Look at the size of those Dragonballs!

     Hello Shadow fans and welcome to another crazy Thursday with your old pal the Shadow and the very strange things he knows. What does the Shadow know this day true believers? Well this fun fact comes from the oral thermometer I bought for my kids the other day. Apparently you are not to use this device orally after it has been used rectally... WTF! Really, people need to be told this? They make these labels because someone, somewhere actually did this. What was their thought of the day? Man I think I might have a fever so I will take my temperature rectally. Hmm I seem to not have a fever, but I have always wondered what my poop tastes like... ugh!!! I really have no response to what could cause an individual to just do that. My goodness doesn't life just bring before us the darnedest things? As a reminder don't forget about my Gen Con contest. It should be a fun time and I am looking forward to meeting some of you who enjoy my insane ramblings. So now onto How I Geek with those pop sensations Greg and the Gang. I have good news we are back in black and even better. All technical difficulties have been resolved and a show should be posted this Sunday. The topic for your merry amusement this Sunday will be our top five favorite classic video games. Will it be Pong VS Donkey Kong? Drop by and find out. Greg is popping for the soda and pizza.

     So now onto the topic of the week and what pray tell is it you ask, I know someone did. Well I was going to do a solid month of my favorite cops shows. Instead I decided since I took my old pal and life long friend Greg to the new DBZ movie for his birthday I would cover Dragonball. The rest of the month will be the cops shows, so get ready to be dazzled with them then. So without further ado I present for your reading pleasure Dragonball. Dragonball was the brilliant baby child of Akira Toriyama and was published in the pages of Shonen Jump from 84-95 with 519 individual chapters published. The story follows the exploits of a kid named Goku, the adventures he has from youth to adulthood, and the villains/friends he meets along the way. As a manga it was titled Dragonball from beginning to end, but as a animated series it was broken down into two parts. The first part is simply titled Dragonball and the second Dragonball Z. This is bar none one of the greatest anime serials of all time and has definitely got the fan base to back that statement up. This one manga spawned three TV series, 3 TV movie specials,  18 animated movies, and 3 live action movies. This series itself inspired the creators of Bleach, Naruto, and One Piece in the making of their own masterpieces. This and Robotech were my introductions into the awesome world that is Japanese anime. I have never looked back since. So to follow I will discuss this awesome manga/anime the best I can in the time allotted. So let us just dive in shall we.

     Running from 89 to 96 in Japan Dragonball captured the hearts and minds of the people. The story begins with young Goku meeting a teenage Bulma and together begin a common quest to find and gather all seven of the dragonballs. When all seven dragonballs are brought together, and the secret phrase is said, the mighty dragon Shenlong will appear and grant the summoner a single wish. Where I can get some dragonballs eh? Along the way they meet Yamcha the ladies man, desert bandit. He later becomes an ally and close friend. Next the duo come upon the Ox King and Goku unwittingly agrees the marry his daughter Chi Chi. After Chi Chi the pair crosses paths with the wicked Emperor Pilaf who seeks the dragonballs for world domination. After defeating Pilaf due to Oolong (a shape shifting pig folks) making a wish faster then Pilaf could. What Shadow fans does he wish for, but a pair of ladies panties. Can we all say creeper, I know we can. Goku then seeks out Kame the turtle sage for training and it is during this time he meets his best friend Krillin. With his training complete Goku goes to compete in the world tournament. Then our intrepid hero fights and destroys the Red Ribbon Army single handily. This is something that will come back on him in the later years. After thwarting the Red Ribbon Army Goku goes in search of the 4 star dragonball given to him by his adopted grandfather Gohan and seeks out Kame's sister Baba the witch for her help. Goku defeats her warriors and is granted her help. Along the way another tournament is fought and some bad guys seek their revenge on Goku there (this is a recurring theme, Goku tends to not only convert many enemies to good guys, but make many more enemies obsessed with defeating him). In the mix King Piccolo is released from his centuries prison and let loose upon the world. Goku defeats him, but not before King Piccolo spawns his replacement Piccolo Jr. That pretty much sums up most of the first series. Of course there are other friends that he meets along the way like Yajirobe, Pu'ar, Chaozu, and Tien. Some of which start out as enemies, but become the closets of Goku's friends. Let us not forget the whole monkey tail thing in which the light of the full moon turns Goku into a giant crazed ape beast. Fortunately Goku's tail is removed and that stopped the transformations. What can I say? This was really a well put together show and I salute Toriyama on his genius. This though is only half the story, for what we get in the second half is even better then the first I tell you.

     Part of that 89-96 run is the second half of the story of Goku unfolding in the tale called Dragonball Z. In this part of the story Goku is grown up, married to Chi Chi, and has a son Gohan. A strangely familiar man comes to Earth and announces that he is Goku's brother Raditz and that Goku's name is actually Kakarrot. He reveals that they are part of a warrior alien race that is all but extinct. Goku was sent to Earth as a baby to conquer the planet and bring it under their rule. Raditz is confused as to why this had not been done. It is revealed that when Goku's adopted grandfather had found him as a baby Goku was wild and unruly. One day while they were out an accident happen in which Goku hit his head and all that negativity went away. He was transformed into a kind and gentle spirit from that day forward. Goku, Gohan, and Piccolo battle Raditz costing Goku his life. With his dying breath Raditz announces that two more even more powerful Saiyans are on the way and they will conquer the Earth. Goku trains in the other world under the tutelage of the North Kai. Piccolo trains Gohan and Bulma goes in search of the dragonballs to bring back to life Goku. Well long story short to late. Vegeta comes and is barely defeated by the Z-Warriors as they are coined. Afterward Krillin, Bulma, and Gohan go to the planet Namek (the birthplace of the dragonballs) to revive all who were lost during the battle with Vegeta. Where the gang meet Freeza and his Ginyu Force. Goku almost loses his life battling Freeza, having to turn into a legendary super saiyan to do so. After that the Red Ribbon Army returns for revenge in the form of androids. The Z gang are warned of this by the future son of Vegeta and Bulma Trunks. The warriors train hard to defeat the androids only to be bashed by the ultimate android Cell. Goku again loses his life trying to defeat cell and it is Gohan in the end who finally does away with him. Goku trains again in the other world and fights in a tournament there. On Earth Gohan grows up and a new son Goten is born to Goku and Chi Chi. A new evil in the form of Majin Buu is awakened and Goku is given life again to fight this evil. Goku achieves his ultimate form and finally defeats the final evil version of Buu with a spirit bomb. In that final act Goku wishes that Buu would be reborn as a good being. The final chapter of this show has Goku fighting and then training the reborn buu (Uub, I am not sure, maybe he is not the reborn Buu). This second half of the series is awesome beyond words. The fight scenes just got better and better as did the villains. If you have not seen this series what are you waiting for go see it. If you are an anime fan, or a fan of old kung fu movies you have to watch this series. So onto the next.

     So after Dragonball ended Toei Animation studios (responsible for all the DB animated serials) decided to move forward with a continuation story of the Dragonball time line. This new version, GT had little to no input from Toriyama and this is one of the reasons this show sucked so bad. The only thing good about GT was that the animation was stepped up a notch. Running from 96-97 and only lasting for 64 episodes compared to the over 200 episodes of the original Dragonball. I think that speaks for itself to the lacking popularity of this show. Goku is turned into a kid again by Emperor Pilaf from a wish made from a set of darkstar dragonballs that really should not even exist. This is the story line that starts the series. the villains really sucked, the fight scenes were lackluster at best, and the overall plot was well weaker then Sanjaya Malakar (of American Idol infamy) as a pop artist. I compare this horridness of animation to the Transformers Beast Wars debacle.. ugh. I try to find some redeeming qualities about this series but alas I can really find none and that is quite sad. I believe that if this was a true and pure Toriyama created series we would not have had to endure the flying monkey crap that this series was. I was playing the Score's DBZ collectible card game and GT even ruined that. They switched formats when they switched from Z to GT and it ruined the whole game. It just fizzled and died after that... ugh!!! It would seem that GT has done nothing for the franchise but leave a horrible taste in every ones mouth. There is hope though true believers because Toriyama has released a new movie and there is talk of another one coming. Could this lead to the return of the original series? I truly hope so.

     So movies did I say? Yes I know I did just up there in the last couple of sentences. There have been 18 animated movies, 3 made for TV animated movies, and 3 live action movies. The first three of the eighteen are connected to the Dragonball half of the series and remaining 15 on the Z side of things. Movie four (Lord Slug) has the best soundtrack (IMHO). I will not go in great detail here as I think you should give them a watch and I will not give out spoilers here. Each one of these animated movies (including the 3 made for TV ones) are all by that mad genius Toriyama. To the best of my knowledge there have been no GT movies (though I reserve the right to back peddle at any time) and for that I am pleased as punch as they say. There are lots of great villains from Freeza's brother cooler to the destructive Broly a Saiyan who is bent on well, destruction. Brilliant fights scenes and story twists these movies are what we come to expect from Toriyama's work. They have all been great, but I want to talk about the last movie Battle of Gods. Toriyama hits this one out of the park again. All the elements are there to make this one of the greatest Z movies in the history of ever. The fight scenes were sweet as were the scenes in which Vegeta had to calm down the situation (you just gotta see it to believe it right Greg). There are plenty of surprises in this movie as well and I have to say if you can still see it in your area then go quickly, run do not walk and go see it. If you are a Dragonball fan you shouldn't be disappointed. The way they put this movie together makes me wonder if there is going to be another DBZ series in our future by Toriyama himself. That would truly kick butt if that is the case. We need more DBZ in our daily lives. I love to start the day with at least a full cup of DBZ in the morning, don't you? I will end by saying that the live action movie released by Fox was just OK. It did not do a great job of following the original story. The fight scenes in this movie were decent, but overall I would rate it about a 2 stars out of 5. If you want to see it I suggest either waiting for it on TV or rent it. I do not suggest buying it as you may feel you have wasted your money. The other 2 live action films have not been released in the US to the best of my knowledge and if they have I have never seen them. I do know that they are not Toriyama creations and so could very well be a mixed bag of nuts indeed. 

     Well folks that is all the time we have this week for the Shadow Knows. Tune in next week where we will be using DVD copies of GT for skeet shooting practice. So Shadow fans what is your opinion this week? Do you have a favorite Z character? Goku fan here and the wife likes Gohan. Do you have any favorite villains from the show? Did you like GT or would you rather watch it fall into a dark hole as well. Do you think there will be another DBZ series? Does anybody know a good vet? One of my poor flying monkeys got his finger caught in a GT DVD and it's turning purple. Man it is hard to find good flying monkeys these days. Well that is it for me today folks and I will see you from the shadows.