Dragon Ball Kai Review: The best remake that rediscovers the charm of the original

Dragon Ball Kai: A return to the roots and a new challenge

Dragon Ball Kai is an anime series based on the nationally popular manga Dragon Ball by Akira Toriyama, and was broadcast from 2009 to 2011. While faithfully reproducing the essence of the original work, the work remastered the video and audio with the latest technology, providing fans with new excitement and thrills. This article will take a closer look at the appeal of Dragon Ball Kai, its background, and its subsequent influences.

Relationship between the original work and the anime

Dragon Ball is a manga by Akira Toriyama that was serialized in Weekly Shonen Jump from 1984 to 1995. Its immense popularity led to an anime adaptation that was broadcast in two parts, Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z, from 1986 to 1996. Dragon Ball Z in particular thrilled fans around the world with its epic storyline that continued through the Saiyan saga, Frieza saga, Android saga, Cell saga, and Majin Buu saga.

However, at the time, many original episodes were added to the TV anime to complement the original work, and the story sometimes deviated from the original. Dragon Ball Kai has been reconstructed in a way that is faithful to the original work, with those original episodes removed. In order to maximize the dynamic development of the original work and the appeal of the characters, the video and audio have been remastered with the latest technology, and the music has also been completely renewed. This has recreated the energy and sense of speed of the original work, providing fans with a new sense of excitement.

Broadcasting and Production

Dragon Ball Kai was broadcast on Fuji TV and other affiliated stations nationwide from April 5, 2009 to March 27, 2011, every Sunday morning from 9:00 to 9:30. It has a total of 97 episodes, covering the Saiyan Saga, Frieza Saga, Android Saga, and Cell Saga. It was produced by Toei Animation and directed by Nodo Yasuhiro. Toriyama Akira, the original author, was also deeply involved in the production, supervising the character designs and story, which allowed for a faithful reproduction of the worldview of the original work.

The broadcasting stations are as follows:

• Fuji TV: April 5, 2009 to March 27, 2011 (Episodes 1 to 97) Every Sunday 9:00 to 9:30
• Hokkaido Cultural Broadcasting: April 5, 2009 to March 27, 2011 (Episodes 1 to 97) Every Sunday 9:00 to 9:30
• Iwate Menkoi TV: April 5, 2009 to March 27, 2011 (Episodes 1 to 97) Every Sunday 9:00 to 9:30
• Sendai Broadcasting: April 5, 2009 to March 27, 2011 (Episodes 1 to 97) Every Sunday 9:00 to 9:30
• Sakuranbo TV: April 5, 2009 to March 27, 2011 (Episodes 1 to 97) Every Sunday 9:00 to 9:30
• Niigata Sogo TV: April 5, 2009 to March 27, 2011 (Episodes 1 to 97) Every Sunday 9:00 to 9:30
• Ishikawa Television: April 5, 2009 to March 27, 2011 (Episodes 1 to 97) Every Sunday 9:00 to 9:30
• Nagano Broadcasting System: April 5, 2009 to March 27, 2011 (Episodes 1 to 97) Every Sunday 9:00 to 9:30
• Shizuoka TV: April 5, 2009 to March 27, 2011 (Episodes 1 to 97) Every Sunday 9:00 to 9:30
• Tokai TV: April 5, 2009 to March 27, 2011 (Episodes 1 to 97) Every Sunday 9:00 to 9:30
• Okayama Broadcasting: April 5, 2009 to March 27, 2011 (Episodes 1 to 97) Every Sunday 9:00 to 9:30
• TV Shin-Hiroshima: April 5, 2009 to March 27, 2011 (Episodes 1 to 97) Every Sunday 9:00 to 9:30
• Television Nishinippon: April 5, 2009 to March 27, 2011 (Episodes 1 to 97) Every Sunday 9:00 to 9:30
• Saga TV: April 5, 2009 to March 27, 2011 (Episodes 1 to 97) Every Sunday 9:00 to 9:30
• Kumamoto Television: April 11, 2009 to April 2, 2011 (Episodes 1 to 97) Every Saturday 5:30 to 6:00
• Kansai TV: April 12, 2009 to April 3, 2011 (Episodes 1 to 97) Every Sunday 9:00 to 9:30
• Toyama Television: April 11, 2009 to April 9, 2011 (Episodes 1 to 97) Every Saturday 6:30 to 7:00
• TV Ehime: April 19, 2009 to April 10, 2011 (Episodes 1 to 97) Every Sunday 9:00 to 9:30
• Nagasaki Television: April 13, 2009 to April 11, 2011 (episodes 1 to 97) every Monday from 15:29 to 15:58
• Sanin Chuo Television: April 16, 2009 to April 14, 2011 (Episodes 1 to 97) Every Thursday 16:23 to 16:53
• Kochi San San TV: May 12, 2009 to April 19, 2011 (Episodes 1 to 97) Every Tuesday 15:30 to 16:00
• Akita Television: April 22, 2009 to April 20, 2011 (Episodes 1 to 97) Every Wednesday 16:23 to 16:53
• Fukui Television: May 3, 2009 to April 24, 2011 (Episodes 1 to 97) Every Sunday 9:30 to 9:56
• Miyazaki Television: May 12, 2009 to May 3, 2011 (episodes 1 to 97) every Tuesday from 15:29 to 15:58
• Okinawa Television: July 6, 2009 to May 16, 2011 (Episodes 1 to 97) Every Monday 15:54 to 16:23

story

The story of "Dragon Ball Kai" covers the Saiyan Saga to the Cell Saga of the original. Below is an overview of each arc.

Saiyan Frieza Edition

Five years after the Tenkaichi Budokai, Son Goku was living a peaceful life with his wife Chi-Chi and son Son Gohan. However, one day, a pod suddenly flies in from space, and Goku's older brother, the Saiyan Raditz, appears. Raditz calls Goku Kakarot and tells him that he has come to invade Earth. Goku cooperates with Piccolo to fight Raditz, but is defeated and loses his life. However, Goku trains under King Kai in the afterlife and returns to Earth to fight the Saiyans.

After defeating the Saiyans, Goku and his friends head to Planet Namek and confront Frieza to collect the Dragon Balls. Frieza is a ruthless evil emperor who has the Saiyans as his subordinates. Goku awakens to Super Saiyan powers in the battle against Frieza and defeats him. However, Planet Namek collapses and Goku and his friends return to Earth.

Android Saga/Cell Saga

One year after the battle on Planet Namek, Frieza and his father, King Cold, appear on Earth. However, Trunks from the future defeats Frieza and his son. Trunks is the son of Vegeta and Bulma from 20 years in the future, and warns that the androids will attack Earth in three years. After three years of special training, Goku and his friends face off against Androids 19 and 20 (Dr. Gero), but Goku collapses from heart disease.

Later, new androids named #17 and #18 appear, and Goku and his friends fight again. However, a new enemy named Cell appears and absorbs #17 and #18 to become perfect. Goku and his friends fight Cell, and Gohan awakens to Super Saiyan 2 and defeats Cell. However, Goku sacrifices his own life to defeat Cell, saving the Earth.

character

Many fascinating characters appear in Dragon Ball Kai. The main characters are introduced below.

Son Goku

The protagonist of this work, a Saiyan who was picked up by old man Son Gohan when he was a child. He meets Bulma and sets off on an adventure to collect the Dragon Balls. He overcomes various challenges and grows strong enough to take the fate of the Earth on his own. He awakens as a Super Saiyan in the battle against Frieza, and sacrifices his own life in the battle against Cell to save the Earth.

Son Gohan

He is the son of Goku and Chi-Chi, and inherited the name of Goku's foster father. Influenced by Chi-Chi's gifted education, he dreams of becoming a scholar in the future. He grows up through rigorous training by Piccolo, and awakens to Super Saiyan 2 in the battle against Cell.

Bloomers

She is the only daughter of the president of Capsule Corporation and has a genius for invention. She meets Goku during her journey to find the Dragon Balls, and with her lively personality, she is always busy with love and adventures. In the future, she creates Trunks and creates a time machine, playing an important role in the story.

Krillin

He is one of Earth's leading martial artists, and has been best friends with Goku since they trained together under Master Roshi. His desire to become stronger was impure, but as he trained he awakened as a true martial artist and grew beyond recognition. In the Android arc, he fought in place of Goku, and played an important role in the battle against Cell.

Piccolo

He is the alter-ego of the Demon King Piccolo, and once plunged the world into the depths of fear. He participated in the Tenkaichi Budokai to defeat Goku, but was defeated. He then teamed up with Goku and his friends to fight the Saiyans and Frieza. He became Gohan's teacher, and helped Gohan grow through rigorous training.

Vegeta

He is the prince of the Saiyans and has fearsome fighting abilities. Ever since he was defeated by Goku on Earth, he has always felt a burning sense of rivalry with Goku, who is always one step ahead of him in terms of his abilities. In the future, he marries Bulma and gives birth to Trunks. He fights in place of Goku in the battle against Cell and supports Gohan's growth.

trunks

He is the son of Vegeta and Bulma from the future, and can transform into a Super Saiyan. He defeats Frieza and his son, and warns that the androids will attack the Earth in three years. In the battle against Cell, he displays powers that surpass those of his father, Vegeta, and supports Gohan's growth.

Android 16

A completely robotic human created by Dr. Gero, he has a taciturn personality and likes nature and animals. Although he has a powerful fighting ability that surpasses that of Android 17 and Android 18, he generally shows no signs of fighting anyone other than Goku. In the battle against Cell, he gives courage to Gohan, which gives him the opportunity to defeat Cell.

Androids 17 and 18

They are twin brother and sister artificial humans created by Dr. Gero. Unlike #18, #17 is rebellious. #18 retains the characteristics of a mundane human, preferring to take detours to achieve his goals. He is absorbed by Cell, but is rescued by Gohan.

cell

He is an artificial human created by the research carried out by Dr. Gero's computer, and incorporates the cells of various warriors. He becomes stronger and perfects himself by absorbing human bioenergy from his tail. He fights Goku and the others, and is defeated by Gohan.

Staff and cast

Many staff members and cast members were involved in the production of "Dragon Ball Kai." Below are the main staff members and cast members.

staff

• Planning: Yoko Matsuzaki, Kozo Morishita
• Original author: Akira Toriyama ("Dragonball" published by Shueisha)
• Producers: Masato Jono, Kyotaro Kimura, Kazuya Watanabe, Kohei Obara, Go Wakabayashi
• Music: Kenji Yamamoto, Shunsuke Kikuchi
• Series composition cooperation: Kohei Obara, Kazutaka Sado, Caramel Mama
• Editorial assistance: Kentaro Furusho (Parsley Promotion)
• Sound Director: Yukio Nagasaki
• Recording: Mitsuharu Ito
• Recording assistant: Miki Arakaki
• Original sound effect design: Hidenori Arai (Fizz Sound)
• Recording studio: Tabak
• Musical cooperation: Jin Yagi, Shintaro Kawaguchi, Takeo Konishi, Reibun Miyashita
• HD Production Support: Hidehiko Kadota
• Directed by: Yasuhiro Nodo
• Assistant Director: Yasunori Koyama
• Digital Mastering: Q-Tech
• Digital mastering assistance: Nobuhiro Kobayashi
• Production Manager: Atsunori Kazama
• Production cooperation: Toei
• Produced by: Fuji Television, Toei Animation

cast

The cast for the Saiyan/Frieza arc is as follows:

• Son Goku: Masako Nozawa
• Son Gohan: Masako Nozawa
• Bardock: Masako Nozawa
• Krillin: Mayumi Tanaka
• Bloomers: Hiromi Tsuru
• Piccolo: Toshio Furukawa
• Yamcha: Toru Furuya
• Pu'er: Naoko Watanabe
• Oolong: Naoki Tatsuta
• Tenshinhan: Hikaru Midorikawa
• Gyoza: Hiroko Emori
• Vegeta: Ryo Horikawa
• Chichi: Naoko Watanabe
• Master Roshi: Masaharu Sato
• Bull Demon King: Daisuke Gori
• King Enma: Daisuke Gori
• Bloomer's Mother: Yoko Kawanami
• Mr. Popo: Yasuhiko Kawazu
• Bubbles: Takahiro Fujimoto
• Gregory: Yusuke Numata
• Frieza: Ryusei Nakao
• Nappa: Toru Inada
• Raditz: Shigeru Chiba
• Sea turtle: Takahiro Fujimoto
• Karin: Ichiro Nagai
• God: Takeshi Aono
• Son Gohan: Shigeru Chiba
• Zarbon: Yoshiro Miura
• Dodoria: Takashi Nagatsuji
• Cui: Hidefumi Takemoto
• Dende: Aya Hirano
• Shenron: Kenji Utsumi
• Porunga: Daisuke Gori
• Elder: Junpei Takiguchi
• Nails: Daisuke Kusunoki
• Ginyu: Katsuyuki Konishi
• Recoome: Seiji Sasaki
• Berter: Masaya Onosaka
• Jesus: Daisuke Kishio
• Gourd: Yasuhiro Takato
• King Kai: Yanami Joji
• Narration: Joji Yanami

The cast for the Android and Cell arcs is as follows:

• Son Goku: Masako Nozawa
• Son Gohan: Masako Nozawa
• Krillin: Mayumi Tanaka
• Bloomers: Hiromi Tsuru
• Vegeta: Ryo Horikawa
• Piccolo: Toshio Furukawa
• Yamcha: Toru Furuya
• Tenshinhan: Hikaru Midorikawa
• Gyoza: Hiroko Emori
• Pu'er: Naoko Watanabe
• Trunks: Takeshi Kusao
• Chichi: Naoko Watanabe
• Oolong: Naoki Tatsuta
• Mr. Popo: Yasuhiko Kawazu
• Bubbles: Takahiro Fujimoto
• Gregory: Yusuke Numata
• Android 16: Hikaru Midorikawa
• Bull Demon King: Ryuzaburo Otomo
• Master Roshi: Masaharu Sato
• Announcer: Tamotsu Nishiwaki
• Dende: Aya Hirano
• Cell: Norio Wakamoto
• Mr. Satan: Unsho Ishizuka
• Karin: Ichiro Nagai
• Bulma's father: Joji Yanami
• Bloomer's Mother: Yoko Kawanami
• Sea turtle: Takahiro Fujimoto
• Frieza: Ryusei Nakao
• Android 19: Hori Noriyuki
• Android 20 (Dr. Gero): Koji Yada
• Moderator: Daisuke Kishio
• Android 17: Shigeru Nakahara
• Android 18: Miki Ito
• King Cold: Ryuzaburo Otomo
• Cell Junior: Takahiro Fujimoto
• God: Takeshi Aono
• Shenron: Kenji Utsumi
• Porunga: Ryuzaburo Otomo
• Elder: Junpei Takiguchi
• Briefs: Noriyuki Yanami
• King: Yanami Joji
• King Kai: Yanami Joji
• Narration: Joji Yanami

Theme songs and music

The theme songs and music for "Dragon Ball Kai" are as follows:

Opening Theme

• OP1
  • Period: 1-97
  • Song Name: Dragon Soul
  • Lyricist: Yumi Yoshimoto
  • Composer: Takafumi Iwasaki
  • Arrangement: Seiichi Kyoda
  • Vocals: Takayoshi Tanimoto (Dragon Soul)

Ending Theme

• ED1
  • Period: 1-54
  • Song name: Yeah! Break! Care! Break!
  • Lyricist: Yuriko Mori
  • Composer: Takafumi Iwasaki
  • Arrangement: Seiichi Kyoda
  • Vocals: Takayoshi Tanimoto (Dragon Soul)
• ED2
  • Period: 55-97
  • Song Name: Wings of the Heart
  • Lyricist: Yasushi Akimoto
  • Composer: Yoko Kensuke
  • Arrangement: Ikuta Makoto
  • Sung by: Team Dragon from AKB48

Insert song

• IN1
  • Period: 17
  • Song Name: Over the Star
  • Lyricist: Yuriko Mori
  • Composer: cAnON.
  • Arrangement: cAnON.
  • Vocals: Saki Oshitani
• IN2
  • Period: 28, 29
  • Song name: Here Comes the Ginyu Special Forces!!
  • Lyricist: Hiroshi Yamada
  • Composer: Yo Yamazaki
  • Arrangement: Yo Yamazaki
  • Sung by: Yo Yamazaki
• IN3
  • Period: 37, 40
  • Song title: Just a freezing elegy (Elegy) ~The Theme Of FREEZA~
  • Lyricist: Demon Kakka
  • Composer: Demon Kakka
  • Arrangement: Anders Rydholm
  • Sung by: Demon Kakka
• IN4
  • Period: 41
  • Song title: Saiyan Blood
  • Lyricist: Hiroshi Yamada
  • Composer: Kenji Yamamoto
  • Arrangement: Kenji Yamamoto
  • Vocals: Vegeta (Ryo Horikawa)
• IN5
  • Period: 41
  • Song Name: Super☆Super Dragon Soul
  • Lyricist: Yumi Yoshimoto
  • Composer: Takafumi Iwasaki
  • Arrangement: Hiromasa Kagoshima
  • Vocals: Takayoshi Tanimoto (Dragon Soul)
• IN6
  • Duration: 82
  • Song Name: The Lone Warrior
  • Lyricist: Hiroshi Yamada
  • Composer: Shinichi Sakurai
  • Arrangement: Shinichi Sakurai
  • Vocals: Trunks (Takeshi Kusao)
• IN7
  • Duration: 85
  • Song Name: My 18th Magic
  • Lyricist: cAnON.
  • Composer: cAnON.
  • Arrangement: cAnON.
  • Sung by: cAnON.
• IN8
  • Duration: 85
  • Song name: Announcement of the Cell Games
  • Lyricist: Hiroshi Yamada
  • Composer: Kenji Yamamoto
  • Arrangement: Kenji Yamamoto
  • Sung by: Kenji Ohtsuki

Evaluation and impact

"Dragon Ball Kai" has been highly praised by many fans for its faithful storyline to the original and for its remastered video and audio using the latest technology. In particular, it has been praised for bringing out the dynamic development of the original and the charm of the characters to the fullest, and has been widely accepted not only by fans of the original, but also by new audiences.

The success of Dragon Ball Kai also had a major impact on the production of Dragon Ball Super, which developed a new story as a sequel to the original and gained even more fans. Dragon Ball Kai can be said to be an important chapter in the Dragon Ball series, faithfully recreating the essence of the original while continuing to take on new challenges.

Related Titles

Dragon Ball Kai is closely related to the following related works:

• Dragon Ball
• Dragon Ball Z
• Dragon Ball Z: The Final Battle of One Man - The Z Warrior who challenged Frieza, Son Goku's father
• Dragon Ball GT
• Dragon Ball Kai Unaired Episodes
• Dragon Ball Kai Majin Buu Arc
• Dragon Ball Super

Conclusion

Dragon Ball Kai faithfully reproduces the essence of the original work, while providing new excitement and thrills through the use of state-of-the-art video and audio remastering technology. It maximizes the dynamic development of the original work and the appeal of the characters, and has been widely accepted not only by fans but also by new audiences. The success of Dragon Ball Kai had a major impact on the later production of Dragon Ball Super, and became the catalyst for the development of a new story as a sequel to the original work. Dragon Ball Kai can be said to be an important chapter in the Dragon Ball series, which continues to take on new challenges while faithfully reproducing the essence of the original work.