The Right Way To Watch The Dragon Ball Series In Order
Although your average American may or may not have a hard time telling you much about it, Dragon Ball is one of the most successful franchises in the world. It began in the mid-’80s as a manga written and drawn by series creator Akira Toriyama, and has since been adapted into multiple anime series that have expanded the universe along with its fan base.;
With so much Dragon Ball to watch and more on the way , it’s natural for newcomers to wonder how they should go about watching the franchise. Do they start with the most popular show, “Dragon Ball Z,” and then watch the others? Should they begin with the first series, “Dragon Ball”? Or should they try watching everything chronologically and kick things off with the first few minutes of “Dragon Ball Super: Broly”? Also, how do “Dragon Ball GT” and the movies factor in that is, if they do at all?
As it turns out, the most satisfying way to watch the long-running action series is by release date … with a few exceptions, here and there. Read on for a gameplan and if you’re about to dive into the Dragon Ball franchise for the first time, consider us envious.
Dragon Ball: Curse Of The Blood Rubies
The very first Dragon Ball movie also started the series trend of setting stories in alternate continuities. Curse of the Blood Rubies is a condensation of the mangas introductory arc, where Goku meets the likes of Bulma and Master Roshi for the first time, but with some changes.
A major difference between this movie and the original arc is that the antagonist Emperor Pilaf is replaced with the movie-only character King Gurumes, who never appears in any other Dragon Ball material after his debut.
Finish Z Right With The Buu Saga
The “Z” era of the Dragon Ball franchise ends with a bang, thanks to the arrival of Majin Buu, the show’s most powerful threat. The Buu Saga is filled with major milestones, including Goku’s return, the introduction of new characters and fusions, and Gohan getting his Ultimate power-up. The saga’s biggest moments, however, involve Vegeta, who briefly reverts to villainy before finally completing his redemption arc. Even Mr. Satan, the Cell Saga’s martial arts con man, “redeems” himself by helping the real heroes save Earth.
It’s worth watching the Buu Saga pretty much the whole way through, including the anime-only Other World tournament from the original “DBZ” anime, which is followed up on in several filler scenes and Movie 12, “Fusion Reborn.” As far as films go, watch Movie 10, “Broly: Second Coming,” before the Buu Saga’s World Martial Arts Tournament, then watch Movie 11, “Bio-Broly,” after Goku returns to Other World. “Fusion Reborn” can be watched shortly after Gotenks becomes a Super Saiyan on the show, and Movie 13, “Wrath of the Dragon,” fits right before the Buu Saga’s 10-year jump.
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Dragon Ball Z: Wrath Of The Dragon
Titled Dragon Fist Explosion!! If Goku Cant Do It, Who Will? in Japan, Wrath of the Dragon is set after Majin Buus defeat. Goku and friends learn that another threat looms in the horizon in the form of the unstoppable Hirudegarn, and they enlist the legendary hero Tapion to save the day.
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Despite his dedicated following, Tapion is never seen in Dragon Ball after his debut. This is what keeps the movie from becoming a classic for some fans, despite the stellar fights and Gokus unexplained yet awesome ability to summon a Kaiju-sized dragon.
The Garlic Jr Saga Isn’t A Must
The saga that brought back “Dead Zone” villain Garlic Jr. is the only arc in the Dragon Ball shows where Goku is completely absent, and is the only one to feature a villain that originated in the “DBZ” movies.;It also does not exist in the manga, and was omitted from “Dragon Ball Z Kai.”
For those last two reasons alone, some argue that the Garlic Jr. Saga can be safely skipped. Still, the polarizing arc has several redeeming qualities. Chief among them is that Goku’s absence gives other characters like Gohan, Piccolo and Goku’s best friend Krillin the chance to;save the day. The story also gives Kami, the Guardian of Earth significant time in the spotlight, following up on his rivalry with Garlic Jr. from “Dead Zone.”;
Fans of Gohan’s pet dragon from the “DBZ” movies, Icarus, will also be pleased, as the Garlic Jr. Saga is the only arc in the series where he appears. Skipping the arc might also cause some minor confusion down the road, as Maron, Krillin’s girlfriend in the story, reappears briefly in later “DBZ” episodes.
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In What Order Did Dragon Ball Release Dragon Ball Chronological Order:
Some diehard;Dragon Ball;fans may look down upon this method of viewing, but its worth referencing. This order does not take into account which parts are canon and which are not, meaning it includes a lot more content than just the canonical order. Heres the chronological order in which;Dragon Ball;was released:
*denotes;Dragon Ball;content that is not considered a part of the;Dragon Ball;canon
Dragon Ball Super: 2015
The DB Super series is probably one of the most interesting seasons of all-time for Dragon Ball as a whole, because of all the build-up and tension within the series. The Super series also became the story of a comeback kid, with the season starting off pretty pathetic to put it nicely, but in the end, it came back loud and proud and ended abruptly.
Dragon Ball Super ended more than abruptly, it ended with a literal bang with the Tournament of Power. This bomb of an ending had fandom boys and girls all over the world on the edge of their seats, ready for more before it even ended. So we are all left wondering where this left us, nobody could fathom what would even be thought of next for the manga series of explosions.;
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The Dragon Ball Films
The OVAs should form an important part of the Dragon Ball Order, as without them you will not meet Son Gokus parents, popular villains such as Janemba and Broly, and miss out on some epic fight scenes and fusions.
There have been 20 animated films in the Dragon Ball universe, wow! While not all of these movies directly follow the story of the anime, they all offer their own unique adventure with Goku and friends, and are definitely worth watching for fans new to the franchise! In order of release, the movies are:
Unfortunately, the same cannot be said of the Live-Action film adaptation called Dragon Ball Evolution, which is best forgotten.
Since 2013, the films have met and exceeded the Dragon Ball Z timeline and have introduced new characters such as the Gods of Destruction and their angels, who go on to become important characters in
Dragon Ball Z: Lord Slug
Earth is once again threatened when the titular Lord Slug, a space pirate intent on wiping out all life on the planet, arrives and is challenged by Goku. Lord Slug is often forgotten due to its incredibly generic plot and its one-dimensional villain, which is saying something when taking every single Dragon Ball installment into account.
The fact that this entry bore a lot of similarities to The Tree of Might didnt help its case. The fights, however, are just as entertaining as expected of a Dragon Ball movie.
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What Is Dragon Ball
Initially, Manga written by Akira Toriyama and was later published by Shueisha. The Dragon Balls are seven magic orbs, each with a number of tiny glowing stars in them, with which all collected, a dragon can be summoned called Shenron. If you keeping watch Dragon Ball, youll find out that there are actually two dragons. Both can be summoned and they both grant wishes but their powers are different. Does this sound like bull shit? Well, sssh, never mind and dont think about these things already. Youll actually find this series way more interesting once you start watching it.
Continue with this article. Starting out with Goku, he is a young boy who is on a journey to gather the Dragon balls and during his journey meets many of the characters who would later become staples to the franchise.
You might want to read more on it on Wikipedia. We dont wanna spill out all the fun here.
Dragon Ball: The Path To Power
Functioning more as a soft reboot, The Path to Power marked the franchises 10th anniversary. To commemorate this event, the movie goes back to the beginning by retelling Gokus origins and his initial battle with the Red Ribbon Army.
The Path to Power is the longest original Dragon Ball movie, and it uses its run time to indulge in a decades worth of nostalgia. While the condensed story is literally nothing new and is told considerably better in the anime, The Path to Power is a celebration of Dragon Balls simple beginnings.
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How Long Is It
The Dragon Ball manga started in 1984 and lasted until 1995. The manga has 42 volumes, or 519 chapters.
Jump Comics in Japan didnt initially separate the manga into Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z. Therefore, international DBZ volume 26 is also Japanese Dragon Ball volume 42.
How many Dragon Ball anime episodes are there? When you add up Dragon Ball, DBZ, Dragon Ball GT, Dragon Ball Z Kai, and Dragon Ball Super, it comes out to 798 episodes. The original Dragon Ballcontains 153 episodes, while Dragon Ball Z has 291 episodes .
Watch Future Trunks’ Fight With Frieza Then Movie 5
Future Trunks’ arrival to the series is a game changer. Aside from being the first major sword user the franchise had seen in a while and its second Super Saiyan, the warrior from the future quickly ups the stakes by defeating Frieza and his father, King Cold, with next to no effort. He also introduces time travel into the world of Dragon Ball, along with one of its most shocking pairings, Vegeta and genius human scientist Bulma … who Trunks reveals are his parents.
Naturally, Trunks also sets up the next “DBZ” threats, the Androids further making these episodes required viewing. As Trunks’ debut also marks Frieza’s last major appearance on the show “Cooler’s Revenge” can be watched fairly seamlessly afterward, as the film features Frieza’s brother Cooler coming to Earth to avenge his brother. For best viewing, watch Movie 5 right before the Androids’ arrival.
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Dragon Ball Series Chronological Order/ Recommended Watch Order
The chronological order is the recommended watch order for Dragon Ball Series. Dragon Ball GT is debated to be non-canon since it is an anime original with no involvement of the original creator Akira Toriyama. GT is its own story with some original characters and can be enjoyed on its own.
Super Dragon Ball Heroes
In 2018, an anime to promote the Super Dragon Ball Heroes card and video game series was announced with a July 1 premiere. The series’ announcement included a brief synopsis:
Trunks returns from the future to train with Goku and Vegeta. However, he abruptly vanishes. The mysterious man “Fu” suddenly appears, telling them that Trunks has been locked up on the “Prison Planet”, a mysterious facility in an unknown location between universes. The group searches for the Dragon Balls to free Trunks, but an unending super battle awaits them! Will Goku and the others manage to rescue Trunks and escape the Prison Planet?
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All Dragon Ball Z Anime Arcs
Theres a lot of DBZ arcs: Raditz; Vegeta; Namek; Captain Ginyu; Frieza; Garlic Jr.; Trunks; Androids; Imperfect Cell; Perfect Cell; Cell Games; Other World; Great Saiyaman; World Tournament; Babidi; Majin Buu; Fusion; Kid Buu; Peaceful World.
- Raditz
Five years after Dragon Ball, Goku has married Chi-Chi. Their son, Gohan, is something of a wimp because Chi-Chi wont let him train.
Raditz, the first of many Saiyans, arrives and reveals that hes Gokus brother. Goku, aka Kakarot, was supposed to be a Saiyan invader.
Goku and Piccolo join forces to rescue Gohan from Raditz. Goku sacrifices himself, and Piccolo kills Raditz.
- Vegeta
Gohan trains with Piccolo. In the afterlife, Goku trains with King Kai. Master Roshi uses the dragon balls to bring Goku back to life.
Vegeta and Nappa arrive on Earth, and they want the dragon balls. The toughest fighters on Earth battle the Saiyans, but it goes badly without Goku. Piccolo dies protecting Gohan. Goku finally arrives, and Over 9000 memes are created in the battle.
- Namek
Bulma, Gohan, and Krillin voyage to the planet Namek in search of more dragon balls. Vegeta races to beat Frieza to the balls. The elite but goofy Ginyu Force arrives.
Goku once again arrives at the last minute. It looks like he might be Super Saiyan .
- Captain Ginyu
- Frieza
Everyone gets wished off Namek except Goku and Frieza. Lots of people get resurrected. Namek is destroyed. Goku isnt dead, but hes not ready to return to Earth yet.
- Garlic Jr.
- Trunks
- Androids
Dragon Ball Series Order: How To Watch The Dragon Ball Series In Order
We all have grown up watching Dragon Ball. Well, if not watching then at least listening about it from time to time. I always thought that Dragon Ball series order was straight forward and one can never get confused when its Dragon Ball anime.;
Until recently, when I found out how complicated Dragon Ball series order can get for first time watchers. Should you watch original Z or choose Kai? Do you watch ten tons of movies or not? Gt before Super or not?;
See? How complex it has become and specially new anime fans will go through a hell lot of struggle to get this through. The question here is, what is the ultimate Dragon Ball series order? Lets get this sorted for you!
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Dragon Ball Filler Guide
If you are looking for the dragon balls, but dont want much filler getting in the way, you cant go wrong with the OG the original Dragon Ball anime series. In this guide, we lay out which episodes you can safely skip on your quest for the dragon balls.
First airing in the 1980s, Dragon Ball is an anime based on the classic manga created by Akira Toriyama and published in Weekly Shonen Jump. The series follows the adventures of a young monkey-tailed boy named Goku on his quest to collect seven dragon balls which will grant him wishes.
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The Chronological Dragon Ball Series Order For Crazy People
You dont need to really watch Dragon ball in chronological order and we dont suggest it. This would just toss out the concept of canon and no canon and include all the movies, GT, and Super in the closes possible timeline.;
You may even find the timeline of some movies contradicting and end up confusing yourself, see, that is why they are considered non canon and are usually kept out of the watch order.
But, if you are really rooting to watch Dragon Ball in chronological order, here you go.
- Dragon Ball
- Dragon Ball Z to Episode 86
- Bardock: Father of Goku
- Dragon Ball Z to Episode 107
- Episode of Bardock Special
- Dragon Ball Z to Episode 123
- History of Trunks Saga
- Dragon Ball Z to Episode 125
- Revenge of Cooler Movie
- Dragon Ball Z to Episode 146
- Super Android 13 Movie
- Dragon Ball Z to Episode 173
- Return of Cooler Movie
- Broly the Legendary Super Saiyan Movie
- Dragon Ball Z to Episode 194
- Bojack unbound Movie
- Dragon Ball Z to Episode 207
- Brolys Second Coming Movie
- Dragon Ball Z to Episode 250
- Bio-Broly Movie
- Dragon Ball Z to Episode 253
- Fusion Reborn Movie
- Dragon Ball Z to Episode 288
- Wrath of the Dragon movie
- Finish Dragon Ball Z
- Dragon Ball GT, all of it.
- Dragon Ball Super to Episode 3
- Battle of the Gods Movie
- Dragon Ball Super to Episode 18
- Resurrection F Movie
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