Age 712 or earlier: while Earth scientists dick around with capsules and time machines, on Planet Plant the elite Saiyan Nappa is born around this time. Also born around now (give or take a decade or two) is King Vegeta III, plus the low-class mook Bardock. #HistoryofEver
Let’s start with ages: Nappa was over 50 when he died in Age 762 according to his Daizenshuu 7 bio, placing his birth in 712 or before. We don’t have official ages or birth years for Bardock/the King, and Saiyans being youthful up to 80 makes judging based on looks a crapshoot
Still, Raditz looks about 10 in DB Minus, so we might lazily assume Bardock was at least 30 when he got blown up/time warped/brainwashed, putting his birth at ~710 or earlier, about the same as Nappa. King Vegeta’s probably older, if he kicks off the Saiyan/Tsufruian war in 720
(But way more on King Vegeta in diverse continuities on Friday)
The idea that Saiyan society was organized into a hierarchy with elites like Vegeta on top and low-level scum like Goku on bottom has been a fixture of series lore for as long as Vegeta’s been around to whine about it. However, as usual the details have shifted a bit over time.
The first shift comes in the Namek arc. Before then, Vegeta had only ever been referred to as an elite (or “super elite”), but Dodoria spills the beans that he was in fact the prince, and we later learn that his father was the king (logically enough)
Daizenshuu 7 explains how Saiyan society was ruled by generations of kings named “Vegeta”, with the rest of the populace all being soldiers divided up into ranks like elite or low-level. No mention here of non-combatant Saiyans. magikarp46.com/dragonball/gui…
The Super Exciting Guide: Story Volume says much the same thing, with the added detail that Elites get to serve on the frontlines, with low-levels shipped off to the frontiers.
(Also in the SEG: Character Volume, Toriyama says Nappa went bald. So obviously Vegeta must not consider this a “weird change”) kanzenshuu.com/translations/s…
While Raditz is typically described as a low-level warrior, Toriyama claims Raditz and Nappa had equal status in one of his Saiyan arc Full Color manga Q&As. Perhaps they only became equal once the rest of Saiyan society went kaput? kanzenshuu.com/translations/d…
Later in his Episode of Bardock Q&A, Toriyama describes Bardock (and nearly all Saiyans) as low-class warriors. In this version of things, “elite” refers specifically to the royal family, and in between are only about 10 mid-class warriors. kanzenshuu.com/translations/e…
Then in the Saiyan Special Q&A, Toriyama reaffirms his Raditz fanboy status by describing him as an upper-level warrior. In this set-up, low-level warriors become either engineers (ala Beets in DBS: Broly) or “infiltration babies” (ala Goku in DB Minus) kanzenshuu.com/translations/s…
Bardock and Goku look alike, as you’d expect of father and son, but DBZ Movie 3 lets us see Tullece (Turles), who’s identical to Goku simply because “there weren’t that many types” of low-class Saiyans. Daizenshuu 3 attributes this to the low-class warriors’ shared environment.
Tomorrow: galaxy brain!
Thanks to @DBReduxTDC for helping with the class struggle (and Jaco/DBO)
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According to Bunshun Online, Dragon Room head honcho Akio Iyoku has stepped down from Shueisha and established his own company, Capsule Corporation Tokyo. Supposedly he wants Shueisha to keep DB’s manga publishing rights but for CC Tokyo to handle DB games/anime/etc.
As you might imagine, Shueisha is reluctant to part with DB to any extent, and negotiations are still ongoing. According to this article, anyway. Shueisha has apparently confirmed that Iyoku is stepping down, but not confirmed any of the particulars so far.
Bunshun Online reached out to Toriyama and asked if he would be working with Iyoku in future, but Toriyama said he couldn’t comment publicly, only through Shueisha. He also said the company name “Capsule Corporation Tokyo” was Iyoku’s idea, not his own.
Dragon Quest: The Adventure of Dai ep.41: Pissed Myst’s great and the logistics of Dai’s sword are interesting, while the castle’s just there to be knocked down. But it knocks down well. 4/5 #DragonQuest#ep41
Rewatching the DBS panel, there’s a few things I want to note about the subtitles. They’re fine overall but there’s a few things I think are oversimplified or left out. Going through roughly in order of importance…
When discussing the artwork for New Character 1 and 2, in Japanese Hayashida says how it’s Toriyama’s original artwork, unlike the Piccolo/Pan/etc images that have been developed into full-fledged anime designs. The subtitles instead say it was made before movie production began
Now, it might indeed be true that Toriyama would’ve made the initial artwork before movie production began, but that’s not really what Hayashida is talking about. He’s contrasting this image with the earlier ones shown of Piccolo and co, which weren’t Toriyama’s original artwork
May 15th, Age 767: after three days of rest, Goku recovers from his heart disease (a week earlier than Trunks expected). The situation may be dire, but Goku knows the perfect place where Vegeta and Trunks can finally spend some quality father/son time together... #HistoryofEver
Speaking of quality time, Goku and Chi Chi get a nice moment together in the anime, sharing a kiss far too hot to actually show on screen. Or include in the canon, for that matter.
Alright, so…in the original manga, Goku and Chi Chi are never shown kissing. In DBZ ep.147 they share an offscreen kiss (they later made a figurine based on this). In the DBS anime and manga, Goku claims never to have kissed his wife. Draw your own conclusions.
May 12th, Age 767 (Bad Future Edition): at 10 AM on an island 9km southwest of South City, 17 and 18 begin their assault. Vegeta and co are mowed down, leaving Gohan sole survivor. Even the dragon balls are no use, since Pilaf and co wasted them on a dumb wish. #HistoryofEver
May 12th, Age 767 (Better Future Edition): 19 and 20 appear on schedule, but Our Heroes are ready. Well, Goku gets a bit sick, but Vegeta covers for him. While 19 and 20 don’t last long, 17 and 18 make short work of the gang. And that’s just the beginning of their problems…
Yes, it’s another busy day. May 12th has the honor of being one of the few specific dates mentioned in the series, although the year 767 comes from the Daizenshuu 7 timeline. If there’s any number pun significance to this date, I haven’t been able to find it.
May 7th, Age 767: after 11 years, the Tenkaichi Budokai is finally reopened, though Goku and co are apparently too busy android-training to notice. Instead, Mister Satan is champion, beating some jerk called “Spopovitch” in Round 1, then facing Jewel in the finals #HistoryofEver
The 24th TB also introduces a new “youth division” for entrants under 15, which is won by Satan’s daughter Videl. Satan becomes famous as world champ and moves to Orange Star City, which is renamed “Satan City” in his honor. Though they don’t bother renaming the high school.
When Mister Satan first appears in the lead-up to the Cell Games, he’s introduced simply as the world martial arts champion (using 格闘技/kakutōgi, a different word for “martial arts” than 武道/budō ala the Tenkaichi Budokai).