Dragon Ball Z: Dragon Box One
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Masako Nozawa, Mayumi Tanaka, Ryō Horikawa, Stephanie Nadolny, Toshio FurukawaBrand: Funimation
Primary Contributor: Akira Toriyama
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: Cantonese (Unknown); English (Subtitled); Japanese (Original Language), Dolby Digital 1.0; English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 5.1; English (Dubbed), Dolby Digital 5.1
Format: Box set, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC, Subtitled
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 1000 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2009-11-17
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: Funimation
Product features:
- Condition: New
- Format: DVD
- Subtitled; Box set; Full Screen; DVD; NTSC
Movie Reviews of Dragon Ball Z: Dragon Box One
Movie Review: A blessing for those who held out on the cropped and "psuedo" remastered season sets
Summary: 5 Stars
REVIEW
Having my hand at watching the Dragon Box and the extra material it offers, I can say this is easily a great quality release from FUNimation. It's a near perfect release. Now let's break down what it has to offer.
Picture: Taken from the original 16mm film preserved in cold storage, the picture was quite perfectly clean, but with most old animation, it will suffer from some damage over time. Pony Canyon, the company that went through the remastering process, had all the new digital technology available to them to clean the footage frame by frame while reducing jitter and removing most of the grain. With FUNimation's Dragon Box Masters, most of this is quite evident. The picture is clean and looks great in motion. As most say, screenshots really don't do it justice. There were times where I did notice some minor inconsistencies with flesh tones. Somewhat pinkish in one frame, not so much in another or another episode. It's a minor problem and I suspect it had something to do with the film damage over the years. Aside from that, everything is crisp and clear. I couldn't ask for more and it's the best quality available for the Dragon Ball Z series.
Audio: The set includes two audio options, Japanese Mono in 96kb/s stream (vs. the original 448 kb/s in the Japanese Dragon Boxes) and the English Dub w/ Japanese music 5.1 surround sound. While FUNi's Dragon Boxes have less kb/s compared to the Japanese release, it's the best audio quality we'll ever get for the Japanese track on a English Dragon Ball release. It sounds clear and more vibrant than the prior releases. There's not much you can do with a mono track either, so it's another minor problem. The English 5.1 track is pretty much the same track that was on the Season Sets.
Content and Packaging: The Dragon Box includes the first 42 episodes of the series spanning from the Saiyan arc to the beginning of the Namek arc. The packaging is great with an epic prologue reminiscent of the Star Wars films and what looks like an Akira Toriyama designed Son Goku (It's actually Nakatsuru Katsuyoshi, veteran Dragon Ball designer/artist for the TV show). Part of the spine image shows said Goku and Son Gohan with later releases. The episodes are split into 6 discs. 3 on each container with the Dragon Book packaged in the middle making up part of the spine image. The Dragon Book (or should I say Dragon Books) was originally done in 2 volumes spanning 128 pages each. The Dragon Books contained an introduction by Akira Toriyama himself and content such as a recap of the early Dragon Ball series, Episode summaries (with original air dates), Character profiles, Character relationships, Dragon Columns which includes the History of Dragon Ball Z along with real world events at the time, Fashions of the series, Character sketches, and a whole lot more. What FUNimation decided to do is to release the Dragon Books in 7 separate volumes co-relating with the 7 separate planned releases. The first FUNimation Dragon Book is a near-perfect replica of part of the original Japanese Dragon Book Volume 1. It includes the recap of the Dragon Ball series, character profiles, relationship chart, episode summaries with the original airdates, part of the Dragon Columns (which include parts of the History of Dragon Ball Z and the Fashion Check). No Akira Toriyama introduction unfortunately. All of the original names and attack terminology are even used. No Krillin, Tien, Destructo Disc, and Special Beam Cannon to be found here. Even the original Japanese voice actors are listed under each character. There's a lot of content and fun facts to know here in the Dragon Book that even the casual fan can appreciate.
Overall, the packaging is great and even better than most FUNimation releases. For a company that thrives itself in giving quality releases for other series's like One Piece, Yu Yu Hakusho, and the such, that's really saying alot.
Other Thoughts/Conclusion: This set might not really for the casual/dub fanbase that grew up with the broadcast syndication. For those dub fans in the know of the Season Sets and want the Dragon Box quality with the Falcouner score, I sincerely feel sorry for them. But with FUNimation, having a perfect Dragon Ball release is near impossible. There's always something wrong with each release that comes out and the FUNimation Dragon Box is no exception. There's the lingering possibility that the Dragon Boxes may or may not include the TV specials (Bardock and Trunks) and the infamous "Lost OVA"/Playdia Footage, "The Plan to Eradicate the Saiyans", which was never EVER released in North America. FUNimation did claim to purchase all of the Dragon Ball Z Dragon Box Masters, so it's a definite possibility to be able to see the "Lost OVA" in the FUNimation Dragon Box. If the Bardock and Trunks TV specials aren't included with the Dragon Box sets, I would be very disappointed. I just don't think there would be a valid reason not to include it. There just as important parts to the TV series as the episodes themselves. All it takes is an extra disc co- relating with the set of episodes it aired alongside with. Despite a problem or two with the Dragon Boxes, it's still a great and damn near perfect release. It shows that FUNimation is giving proper respect to a series that's really done well for them over the years. I can't highly recommend this set more than I already have. With the Amazon price, it's really more worthy of a purchase. Go get it.
Summary of Dragon Ball Z: Dragon Box One
The Ultimate for any Dragon Ball Z Collector!Originally produced in limited quantities in Japan, the incredibly rare Dragon Box has long been the ultimate prize for avid Dragon Ball Z collectors. Now this coveted collection has been reproduced for the first time in the United States, delivering the authentic original Dragon Ball Z experience to hardcore fans.
The battle to harness the power of the seven Dragon Balls explodes in vivid detail like never before. The Dragon Box features over 40 uncut episodes, remastered and restored frame by frame, rendering the legendary action in pristine clarity. Each episode is presented in Japanese with the complete opening and closing credits and includes the original episode previews.
Truly the essential edition for Dragon Ball Z purists, this set isn?t an addition to your archive ? it is your archive. Your wish is finally granted. The Dragon Box is here.
The American reissue of the first Dragon Box includes the reference volume "The Dragon Book" and episodes 1 to 42--all of season 1 (the Vegeta saga) and the first three episodes of season 2 (the Namek saga) of the Dragon Ball Z series. (When the original Dragon Box was released in Japan in 2003, it contained episodes 1 to 147 of Dragon Ball Z, a Son Goku action figure, and the "Dragon Book"--all for „100,000, or about $1,100.) As the story opens, the adult Goku learns he's not an Earthling, but a Saiyan from the planet Vegeta. Only three other Saiyans survive, all of them extremely powerful and destructive. Goku slays Raditz with the help of Piccolo but dies in the process. He spends much of the season training in the Other World with King Kai. Piccolo takes over training Goku's son Gohan, anticipating he will have to face the remaining Saiyans, Nappa and Vegeta. The first season of Dragon Ball Z set the pattern of martial arts training, fantasy battles, and slapstick comedy that makes the series so popular. The first episodes of season 2 take Gohan, Krillin, and Bulma to the planet Namek to find an even more powerful set of Dragon Balls that can restore the lives of Tenshinhan, Yamucha, Chaozu, and Piccolo, who were killed by Vegeta during season 1. (Their souls are also training with King Kai.) Funimation remastered Dragon Ball Z from the original prints for their nine boxed sets of the individual seasons. Fans who already have those sets may decide that seeing the series in its original aspect ratio (rather than the widescreen version in the earlier sets) and acquiring the "Dragon Book" warrants buying the new box; viewers who are just discovering Dragon Ball Z will find the Dragon Box a handsomely packaged introduction. (Rated TV PG, suitable for ages 8 and older: violence, minor incidents of risqué and toilet humor, ethnic stereotyping, and alcohol use) --Charles Solomon
(1. The New Threat, 2. Reunions, 3. Unlikely Alliance, 4. Piccolo's Plan, 5. Gohan's Rage, 6. No Time Like the Present, 7. Day 1, 8. Gohan Goes Bananas, 9. The Strangest Robot, 10. A New Friend, 11. Terror on Arlia, 12. Global Training, 13. Goz and Mez, 14. Princess Snake, 15. Dueling Piccolos, 16. Plight of the Children, 17. Pendulum Room Peril, 18. The End of Snake Way, 19. Defying Gravity, 20. Goku's Ancestors, 21. Counting Down, 22. The Darkest Day, 23. Saibaman Attack! 24. The Power of Nappa, 25. Sacrifice, 26. Nappa's Revenge, 27. Nimbus Speed, 28. Goku's Arrival, 29. Lesson Number One, 30. Goku vs. Vegeta, 31. Saiyan Sized Secret, 32. Spirit Bomb Away, 33. Hero in the Shadows, 34. Krillin's Offensive, 35. Mercy, 36. Picking Up the Pieces, 37. Plans for Departure, 38. Nursing Wounds, 39. Friends or Foes? 40. Held Captive, 41. Friends or Foes? 42. The Search Continues)
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