Dragonball Ball (Dragonball Z DBZ)
is a Japanese manga series written and
illustrated by Akira Toriyama. It was originally
serialized in
Weekly Shōnen Jump from 1984
through 1995, and later the 519 individual chapters
were published into 42
tankōbon volumes by
Shueisha. Inspired by the Chinese folk novel
Journey to the West, it follows the adventures
of Son
Goku from his childhood through middle
age as he trains in martial arts and explores the
world in search of the seven mystical objects known
as the
Dragon Balls, which are known to grant
any wish. Along his trip,
Goku meets several
friends and fights against several villains who plan
to get the
Dragon Balls to grant their wishes
and some who aim to conquer the world.
The series
is licensed for an English language release in North
America by Viz Media, in the United Kingdom by
Gollancz Manga, and in Australia and New Zealand by
Chuang Yi. The manga has been adapted into three
anime series, seventeen animated feature films,
three television specials, a collectible trading
card game, and a large number of video games. In
2002, 20th Century Fox began production on the first
American-made live-action film which is slated for
release on April 8, 2009.
Since its release, Dragon Ball has
become one of the most popular manga series of its
time in both Japan and North America. It enjoys a
high readership, with over 150 million volumes of
the series sold by 2007. Several manga artists have
noted that the manga series was the inspiration for
their own now popular works, including Naruto
and One Piece. The anime is also highly
popular, ranking number 12 among the best anime
series of all time in 2006. Reviewers praise the
art, characterization, and humor of the manga story.
The anime series have had more mixed reviews, with
the first also praised for its characterizations,
but the second was criticized for its long,
repetitive fights, and the third series considered
repetitive with childish fights and "goofy"
character designs
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