There are an endless amount of iconic anime that helped develop the medium in unprecedented ways, with Akira Toriyama’s Dragon Ball an especially prolific series. The original Dragon Ball made its debut in 1986 and helped kickstart what’s gone on to become one of the most popular anime series of all time.
A lot has changed since the 1980s and there are plenty of series that were once impressive, but are now slightly problematic in a modern context or through the benefit of hindsight. The original Dragon Ball isn’t perfect, but it’s held up very well over the years and has proven itself to an evergreen anime.
10 Goku's Development And Maturity As A Protagonist
Goku gets four separate Dragon Ball series to continue to grow and mature, which could make it very easy for the character’s progress in the original series to feel stagnant. Dragon Ball works as well as it does because it introduces Goku as a very oblivious and precocious child, who gradually hardens and becomes a more serious fighter. This type of development can be difficult to make feel believable, but Goku’s progress is patient and justified. The original Dragon Ball also handles time skips in a really effective manner that embraces Goku’s growth.
9 The Minimal Amount Of Filler Content
Filler continues to be a serious problem in some anime series and it can be enough to completely derail story and progress. Dragon Ball Z struggles with filler to such a degree that the intent behind Dragon Ball Z Kai was to create a more concise version of the narrative. The original Dragon Ball is much more natural in this department and out of the anime’s 153 episodes, there are only 21 filler entries. Some older anime are hard to return to because they get so bogged down in extraneous filler, but that’s not the case here.
8 Polished Animation
The standard of animation in anime has exponentially grown over the past decade and there are new series that have budgets that would have seemed ludicrous back in the 1980s.
There are lots of anime out of the 1980s and ‘90s that hold up in terms of their storytelling and characters, but they can look quite dated or push a retro art design that now feels awkward. The original Dragon Ball was made in the ‘80s, but it still looks very modern and doesn’t suffer from any retro sensibilities.
7 How The Supporting Cast Develop
An engaging protagonist is often essential for the success of a shonen anime, but it’s often just as important to have an entertaining and diverse supporting cast. The original Dragon Ball develops in such a natural way where Goku’s adventure begins with Bulma as his only ally, yet this slowly expands to include vital figures like Yamcha, Krillin, and Tien. Many of these characters are initially obstacles for Goku, yet his ability to turn threats into friends is consistently entertaining. Dragon Ball Z starts with a huge cast, but the original series takes the time to build Goku’s entourage.
6 The Handling Of Death And Consequences
Death is constant in Dragon Ball Z and beyond, with the powers of the Dragon Balls making resurrection nothing more than a minor inconvenience. These wish-granting orbs are present in the original series, but they’re abused far less often. This means that the deaths and consequences that take place have real weight to them and they’ve yet to lose all of their meaning.
5 The Number Of Major Story Arcs And Their Pacing
The number of episodes in an anime plays an important factor in pacing. There are plenty of occasions where a rewarding storyline gets diluted when it’s dragged out for too long, or alternatively gets resolved too quickly.
There’s a very comfortable atmosphere that surrounds the original Dragon Ball where there aren’t constantly new story arcs that attempt to reframe everything. The series allows its characters to properly grow and connect, and only then advances the story and brings in greater threats like the Red Ribbon Army and Demon King Piccolo.
4 Engaging And Infectious Music
There are lots of elements to break down in an anime series. Sometimes the music and score for a series isn’t treated like the most important detail, but it’s a crucial ingredient in establishing the tone of the original Dragon Ball. Shunsuke Kikuchi crafts remarkable music for the series that expertly captures both the playful and suspenseful dichotomy of the shonen series. Dragon Ball's opening and ending themes, "Makafushigi Adventure!" and "Romantic Ageru Yo" also hold up as some of the series' best tracks.
3 The Series' Power Scaling Feels Realistic
A hurdle that most shonen series need to confront at some point is that new and dangerous enemies force characters to grow progressively powerful, which can sometimes get out of control. A series like Dragon Ball has dozens of characters with different power levels to keep track of, which can understandably lead to inconsistencies. The original Dragon Ball makes Goku’s growing strength a lot more believable since it happens at a restrained place. It takes considerable time for Goku to learn new techniques, master energy attacks, and even fly.
2 Incorporation Of Tournaments
There are certain traditions that have carried over into each Dragon Ball series and there’s usually an opportunity to indulge in a competitive tournament that allows the characters to prove exactly where they stand against each other. Some of these tournaments are more important than others and they can feel reductive when they’re mismanaged. The original Dragon Ball introduces the Tenkaichi Budokai, which gets prominently featured and becomes a satisfying measuring stick for the series’ characters. At this point, tournaments haven’t worn off their novelty and there’s real excitement over whether Goku will claim first place.
1 The Way Dragon Ball Reimagines Journey To The West
Anime can frequently turn to fables, folklore, and ancient mythology for story inspiration, which has led to the classic Journey to the West narrative getting adapted into a wealth of different properties. Some Journey of the West adaptations don’t change enough of the formula, but Akira Toriyama’s reinterpretation of the story in Dragon Ball is one of the most unique riffs on the property. There are less ambitious Journey to the West adaptations that end up feeling disposable, but Dragon Ball forges its own path.