. I'd always request the other books so I could reread them, too! When I finally got myself a job (around 19 because I was riddled with anxiety) I started collecting all the books for myself so I could read whenever I wanted to.

After that I would just constantly do re-reads nearly every year. I had spoiled myself pretty young on the level of detail I expected from a book so while I did read other book series, I couldn't find that same world building anywhere but WoT.

Blog Intentions

I'm gonna start a re-read and do chapter summaries a few times a week. I'll do a spoiler free summary at the top and a spoiler heavy at the bottom with all my nostalgic impressions and rambling.

I wouldn't say I have an encyclopedic knowledge of the series, but I know a lot. I used to spend as much time as I could reading theories online as a teenager. I didn't have a ton of theories myself other than I really thought an actual dragon would show up at some point. (I thought the Spine of the World would turn out to be a sleeping dragon that woke up lmao)

Wheel of TIme pretty much lives rent free in my brain and I really haven't known anyone in real life who also has read it and loved it as much as me. So here I am on the interwebs to scream that love into the void and maybe have something scream back (ok maybe don't scream at me but maybe high five?)

Aaaaaanyway

I hope you'll join me and I can't wait to start!

[skullhazard]

Finished watching all of Dragon Ball Z Kai after watching all of Dragon Ball:

Goku saying "I actually could've defeated Majin Buu when I first fought him as a dead person, but I wanted the boys [Trunks & Goten] to get strong for the future," a decision which cost the lives of everyone on Earth including about half a dozen other planets or so, is not only some of the most potent character-assassinating and tension-deflating lines I've ever witnessed, but it's also some real villain shit where his "I just fight to get stronger and I love fighting" aspects are twisted into a destructive behavior that damages everyone around him. It's also incredibly weak "Yeah I could've taken him earlier but I was holding back" shit.

[cyallowitz]

Characters Falling From Grace on Purpose

Majin Vegeta The character above is Vegeta, who is a character from Dragon Ball Z.  He started as an enemy and eventually moved his way into ally.  At several points in the series, his pride gets the best of him and he lets the newer bad guys get stronger because he wants a real challenge.  So, it isn’t a surprise that at one point, he goes evil again in order to get something that he really…

[duhragonball]

Dragon Ball Super 073

#ReleaseTheEbisawaCut

This is actually a really good two-parter.  It’s a little formulaic in places, but I was impressed with it when it first aired, and I was worried that it might not hold up today, but it does. 

So to set things up, Jaco has captured a dangerous criminal named Watagash, and on his way to headquarters, he stops off at a ramen stand.  While he’s eating, Watagash breaks out of his containment jar and escapes into space. 

Okay, so I love the idea of a ramen booth in outer space.  However, this sort of undermines the idea that Beerus and Whis are completely blown away by Earth food, doesn’t it?  Like, both of these are cute ideas, but if they have ramen noodles everywhere, then why is Beerus so impressed with our ramen noodles?  And if our ramen noodles are so much tastier than everyone else’s, then you’d think Jaco would never eat space ramen again after sampling the Earth variety.

Wait a damn minute!  Jaco can’t eat noodles!  He told Professor Omori that the only Earth foods compatible with his biology were milk and cheese.  Is that all Space Ramen is?  A bowl of long strands of cheese?  Now that I look at this scene again, it sure looks like cheese.  But that’s gross!  No wonder Whis and Beerus love Earth cuisine.  This is nasty as hell!   Continuity is saved!

Anyway, here’s Watagash before he busts out.  I really like this design.  Jaco describes him as a “mind parasite”, physically weak on his own, but capable of infesting a living host and controlling their body while also greatly enhancing the host’s strength.  So it makes sense that Watagash should look so fragile and insubstantial.  This is probably how Baby’s true form should have looked in Dragon Ball GT, now that I think about it.  I mean, not exactly like this, but you get the idea.  And I think they were heading in that direction when they designed Baby, but they could have taken it even further, and made him far creepier. 

Actually, now that I think about it, could Watagash be another Tuffle weapon, like Baby or Hatchiyack?  Hmm...

Meanwhile, Gohan and Videl see a TV commercial promoting a new movie: Great Saiyaman vs. Mr. Satan.   Starring Barry Kahn as the Great Saiyaman, Pop Idol Amaguri Cocoa as the woman he loves, and Mr. Satan as himself!

Gohan and Videl are astonished, because they see Mr. Satan all the time, and never knew anything about this.  Turns out the whole project has been kept secret, and if there’s one thing Mr. Satan cannot defeat, it’s non-disclosure agreements.  But the teaser trailer’s out now, so he can take his family to the studio where they can see the movie being filmed.  That’s right, they’re advertising the movie while they’re still in the middle of making it.  That... doesn’t sound right, but I don’t know enough about the motion picture business to dispute it.

Mr. Satan meets his co-star, Cocoa, and tries to introduce Gohan as the real-life Great Saiyaman, but Videl cuts him off and explains to him that it’s a secret.  Not everyone wants to be famous like Mr. Satan, and Gohan’s boss is a “stick in the mud”, so if he found out Gohan had a superhero identity, it could hurt his career. 

All right, so we’ve got that all sorted out.  Let’s talk about Barry Kahn.  You might remember Barry from such films as Dragon Ball Z Episode 247, where Majin Buu flirted with one of his female victims and reshaped his face in an effort to look more attractive.  He looked at a magazine to find a suitable model, and the image he chose was that of superstar actor Barry Kahn.  This scene was in the manga as well, so Barry is more true-to-canon than Gregory, or that other Great Saiyaman movie they were trying to film in DBZ Episode 205.

But this is the first time we’ve actually gotten to see Barry as an actual character in the show, and it turns out he’s a huge asshole.  As soon as she shows up on set, he starts demanding that the title of the movie be changed to “Barry Kahn in the Great Saiyaman vs. Mr. Satan.”  Then he flirts with Videl and offers her an autograph, and when she declines, he tries to save face by suggesting that she’s illiterate, so an autograph would serve no purpose for her.  Then while a stuntman prepares to film a scene, Barry calls for a last-minute change, making the stunt inherently dangerous to perform.  I guess this isn’t a union production, then?

Mr. Satan tries to talk him out of it, but Barry quotes a line from Mr. Satan’s autobiography that convinces him to play along with this.  It becomes pretty clear that Barry plays to Satan’s ego to get what he wants out of him.  He says Satan’s book is his favorite, but in fact he’s only read the first page. 

So, to be clear, Barry isn’t just an entitled diva.  He’s also a manipulative, self-serving creep.  They went a little overboard with all of this, but it ties into the plot, so just run with it for now.

Oh, and Pan hates Barry Kahn.  She just takes an instant dislike to the guy, like she’s ready to throw down with Barry right now.  “It’s on sight, Barry Kahn,” she’d probably be saying if she could talk.

So the stuntman looks like he’s in deep trouble, because he now has to leap over a tank, jump inside it and pull out the driver.  And he can’t use ropes or wires because Barry considers them inauthentic and he doesn’t want them used for “his” stunts.  And Satan’s on board and the director is just zoned out for some reason.  Luckily, there’s a hero on set.  Gohan goes to the assistant director and asks if he can do the stunt himself.  Everyone’s skeptical of this idea, but Barry insists on it, because he likes the idea of Gohan getting injured in front of his wife. 

Gohan says the actual reason is that he thinks it would be neat for Pan when she gets older.  She can watch the movie and see her dad in a few scenes.  But come on.  Gohan wears this thing all the time at home.  He keeps looking for excuses to put it on.  No, he’s really doing it to bail out that stuntman, because Gohan is a Good Boy(tm). 

So of course he nails the shot, and then he does the pose and the line, and...

... the director finally comes out of his coma and he’s deeply impressed.  It’s like he somehow knows--without actually knowing-- that he just saw something special here.  Like, whatever it was about the Great Saiyaman has finally been realized on his set, and he wants more.  So he asks Gohan to join the cast and do the rest of the Great Saiyaman’s stunts for this production.  Barry is outraged, but somehow the director seems to be the only one who can keep Barry in line. 

Gohan tries to decline, but Videl tells him to do it, since no one will recognize him under the mask. 

Also, Videl likes seeing him do this.  A lot. 

Ahem.

I forget what Mr. Satan is whispering into Gohan’s ear, but it’s probably something like “I’m the champ!”  or “YEEEEAAAAHHHH!”  I think he just wants Gohan on the set because the fight scenes will be a lot easier to shoot with someone he knows so well. 

So Gohan agrees, and on his way home from shooting the movie, he takes the suit with him, but notices a bank robbery in progress.  Krillin is there to intervene, but he’s about to get some reinforcements from the champion of justice...

Oh, shit.  Sorry, Krillin. 

Yeah, so if these robbers look a little familiar, it’s because they’re the same guys Great Saiyaman and Videl captured in DBZ 201.  Wait, no.  They don’t look like those guys at all?

Okay, he’s the flashback scene from this episode. 

And here’s the two crooks as they appear in the manga, when Great Saiyaman and Videl first meet.  Videl also has on the same flood pants in this chapter, in case you’re wondering why she looks different in the flashback.

But here they are in DBZ Episode 201, which modified their designs and added a third guy to their gang.  Also, they hijacked a bus in this episode instead of a getaway car. 

Anyway, they just got out of jail today, so they’re actually kind of happy to see Great Saiyaman again, so they can get some revenge.  The smaller crook is especially furious about it, which is probably why Watagash takes over his body instead of the other guy.  Suddenly the crook gets super strong and attacks Gohan. 

I should note here that even though Watagash has taken over this guy’s body, it’s not the same deal as when Baby would do it in GT.  The crooks still talks about how much he wants to clobber Great Saiyaman, and even though he has no idea what’s happened to him, he likes the sudden increase in power.  He does not say anything like “You fool, I am the great Watagash, and I have claimed this body as my own!” 

Neither does Watagash seek to trade up, the way Baby jumped from Goten to Gohan to Vegeta.  Watagash has other priorities.

Gohan still defeats the crook, though, and Watagash is forced to retreat.  The next day, news of the Great Saiyaman’s return has spread, and everyone at the studio thinks Gohan must have foiled the robbers using the costume he took home from the set.  Then Bulma shows up and convinces them otherwise.  See, the costume they’re using isn’t just any old costume. Capsule Corp manufactured it for them, and they made two, in order to have a spare in case the first one got damaged during filming.  And Bulma claims that someone broke into the lab last night and stole the spare. 

Luckily, she says, the thief ended up using the suit to fight crimes instead of committing more.  This is a really dumb alibi, but everyone buys it.  Bulma says this is because the entire film industry is used to stories with gaping plot holes.  You know, Dragon Ball Super really isn’t in any position to criticize.  I had to make up a whole thing about cheese ramen, remember?

Anyway, while Gohan thanks Bulma for protecting his secret, Cocoa overhears them talking and learns the truth.  Uh-oh.

Later, she asks Gohan to help her rehearse her lines.  Gohan finds that odd, since Barry would be a better partner for that, but Barry’s a dick, so this only makes sense.  As it turns out, Cocoa just wanted to get Gohan alone to reveal that she knows his secret.  And she asks for a flight home.

And as they take the scenic route, Jaco shows up in his spaceship and prepares to fire on them, because he’s somehow convinced that Great Saiyaman is Watagash’s host.  Seems legit.

[intrepidradish]

Media: Dragon Ball Z

Year/my age: 2002/12

What drew me to the media:

I came home from highschool everyday and had a small tv with a built in vhs in my closet. It was 4:30pm and toonami was on Cartoon Network. I watched the entire Cell Saga and Majin Boo like a fiend. It was a shitton of episodes! Ugh. It's almost impossible to watch all the way through now, but maybe because as an adult I want like...more plot motivated writing. One of the best fanfic foder aspects of DBZ is that so much is left open to interpretation. I didn't question the filler episodes as a kid. I just liked all the muscles and screaming. The animation/manga style remains super duper fun. But mostly I found DBZ memorable because of Vegeta. I got truly invested in him as a character, because for most of DBZ, he really lets you down. I think TV shows love to harp on tropes for children, ie the bad man becomes a good man and all his values change to match the good characters *sparkles*, because they think morally those are the stories that should be told to children. Which is sad, honestly. Vegeta doesn't fall into that arc. He remains...kind of a bitch... and his character arch is fantastic and long and hard and he fucks up a lot and he doesn't really apologize for any of it. This was amazing to see as a preteen. Teaching failure to a child is really hard, and I think that America's school system is really bad at even attempting to. But failure is super important. Because all of life that child cum adult is going to fail, and its going to suck.

What made me a fan:

In college, I did another pass of DBZ, and whoa, developing adult horny brain really went into spiral knots wondering...so what the fuck... Bulma and Vegeta... had sex? They made a child. They made Trunks. So they had sex, right? I think this is pretty common a reaction. And as soon as you think that, well... the next step is... 'wait wait wait, how did they have sex? why did they have sex? what did that even look like?' And that's what sends you scouring the internet at 1am in your underwear (covertly, because you're in a dormitory with three other roommates).

I wish I could put to language what is it about romance that sends people into fandom holes. Romance is really important to fandom. I think it has something to do with how regimented relationships are in mass media. They aren't diverse. Most main stream romance is very streamlined and never gets into the messy odd bits without being labeled as some kind of edgy cusp drama. I don't know. But relationships seem to be the spring board for fandom hijinks. I'm all about it. I'd rather have fake blorbo relationships in my brain to obsess over than the real world. That shit gets you into trouble.

Oh god, and what an indicator of future dispositions. If you get into the Vegebul fandom, a lot of them are rape stories (because god forbid, a woman could want a shitty asshole alien man to bone at night. Bulma has her own set of problems, specifically with vanity being high up there). But yeah they were hot and I was pretty ashamed about the whole thing.

I was such a baby then.

Have I written fanfiction for it?

YES. One winter vacation, I wrote a 40 page fanfiction. This was probably in 2010? It was UNFINISHED, but I was incredibly sweaty the entire time, trying to build up to a spanking scene. (Yes, 40 pages of build up for spanking. I'm embarrassed for myself.) My computer crashed and the entire document was corrupted. My first fanfic was lost. RIP

Opinion on the fandom:

Pretty chill. I didn't interact with it much besides reading secretly. Originally, I was reading on fanfiction.net. When I came back to it years later (once again after college, I got my husband into it) I was reading fanfic for it on Ao3. I run into other Vegebul's periodically. They are all in their late twenties, early-late thirties. I follow someone here on tumblr that wrote this fantastic long series (100+ chapters) called Pillow Talk which is on Ao3. It's fucking incredible about showing the ups and downs, ins and outs of their relationship, because they do wind up together in canon (which is wild).

The most recent interaction I had was in the kink community, which was like *sigh* 'god, we are so fucking predictable, aren't we?' We had a good laugh! But he was trans masc too, chilling in a femme body, so we clicked right away about it.

I also remember I had an annoying conversation with my stepbrother once about tattoos. I don't have any, so they were asking why I don't. I said "If I started to get tattoos it would be a slipper slop before I start making bad decisions like getting a full Vegeta arm sleeve." Their mouths twisted in that judging you face and said "yeah don't do that." Like...ahem. My point exactly.

I think people get pretty judgy in general about Vegebuls because its a 90s kid's show, and its not a very good one. But being a Vegebul is kind of like... realizing your parents have sex. It's part of 'coming of age'.

Would I participate again:

Hell yeah, I would. Once a Vegebul always a Vegebul. The biggest hurdle for me would be catching up on all the new material. I watched Dragon Ball Super and found it lackluster. GT was so bad, I cannot. Something that's commonly an issue for me is the amount of subject material required to understand a story in fanfiction. I'll get into it later with other fandoms, but if the lore gets too big, I suddenly don't know how to participate.

Master post