Title:
Dragon Ball: Tournament - Roshi's Request |
Format:
Dub VHS
Uncut
63 minutes |
Production:
Bird Studio
Shueisha
Toei Animation
FUNimation |
Comments:
The episodes are missing the feel of the first story arc. |
Overall Rating:
 72% |
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Animefringe Reviews:
Dragon Ball: Tournament - Roshi's Request
By Adam "OMEGA" Arnold
I'm what you would call a closet Dragon Ball fan. I love the original series about Goku as a kid, but I don't enjoy large portions of Dragon Ball Z because it is so drawn out. It's nice to see that the original series is being given the credit it is due, and this time in pure uncut form. The dubbing is pretty straight as well and the original opening and ending theme songs have been dubbed into English using the same pattern as the originals. In fact, the songs are sung rather nicely and keep the same tone that the originals had.
The first thought through my head when viewing this volume is about how much of a pervert Master Roshi is and the second is about the potty humor and sexual innuendo. I mean, this is a far cry from the heavily edited first thirteen episodes which had floating stools and buckets to hide Goku's 'thingy.' It'll be interesting to see what is cut when these episodes air on Cartoon Network.
For those interested, my favorite character is Bulma, so I was rather sad to see the guys from the original story arc all stuck in the jungle while Goku, Krillin, Launch, and Master Roshi all have their fun - but that's the price you have to pay during the downtime between dragon ball quests. As the story picks up, Goku decides to continue his training with Master Roshi. However, he must first find a date for the perverted old man. This leads to several failed attempts to please the master's high standards before a new lad appears on the scene looking to be trained. His name is Krillin, and he knows just what the turtle hermit has in mind. Well, with the naive Goku in the hands of two unpure minds, anything can happen and boy, does it.
For fans of the voices that have appeared since FUNimation brought DBZ back to life, you'll find a large number of familiar voices to tide the ears over. Goku's voice is very fittingly that of young Gohan's voice and many of the characters including Master Roshi, Bulma, and the rest of the returning cast from the first story arc are played by their counterpart voices from the Dragon Ball Z series.
The only difference is in the place of characters appearing for the first time in this volume. First up is young Krillin, who sports a very mature and mischievous new voice that fits his character at this stage of his development. This is a good thing, because I don't think I could stand the nasally challenged older voice for another 300 episodes.
Next we have the girl with a split personality, Launch. In her sweet blonde persona, her voice is soft and innocent. This really fits the character - until you throw in the over-the-top, gruff version of the voice that makes an apperance whenever Launch sneezes and transforms into her gangster persona. This second voice could really use some work, as it comes off way too harsh and really takes away from the mood of the scenes. Also, the supporting voices are sadly still FUNimation's standard share of low grade regional dialects that push the stereotype limits.
Now onto my major gripe with this volume, the tape defects. Have you ever opened a video and put it into your VCR only for it to be ejected a moment later? A million things run through your head in that moment, only for you to realize that the video tape isn't even spooled. When I first got this volume, my hopes of watching the video at that moment in time got crushed. The realization that I had to go all the way back to the store where I bought the tape just to exchange it, all because of a factory defect, only served to make matters worse. Needless to say I exchanged my copy - but tape defects, whether they be in the form of spooler, sound, picture, or missing promotional items, really irritate the hell out of me.
To end on a positive note, this uncut volume is truly how the original series should have been presented to begin with. Sure, broadcast standards and practices would have had a heart attack, but if Ren & Stimpy got away with farting, then why couldn't Dragon Ball? At least with the uncut release, we can see Krillin peeing on a toad and Master Roshi in all his naughty glory.
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