Dragon Ball (ドラゴンボール Doragon Bōru) is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Akira Toriyama. It was originally serialized in Weekly Shōnen Jump from 1984 to 1995, with the 519 individual chapters published into 42 tankōbon volumes byShueisha. Dragon Ball was inspired by the classical Chinese novel Journey to the West. The series follows the adventures of the protagonist Goku from his childhood through adulthood as he trains in martial arts and explores the world in search of the seven mystical orbs known as the Dragon Balls, which can summon a wish-granting dragon when gathered. Along his journey, Goku makes several friends and battles a wide variety of villains, many of whom also seek the Dragon Balls for their own desires. It contains themes of friendship, rivalry, personal loss and victory.
The 42 tankōbon have been adapted into two anime series produced by Toei Animation:Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z, which together were broadcast in Japan from 1986 to 1996. Additionally, Toei has developed seventeen animated feature films and three television specials, as well as an anime sequel titled Dragon Ball GT, which takes place after the events of the manga. From 2009 to 2011, Toei broadcast a revised, faster-paced version of Dragon Ball Z under the title Dragon Ball Kai, in which most of the original version's footage not featured in the manga was removed. Several companies have developed various types of merchandising based on the series leading to a large media franchise that includes films, both animated and live-action, collectible trading card games, numerous action figures, along with several collections of soundtracks and a large number of video gameshere are two companion books to the series, one called Dragon Ball - The Complete Illustrations, first published in Japan in 1995, which was then translated and printed in 2008 by Viz Media. It contains all the 264 coloured illustrations Akira Toriyama done for the Weekly Jump magazines' covers, bonus giveaways and specials, and all the covers for the 42 tankōbon. It also includes an interview with Akira Toriyama on his work process. In Japan it was originally released as Volume 1 of the 7 part Daizenshuu series.
The other was Dragon Ball GT Perfect Files, released in May 1997 and December 1997 by Shueisha'sJump Comics Selection imprint. It include series information, illustration galleries, behind-the-scenes information, and more. They were out of print for many years, but were re-released in April 2006 and this edition is still in print.[77][78]
Collectible cards
There have been collectible cards, based on the Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, and Dragon Ball GT series, released under Bandai. They feature various scenes from the manga and anime stills, plus exclusive artwork from all three series. They were previously released in other countries, like Taiwan and Singapore, before making their debut in the United States in July 2008.
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