Anime wasn't always popular in the West. In fact, it's kind of hard to imagine that now, considering how prolific anime actually is now. Western musicians like OneRepublic and Yungblud are making music for shows like Kaiju #8 and celebrities like Megan Thee Stallion and Michael B. Jordan wear outfits that reference their favorite shows. Anime has become as important, perhaps even more important in some places, in the West as it is in Japan. More and more Western series are imitating the art style, overall feel, and story beats of shōnen anime in particular. This wouldn't have happened without Dragon Ball Z.

Dragon Ball Z was a major turning point in anime, becoming a worldwide phenomenon. Which is a bit funny when you remember it's a sequel to Dragon Ball and there is no title differentiation in the manga. This, along with Sailor Moon and Pokémon, would be the first anime to truly capture an entire generation in the West and boost the medium's popularity. The era of only being able to watch anime at certain times or only being able to buy pirated DVDs is over thanks to these series. But in 2024, Dragon Ball Z still worthy of the enthusiasm it receives from die-hard fans?

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What sets Dragon Ball Z apart?

Dragon Ball Z wasn't always the huge hit it is today. In fact, it bounced around from network to network for a while before Funimation got its hands on the show. Dragon Ball itself was a particularly hard sell to Western audiences, requiring a certain level of censorship to meet the ridiculous standards and practices of the late 90s and early 2000s. The Ocean Dub was particularly infamous for editing out the words “kill” and “die” and replacing them with the threat of “sending you to the next dimension.”

It would be the Toonami programming block that would give Dragon Ball Z the time slot and attention it deserved. This catapulted the series to the forefront in terms of ratings in the US, with the show competing with heavyweight hits of the 90s such as Friends and The X-Files, surpassing its audience in some parts of the country. The series adapts the last 325 chapters of Dragon Ball manga, following Goku's adventures as an adult and after starting his own family.

This is also where the series shifts from a shonen fantasy battle to a solid science fiction genre. Raditz, Goku's long-lost brother, arrives on Earth to check on his status and reunite his brother for a difficult mission. Discovering that Goku, originally called Kakarot, didn't actually do the whole killing-everyone thing, he goes looking for him, setting off a chain of events that sets the stage for the entire franchise. This was a major turning point, the revelation that Goku and Piccolo were aliens and that more Dragon Balls existed on another planet. Goku would also be killed in the conflict with his brother, opening up layers of the cosmos that had been relatively closed until then.

Dragon Ball Z created some of anime's most iconic moments. The lightning strike fight with Vegeta during the Saiyan Saga, the emergence of the Super Saiyan transformation in the Namek Saga, the father-son Kamehameha in the Cell Saga, and much more. The series took many risks for '90s shōnen anime, killing off characters and bringing them back with some brutal fights and moments. Gohan has his neck snapped by Recoome on Namek, and the distinct noise of the moment remains one of the most intensely disturbing things in the anime, given that he was only five years old at the time. The expanded cast and more intense fights made it incredibly special at the time, continuing the franchise's tradition of changing shōnen forever.

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Dragon Ball Z was a turning point in Western culture

Remembering how iconic Dragon Ball Z This means taking a step back from the present to look at the past. Before DZ rag ball started with such a bang, anime was incredibly Westernized for many audiences. Censors and dubs stripped them of much cultural context, changed entire plots, and cut episodes to the point where they were almost unrecognizable. At that time, cartoons were firmly considered the domain of children, with a few exceptions, such as The Simpsons and then South Park, causing constant controversy. So the anime was in a strange, gray area for many different networks, unsure what to do with it. It took a while for the anime to reach its current level.

Not only was it Dragon Ball Z a compelling story, was a turning point in anime dubbing. The rapid combination of shows like Speed runner and Astroboy generated a lot of stilted and poorly translated English dialogue, but the Ocean Group and Funimation teams really took a lot of time to make everything flow much more naturally. Starting at Dragon Ball Z It really was the equivalent of starting right in the middle of an ongoing story, and yet it worked so well because of all the work these teams put into making it interesting. The missing information from the previous series doesn't feel so mysterious because of the breadcrumbs scattered throughout.

So, it is Dragon Ball Z Is it worth all the hype? Yes. It remained Toonami's most popular show for most of its initial run and created a legacy that's impossible to ignore. It's one of those series that's important for understanding modern anime as a whole, referenced everywhere and in everything, just like contemporary JoJo's Bizarre Adventure. Modern Shonen like Naruto, My Hero Academia, and One Punch Man would not exist if it were not Dragon Ball Z and watching it allows for a greater appreciation of various anime and video games. Dragon Ball Z It's a show with great fights, great music, and characters so iconic that they're on par with characters like Superman and Spider-Man for so many people in the West. Dragon Ball Z will always be worth it.

Dragon Ball Z

An anime that spans many generations, this is the sequel to Dragon Ball of 1986. Dragon Ball Z is an anime that everyone should know, whether it's the name itself, Goku, or the Saiyans – Dragon Ball Z is one of the greatest anime ever produced. Produced by Toei Animation and written by Akira Toriyama, Dragon Ball Z continues the adventures of Goku, who, along with his companions from the prequel series, defends Earth against villains ranging from aliens like Frieza, androids like Cell, and magical creatures like Majin Buu. While the original anime followed Goku from childhood to adulthood and had its fun moments, Dragon Ball Z is a continuation of his adult life in this action-heavy anime, but at the same time it parallels the life of his son, Gohan, as well as the development of his rival Vegeta. Although there were sequels produced later, such as Dragon Ball GT and Dragon Ball Super, Z is the core of everything Dragon Ball A universe that enjoys a recognition unlike any other anime on this list. With over 150 episodes, the series features some of the most unique anime scenes ever made, such as Goku's transformation into a Super Saiyan and the Cell Games. If you like anime and haven't watched it yet, Dragon Ball Z, we won't judge. However, if you're just starting out, this is a must-watch anime if you enjoy fast-paced action, even if some fight scenes last about three to four episodes at a time. It's exciting, fun, and heartwarming all at the same time, and you'll want to be a Saiyan like Goku and his friends too.