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'''FreeSaiyan,''' aka Michael Towers, is the kiddie-fiddling self-invented spamlord of the UK anime scene. A legend amongst scammers, perverts, megalomaniacs and drama queens, he has stalked like a titan from project to crumbling project, flanked by his chittering hangers-on, leaving his taint on everything he has ever touched like a creeping weed that smells of week-old dried-out wanksocks that would, in all likelihood, make even a washing machine fall pregnant if ever they ventured inside its unsuspecting drum.
{{otheruses|Dragon Ball}}
[[Image:DragonBallZ.png|thumb|180px|Dragon Ball Z opening title card.]]
[[Image:DBZLogo.jpg|thumb|right|180px|FUNimation's logo.]]
'''''Dragon Ball Z''''' (ドラゴンボールZ; ''Doragon Boru Zetto, ''commonly abbreviated as '''''DBZ''''') is the long-running sequel to the anime ''[[Dragon Ball (anime)|Dragon Ball]]''. The series is a close adaptation of the second (and far longer) portion of the ''[[Dragon Ball (manga)|Dragon Ball]]'' manga written and drawn by [[Akira Toriyama]]. In the United States, the manga's second portion is also titled ''Dragon Ball Z'' to prevent confusion.


He is the webmaster of AnimeLeague, chairman of fAiLCon and mastermind of a million zany get-rich-and-famous-quick schemes that made his name like a rash all over the internet and IRL. His level-based pyramid schemes and horde of pre-pubescent girls carrying out harassment campaigns for him have ensured him the title of "The L. Ron Hubbard of Anime."
The series follows the adventures of the adult [[Goku]] who, along with his companions, defends the earth against an assortment of villains ranging from intergalactic space fighters and conquerers, unnaturally powerful androids and near indestructible magical creatures. While the original ''Dragon Ball'' anime followed Goku through childhood into adulthood, ''Dragon Ball Z'' is a continuation of his adulthood life, but at the same time parallels the maturation of his son, [[Gohan]], as well as characters from ''Dragon Ball ''and more. The separation between the series is also significant as the latter series takes on a more dramatic and serious tone. The anime also features characters, situations and back-stories not present in the original manga.


[[Image:FreeSaiyan.jpg|thumb|right|Hiya girls and boys. Hyuck hyuck. Under 15's only. OM NOM NOM!]][[Image:ComradeMike.jpg|thumb|left|"I cut myself shaving! Rawr, I'm tuff! D:" - his own tag, no shizz. Fisher Price razor just out of shot.]]
After ''Dragon Ball Z'', the story of Goku and friends continues in the anime-only series ''[[Dragon Ball GT]]''. This series is not based on a manga by Akira Toriyama.
[[Image:Alshirt.jpg|thumb|right|Look out kiddies, Pedobear needs your tears for his throne of evil!]]
[[Image:Chitty_chitty_bang_xl_01.jpg|thumb|right|One of Mike's favourite all-time Cosplays and paedo mentor. HERE WE ARE CHILDREN, COME INTO MICHAEL'S KIDDIE LAIR CUM GINGERBREAD HOUSE!!]]


=The Man Himself=
Toriyama's humor/parody manga ''[[Neko Majin|Neko Majin Z]]'' features several concepts introduced in ''Dragon Ball Z'' (several ''Dragon Ball Z'' characters even make various appearances), but that manga is designed as a parody and not a true continuation of the series.


Freesaiyan is well known among his [[hugbox|online community]] as a paedophile, a power mad [[nazi]], a lazy useless asshole and general all round twunt.
In April 2009, a new 'refresh' of ''Dragon Ball Z'' began airing on Japanese television. This recut is titled ''[[Dragon Ball Z Kai]]''.


He spends his life struggling to cope with the organisation of his forums and small scale meets. This is made difficult by delusions of grandeur on the one hand and paranoia on the other which, when combined, cause him to imagine that anyone gives enough of a fuck about his tiny empire to be trying to sabotage him at every turn.
==Production history==
[[File:Dragon_ball_z_3.jpg|thumb|Some of the series main heroes and villains ]]
The anime first premiered in Japan on April 26, 1989 (on Fuji TV) at 7:30 p.m. and ended on January 31, 1996. In the U.S., the series ran between 1996 and 2003, though not always on the same networks or with continuity of dubbing. For details on the dubbing problems, see [[Ocean dub]] and [[Funimation dub|FUNimation dub]].


FreeSaiyan's hobby is spouting off about the brilliance and success of his convention (ALcon), his club (AnimeLeague) and his work (several terrified naked children locked in a basement). To avoid hurting his feelings, be careful not to point out that he hasn't got a job and lives with his mummy (he's 27). HA HA! Only joking - Mike's feelings are robust to the point of rudely snubbing anyone who tries to try and help him out, pointing out the '''13 THOUSAND members''' of his forum.  
It aired in the UK, albeit with the same dubbing problem, on Cartoon Network, premiering on March 6, 2000 and running on that channel until 2002. The [[Majin Buu Saga]], [[Fusion Saga]] and [[Kid Buu Saga]] were later broadcast on CNX (which later changed its name to "Toonami"), with the show ending on February 28, 2003. After the finished run it was repeated daily, until the Toonami merge with Cartoon Network Too. It has not been broadcast again in the UK since.


There are 139 in the UK. (Or ''were'', at it's peak.)
===Censorship issues===
''Dragon Ball Z'' was marketed to appeal to a wide range of viewers from all ages, and contains crude humor and occasional excesses of violence which are commonly seen as inappropriate for younger audiences by American standards. When it was marketed in the US, the distribution company [[Funimation|FUNimation]] alongside with Saban decided to initially focus exclusively on the young children's market, because the anime market was still small compared to the much larger children's cartoon market. This censorship often had unintentionally humorous results, such as changing all references to death so the dead characters were merely going to "another dimension", and digitally altering two [[ogre]]s' shirts to read "HFIL" instead of "[[Hell|HELL]]".


Helping out with the forums are similarly upstanding folk like yankee Matt Nada, who can usually be found up his own arse writing [[Crap|convincing arguments]] about [[Naruto|anime no one cares about]].  
Starting with the [[Captain Ginyu Saga]] on Cartoon Network, censorship was reduced due to fewer restrictions on cable programming. FUNimation did the dubbing on their own this time around with their own voice actors. In 2004, FUNimation began to [[Funimation dub|redub]] the first two sagas of ''Dragon Ball Z'', to remove the problems that were caused from their previous partnership with Saban. They also redubbed the first three movies.


His modus operandi is to careen around the forum, swinging his Scythe of Deletion +3 at any post he doesn't like and a Piku Piku Banhammer at those who disagree with him even slightly.  
However, the show still retained some level of censorship, not out of FCC laws, but out of choice by Funimation, so as to cater to the possible sensitivity of western audiences. For example, [[Mr. Satan]] was renamed ''Hercule'' to avoid any religious slurs; his daughter, [[Videl]], was a play on the word ''Devil'', but FUNimation felt that the connection was obscure enough to not worry about.


He also bolsters the numbers on the forum by running his 'blog' as a thread in the forum. This forces his <s>Goth</s> [[Loli]] groupies have to go into the forum to be able to mess their kecks over his [[Stupidity|wisdom]].
===Filler and differences from the manga===
{{Main|Filler}}
Filler is used to pad out the series for many reasons; in the case of ''Dragon Ball Z'', more often than not, it was because the anime was running alongside the manga, and there was no way for the anime to run ahead of the manga (since Toriyama was still writing it, at the same time).


==Y Hello Thar, Little Girl==
The company behind the anime, [[Toei Animation]], would occasionally make up their own side stories to either further explain things, or simply to extend the series. Filler doesn't come only in the form of side stories, though; sometimes it's as simple as adding some extra attacks into a fight. One of the more infamous examples of filler is the [[Frieza Saga]]. After Frieza had set the [[Planet Namek]] to blow up in five minutes, the final fight with Frieza still lasted well over five episodes, much less five minutes.
[[Image:NotHaruhiAndNotKyon.png|thumb|306px|right|FailCon Mascots ALice and ALex, aka AL-chan and AL-kun. AKA Not Haruhi and Not Kyon.]][[Image:RealThing.jpg|thumb|306px|right|Nagaru Tanigawa travelled through time to rip off Mike's Original Idea™.]]


As [[12chan|everyone]] knows, there's nothing strange about a 28 year old who holding "Meetups" for females under 16 and on some occasion boys (See Picture Below). Don't forget your ID, he needs to clarify that you are officially a child. Yup. It all has to be above board.
As the anime series was forced to expand 12 pages of manga text into 25 minutes of animation footage, these changes were introduced to kill time or to allow the (anime) writers to explore some other aspect of the series' universe. The Anoyo-ichi Budōkai (Afterlife Tournament) between the [[Cell Games Saga]] and the [[Majin Buu Saga]], and the [[Garlic Junior Saga]] (Garlic Jr.'s return from the ''[[Dragon Ball Z: Dead Zone]]'' movie) between the [[Frieza Saga]] and [[Trunks Saga]] are both good examples of this. They have also been known to contradict the manga and often create new plot holes.


In one of his other worrying ventures, a School of Manga, he seriously asked for personal details of mid-teens without so much as a nod in the direction of any possible legal ramifications. He even uses the word "Laws" in quotemarks, as if flaunting his undisguised contempt for them.
Besides having filler scenes and episodes, there are many changes from the original manga. Among them are the following:
*When [[Tien Shinhan]] loses his arm when fighting [[Nappa]], his arm becomes a stump with only a small amount of blood seen. In the manga the scene is much more gory.
*In the manga [[Frieza]] kills [[Cargo]], but in the anime [[Dodoria]] kills him. (In the Ocean Dub Gohan and Krillin say that Cargo escapes)
*In the original manga [[Appule]] kills all the [[Namekian]]s in a village and tells Frieza, who is annoyed that he didn't ask them where [[Vegeta]] was. However, Frieza just tells him to call the [[Ginyu Force]]. In the anime the soldier is changed to another unnamed orange soldier [referred to as "Orlen" in the closed captioning for the Ocean Dub VHS tapes - it is unclear if this is canonical however], who is killed by Frieza when he tells of his mistake.
*In the manga, after Frieza survives [[Goku]]'s [[Spirit Bomb]], he immediately strikes down [[Piccolo]] with his [[Death Beam]] technique, but in the anime, he fires his beam at Goku, only for Piccolo to jump in the way and get struck down by the beam anyway.
*In the manga, Frieza's full power was still never a match for Goku's [[Super Saiyan]] form, but in the anime, Frieza appears to have the upper hand for a short time before he begins to tire.
*In the anime, when Vegeta is brought back to life on Planet Namek, he manages to witness some of the battle between Goku and Frieza, as well as Goku's Super Saiyan form, before being teleported to Earth by the Namekian Dragon Balls. In the manga, he is teleported to Earth almost immediately after being revived and does not get a chance to see Goku as a Super Saiyan for the first time until Goku returns to Earth himself later on.
*When [[Dr. Gero]] first appears in the series (as Android 20), he grabs a man by the neck and tears him through the roof of a car. In the original manga, he crushes the man's neck afterwards, tearing his head off.
*Though the flashback of [[Future Trunks]] and [[Future Gohan]] fighting [[Android 17|Androids 17]] and [[Android 18|18]] is present in both the anime and the manga, there are notable discrepancies between the flashback and the scene depicted in the TV special, ''[[The History of Trunks]]''. In the special, Gohan had lost his arm, Trunks had not yet achieved his Super Saiyan form, and there was no rain in the scene in question.
*When [[Vegito]] fights [[Super Buu]] (with Gohan absorbed) in the manga, Vegito immediately fights in his Super Saiyan form. In the anime, Vegito fought (rather successfully) in his base form for a while before becoming a Super Saiyan.
*When Goku begins his battle against [[Kid Buu]] in the manga, he transforms immediately into his [[Super Saiyan 3]] form. In the anime, however, Goku starts the battle as a [[Super Saiyan 2]], and manages to hold his own against Kid Buu for a while before ascending to Super Saiyan 3.
*The anime has two significant filler portions: the [[Garlic Jr. Saga]] and the [[Other World Tournament]] segment of the [[Great Saiyaman Saga]].
*In the manga, many of the characters have a different number of fingers on their hands; such as Piccolo (3 fingers and a thumb), Dodoria (3 thumb-like fingers), and Imperfect form Cell (two long fingers and a long thumb). In the anime, everybody has human-like hands with 4 fingers and a thumb.


{{quote|♫♪♬ '''''There's only one Michael Towers / With a packet of crisps / And the cheesiest smile / Michael is a fucking paedophile.''''' ♬♪♫|AnimeLeague, ''The Michael Towers Song''}}
==Reception and impact==
The impact of ''Dragon Ball Z'' is enormous. For more than 20 years, the series has stood the test of time and has reached out to many children and adults alike across the globe. This is mainly due to the series' very clear representations of good overpowering evil, love overpowering hate, the importance of family and friends, and an unyielding passion toward achieving goals. The series also featured heavy sci-fi overtones, and a greater emphasis on fighting - making it extremely popular among adolescent boys who had grown up alongside the original series.


The AnimeLeague meets are just official reasons for FreeSaiyan to hook up with anything on legs as long as it's young, innocent and unsuspecting and has consumed enough free alcohol to kill a Beluga whale and pickle its caviar (provided from the meets 'excess', from which he also draws his wages).
''Dragon Ball Z'' has also played a large part in contributing to the popularity of anime in westen culture. Though the first two seasons of the series were played on various networks in the U.S. in 1996, it would not take off for two more years until August 31, 1998, when Cartoon Network featured the show in its action-oriented Toonami lineup. Toonami heralded the show as "The Greatest Action Cartoon Ever Made," and it greatly boosted the popularity of Toonami, but unknowingly did so much more. ''Dragon Ball Z'''s newfound popularity helped to bring about a greater interest in Japanese cartoons in the eyes of western youth, which in turn fueled the western anime industry to new heights. Because of its success on Toonami, ''Dragon Ball Z'' was the first anime that made its way to the Wall Street Journal, who declared it, "A Huge Cartoon Hit."


[[A cat is fine too|A boy is fine too,]] as in this case at least one of the participants will have balls, not to mention crying hysterically after sex about how THAT DARNED MEWSKI IS TRYING TO SABOTAGE HIM! (despite the fact that if Mewski really ''were'' out to get him she could just shop him to [[Partyvan|Operation Ore]] for grooming minors).
Many items such as apparel, backpacks, lunch boxes, writing utensils, candies, drinks, foods and more feature ''Dragon Ball Z'', in both Japan and North America. Action figures, collectible figurines, plush toys, bobble heads, and character model kits were also made. The fast food chain ''Burger King'' featured ''Dragon Ball Z'' toys twice in the early 2000's. Despite the TV series officially ending in Japan in 1996, and in 2003 in North America, ''Dragon Ball Z'' video games are created nearly every year for almost every console on the market, helping to introduce the ''Dragon Ball Z'' series to younger generations that never got a chance to see it air on television. These games usually do very well in the market. Popular sites such as ''YouTube'' have attracted large ''Dragon Ball Z'' fan communities over the course of the last few years, and ''Dragon Ball'' related videos receive many views. All of these examples showcase the incredible popularity of ''Dragon Ball Z'' in many countries of the world.


There are also plans for a Michael Towers [[shota]] manga series ever since he experimented with boys at his dark expo hostel disguised as a gingerbread house. (Yet again see above picture).
==Sagas==
===Toei sagas===
#Saiyan (Episodes 1~35); 1989–1990
#Freeza (Episodes 36~107); 1990–1991
#Cell (Episodes 108~194); 1991–1993
#Buu (Episodes 195~291); 1993–1996


All things move toward their end, however, and in an attempt to put the "Paedo" part of his PaedoBorg antics behind him he now has wild BDSM forum frottage (on a forum that is meant to be PG13 we might add) with (allegedly) 21 year old forum member [http://encyclopediadramatica.com/Image:Kiko.jpg LadyKiko].
===English dub sagas===
Saiyan:
*The [[Vegeta Saga]] (Episodes 1~35; originally ''The Saiyan Conflict'')


Absolutely nobody will be surprised to learn that "She", if she exists at all, is from Michigan, given (a) The minute proportion of UK-based AL members and (b) What average UK anime fans outside of the forum think of him.
Frieza:
*The [[Namek Saga]] (Episodes 36~67)
*The [[Captain Ginyu Saga]] (Episodes 68~74)
*The [[Frieza Saga]] (Episodes 75~107)


The vomit inducing bios on their combined [http://www.animeleague.net/forums/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=89669 ALJ forum thread] have set off some alarm bells that suggest that this is the usual Mike Towers bullshit train.
Cell:
*The [[Garlic Jr. Saga]] (Episodes 108~117)
*The [[Trunks Saga]] (Episodes 118~125)
*The [[Androids Saga]] (Episodes 126~139)
*The [[Imperfect Cell Saga]] (Episodes 140~152)
*The [[Perfect Cell Saga]] (Episodes 153~165)
*The [[Cell Games Saga]] (Episodes 166~194)


{{quote|Strengths: Intelligence, Charisma, Loyalty, Courage, Kindness, Selflessness, Insightful, Humour, Organisational/Management Skills and Wit (allegedly), open-minded, extreme resilience (ie: I don't give up), determined, common-sense and logical.
Buu:
Weaknesses: Apathy, Sadness, Under-Confidence, Social Odd-ball, Fear, Very Poor Relationship Skills with the opposite sex, too-soft.
*The [[Great Saiyaman Saga]] (Episodes 195~209)
|We suggest some viagara to help with that "too soft" problem}}
*The [[World Tournament Saga]] (Episodes 210~219)
*The [[Babidi Saga]] (Episodes 220~231)
*The [[Majin Buu Saga]] (Episodes 232~253)
*The [[Fusion Saga]] (Episodes 254~275)
*The [[Kid Buu Saga]] (Episodes 276~291)


{{quote|Strengths: Honesty, Charisma, Loyalty, Courage, Humor, Playful, Open-Minded, I never give up, Artistic Skills, and above all else Love.
==Movies, TV specials, OVA==
Weaknesses: High Temper, Low Esteem, Odd man out, horrible relationship skills, fear of failure.
===Movies ===
|LadyKikos [[sockpuppet|surprisingly similar]] set of contradicting character traits}}
====Toei titles====
#[[Dragon Ball Z: Dead Zone|Return my Gohan!!]] (1989)
#[[Dragon Ball Z: The World's Strongest]] (1990)
#[[Dragon Ball Z: The Tree of Might|Super Deciding Battle for the Entire Planet Earth]] (1990)
#[[Dragon Ball Z: Lord Slug|Super Saiyan Son Goku]] (1991)
#[[Dragon Ball Z: Cooler's Revenge|The Incredible Mightiest vs. Mightiest]] (1991)
#[[Dragon Ball Z: The Return of Cooler|Clash!! 10,000,000,000 Powerful Warriors]] (1992)
#[[Dragon Ball Z: Super Android 13!|Extreme Battle!! The Three Great Super Saiyans]] (:1992)
#[[Dragon Ball Z: Broly - The Legendary Super Saiyan|Burn Up!! A Close, Intense, Super-Fierce Battle]] (1993)
#[[Dragon Ball Z: Bojack Unbound|The Galaxy at the Brink!! The Super Incredible Guy]] (1993)
#[[Dragon Ball Z: Broly - Second Coming|The Dangerous Duo! Super-Warriors Can't Rest]] (1994)
#[[Dragon Ball Z: Bio-Broly|Super-Warrior Defeat!! I'm the One who'll Win]] (1994)
#[[Dragon Ball Z: Fusion Reborn|Fusion Reborn!! Goku and Vegeta]] (1994)
#[[Dragon Ball Z: Wrath of the Dragon|Dragon Fist Explosion! If Goku Can't Do It, Who Will? ]](1995)
#[[Dragon Ball: Yo! Son Goku and His Friends Return!!]] (2008)


[[Some argue|All evidence seems to point]] to the [http://encyclopediadramatica.com/Image:KikoTowers.jpg true identity of LadyKiko].
====English dub titles====
#[[Dragon Ball Z: Dead Zone]] (1997) <small>(Remastered/Re-released on May 27, 2008)</small>
#[[Dragon Ball Z: The World's Strongest]] (1998) <small>(Remastered/Re-released on May 27, 2008)</small>
#[[Dragon Ball Z: The Tree of Might]] (1998) <small>(Remastered/Re-released on September 16, 2008)</small>
#[[Dragon Ball Z: Lord Slug]] (2001) <small>(Remastered/Re-released on September 16, 2008)</small>
#[[Dragon Ball Z: Cooler's Revenge]] (2001) <small>(Remastered/Re-released on November 11, 2008)</small>
#[[Dragon Ball Z: The Return of Cooler]] (2002) <small>(Remastered/Re-released on November 11, 2008)</small>
#[[Dragon Ball Z: Super Android 13!]] (2003) <small>(Remastered/Re-released on February 18, 2009)</small>
#[[Dragon Ball Z: Broly - The Legendary Super Saiyan]] (2003) <small>(Remastered/Re-released on March 31, 2009)</small>
#[[Dragon Ball Z: Bojack Unbound]] (2004) <small>(Remastered/Re-released on February 18, 2009)</small>
#[[Dragon Ball Z: Broly - Second Coming]] (2005) <small>(Remastered/Re-released on March 31, 2009)</small>
#[[Dragon Ball Z: Bio-Broly]] (2005) <small>(Remastered/Re-released on March 31, 2009)</small>
#[[Dragon Ball Z: Fusion Reborn]] (2006) <small>(Remastered/Re-released on May 19, 2009)</small>
#[[Dragon Ball Z: Wrath of the Dragon]] (2006) <small>(Remastered/Re-released on May 19, 2009)</small>


But who knows? maybe Towers has actually managed to bag himself <s>a hot legal honey to be his anime eve</s> an internet camwhore single mother with whom to play forum BDSM posting ping pong. Or maybe it's all an elaborate ruse to rile up AL's barely pubescent attack dog Fate-chan into a fit of jealous rage (she has been displaying classic signs of butthurt over Towers and Kiko's frottage fest) so that when she finally meets him in person the standard gag reflex on seeing Towers is overcome, and in a surge of [[Twilight|mad teen angst butthurt]] she will attempt to claim her man.
===TV specials===
====Toei titles====
#[[Dragon Ball Z: Bardock - The Father of Goku|A Lonesome, Final Battle: The Father of Z-Warrior Kakarrot, who Challenged Frieza]] (1990)
#[[Dragon Ball Z: Movie Overview Special|Movie Overview Special]] (1992)
#[[Dragon Ball Z: The History of Trunks|Resistance to Despair!! The Remaining Super-Warriors, Gohan and Trunks]] (1993)
#[[Looking Back at it All: The Dragon Ball Z Year-End Show!]] (1993)


====English dub titles====
#[[Dragon Ball Z: Bardock - The Father of Goku]] (2000) <small>(Remastered/Re-released in February 19, 2008)</small>
#[[Dragon Ball Z: The History of Trunks]] (2000) <small>(Remastered/Re-released in February 19, 2008)</small>


=AlCon=
===OVA===
*[[Dragon Ball: Plan to Eradicate the Super Saiyans|The Plan to Eradicate the Saiyans]] (1993)


'''AlCon''' (also known as ''FailCon'' and ''LOLCon'') is an [[animu]] [[convention]] which got off to a roaring start by scheduling itself to clash with AmeCon 2009 in ''the same city,'' and refusing to move in an act of brash, assholish grandstanding. [[Spoiler]]: [http://www.neomag.co.uk/forums/viewtopic.php?p=16389&highlight=sweatdrop#16389 nobody turned up.]
==Releases==
===Japanese releases===
Originally, only the ''Dragon Ball Z'' movies, and the ''[[Dragon Ball Z Gaiden: Saiyajin Zetsumetsu Keikaku|Plan to Eradicate the Saiyans]]'' OVA were available for home viewing in Japan. The movies were released on both VHS and Laserdisc format. The ''Plan to Eradicate the Saiyans'' OVA was released both on VHS and on the PlayDia, as an interactive FMV.


It was run by a schizophrenic committee, the two "Co-chairs" having just broken up with each other resulting in a screaming hissy fit and one of them being summarily ousted.  
===Dragon Box releases===
{{Main|Dragon Box}}
In 2003, all of the ''Dragon Ball Z'' TV series was finally released under the "[[Dragon Box]]" label for home viewing in Japan, on two large DVD boxed sets, following the release of a similar set for ''[[Dragon Ball]]''. Each ''Dragon Ball Z'' Dragon Box had a large amount of DVD extras, as well as an action figure and a book.


Based in the De Montfort University in Leicester (and a pub down the road when they got thrown out), it ran between September 7th and September 9th 2007, and proved to the world that you can't spell convention without CON.
The video and audio transfers of the show used on these DVDs came off of the Fuji TV master tapes of the show, as this allowed [[Toei Animation|Toei]] to put out a far superior and completely accurate version of the show on DVD, which was helpful since the entire plot of a season could be summed up in about ten minutes. This allowed all episodes to have their original openings, endings, eyecatches, next episode previews, etc., compared to what was available in the US.


In late 2005 the Dragon Box Z DVDs were re-released in single volumes with six episodes per disc. While the packaging and DVD menus are different from the 2003 release, and so far no plans have been announced for the two TV specials and the Playdia footage released with the 2003 versions, the Audio and Visual quality is the exact same as those discs found in the 2003 Dragon Box release.


== The Committee ==
In April 14, 2006, a "Dragon Box: The Movies" DVD box was released. This release contained all 17 ''Dragon Ball'' and ''Dragon Ball Z'' theatrical features, containing 8 DVDs in total, along with a book, and two scouters in the form of walkie-talkies. The video and audio are remastered; however, the video is cropped to 16:9 (widescreen) and contains less picture than the full-screen versions. This is a common occurrence for films from Toei based on long-running and popular TV series (See Saint Seiya, Fist of the North Star, and One Piece).
[[Image:Mewski101.jpg|thumb|left|Mewski]][[Image:AlConChairmanMike.PNG|thumb|right|FreeSaiyan, <s>chairman</s> Uberreichsfuhrer of AlCon, aka Mike Towers, yesterday. Giggidy Giggidy Goo.]]


The committee consisted of an ever-changing number of people, but was originally led by the two-headed beast of [[FreeSaiyan]] and 'Mewski', who were also screwing each other. Regular readers of these hallowed pages will need no telling that on the internet, this seldom ends well.
All Dragon Box releases contain Japanese language audio only (with exceptions to foreign-language bonus clips), and no subtitles.


Predictably, FreeSaiyan and Mewski broke up, so FreeSaiyan went into in a jealous [[rage]] and tried to make Mewski cry by kicking her off the Committee in an act of petty revenge for [[Pool's closed|closing her pool to him.]] Mewski, who held all the contracts for the event, returned fire by threatening to pull the plug.
===Pioneer DVDs===
During the late 90's/early 00's, the first 53 (Saban/[[Funimation|FUNimation]] version numbers, originally uncut as 67) TV episodes were released on to DVD by Pioneer Entertainment (now Geneon Entertainment USA). These contained only the edited, US-TV broadcast versions (dubbed by the [[Ocean dub|Ocean Group]]), and totalled 17 volumes, comprising the '[[Saiyan Saga]]' and the '[[Namek Saga]]'.


The vote to kick her off was held in secret (the sure sign of a committee that isn't falling apart at the seams) and she was finally [[GTFO|ejected]] in a massive, lulz-heavy screaming bitch fight during a committee meeting around May 2007.
Along with these episodes, Pioneer also produced bilingual, uncut DVDs of the first three ''Dragon Ball Z'' theatrical features. These DVDs retained the original [[Ocean dub|Ocean cast]] for the English track, as well as being one of the first uncut and bilingual releases in the U.S. The English versions of these films were also subject to a different treatment than the series; rather than replacing the original music, the original OP and ED themes, as well as background music, were retained. The only noticeable differences besides languages are the inclusion of a few different sound effects which are not present on the original Japanese version. These films were released as a three-disc boxset by Pioneer.


What none of them seemed to have considered was that with Mewski gone, nobody was left who had any experience whatsoever running a convention - FreeSaiyan himself isn't even capable of holding down a job, and thinks that running a shitty webforum that he posts in all day is as good as going out and earning a wage like everyone else.
As of August the 31st, 2004, Pioneer's license for video distribution of the first 53 episodes ended, allowing FUNimation to re-release them. At the moment, the rights for these episodes and for the first three ''Dragon Ball Z'' movies belong to FUNimation.


===2008 Committee===
===FUNimation DVDs===
As of 2000, [[Funimation|FUNimation]] had released uncut versions of their [[Funimation dub|Texas-based English dub]] on to DVD, with Japanese language track, and English-translation subtitles. This release doesn't include the first two sagas, as the rights for the distribution of that episodes were still held by Pioneer Entertainment. These DVDs begin with the [[Captain Ginyu]] saga, and contain every episode covering (Japanese numbers) 68 till 291. Boxsets were release for the [[Garlic Jr. Saga|Garlic Jr.]], [[Androids Saga|Androids]], [[Imperfect Cell Saga|Imperfect Cell]], [[Perfect Cell Saga|Perfect Cell]], [[World Tournament Saga|World Tournament]], [[Majin Buu Saga|Majin Buu]], [[Fusion Saga|Fusion]], and [[Kid Buu Saga|Kid Buu]] U.S. sagas. However, in order to maximize profits, the DVDs were released out of continuity (certain amounts of one section of the series were released, and then FUNimation would go back and release others). With no noticeable numbering visible, this caused frustration to those trying to follow the series from start to finish.


For 2008, FreeSaiyan needed a plan for getting new staff in. Why call on friends or pay skilled professionals, though, when you can flimflam a bunch of precious hangers-on from your forums into doing it though?
FUNimation also released ''Dragon Ball Z'' movies 4-13, finishing the release of the movies with '[[Wrath of the Dragon]]', the 13th movie. These are all bilingual and subtitled, but do not follow the trend set by [[Ocean dub|Ocean]]'s first three movies. Music has been changed and altered, including the insertion of songs from rock bands such as Deftones, Disturbed, Breaking Point, and American Pearl. The movies utilize [[Funimation dub|FUNimation's TV series Texas cast]], though they also include the original Japanese version with subtitling by Steve Simmons.


Unluckily for these poor saps he has suckered in, FreeSaiyan constantly bombards them with phone calls, e-mails, PMs and any other form of communcation that he can use to exhort them to do his bidding. ("His bidding" in this case means turning the convention into a gigantic clusterfuck of advertising for the websites he runs.)
===FUNimation Ultimate Uncut DVDs===
{{Main|Ultimate Uncut Special Edition}}
After acquiring the video rights to the first 53 (67 uncut) episodes from Pioneer in 2004, [[Funimation|FUNimation]] announced that they would release these episodes uncut, with a new 5.1 English language track and uncut footage. The [[Ultimate Uncut Special Edition]] line was born. The release would be 22 volumes, bilingual, and with extras. The [[Saiyan Saga]] was renamed the 'Vegeta' Saga (Parts I and II, covering 12 DVDs), probably to avoid confusion with the Pioneer volumes. However, after DVD volume 9, FUNimation canceled these box sets and planned to re-re-release them in the DVD season boxsets. This upset fans who had purchased the expensive Ultimate Uncut DVDs, as the Vegeta Saga Part II will never be completed, and the Ultimate Uncut [[Namek Saga]] DVDs will not be created.


==THE DRAMAS!!==
FUNimation had also acquired the rights for the first three movies from Pioneer in 2004, and re-released them. Even though the three had same cover style, only the first movie was released under the Ultimate Uncut line. All of these movies had a 5.1 English track, new subtitles, different DVD extras and come in a boxset titled 'First Strike'. However, they do not retain the original [[Ocean dub]], and contain a new English dub produced by [[Funimation dub|FUNimation's Texas cast]]. This version contains different music than the original dub and than the Japanese version.
[[Image:Freesaiyanlovesboys.jpg|thumb|right|Mike's typical greeting to the newest under 16 <s>rent boy</s> member kicks off Shagathon 2008.]]


===Shagathons===
===FUNimation Remastered Box Sets===
Every year the is an annual shagathon where the most drugged up, drunk and biggest failures get together to out try and see which couple are best at sex. The roll of on'er (get it?) of Towers' previous frotfests reads as follows...
{{Main|Funimation Remastered Box Sets}}
In November 2005, FUNimation announced they would release a remastered form of ''Dragon Ball'' Z on DVD beginning in 2007. All DBZ episodes were to be digitally remastered and released in boxset form.


#'''2004''' - (Held in Women's Toilet) - Winners: McJones and Jade
The first season set (the entire [[Vegeta Saga]]) was re-released on February 6, 2007. The first 39 episodes of this season are spread across 6 discs, and cost $30-$50 USD (the original intention was for 5 discs, but there was a risk of quality reduction). FUNimation released a trailer for the new set on the Dragon Ball Z official website.
#'''2005''' - (Held in room 42b) - Winners: no winners, all suffered from premature ejaculation
#'''2006''' - (Held in Women's Toilet) - Winners: Ash and Asana
#'''2007''' - (Held in Games Room) - Winners: Ash and Jenny (Arkio and Asana were later disqualified for faking orgasms)
#'''2008''' - (Held in room 39b) - Winners: To Be Decided!


===Ryan Gentle===
FUNimation released the second season set, containing both the [[Namek Saga|Namek]] and [[Captain Ginyu]] sagas, on May 22, 2007. Beginning with this release, several of the in-house voice actors re-dubbed their characters' lines to keep consistency with the remainder of the dub. The third season set, containing the [[Frieza Saga]], was released on September 18, 2007. The fourth season, containing both the [[Garlic Jr. Saga|Garlic Jr.]], [[Trunks Saga|Trunks]] and [[Androids Saga|Android]] sagas, was released on February 11, 2008. Season five, containing both the [[Imperfect Cell Saga|Imperfect]] and [[Perfect Cell Saga|Perfect Cell]] sagas, was released May 27, 2008. Season six, containing the [[Cell Games Saga]], was released September 16, 2008. Season seven, containing both the [[Great Saiyaman Saga|Great Saiyaman]] and [[World Tournament Saga|World Tournament]] sagas, was released November 11, 2008. Season eight, containing both the [[Babidi Saga|Babidi]] and [[Majin Buu Saga|Majin Buu]] sagas, was released February 10, 2009. Season nine, containing both the [[Fusion Saga|Fusion]] and [[Kid Buu Saga|Kid Buu]] sagas, was released May 19, 2009.
[[Image:Ryan_secret1.jpg|thumb|right|And we're off to a good start!]]


The first many heard of Alcon was when [[Ryan Gentle|Ryan gentle]] aka [[Senshimedia]] e-mailed UK [[anime]] dealers claiming to be the AlCon dealer liason. Cue the breaking out of suture kits and surgical tape as those in the UK anime community who know of this lying, scheming, molecule-minded knobend desperately attempted to sew their splitting sides back together.
The series has been re-transferred at 1080p resolution with digital restoration technology removing all grain and scratches from FUNimation's original prints of the series. It is important to note however, that like many late 80's-early 90's Toei productions (for example, Saint Seiya, Sailor Moon, Marmalade Boy, Ghost Sweeper Mikami and Slam Dunk), the series was produced on 16 millimeter film which tends to be fairly grainy and soft. The new restoration was supervised by colorist Steve Franko.


In a frantic bid to claw back credibility AlCon [http://mewski.livejournal.com/448216.html prepared a press release] disassociating themselves with Ryan and making it clear they bought him a one-way ticket to BannedVille. Ryan's reaction? [http://senshimedia.livejournal.com/4669.html Gun based violence]. Best of luck with your next endeavour, m8!
The series is presented in widescreen format (1.78:1, cropped from the original full frame) for the first time. Comparison images from the new set show that while there is missing footage on the top and bottom, there is at least additional footage on the right and left that has not appeared in any prior release, having been taken straight from the original Japanese film master recording.


===Gamestation===
This format change was highly controversial among fans, as this is not how the T.V. episodes were intended to be seen and this substantially alters them. Many fans launched a letter-writing campaign against the release. In response to the negative fan outcry regarding the release's apparent cropping of the source video, a FUNimation representative has released a document from the team remastering the video, which explains the logistics of the new release. This document details how certain areas of the original film are damaged, and admits that though the video is cropped, this release will eliminate the grain that would be present on prior 4:3 releases. It has also been theorized that it is ultimately more inexpensive to transfer the series in 16:9 and thereby remove the damaged portions of the frame than to repair 291 episodes' worth of damaged film.
British game store chain Gamestation were reported to have been eager to run the Games Room at AlCon. However when we called the manager of the local GameStation he laughed and claimed to have "Filed their phone number somewhere, probably in the bin".  


===Midlands MCM Expo===
The boxset contains a revised English track in Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound (it contains the original Japanese score by Shunsuke Kikuchi, although it is unknown just how the English dialogue is revised). For the first time ever, there is a choice between having the Japanese dialogue with [[Toei Animation|Toei]]'s original Japanese music, or English dialogue with either FUNimation's dub music or Toei's original Japanese music.
[[Image:AlConCampus2.jpg|thumb|right|The place of the convention itself]]As previously mentioned, the original dates for AlCon clashed with the new Midlands MCM Expo. As not previously mentioned, they tried to reason with AlCon. However, FreeSaiyan decided that the Midlands MCM Expo was out to get them and told them where to shove it.  


Unsurprisingly, the staff of Midlands MCM Expo pulled their backing for - and according to the ever-lulzworthy Ryan, [http://senshimedia.livejournal.com/4669.html AlCon became a banned word on the MCM Expo forums].
Special features include a featurette on the remastering of the original Japanese print and a 24-page booklet with episode summaries, character descriptions and a DBZ timeline.


===AmeCon 2007===
===FUNimation Dragon Box Sets===
In an attempt to consolidate their atrocious attendance figures, some of the committee set up a registration desk at AmeCon'07 in the, er, Bring and Buy Room.  
{{Main|Funimation Dragon Box Sets}}
FUNimation Dragon Box sets were confirmed for release by FUNimation Entertainment on July 19, 2009. The Dragon Box will be produced from the original Dragon Box masters after a frame by frame restoration and will span the entire 291 episode television series and all 13 of its movies.


Despite strict instructions not to harass AmeCon attendees, the people "Running" the desk employed what can only be described as [[Scientology|barrow-boy tactics,]] venturing out into corridors and haranguing anyone that ventured within half a light year of the Bring and Buy Room, including AmeCon committee members, one of whom was collared at least three times.  
This definitive DVD box release begins with Dragon Box One which includes the first 42 episodes, uncut, on 6 discs.


Furthermore, despite the promise of live-action fanservice in the less-than-appealing shape of a topless female (Washu), they actually ended up worse off than when they started.
The Dragon Box releases will feature an aspect ratio of 4:3, the original Japanese audio (with options for an English track or English subtitles), the original episode previews, complete opening and closing credits and a collector’s booklet.


[[Image:Cloakroom.jpg|right|thumb|200px|Alcon's "Dealer room" LET THE SELLINGZ COMMENCE!... oh, hang on, where's everyone's stuff gone...?"]]Total registrations: <i>Zero</i>
Dragon Box One was released on November 10th, 2009 with an SRP of $79.98, while Dragon Box Two was released on February 16th, 2010, Dragon Box Three was released on May 4th, 2010, and Dragon Box Four was released on September 21, 2010.


Total cancellations: <i>One</i>


<i>Mission...... Well and truly [[FAIL]]ED</i>


===Event stealing===
==Main cast list==
It was already well known that AlCon were only out to steal events from other, more established conventions to fund their own pockets and as a vain attempt to claw back what they were set to lose.


This was even more evident when, while trying to browbeat AmeCon members into signing up, they managed to poach one of the long time standing guests of AmeCon - Japanese culture expert and all round very nice person Akemi Solloway.  
{|class="wikitable"
!Character Name
!Voice Actor (Japanese)
!Voice Actor (English -<br />Ocean Group)
!Voice Actor (English - FUNimation)
|-
|[[Goku]]
|[[Masako Nozawa]]
|[[Ian James Corlett]] (ep.1-41 uncut)<br />[[Peter Kelamis]] (ep.42-67 uncut; 108-143)<br />[[Kirby Morrow]] (ep.144-291)
|
[[Sean Schemmel]] (adult)<br />[[Stephanie Nadolny]] (child)
|-
|[[Gohan]]
|[[Masako Nozawa]]
|
[[Saffron Henderson]] (ep.1-67 uncut; 108-150)<br />Jillian Michaels (ep.151-193)<br />Brad Swaile (ep.199-291)
|[[Stephanie Nadolny]] (child)[[Kara Edwards|<br />]][[Kyle Hebert]] (teen and adult)
|-
|[[Goten]]
|[[Masako Nozawa]]
|
Jillian Michaels (child)<br />Brad Swaile (teen)
|
[[Kara Edwards]] (child)<br />Robert McCollum (teen)
|-
|[[Chi-Chi]]
|Mayumi Sho (ep.1-66)<br />[[Naoko Watanabe]] (ep.88-291)
|
Laara Sadiq (ep.1-66 uncut)<br />Lisa Ann Beley (ep.108-291)
|[[Cynthia Cranz]]
|-
|[[Vegeta]]
|Ryo Horikawa
|[[Brian Drummond]]
|[[Christopher Sabat]]
|-
|[[Trunks]]
|[[Takeshi Kusao]]
|
Cathy Weseluck (child)<br />Allistair Abell (teen)
|
[[Laura Bailey (voice actress)|Laura Bailey]] (child)<br />[[Eric Vale]] (teen)
|-
|[[Future Trunks]]
|[[Takeshi Kusao]]
|Allistair Abell
|[[Eric Vale]]
|-
|[[Bulma]]
|[[Hiromi Tsuru]]
|
[[Lalainia Lindbjerg]] (ep.2-67 uncut)<br />Maggie Blue O'Hara (ep.108-291)
|[[Tiffany Vollmer]]
|-
|[[Piccolo]]
|Toshio Furukawa
|
[[Scott McNeil]]
|[[Christopher Sabat]]
|-
|[[Krillin]]
|Mayumi Tanaka
|[[Terry Klassen]]
|[[Sonny Strait]]
|-
|[[Yajirobe]]
|Mayumi Tanaka
|[[Brian Drummond]]
|[[Mike McFarland]]
|-
|[[Yamcha]]
|Toru Furuya
|[[Ted Cole]]
|[[Christopher Sabat]]
|-
|[[Tien]]
|[[Hirotaka Suzuoki]]
|[[Matt Smith]]
|Chris Cason (ep.75-107)<br />[[John Burgmeier]] (ep.118-288; 12-107 remastered)
|-
|[[Chiaotzu]]
|Hiroko Emori
|Cathy Weseluck
|[[Monika Antonelli]]
|-
|[[Master Roshi]]
|Kohei Miyauchi (ep.2-260)<br />Hiroshi Masuoka (ep.288-291)
|
[[Ian James Corlett]] (ep.2-39 uncut)<br />[[Peter Kelamis]] (ep.43-63 uncut)<br />[[Terry Klassen]] (ep.108-291)
|[[Mike McFarland]]
|-
|[[Oolong]]
|[[Naoki Tatsuta]]
|
Alec Willows (ep.1-57 uncut)<br />Doug Parker (ep.108-291)
|Mark Britten (ep.88-193)<br />[[Brad Jackson]] (ep.208-291; 18-107 remastered)
|-
|[[Puar]]
|[[Naoko Watanabe]]
|Cathy Weseluck
|[[Monika Antonelli]]
|-
|[[Launch]]
|[[Mami Koyama]]
|Cathy Weseluck (polite-self)<br />Teryl Rothery (mean-self)
|[[Monika Antonelli]] (polite-self)<br />[[Meredith McCoy]] (mean-self)
|-
|[[Hercule]]
|[[Daisuke Gori]]
|
Don Brown
|[[Chris Rager]]
|-
|[[Videl]]
|Yuko Minaguchi
|
Moneca Stori
|[[Kara Edwards]]
|-
|[[Android 18]]
|Miki Ito
|
Enuka Okuma
|[[Meredith McCoy]]
|-
|[[Fortuneteller Baba|Baba]]
|Junpei Takiguchi (ep.9-34)<br />Mayumi Tanaka (ep.207-271)
|
Ellen Kennedy (ep.9-34 uncut)<br />[[Brian Drummond]] (ep.207-271)
|
[[Linda Young]]
|-
|[[Dende]]
|Tomiko Suzuki (ep.46-288)<br />Hiro Yuuki (ep.290-291)
|Paulina Gillis (ep.46-67 uncut)<br />Andrew Francis (ep.173-291)
|[[Ceyli Delgadillo]] (child - original dub)<br />[[Laura Bailey (voice actress)|Laura Bailey]] (child - remastered dub)<br />Justin Cook (adult)
|-
|[[Ox-King]]
|[[Daisuke Gori]]
|
Dave Ward (ep.1-64 uncut)<br />Dale Wilson (ep.108-291)
|Mark Britten (ep.88-193)<br />[[Kyle Hebert]] (ep.208-291; 5-193 remastered)
|-
|[[Mr. Popo]]
|Toku Nishio
|
Alvin Sanders (ep.1-38 uncut)<br />French Tickner (ep.108-288)
|
Chris Cason (ep.76-100)<br />[[Christopher Sabat]] (ep.108-288; 17-100 remastered)
|-
|[[Korin]]
|Ichiro Nagai (ep.26-192)<br />[[Naoki Tatsuta]] (ep.217-285)
|
Paul Dobson (ep.26-37 uncut)<br />[[Ted Cole]] (ep.109-285)
|
Mark Britten (ep.109-192)<br />[[Christopher Sabat]] (ep.217-285; 26-38 remastered)
|-
|[[Kami]]
|[[Takeshi Aono]]
|
Michael Dobson (ep.6-28 uncut)<br />Dale Wilson (ep.108-141)
|[[Christopher Sabat]]
|-
|[[King Kai]]
|Jouji Yanami
|Don Brown
|[[Sean Schemmel]]
|-
|[[Supreme Kai]]
| Yuji Mitsuya
|
Michael Dobson
|[[Kent Williams]]
|-
|[[Elder Kai]]
|Reizo Nomoto
|
[[Scott McNeil]]
|[[Kent Williams]]
|-
|[[Frieza]]
|Ryusei Nakao
|
Pauline Newstone
|
[[Linda Young]]
|-
|[[Cell]]
|[[Norio Wakamoto]]
|
Dale Wilson
|
[[Dameon Clarke]]
|-
|[[Majin Buu]]
|Kozo Shioya
|
[[Scott McNeil]] (Majin Buu & [[Kid Buu]])<br />Brian Dobson ([[Evil Buu]] & [[Super Buu]])
|
Josh Martin (Majin Buu & [[Kid Buu]])<br />Justin Cook ([[Evil Buu]] & [[Super Buu]])
|-
|[[Shenron]]
|[[Kenji Utsumi]]
Masaharu Satou (ep.192-193)
|Don Brown
|[[Christopher Sabat]]
|-
|[[Narrator]]
|Jouji Yanami
|Doc Harris
|[[Dale Kelly]] (ep.68-194)<br />[[Kyle Hebert]] (ep.195-291; 1-194 remastered)
|}


This must have been done on the quiet, because otherwise the AmeCon staff would have both (a) jumped on the surreptitious little twats and turfed them out on their arses a damn sight sooner and (b) let poor, credulous Akemi know what she was letting herself in for.
==Theme songs==
===Japanese themes===
*Openings
*# "[[Cha-La Head-Cha-La]]"
*#* Lyrics: ''Yukinojō Mori'', Music: ''Chiho Kiyooka'', Arrangement: ''Kenji Yamamoto'', Vocals: '''Hironobu Kageyama'''
*#** Version 1: episodes 1~21 (Not on FUNimation's DVDs, except for the remastered version of ''[[Dragon Ball Z: Dead Zone]]'')
*#** Version 2: episodes 22~117
*#** Version 3: episodes 118~194
*# "[[WE GOTTA POWER]]"
*#* Lyrics: ''Yukinojō Mori'', Music: ''Keiju Ishikawa'', Arrangement: ''Keiju Ishikawa'', Vocals: '''Hironobu Kageyama'''
*#** Episodes 195~291


The full thread, the near-total lack of enthusiasm and the surprising absence of posts saying "Hold up, wasn't she at AmeCon?" can be seen [http://www.animeleague.net/forums/viewtopic.php?f=20&t=12478 here].
*Closings
*# "[[Detekoi Tobikiri Zenkai Pawā!]]"; <u>でてこいとびきりZENKAIパワー!</u> (''Come Out, Incredible ZENKAI Power!'')
*#* Lyrics: ''Toshihisa Arakawa'', Music: ''Takeshi Ike'', Arrangement: ''Kenji Yamamoto'', Vocals: '''MANNA'''
*#** Episodes 1~194
*# "Boku-tachi ha Tenshi Datta"; <u>僕達は天使� った</u> (''We Were Angels'')
*#* Lyrics: ''Yukinojō Mori'', Music: ''Takeshi Ike'', Arrangement: ''Osamu Tozuka'', Vocals: '''Hironobu Kageyama'''
*#** Episodes 195~291


===Committee Confusion===
===English anime themes===
*Openings
**"[[Rock the Dragon|Main Title]]" (AKA "Rock the Dragon")
**"[[DragonBall Z (Song)|DragonBall Z]]" (AKA "DBZ Theme")
**"Dragonball Z" (Ocean Dub from episode 108 onwards[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qovFPmg0cmI])
**"[[DBZ Uncut Theme]]"
**"[[DBZ Movie Theme]]"
**"[[Eternal Sacrifice]]" (''[[Broly: The Legendary Super Saiyan]]'' theme song)
:Vocals: Tendril
*Endings
**Most English endings are simply shortened or otherwise altered versions of the openings, however The [[Ultimate Uncut Special Edition]] release used "[[Summon Up the Dragon]]".


{{quote|I have never been or ever will be committee member for alcon. As of a few months ago I now no longer have any relations with mike towers or manga alliance. The advertising I have done for Alcon has been removed from all the places they have been posted and I hope that if there are any copies of anything I have done for alcon they need to be Burned and forgoten about.|Sakuraslight}}
==See also==
*[[List of Dragon Ball characters]]
*[[List of Dragon Ball Z episodes]]
*[[List of video games|Dragon Ball Video Games]]
*[[Z Fighters]]
*[[Franchise|Dragon Ball Franchise]]
*[[Canon|Dragon Ball Canon]]
*[[List of Dragon Ball films|Dragon Ball Movies]]
*[[Dragon Ball Z Kai]]


TL;DR: Every time drama erupts, someone else is mysteriously vanished from the committee roster, as if they never existed. Eerie.
==External links==
 
*[http://www.dragonballz.com English Dragon Ball Z website]
=== Registration Count ===
*[http://www.toei-anim.co.jp/tv/dragonz/ Toei Dragon Ball Z website]
[[Image:Emptyconventioncenter.jpg|thumb|150px|Alcon in full swing...]]At the end of June 2007, the membership had climbed to an epic 96 paid members (88 if you discount the committee). At under 30% of capacity, things got so bad that FreeSaiyan was reduced to sending out email missives to all his forum pals encouraging them to sign up.
*[http://www.daizex.com Daizenshuu EX]
 
*[http://www.ultimatedbz.com Ultimate DBZ]
The pitch, astonishingly, was that registrations for the doomed convention are going so fast that they would close by the end of July 2007.
*[http://gokusite.proboards91.com/ DBZ HQ Forum]
 
*[http://kanzentai.com/ Kanzentai]
'''''Pfffffffff.'''''
 
=== Dealers' Room ===
In perhaps the jewel in the crown of AlCon's complete and total incompetence, the dealers turned up to find a Dealers' Room that was both (a) unguarded and (b) ''unlocked''. That's right folks, the Dealers' Room was left '''''COMPLETELY UNSECURED''''' and without a single soul around to protect it from thieving little fucktards.
 
Many a dealer has sworn never to have anything to do with future conventions 'run' by A.L. on the back of this.
 
===Breach of Copyright===
[[Image:Violation.png|thumb|right| Nuh-uh-uh... crying "fair use" wont cover this. Hello, is that Clamp's legal representatives...?]]
For 2009, those naughty chaps have been using a trademarked character - Kero from Card Captor Sakura - to lure in new marks. Happily, as the convention is a commercial venture, this doesn't even live in the same area code as "Fair use."
 
Curiously, his precious "Pwanda" mascot isn't the creature on the page. Perhaps he finally realised it was a pile of shit. Or maybe Pwanda hasn't been putting out lately.
 
==The Convention Itself==
[[Image:alcon_flyer.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Events and guests promised for AlCon, circa 2007. Can YOU spot the differences, boys and girls?]][[Image:Piratewhale.jpg|thumb|[[Harpoons]]!!!It seems this [[pirate]] has caught [[whale]]!]]The convention was set to run up to about 7pm each evening... at which point everyone was be kicked out of the main University and all of the "[[300]]" members were to head to a pub down the road where all the evening events were meant to happen.
 
According to the publicity, this car-crash of an event was to feature a DJ. The DJ in question was supplied by the bar and didn't play any slitty-eyed music at all. Cue a bunch of pissed-off Weeaboos having to spend four hours listening to Britshite that college kids like.
 
Posted before the con by FreeSaiyan himself [http://www.animeleague.net/forums/viewtopic.php?f=20&t=125 on the AnimeLeague Forums] was this lovely list of reasons why people should have attended AlCon.
 
'''1. We're all friendly and down to Earth. Probably the friendliest convention in the UK.'''
(''Note that he wouldn't know as he hasn't been to a single convention, or had a single friend. Besides which, you'd think the friendlier ones would have committee meetings rather than committee fucking screaming matches.'')
 
'''2. Anime Bar! In addition to everything else, we have a bar with anime on the big screens! Relax, and have a few drinks!'''
(''A sad attempt to put positive spin on the fact that everything shuts down at seven, and they force everyone into a shitty English pub. Oh, sorry, if you're under 18 that means LOL [[Butthurt|BUTTHURT]] FOR YOU!'')
 
'''3. NOT just anime! We have rooms for Video Gamers, Roleplayers, Artists, and much more! Even if you aren't a huge anime fan, you'll have a great time!'''
(''"Hey, Mike. I thought we were an anime convention?" "Shut up! We still have to sell another 220 places to get my- I mean our money back!"'')
 
'''4. Attention to detail. Since we're relatively small (300 people), we can put in the time to ensuring you get an amazing convention experience! We'll put in the effort for you.'''
(''Remember that guy who said that hell was being trapped in a room with all your friends? Well, if they can't be fucking civil in committee meetings, we can only speculate how much lulz will ensue on a weekend when they actually have to do some work.'')
 
'''5. So much for cosplayers! Cosplay Masquerade, cosplay blind-date and so much more planned!'''
(''Cosplay blind date? "So much for cosplayers" indeed.'')
 
[[Image:Cosplay010.jpg|thumb|right|The only guy who had fun at the con, due to being fisted.]]'''6. Awesome guests. So far we have Dave Cheung of the awesome Chugworth Academy webcomic, and MasakoX of the incredibly popular Naruto Abridged series. More guests to come!'''
(''<b>WEB</b>comic artist whose <b>WEB</b>comic hasn't even been on the fucking <b>WEB</b> for months, and the guy who does the unbearable shitty knockoff of [[Yu-Gi-Oh]] Abridged... joooooooooooooy. Note: Still more interesting than meeting shit American voice-actors at Amecon'')
 
'''7. We're very CHEAP! Only £30 entry. AND, if you need a place to stay, you can stay at the Halls of Residence (3 minutes walk away) for just over £50 for three nights. We're one of the cheapest conventions in the UK!'''
(''Actually, this one is almost true - but they probably don't mean the same sense of CHEAP! as we do. But then again, you get what you pay for. By AlCon's standards, you could hold an "Anime convention" in your bathroom by drawing frames from Naruto on the wall in your own urine for FREE!'')
 
'''8. Dealers! An entire room to buy the kind of items you'd not normally be able to find in the shops!'''
(''With [[Ryan Gentle|Ryan]] as the original dealer liaison, this is bound to be a success!!!! We can't wait!!!! And of course you can't normally find this kind of tat in the shops - especially if you're looking in a fucking grocery shop. But they are right with the drugs that are sold, you can't find them in the shops.'')
 
'''9. We love to party! Pub Quiz, J-Party, AMV Night, and much more lined up!'''
(''All in the bar! Wow, that bar is starting to sound kind of full, huh? Of course, they haven't contacted any of the people who have experience of running events like this, so you can look forward to a bunch of dorks trying to figure out how to connect a laptop to a TV while everyone else counts the ceiling tiles.'')
 
'''10. We have an amazing online community. Just go visit the animeleague forums and get to know us today!'''
(''Another ploy to get people to join FreeSaiyan's community, where 90% of members aren't even from the UK, and the UK section is just filled with gruesome Drama.'')
 
===Post Con===
[[Image:Shogun1.jpg|thumb|left|Visuel Kei from the UK... Lets gloss over the fact it's a [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visual_kei japanese movement] shall we]][[Image:Yarr.jpg|thumb|left|What the fuck do these guys have to do with anime?]]
 
As soon as FailCon was over, the reports started coming in hard and fast with such comments as "All we could do is stand around" and "The MCM Expo is alot better than AlCon" rapidly appearing.
 
Some from "helpers" on the day, specifically the long ditched Mewski, who tried to help out the convention '''despite''' warnings from everyone that FreeSaiyan would just abuse her, and promptly proved them all right. This included the borrowing of everything she owned, as FailCon had not even considered <i>bringing any equipment with them</i>, and also the fact that the dealers <b>still</b> considered Mewski to be the chair of the con.
 
As predicted by all who had even the slightest semblance of a clue, the convention was a complete failure.
 
===2009 Convention===
 
Much to the amusement of all, fAiLcon keeps crawling along like a half dead dog waiting for someone to put it out of its misery. Despite its second run in 2008 repeating nearly all the mistakes of its 2007 outing, the slack jawed nitwits that occupy the AL forum continue to pay to attend, little realising that there is a whole host of better run events up and down the country they could spend their parents' hard earned money on.
 
These idiots - combined with first time congoers who don't know any better (and who never make the mistake of going to fAiLcon again afterwards) - allow Towers to continue his sorry little wankfest and pay for the sort of A list guests and entertainment making an appearance at this year's train wreck.
 
So far we have a [http://www.myspace.com/machinashogunate UK Visual Kei band] no one has heard of who claim they will "Rip down the walls between Eastern and Western music and lead a Visual Kei revolution the world over." How they intend to do this by playing at an anime convention where everyone is well aware of Visual Kei is anyones guess. Shit though they are, they do at least have some kind of tenuous link to Japan; more than can be said for the second BIG act Towers has lined up.
 
[http://www.skullbrandedpirates.com/ Skull Branded Pirates]... Now, while this author stands by the solid concept of a thrash metal pirate band, we fail to see what this has to do with an anime convention. Towers probably justifies their inculsion due to fAiLcons "Clan" system (an idea ruthlessly stolen from [http://www.tokonatsu.org.uk/ Tokonatsu]) which includes pirates as one of the clans.
 
Our condolences go out to the Skull Branded Pirates who obviously have no clue as to what they have been suckered into and upon realising their error they live up to their pirate name and keelhaul Towers from the front of their van as they rape and pillage the rotting carcass that is fAiLcon.
 
=JapAnime Network / Manga Alliance / Fail-Expo (AKA Towers' New Masterplan)=
[[Image:ChristTowers.jpg‎|thumb|right|Christ Towers, saviour of the UK anime scene. Oft can the mantra "Oh Christ, It's Towers" be heard ringing round other events. Hallelujah, Mein Führer!]]
 
FreeSaiyan's latest venture into the rarefied air of Lulzland is a laughable attempt to become the PaedoBorg of the UK anime community. (Yes, he will assimilate your kids with Rohypnol flavoured cookies.)
 
Around the middle of March 2009, various members of UK anime convention committees received an [[Spam|email]] from MISTER Towers bringing the '''JapAnime Network''' to their [[apathy|attention]]. The aim of the network is to "get beyond the credit crunch" - strangely, he doesn't go into much detail at that point (it shouldn’t surprise anyone to learn that he votes Conservative, as that’s pretty much what the [[Tory|Tory Party]]’s policies were at the 2010 UK General Election - and scarily, they ''still'' ended up in power) - and unify the entire UK anime scene into one glorious whole.
 
With one glorious hole sitting at the head of it all.
 
With this in place, his fantasy continues with everyone "Helping one another through combined resources and expertise" and "Expanding what we have and building a better future for everybody in and outside of the industry."
 
Read: because everyone worth a damn in the scene has his address spam-filtered, he wants everyone else to do his donkeywork and spam FOR him, and thus he will ascend to his rightful place as '''TEH MAN''' of anime in the UK.
 
Make no mistake, Michael Towers is not in this for the good of the UK anime industry - he is in it for Michael Towers, and for Michael Towers alone.
 
All he wants the people he's [[spam|contacted]] to do is:
*Give him all their contacts so he can buttspam them to oblivion
*Plaster his shit mascot logo, Pwanda the <s>typo</s> Panda, all over the fucking joint - even on official con merch (it is rumored that Pwanda is an excuse for Mike to dress up in a costume and approach young children more easily)
*Whore his lackeys' tat as promotional items
*Inform him of any promotional campaigns the [[Victim|event]] might run, so he can <s>steal the idea and use it himself</s> advise further and give useful input
*Give him your undying support and adulation as the brain behind it all
*Don't go talking to each other without him being told about it because that would make him cry
*...oh, and your daughter looks pretty fit too... she ''is'' under 16, isn't she...
 
The established anime conventions of the UK took one look at this and promptly burst into uncontrollable fits of laughter. When they eventually regained composure, the general consensus was "Oh, for the love of all that is even semi-holy, will this spacker ''EVER'' just ''fuck the cunting shit right off?!''"
 
What Towers can't get through his inch-thick skull and into his bubblegum brain is that there is absolutely '''no need''' in the UK anime scene for such an organisation, because the anime conventions largely get along just fine with each other anyway. From MinamiCon to Auchinawa, AmeCon to Tokonatsu, AyaCon to Tomodachi, the committees have friends across the board, and help each other out when their events run as it is.
 
Some even have committee members who are also on ''another'' event's committee, so they have links that way as well. Even if there ''was'' a requirement for this, they wouldn't touch a thing that Towers has had his mitts on with some bugger ''else's'' barge pole.
 
The only thing of his they ''do'' want to touch is his face. With a baseball bat. Freshly nailed. And even then, they'd burn the bat afterward.
 
At events following the announcement of the JapAnime Network, committee members have, you know, "Networked" with members of other committees to have a pint, chuckle at the proposal, and, you know, "Help one another through combined resources and expertise. "And they did it all without his "Help" too. Funny that.
 
Undeterred, Towers has garnered some support - Alcon and AnimeLeague jumped at the chance to join such a forward-thinking venture, which is '''absolutely nothing''' to do with the fact that both of those shitholes are his own wall-eyed, eleven-toed children as well. He sucked enough cock at <s>Delusional</s> Dimensional Entertainment, another body famed for their [[retarded|interesting]] ways of doing things, and CollectorMania have also added themselves to the list. Along with this came a rebrand - the Japanime Network became the '''Manga Alliance'''.
 
Possibly funniest is that even Towers admits the alliance is bullshit, as can be seen in the following lolworthy quote from his own forum (which he has since naturally deleted lest his horrifying hypocrisy be revealed to all; fortunately someone has [http://encyclopediadramatica.com/Image:Forumlol.jpg screen capped it for prosperity].)
 
{{quote|Sad thing is that Manga Alliance isn't really all that important anymore. It's detractors made the original concept unworkable by virtue that their immature and overblown initial reaction to it effectively split the UK community in half. Since then we re-worked the concept to focus more on bringing anime and manga to new events (and indeed helping new events out). From this new premise we are seeing radical change such as London Film & Comic Con agreeing to take us on to see a massive expansion of anime and manga.
 
Yet what I term the "elitists" have outright ignored this change, preferring to try and pretend that we are still trying to "unite the community". They're doing this to try and make us look blind and dogmatic. They are trying to make us look like morons.
 
Sadly this is generally how these people work.
|Mike Towers whom, lest we forget, everyone is still out to get}}
 
Ignoring for the moment the fact that A) Mike needs nobody to ''try'' to make him look like a moron and that B) ''There is no need for a networking club for an industry that already has excellent channels of communication,'' the Alliance was (and still is) a ridiculously obvious  marketing tool for Dimensional Entertainment.
 
[[Image:Shameless.jpg‎|thumb|right|Mike forcing Sexual Harassment Pwanda onto his meet-ups. Grope grope. No self-promoting going on here, move along now, nothing to see...]]
 
A quick [[PROTIP|tip]] for the fucktards behind this bullshit: if you're trying to sell something as representative of the whole UK, plastering your companies flagship character over everything is not the way to do it (Especially when the Panda is the national animal of China dipshits).
 
FYI, the concept has not been "Re-worked" at all. All the drivel on the Alliance site is still about getting through the credit crunch and sharing resources, so why Towers is so surprised that "Elitists" (i.e. anyone who has half braincell and can therefore see right through him) are ignoring him I don't know.
 
Flushed with such success, Towers then went on to tread on even more toes - specifically, those of MCM Expo. His delusions of grandeur led him to propose a rival Expo event that's "Fresh" and "The place to be".
 
You see, MCM can only afford guests like the cast of Heroes and scenery like the actual Ecto-1 from Ghostbusters. Mike knows better, and is presumably in negotiations with the author of My Immortal and the guy who wrote the Twilight flash game.
 
Encyclopedia Dramatica wishes them the organisers of MCM every success in giving the little fucktard a hearty kicking.
 
'''''UPDATE:''''' Towers actually had the front to turn up to the MCM in May 2009, and was shortly afterward ejected. The circumstances surrounding his GTFOing are unknown, but he is now trying to pretend it didn't happen.
 
See here for Mike and Dimensional <s>Enterfailment</s> Entertainment's attempt to defend their utter bullshit "Manga" and fail for epic lulz - [http://www.animeleague.net/forums/viewtopic.php?f=210&t=86232 Shit Manga wannabe]
 
=Team Dimension=
 
As part of his continuing drive to force himself on the UK anime community like Gary Glitter on a Vietnamese school child, Towers in partnership with Dimensional Entertainment has also formed an online unofficial art school (so not really a school at all then) for the AL forums called [http://www.animeleague.net/forums/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=82135 Team Dimension].
 
The aim of this is to apparently turn the retarded spunktards who infest this forum into elite manga making teams. This is presumably so Towers can get someone to make a manga series based round himself that depicts him in a world where being an [[Chris-chan|unemployed failure]] who lives with his mum and runs poorly organised conventions made up of ideas stolen from other, better run events is something to be proud of.
 
The scheme has a five level program (hmmm, think I heard something like this [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientology before,] only less sinister) that is apparently designed to help people work up from the skill level of a talentless monkey smearing shit on the wall to a fully fledged manga-ka.
 
Feel free to laugh at the levels on the link [http://www.animeleague.net/forums/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=82135 forum post] as ED now presents a more accurate interpretation:
 
'''Level 1: Entry/Portfolio'''
 
No drawing required (pretty fucking odd for an art school) you’re just required to learn the correct approach which is to bend over and let Towers and Dimensional fuck you in the ass.
 
'''Level 2: Building your style'''
 
Having determined what style you like to be fucked in Team Dimension will educate you on what the professional Team Dimension standard is. As it turns out, it's to draw and write shitty manga that no high street store will stock.
 
'''Level 3: Team Building'''
 
Team Dimension will try to put you into artistic teams, but won’t be able to because you like everyone else in this ponzi scheme wants to be an artist too. Acting like a proper artist and working through jobs such as inker, toner or letterer sounds to much like hard work to you.
 
'''Level 4: Formalising Teams'''
 
If we somehow manage to cobble together a group of people that can manage to draw something that doesn’t look like a syphilis ridden whore took a shit on a pizza then we get you to work on magazine adverts and on projects for game and toy companies. Well, we would, if we actually had any industry links or paid commission work beyond making our shitty Pwanda manga (for which you will not be paid).
 
'''Level 5: Professional Production'''
 
If somehow you and your team mates have accidentally picked up the skills that allow you to produce a professional product that people might want to buy we automatically own all rights and royalties. Then, having screwed you like a cheap whore we’ll wipe our dick clean on your leg and leave you in a puddle made of your broken dreams and raped childhood.
 
Even Mike himself doesn't know how many people, if any, would make it to level 5 [http://www.animeleague.net/forums/viewtopic.php?f=203&t=84487], but rest assured this <s>isn't</s> is a total scam to get free artwork from artists.  <b>Note:</b> Nobody has discussed the requirements to move up from level 4 to level 5, meaning that teams will forever be stuck at level 4, with a likely excuse being "Your artwork is good, but just not good enough to make into a professional manga".  If a team should protest against this [[faggotry|decision]], that team will just be told that they can [[gtfo|make dojinshi]].
 
=Cosplay Island=
 
The nice folk at [http://www.cosplayisland.co.uk/ Cosplay Island] given Mike a head start in their forums, but questioned the need for, and legality of, taking the personal details of under-16s in his School of <s>Manga</s> failure - a question that Comrade Mikhail Andreievich Towerski swung the banhammer at the questioner for.
 
When he realised that this wasn't actually his forum, he ran whining to the moderators that the nasty people were being not very nice to him and to delete the thread. They refused - instead deleting the spam-post he placed there for his Fail-Expo, leaving the resultant (and thoroughly deserved) shitstorm of abuse in a locked thread as a warning from history.
 
FreeSaiyan's latest paranoid delusion is that those who posted in the thread are the same ones who wrote this section of the page. After having his [[e-penis]] laughed at, he bleated out this brainfart on his own forum, and had his ego massaged by the liquid-minded spacktards therein, as they licked his arse and called it chocolate. They then went forth and proclaimed e-fatwas on his behalf on various forums and blog posts that criticise their [[retard|God]] and his glorious [[failure|work]].
 
{{quote|Al is a great place where you can meet new people who also like anime and also go to conventions {having not been one yet myself} If you have any problems with AL why don’t you start slagging my forums off aswell, Mike put alot of hard work into AL, and kept the community growing, I don’t care if you all just call me a ‘kid’ but I’ll have you know I myself create forums so stop slagging AL off, it doesn’t deserve it...
 
Mike just helps others forget about their childhood, create a new life, and trust other people, I beg of you please remove this blog, please.|Blog "replies" from AL attack dog Fate-chan, stopping herself just before she mentioned [[Jesus Juice]]}}
 
So you've never been to a convention, but you create forums yourself, hmm...? Sounds like you want to be Towers yourself, Fate-chan; that's exactly how ''he'' started on his megalomaniacal path...
 
The tragic thing is, it's quite simply not true. The simple truth is that '''''NO FUCKER''''' who's been in the UK anime, manga, cosplay, gaming, and Japanese culture communities for anything more than half a ''femto''second, likes Michael Towers, his squadron of llamas and the drama they spread at the slightest whine from their leader. Anyone with an IQ of more than one digit wouldn't trust him to run a fucking ''bath'', never mind any (dis)organisation like this.
 
However, now back in his comfort zone and not liking the way things were going for him, he has now decided to pretend it never happened, deleting his own AL posts accusing Cosplay Island members of updating here. We, however, know the truth, and await his next drama-generating lump of faeces with great languor and detestation.
 
=AnimeLeague Club London=
 
[[image:Facepalms.jpg|thumb|290px|left|When you're even making anime characters react like this, surely you can see it's time to hang it up. Can't you?]]
 
Said turd of fail did not take very long at all to arrive. Spamming sections of anime forums designated no-spam zones (does he ''ever'' fucking learn?!), Towers plugged the AnimeLeague Club London, a one-day event which is to be held at the Slug And Lettuce in America Square in the heart of London, mid-November.
 
If this sounds a lot like the London Anime Club did to you, you'd be right - for it is the exact same venue the LAC ran at. He's basically ripped off the ''entire'' format of LAC and claimed it as his own.
 
[[image:katch.jpeg|thumb|right|Here comes Katch - better nail everything down, motherfucker...]]
 
The announcement of fAiLCL (as it is already being called) generated the usual amount of lulz, especially when posted in the MinamiCon forums. Many of the people behind MinamiCon also ran LAC, which discontinued its regular events at the end of 2008 due to dwindling numbers over the years.
 
Despite this, Towers seems to believe he'll be able to get 400 people in for this, promising "Dealers, video gaming, anime screening, an Artist Alley, DDRing, roleplaying, card-gaming, along with many events such as a masquerade, pub-quiz, parties, special guests... and much more!".
 
The problem here is, being an 18+ event held in a bar, many (read: all) of his pubescent spacktard groupies won't be able to get in. For added drama (as if it were needed), the Para-Para obsessed collective [http://roppongistreet.com/ Roppongi Street] will be attendance, including in their number a known thief, vandal and troublemaker by the name of Max "Katch" Beckwith ➤, who has already been permabanned from many an event for being an out-and-out cunt.
 
Beyond that, Towers' reputation already comes caked in so much shit you can smell him from the other side of the city, so anyone who's anyone in UK anime fandom won't be going anywhere near. Not on the day, at least - they'll likely be having a word with the Slug staff to borrow the CCTV footage afterwards for a good laugh.
 
=Chatroom Parties=
 
Towers has recently started spamming all of his mindless minions about some sort of a "Chatroom party" which is where everyone, erm, piles in the IRC channel and, erm, you know, types. The whole idea screams RTS (Real-Time Spamming), which is of course par for the course - it's the original Towers Wet Dream. Here is a copy of the email:
 
Hi There! ^_^
Are you bored this summer? Got nothing to do?
Never fear, come to our chatroom party! It will take place on '''Sunday 26th
July''' and will run from 7PM to midnight GMT (2pm to 7pm EST) in the AL
chatroom and everyone will be invited (whether they're on AL or not)!
We will be running events, contests, our anime radio station (plenty of
music to listen to!) and generally having fun throughout the evening. You
can read up more about it at
http://www.animeleague.net/forums/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=88801
To join the chatroom, simply click on the chat link on the Animeleague
forums. The direct link to the chatroom is
http://www.animeleague.net/forums/chat.php We can also be reached on mirc
via '''irc.synirc.net''' and on the '''#animeleague''' channel. ^_^
See you there!
Animeleague Staff
 
"Are you bored this summer? Got nothing to do?" How about you sit hunched in front of your computer for 5 hours watching a wall of piss, arse, wank and drama scroll up the screen, instead of doing something infinitely more productive."
 
More on this as it develops.
 
=Spam, Spam, Spam, Spam!=
 
[[image:GoMyMinions.jpg|thumb|540px|right|You wanna be in my gang, my gang, my gang, You wanna be in my gang - FUCK NO!]]
 
It is quite clear that FreeSaiyan's favourite food is [[spam]] - he seems to live on absolutely nothing else. To the right there is his most recent command to the shitehawks on the AnimeLeague page on Facebook. The Führer's quite obviously not content with fucking off the UK anime scene, so now he's going after everyone else too...
 
Also on the 14th/15th May 2009, Mr Towers decided to become Nigerian and send everyone in the UK a special email invitation, here is what it says -
 
Hey, Fellow Otaku! o_o; (Noticed you around online)
I was going through some anime boards and I noticed your name there.
So I thought that I'd send you an invite to our community! ^_^
It's located at http://www.animeleague.net/forums . We're a friendly and
slightly insane community that caters for anime, artists, roleplaying,
general off topicness/randomness, entertainment, cosplaying and meetups.
I feel that you'd fit in really well there, so would you like to come
along and check us out? ^^
Also, and just as importantly (!), I want to invite you to the clan I
have on there for British  people, and is called Anglo-Revolution. It's
in the ClanNation section, and the link to it is
http://www.animeleague.net/forums/viewtopic.php?f=19&t=35215 
Clans are a great way to get easily involved and jump in. ^_^
I'm also on AIM. My AIM name is FreeSaiyan
My msn name is '''''[email protected]'''''
I do not check my email much, so if you wish to reply, then you're more
likely to get a response  if you either IM me, or register on the boards
and PM FreeSaiyan on there.
Thanks, hope to see you around! ^_^
Can you spot the spamtarget, kiddies? I wonder how he'd react to his own treatment...? I'm ''sure'' he'd like it.
 
Alternatively, we would recommend [http://www.ico.gov.uk/Home/complaints/data_protection.aspx following this link] to make a formal complaint under the [http://www.ico.gov.uk/what_we_cover/data_protection.aspx Data Protection Act].
 
 
[[file:EvenMoreFacepalms.jpg|500px|right]]
=Bribery, Spying, Interrogation & Hypocrisy=
In the latest episode of ''A Certain Saiyantific Failgun'', Mikey-Boy has decided to turn his whole fucking forum base into shills to pull unsuspecting retards into his little online circle-jerk, artificially inflating his e-penis even further. The plan is that for every new member that an existing one (let’s call them Fucktard A) gets to join up, said Fucktard gets 500 [[Internet money|internets]]. If, one month later, Spacker B is still on the board and has posted more than 50 times, an additional 500 internets are added to Fucktard A’s account, magically generating £1 ($1.50 US) of [[IRL]] moneyz out of thin air. Towers will allegedly stump up via PayPal when they hit £3, and ''says'' he is not taking advantage of this scheme himself - probably because he’ll be scamming something even bigger on the back of it.
 
Surely Question One that any individual with even half an ounce of conscious, rational thought in their heads would be asking is: '''''where is the money coming from?''''' It sure as fuck isn’t coming from the proceeds from FailCon. Having failed to fully book-out the 700 places the con has set, a measly 56 (barely 11%) of those who have signed up have put their money where the drama is. Other, not to mention ''bigger'', conventions in the UK book up rock solid inside 2 weeks to more than ''double'' the figure that FailCon’10 has - the difference being that their members actually '''''pay up'''''. You can guarantee, for example, that 2011’s MinamiCon 17 will be half-full by the Sunday of MinamiCon 16, which takes place in April 2010.
 
The whole ‘deal’ was greeted by the UK anime community with no small amount of hilarity, as Towers has once again opened his swing-top nut, displaying to the masses the rattling, pea-sized amount of matter he contains therein. Someone else must have borrowed his single functioning braincell when this stratagem was brewed up, as true to form, it’s made of solid 24-carat '''''[[FAIL]].''''' Only a complete molecule-mind would go so far as to, let’s face it, '''''BRIBE''''' people to encourage others to use his forums, and do so with such a hypocritical goal as to make sure people keep posting to his wanky little cyber-spunkfest. For an individual who is renowned as THE single least-posting member of any forum outside of his own - why, if not for his shamelessly self-promoting spam and whiny, retro-[[file:FreeMoolah.jpg|thumb|200px|left|Because we know he’ll just delete it and pretend it never happened...]]perambulating defence posts, he probably wouldn’t be posting elsewhere '''''at all''''' - to start asking others to keep posting in his forum in such a fashion is duplicity worthy of GLaDOS herself. Furthermore, claiming to crack down on those using proxies, when he has such a fetishistic love of using them himself - witness his futile attempts to defile this page - denotes such a neck of <s>shining brass</s> pound-shop gold paint, giraffes look on in envy. As if that were not enough, he’s also going to be '''spying''' on new members that signed up by this hare-brained initiative, and ''interrogating'' them, as this quote suggests...:
 
{{quote|We will PM members and check you bought them...|Oh, never was a slip so Freudian... People are not a commodity, Mike, they certainly don’t like being '''''BOUGHT'''''. They won’t be keen on having their integrity questioned like that either. Hell of a way to drive people away. Just an FYI...}}
<br>
 
=2010 Update=
Following multiple attemps to derail both this page and its talk page on ED by various Hogwarts-obsessed minions, spackers and sock-puppets, this EDitor has gained permission from a mod to update with happenings as of mid-August 2010. Strap yourselves into the LOLlercoaster, everyone - '''''here we fucking well go...'''''
 
[[file:Alclsig-1.png|thumb|230px|left|All Aboard The TARD-is...!]]
== Spam Lords Are From Gallifrey Too! ==
Towers is now fucking with '''''time''''' as well as the anime scene. Apparently the next fAiLCL will be a full day event - which he classes with his very next spack-out as '''''mid-day to midnight'''''. It seems there are is now a new timezone that spins twice as fast as the rest of the planet, making one full day go by in a mere 12 hours. This is entirely plausible, though, as Towers’ gargantuan ego is enormous enough to generate its own gravity field, likely causing a slingshot effect to make him travel faster than shite, enabling him to ''really believe'' all the fucked-up drama he spins.
 
This EDitor wouldn’t put it past Towers to try and claim FailCon 2010 is the country’s first '''''SIX-DAY''''' anime con on the back of this.
 
Also, completing the ninja-ing of the original (and STILL best) London Anime Club, universally referred to in the UK anime community as '''''LAC''''', Towers now calls this blatant knock-off the '''''L'''''ondon '''''A'''''nime '''''C'''''on. Flyers seen in Orbital post-Expo confirm this. Plagiaristic fuck.
 
==NemaCon==
In other convention news, rookie event NemaCon, based in Middlesbrough Town Hall, Teesside, severed all ties with Towers after he waded in spam-fisted again, claiming that it was a convention being organised by AnimeLeague. In reality, it was organised in conjunction with Middlesbrough borough council. Whether the council was pointed in the direction of this page is unknown, but if not, there can be no doubt that they’d have cut links a damn sight faster if they had been.
 
==The Banhammer Backfires==
Towers was finally subjected to a taste of his own medicine in the wake of the 2010 MCM Expo, held at the London ExCeL at the end of May. Weaseling his way into the position of an admin on the MCM Facebook page, he asked the head admin whether he could make a post there. Said admin didn’t ask what the nature of the post was. Biiiiiiig mistake.
 
The post turned out to be more Towers spam about his own crappy events, flung forth with wild abandon and sticking to inboxes belonging to members of that page like shit on velcro. Being posted in this way, it appeared as if it had come from MCM themselves. This was something that angered many, and led to a thread on the MCM Forums filled with lulz and drama. Being a [http://www.mcmexpogroup.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=299&t=14959 thread that is not AL-based], it remains there for people to PTSL at, with only Towers’ retarded attempts to defend himself (despite being told multiple times to fuck off) being pruned. The thread in question is 7 pages long, so it may be a bit TL;DR for some, but it is well worth the read. The upshot of all this, though, is that Mike Towers has been completely, irreversably banhammered from anything that MCM runs: forums, Expos, any other events. He can’t deny it anymore.
 
'''''• cue Land Of Hope And Glory •'''''
 
==Things That Go Buzz In The Shite==
[[file:Fail-Summers-FB.png|thumb|250px|right|Hello-o-o-o-o-o-o-o, DERPS!]]
Doctors in ED’s Health Research Department have finally discovered conclusive proof that Fucktarditis is contagious. Some attendees of fAiLcon 2010 seem to have succumbed to this condition, having caught it from their <s>feckless</s> fearless leader, and are organising, of all things, '''''AN [http://www.annsummers.com/ ANN SUMMERS] PARTY'''''. For those outside of the UK who may not be aware of this particular company, Ann Summers is a cheap and nasty chain of high-street sex shops, which entices the hairy-palmed masses through its doors with promises of tacky costumes and lingerie, lotions, potions and various battery-operated devices meant for insertion in various bodily orifices. Also available in sa(i)d emporia is pornography, but the tameness of the material on show means it is barely deserving of such a description; certainly nothing is on offer that’s going to trouble the veritable ''yottabytes'' of grot which the Interweb can and does deliver in abundance without so much as breaking a sweat.
 
An Ann Summers party usually involves a gaggle of cackling harridans gathered round a selection of these products, getting drunker by the second as they pour ever stronger substances down their basic drains, shrieking with shrill laughter as they peruse the assembled items. However, given the nature of fAiLcon gatherings (see Shagathons above), your humble EDitor has a strong hunch that this party won’t end there. The suspicion is that an orgy soaked to the *cough* bone with drama (and other substances of a dubious nature) will ensue, with attendees likening the real-feel silicone contraptions (batteries not included, but supplied in copious numbers, one would wager) to a tentacle or two, and subsequently re-enacting various scenes from tasteful anime classic ''Urotsukidōji: Legend of the Overfiend''.
 
There is a thread in the fAiL forums which is homing in on 200 posts regarding this little soirée, and still hasn’t been stomped as a '''''REALLY FUCKING BAD IDEA''''' - and to complete the diagnosis of Fucktarditis, these simpletons even have set up their own [http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=120602204648681&r8b99b2a0&refid=46 Facebook page] to spread their diarrhoea-brained asshattery ever further. As the particularly disturbing icing on a cake we only wish '''''was''''' a total fucking lie, there seem to be individuals signed up to it of both genders.
 
Leicester’s De Montfort University, the regular venue for fAiLcon (when it doesn’t chuck everyone out and make them decamp to a pub down the road) may or may not have been informed of these plans - we are trying to confirm this. And if it transpires they don’t know - well... public duty and all that *cough* jizz, you know?
 
=Quote Goldmine=
 
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<p><span id="slidePagingLinkPrev">Prev Quote</span> | <span id="slidePagingLinkNext">Next Quote</span></p>
 
<div id="slidePagingContent1">{{quote|I have been aware of this person's movements for some time now. I feel his imposition into the anime community has shadowed other long standing, non-benefiting and hard working people. He is a self serving glory seeker, aiming not to improve or serve the animation industry and fans in the UK, but to franchise it by plastering his 'mascot' (a panda with a bandana and dyslexia) over events which he has no intention of enhancing. Please be wary of Mike Towers, his reputation will only damage your event.|Bryan MacDowall}}</div>
 
<div id="slidePagingContent2">{{quote|Michael Towers has taken credit for things he obviously had no hand in creating (such as the entire LFCC), and backed out of obligated events (Dimensional Manga's panels).|Wayne Pearce}}</div>
 
<div id="slidePagingContent3">{{quote|Towers is a self-serving, power-mad, tyrannical, babbling idiot with severe delusions of grandeur. He cannot & WILL not deliver on his overblown promises. He lies, cheats & avoids responsibility when he can to weasel out of any hole he digs himself into; when he can't, he'll either ignore criticism within his own little fiefdom or whine about things outside of it. He WILL expect people to drop what they're doing INCLUDING day jobs to do all his work for him (not lifting a finger himself) & try to take all the credit and/or profit - he has crowed about the latter in the past openly, in front of those he took monetary advantage of. He DOES back-stab and spread poison against anyone he takes even a slight dislike to, and tries to destroy their own good works by taking them head-on in a usually far inferior manner. He is not liked or trusted one inch outside his own dominion. The vast majority of UK anime fandom refuses to have anything to do with him; I strongly suggest Showmasters takes the same stance.|Jason Craig McCall}}</div>
 
<div id="slidePagingContent4">{{quote|I have to say that this man's reputation will ruin Showmasters events.|Luke Nelson}}</div>
 
<div id="slidePagingContent5">{{quote|I would prefer not to sign anonymously but as others who have signed this petition have commented Michael Towers has a well established reputation for harassing anyone who voices a negative opinion about his activities. I have traded at an event run by Michael and was horrified both by the lack of basic organisation and his appalling disregard for health and safety. I actively avoid any event he is heavily involved in and I would advise any fellow dealer or member of the community to do the same.|"Concerned Dealer"}}</div>
 
<div id="slidePagingContent6">{{quote|This man, frankly, creeps me out. Not someone you want to be associated with.|Gaz Woods}}</div>
 
<div id="slidePagingContent7">{{quote|I have little experience with the man, save that when i heard about the manga alliance and asked some simple questions on their forum anime league they were promptly deleted by him and swept under the rug. As a reaction to light questioning , i was not impressed.|James Gammell}}</div>
 
<div id="slidePagingContent8">{{quote|We have seen a cavilcad of disasters from this mans involvement with the UK manga scene, along with his intimidation tactics to any who oppose his new manga order, and so support any attempts to remove him from involvement with this fine event. Him not having a thing to do with it can only make it better.|stopsthepwandas}}</div>
 
<div id="slidePagingContent9">{{quote|Mike Towers and his associations remind me of a brainwashing Cult, hoping to turn a fun, fan-minded hobby into something it is not. I have been attending events for almost 10 years and have helped run various events as well as act as a voice for a large part of the cosplay community. I regretfully will not attend any Showmasters events whilst this man is associated with them, and will be unable to encourage members of the Community to attend these events either.|"Concerned voice of the cosplay community"}}</div>
 
<div id="slidePagingContent10">{{quote|I've worked with him and his harrassment, he wasn't even meant to be involved with me and yet I couldn't get rid of him He was incredibly rude at the event too.|"Workedwithhim"}}</div>
 
<div id="slidePagingContent11">{{quote|As a Committee member on two conventions, I have experienced first hand Tower's disregard and verbal abuse of a long standing community in his rampage towards some sort of 'Anime League new world order'. I have no affiliation with Showmasters but would fully encourage anyone who wished to bulid up an anime base at their convention to reject Towers and search for more established, organised and well conected promoter such as Sweatdrop or Manga. I am signing this annonymously because I have experience of Towers and his fangirls unpleasant campaigns to anyone who stands against him.|"Concerned Committee Member}}</div>
 
 
<div id="slidePagingContent12">{{quote|He is just plain immature and I am just sick of seeing him try to force his opinions on everyone everywhere.|Eilidh McMillan}}</div>
 
<div id="slidePagingContent13">{{quote|Traded once at an event this man organised, never again. I certainly would not associate with any other event he was heavily involved with again.|"Disgruntled Dealer"}}</div>
 
</div>
 
=7th August 2009: ED Publically Apologises To AnimeLeague And Deletes The AlCon Page=
 
<gallery>
Image:Apology1.jpg
Image:Apology2.jpg
Image:Apology3.jpg
Image:Apology4.jpg
</gallery>
 
=External Links=
 
*[http://www.alcon.org.uk/ Alcon] Main Site, feel free to troll.
 
*[http://www.animeleague.net/ Anime League Forum] Troll here more, break the precious forum of bile and hate. It will shock absolutely no bugger to learn that it also doubles as Dimensional Entertainment's forum. And ''triples'' as Manga Alliance's.
 
*[http://www.mangaalliance.com/ Manga Alliance] You may be noticing a pattern here. And you'd be ''absolutely fucking right'' an'all. '''''TROLL FOR GREAT JUSTICE!'''''
 
*[http://www.cosplayisland.co.uk/forum?&c=showthread&ThreadID=1315&page=2 Cosplay Island] Towers stumbles spam-fisted into another forum to plug his shizzle, takes a thorough twatting from the regulars, and panics when he realises he can't delete the thread himself. He cries when the mods don't do it for him, instead locking it and deleting the original plug - preserving forever his retardedness for all to see. Best goddamn laugh we've had in ages.
 
*[http://www.urbandictionary.com/ Urban Dictionary]'s definitions of a [http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=FreeSaiyan FreeSaiyan], [http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Mewski Mewski] and [http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=AnimeLeague AnimeLeague] (the latter pulls up multiple definitions referring to AL). Vote up moar plz.
 
*[http://www.animeleague.net/forums/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=74161&start=640 AnimeLeague again] Oh, they're being beastly to me again. Why can't they see I just want to be the most important person in animu? Come, little girl, stroke my ego a little... it's behind that zip down there...
 
*[https://twitter.com/stopthepwandas Manga Alliance News Twitter] - a twitter feed of the latest Mike Towers/Manga Alliance arse & drama
 
*[http://stopthepwandas.livejournal.com/ Manga Alliance News LJ] - more proof that all drama ends up on [[LiveJournal]]
 
*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_UNWK1z2mWs FreeSaiyan's Animeleague Christmas Message] The King's rambling 2007 message to his loyal shitehawks - delivered from the most appropriate 'throne' possible. Ask yourself this: Is this babbling fool '''''REALLY''''' fit to serve as a figurehead for the UK manga and anime community? We, and many others, think fucking ''not''.<br>('''''UPDATE:''''' Towers is so obviously proud of his brains spilling out for all to see, the muppet has made the video private. Something to hide, hmm? Something you'd rather the likes of Dimensional and Showmasters didn't see? It would be an awful shame if someone had, say, downloaded the video already...)
 
*[http://www.petitiononline.com/mtshow/petition.html Petition to get FreeSaiyan the fuck away from ShowMaster Events] - The petition is now closed, but ShowMaster want to [http://stopthepwandas.livejournal.com/1460.html hear from you]
 
*[http://bit.ly/FreeMoolah AnimeLeague '''''yet again'''''] Oh go on, be my friend, please. Pwetty pwease wiv a chewwy on top. I’ll give you all my lunch money...
 
*[http://www.animeleague.net/forums/viewtopic.php?f=20&t=112703 fAiL Forums: Ann Summers Party] 196 (and, no doubt, counting) posts of pure fucktardedness and douchebaggery…
 
 
*'''''[http://www.mcmexpogroup.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=299&t=14959 MCM BANS MICHAEL TOWERS COMPLETELY] Best. Webpage. EVER.'''''
{{Anime}}
[[Category:Anime]]
[[Category:Events]]
[[Category:People]]

Revision as of 23:13, 21 April 2011

Template:Otheruses

File:DragonBallZ.png
Dragon Ball Z opening title card.
File:DBZLogo.jpg
FUNimation's logo.

Dragon Ball Z (ドラゴンボールZ; Doragon Boru Zetto, commonly abbreviated as DBZ) is the long-running sequel to the anime Dragon Ball. The series is a close adaptation of the second (and far longer) portion of the Dragon Ball manga written and drawn by Akira Toriyama. In the United States, the manga's second portion is also titled Dragon Ball Z to prevent confusion.

The series follows the adventures of the adult Goku who, along with his companions, defends the earth against an assortment of villains ranging from intergalactic space fighters and conquerers, unnaturally powerful androids and near indestructible magical creatures. While the original Dragon Ball anime followed Goku through childhood into adulthood, Dragon Ball Z is a continuation of his adulthood life, but at the same time parallels the maturation of his son, Gohan, as well as characters from Dragon Ball and more. The separation between the series is also significant as the latter series takes on a more dramatic and serious tone. The anime also features characters, situations and back-stories not present in the original manga.

After Dragon Ball Z, the story of Goku and friends continues in the anime-only series Dragon Ball GT. This series is not based on a manga by Akira Toriyama.

Toriyama's humor/parody manga Neko Majin Z features several concepts introduced in Dragon Ball Z (several Dragon Ball Z characters even make various appearances), but that manga is designed as a parody and not a true continuation of the series.

In April 2009, a new 'refresh' of Dragon Ball Z began airing on Japanese television. This recut is titled Dragon Ball Z Kai.

Production history

File:Dragon ball z 3.jpg
Some of the series main heroes and villains

The anime first premiered in Japan on April 26, 1989 (on Fuji TV) at 7:30 p.m. and ended on January 31, 1996. In the U.S., the series ran between 1996 and 2003, though not always on the same networks or with continuity of dubbing. For details on the dubbing problems, see Ocean dub and FUNimation dub.

It aired in the UK, albeit with the same dubbing problem, on Cartoon Network, premiering on March 6, 2000 and running on that channel until 2002. The Majin Buu Saga, Fusion Saga and Kid Buu Saga were later broadcast on CNX (which later changed its name to "Toonami"), with the show ending on February 28, 2003. After the finished run it was repeated daily, until the Toonami merge with Cartoon Network Too. It has not been broadcast again in the UK since.

Censorship issues

Dragon Ball Z was marketed to appeal to a wide range of viewers from all ages, and contains crude humor and occasional excesses of violence which are commonly seen as inappropriate for younger audiences by American standards. When it was marketed in the US, the distribution company FUNimation alongside with Saban decided to initially focus exclusively on the young children's market, because the anime market was still small compared to the much larger children's cartoon market. This censorship often had unintentionally humorous results, such as changing all references to death so the dead characters were merely going to "another dimension", and digitally altering two ogres' shirts to read "HFIL" instead of "HELL".

Starting with the Captain Ginyu Saga on Cartoon Network, censorship was reduced due to fewer restrictions on cable programming. FUNimation did the dubbing on their own this time around with their own voice actors. In 2004, FUNimation began to redub the first two sagas of Dragon Ball Z, to remove the problems that were caused from their previous partnership with Saban. They also redubbed the first three movies.

However, the show still retained some level of censorship, not out of FCC laws, but out of choice by Funimation, so as to cater to the possible sensitivity of western audiences. For example, Mr. Satan was renamed Hercule to avoid any religious slurs; his daughter, Videl, was a play on the word Devil, but FUNimation felt that the connection was obscure enough to not worry about.

Filler and differences from the manga

Moar info: Filler.

Filler is used to pad out the series for many reasons; in the case of Dragon Ball Z, more often than not, it was because the anime was running alongside the manga, and there was no way for the anime to run ahead of the manga (since Toriyama was still writing it, at the same time).

The company behind the anime, Toei Animation, would occasionally make up their own side stories to either further explain things, or simply to extend the series. Filler doesn't come only in the form of side stories, though; sometimes it's as simple as adding some extra attacks into a fight. One of the more infamous examples of filler is the Frieza Saga. After Frieza had set the Planet Namek to blow up in five minutes, the final fight with Frieza still lasted well over five episodes, much less five minutes.

As the anime series was forced to expand 12 pages of manga text into 25 minutes of animation footage, these changes were introduced to kill time or to allow the (anime) writers to explore some other aspect of the series' universe. The Anoyo-ichi Budōkai (Afterlife Tournament) between the Cell Games Saga and the Majin Buu Saga, and the Garlic Junior Saga (Garlic Jr.'s return from the Dragon Ball Z: Dead Zone movie) between the Frieza Saga and Trunks Saga are both good examples of this. They have also been known to contradict the manga and often create new plot holes.

Besides having filler scenes and episodes, there are many changes from the original manga. Among them are the following:

  • When Tien Shinhan loses his arm when fighting Nappa, his arm becomes a stump with only a small amount of blood seen. In the manga the scene is much more gory.
  • In the manga Frieza kills Cargo, but in the anime Dodoria kills him. (In the Ocean Dub Gohan and Krillin say that Cargo escapes)
  • In the original manga Appule kills all the Namekians in a village and tells Frieza, who is annoyed that he didn't ask them where Vegeta was. However, Frieza just tells him to call the Ginyu Force. In the anime the soldier is changed to another unnamed orange soldier [referred to as "Orlen" in the closed captioning for the Ocean Dub VHS tapes - it is unclear if this is canonical however], who is killed by Frieza when he tells of his mistake.
  • In the manga, after Frieza survives Goku's Spirit Bomb, he immediately strikes down Piccolo with his Death Beam technique, but in the anime, he fires his beam at Goku, only for Piccolo to jump in the way and get struck down by the beam anyway.
  • In the manga, Frieza's full power was still never a match for Goku's Super Saiyan form, but in the anime, Frieza appears to have the upper hand for a short time before he begins to tire.
  • In the anime, when Vegeta is brought back to life on Planet Namek, he manages to witness some of the battle between Goku and Frieza, as well as Goku's Super Saiyan form, before being teleported to Earth by the Namekian Dragon Balls. In the manga, he is teleported to Earth almost immediately after being revived and does not get a chance to see Goku as a Super Saiyan for the first time until Goku returns to Earth himself later on.
  • When Dr. Gero first appears in the series (as Android 20), he grabs a man by the neck and tears him through the roof of a car. In the original manga, he crushes the man's neck afterwards, tearing his head off.
  • Though the flashback of Future Trunks and Future Gohan fighting Androids 17 and 18 is present in both the anime and the manga, there are notable discrepancies between the flashback and the scene depicted in the TV special, The History of Trunks. In the special, Gohan had lost his arm, Trunks had not yet achieved his Super Saiyan form, and there was no rain in the scene in question.
  • When Vegito fights Super Buu (with Gohan absorbed) in the manga, Vegito immediately fights in his Super Saiyan form. In the anime, Vegito fought (rather successfully) in his base form for a while before becoming a Super Saiyan.
  • When Goku begins his battle against Kid Buu in the manga, he transforms immediately into his Super Saiyan 3 form. In the anime, however, Goku starts the battle as a Super Saiyan 2, and manages to hold his own against Kid Buu for a while before ascending to Super Saiyan 3.
  • The anime has two significant filler portions: the Garlic Jr. Saga and the Other World Tournament segment of the Great Saiyaman Saga.
  • In the manga, many of the characters have a different number of fingers on their hands; such as Piccolo (3 fingers and a thumb), Dodoria (3 thumb-like fingers), and Imperfect form Cell (two long fingers and a long thumb). In the anime, everybody has human-like hands with 4 fingers and a thumb.

Reception and impact

The impact of Dragon Ball Z is enormous. For more than 20 years, the series has stood the test of time and has reached out to many children and adults alike across the globe. This is mainly due to the series' very clear representations of good overpowering evil, love overpowering hate, the importance of family and friends, and an unyielding passion toward achieving goals. The series also featured heavy sci-fi overtones, and a greater emphasis on fighting - making it extremely popular among adolescent boys who had grown up alongside the original series.

Dragon Ball Z has also played a large part in contributing to the popularity of anime in westen culture. Though the first two seasons of the series were played on various networks in the U.S. in 1996, it would not take off for two more years until August 31, 1998, when Cartoon Network featured the show in its action-oriented Toonami lineup. Toonami heralded the show as "The Greatest Action Cartoon Ever Made," and it greatly boosted the popularity of Toonami, but unknowingly did so much more. Dragon Ball Z's newfound popularity helped to bring about a greater interest in Japanese cartoons in the eyes of western youth, which in turn fueled the western anime industry to new heights. Because of its success on Toonami, Dragon Ball Z was the first anime that made its way to the Wall Street Journal, who declared it, "A Huge Cartoon Hit."

Many items such as apparel, backpacks, lunch boxes, writing utensils, candies, drinks, foods and more feature Dragon Ball Z, in both Japan and North America. Action figures, collectible figurines, plush toys, bobble heads, and character model kits were also made. The fast food chain Burger King featured Dragon Ball Z toys twice in the early 2000's. Despite the TV series officially ending in Japan in 1996, and in 2003 in North America, Dragon Ball Z video games are created nearly every year for almost every console on the market, helping to introduce the Dragon Ball Z series to younger generations that never got a chance to see it air on television. These games usually do very well in the market. Popular sites such as YouTube have attracted large Dragon Ball Z fan communities over the course of the last few years, and Dragon Ball related videos receive many views. All of these examples showcase the incredible popularity of Dragon Ball Z in many countries of the world.

Sagas

Toei sagas

  1. Saiyan (Episodes 1~35); 1989–1990
  2. Freeza (Episodes 36~107); 1990–1991
  3. Cell (Episodes 108~194); 1991–1993
  4. Buu (Episodes 195~291); 1993–1996

English dub sagas

Saiyan:

  • The Vegeta Saga (Episodes 1~35; originally The Saiyan Conflict)

Frieza:

Cell:

Buu:

Movies, TV specials, OVA

Movies

Toei titles

  1. Return my Gohan!! (1989)
  2. Dragon Ball Z: The World's Strongest (1990)
  3. Super Deciding Battle for the Entire Planet Earth (1990)
  4. Super Saiyan Son Goku (1991)
  5. The Incredible Mightiest vs. Mightiest (1991)
  6. Clash!! 10,000,000,000 Powerful Warriors (1992)
  7. Extreme Battle!! The Three Great Super Saiyans (:1992)
  8. Burn Up!! A Close, Intense, Super-Fierce Battle (1993)
  9. The Galaxy at the Brink!! The Super Incredible Guy (1993)
  10. The Dangerous Duo! Super-Warriors Can't Rest (1994)
  11. Super-Warrior Defeat!! I'm the One who'll Win (1994)
  12. Fusion Reborn!! Goku and Vegeta (1994)
  13. Dragon Fist Explosion! If Goku Can't Do It, Who Will? (1995)
  14. Dragon Ball: Yo! Son Goku and His Friends Return!! (2008)

English dub titles

  1. Dragon Ball Z: Dead Zone (1997) (Remastered/Re-released on May 27, 2008)
  2. Dragon Ball Z: The World's Strongest (1998) (Remastered/Re-released on May 27, 2008)
  3. Dragon Ball Z: The Tree of Might (1998) (Remastered/Re-released on September 16, 2008)
  4. Dragon Ball Z: Lord Slug (2001) (Remastered/Re-released on September 16, 2008)
  5. Dragon Ball Z: Cooler's Revenge (2001) (Remastered/Re-released on November 11, 2008)
  6. Dragon Ball Z: The Return of Cooler (2002) (Remastered/Re-released on November 11, 2008)
  7. Dragon Ball Z: Super Android 13! (2003) (Remastered/Re-released on February 18, 2009)
  8. Dragon Ball Z: Broly - The Legendary Super Saiyan (2003) (Remastered/Re-released on March 31, 2009)
  9. Dragon Ball Z: Bojack Unbound (2004) (Remastered/Re-released on February 18, 2009)
  10. Dragon Ball Z: Broly - Second Coming (2005) (Remastered/Re-released on March 31, 2009)
  11. Dragon Ball Z: Bio-Broly (2005) (Remastered/Re-released on March 31, 2009)
  12. Dragon Ball Z: Fusion Reborn (2006) (Remastered/Re-released on May 19, 2009)
  13. Dragon Ball Z: Wrath of the Dragon (2006) (Remastered/Re-released on May 19, 2009)

TV specials

Toei titles

  1. A Lonesome, Final Battle: The Father of Z-Warrior Kakarrot, who Challenged Frieza (1990)
  2. Movie Overview Special (1992)
  3. Resistance to Despair!! The Remaining Super-Warriors, Gohan and Trunks (1993)
  4. Looking Back at it All: The Dragon Ball Z Year-End Show! (1993)

English dub titles

  1. Dragon Ball Z: Bardock - The Father of Goku (2000) (Remastered/Re-released in February 19, 2008)
  2. Dragon Ball Z: The History of Trunks (2000) (Remastered/Re-released in February 19, 2008)

OVA

Releases

Japanese releases

Originally, only the Dragon Ball Z movies, and the Plan to Eradicate the Saiyans OVA were available for home viewing in Japan. The movies were released on both VHS and Laserdisc format. The Plan to Eradicate the Saiyans OVA was released both on VHS and on the PlayDia, as an interactive FMV.

Dragon Box releases

Moar info: Dragon Box.

In 2003, all of the Dragon Ball Z TV series was finally released under the "Dragon Box" label for home viewing in Japan, on two large DVD boxed sets, following the release of a similar set for Dragon Ball. Each Dragon Ball Z Dragon Box had a large amount of DVD extras, as well as an action figure and a book.

The video and audio transfers of the show used on these DVDs came off of the Fuji TV master tapes of the show, as this allowed Toei to put out a far superior and completely accurate version of the show on DVD, which was helpful since the entire plot of a season could be summed up in about ten minutes. This allowed all episodes to have their original openings, endings, eyecatches, next episode previews, etc., compared to what was available in the US.

In late 2005 the Dragon Box Z DVDs were re-released in single volumes with six episodes per disc. While the packaging and DVD menus are different from the 2003 release, and so far no plans have been announced for the two TV specials and the Playdia footage released with the 2003 versions, the Audio and Visual quality is the exact same as those discs found in the 2003 Dragon Box release.

In April 14, 2006, a "Dragon Box: The Movies" DVD box was released. This release contained all 17 Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z theatrical features, containing 8 DVDs in total, along with a book, and two scouters in the form of walkie-talkies. The video and audio are remastered; however, the video is cropped to 16:9 (widescreen) and contains less picture than the full-screen versions. This is a common occurrence for films from Toei based on long-running and popular TV series (See Saint Seiya, Fist of the North Star, and One Piece).

All Dragon Box releases contain Japanese language audio only (with exceptions to foreign-language bonus clips), and no subtitles.

Pioneer DVDs

During the late 90's/early 00's, the first 53 (Saban/FUNimation version numbers, originally uncut as 67) TV episodes were released on to DVD by Pioneer Entertainment (now Geneon Entertainment USA). These contained only the edited, US-TV broadcast versions (dubbed by the Ocean Group), and totalled 17 volumes, comprising the 'Saiyan Saga' and the 'Namek Saga'.

Along with these episodes, Pioneer also produced bilingual, uncut DVDs of the first three Dragon Ball Z theatrical features. These DVDs retained the original Ocean cast for the English track, as well as being one of the first uncut and bilingual releases in the U.S. The English versions of these films were also subject to a different treatment than the series; rather than replacing the original music, the original OP and ED themes, as well as background music, were retained. The only noticeable differences besides languages are the inclusion of a few different sound effects which are not present on the original Japanese version. These films were released as a three-disc boxset by Pioneer.

As of August the 31st, 2004, Pioneer's license for video distribution of the first 53 episodes ended, allowing FUNimation to re-release them. At the moment, the rights for these episodes and for the first three Dragon Ball Z movies belong to FUNimation.

FUNimation DVDs

As of 2000, FUNimation had released uncut versions of their Texas-based English dub on to DVD, with Japanese language track, and English-translation subtitles. This release doesn't include the first two sagas, as the rights for the distribution of that episodes were still held by Pioneer Entertainment. These DVDs begin with the Captain Ginyu saga, and contain every episode covering (Japanese numbers) 68 till 291. Boxsets were release for the Garlic Jr., Androids, Imperfect Cell, Perfect Cell, World Tournament, Majin Buu, Fusion, and Kid Buu U.S. sagas. However, in order to maximize profits, the DVDs were released out of continuity (certain amounts of one section of the series were released, and then FUNimation would go back and release others). With no noticeable numbering visible, this caused frustration to those trying to follow the series from start to finish.

FUNimation also released Dragon Ball Z movies 4-13, finishing the release of the movies with 'Wrath of the Dragon', the 13th movie. These are all bilingual and subtitled, but do not follow the trend set by Ocean's first three movies. Music has been changed and altered, including the insertion of songs from rock bands such as Deftones, Disturbed, Breaking Point, and American Pearl. The movies utilize FUNimation's TV series Texas cast, though they also include the original Japanese version with subtitling by Steve Simmons.

FUNimation Ultimate Uncut DVDs

Moar info: Ultimate Uncut Special Edition.

After acquiring the video rights to the first 53 (67 uncut) episodes from Pioneer in 2004, FUNimation announced that they would release these episodes uncut, with a new 5.1 English language track and uncut footage. The Ultimate Uncut Special Edition line was born. The release would be 22 volumes, bilingual, and with extras. The Saiyan Saga was renamed the 'Vegeta' Saga (Parts I and II, covering 12 DVDs), probably to avoid confusion with the Pioneer volumes. However, after DVD volume 9, FUNimation canceled these box sets and planned to re-re-release them in the DVD season boxsets. This upset fans who had purchased the expensive Ultimate Uncut DVDs, as the Vegeta Saga Part II will never be completed, and the Ultimate Uncut Namek Saga DVDs will not be created.

FUNimation had also acquired the rights for the first three movies from Pioneer in 2004, and re-released them. Even though the three had same cover style, only the first movie was released under the Ultimate Uncut line. All of these movies had a 5.1 English track, new subtitles, different DVD extras and come in a boxset titled 'First Strike'. However, they do not retain the original Ocean dub, and contain a new English dub produced by FUNimation's Texas cast. This version contains different music than the original dub and than the Japanese version.

FUNimation Remastered Box Sets

Moar info: Funimation Remastered Box Sets.

In November 2005, FUNimation announced they would release a remastered form of Dragon Ball Z on DVD beginning in 2007. All DBZ episodes were to be digitally remastered and released in boxset form.

The first season set (the entire Vegeta Saga) was re-released on February 6, 2007. The first 39 episodes of this season are spread across 6 discs, and cost $30-$50 USD (the original intention was for 5 discs, but there was a risk of quality reduction). FUNimation released a trailer for the new set on the Dragon Ball Z official website.

FUNimation released the second season set, containing both the Namek and Captain Ginyu sagas, on May 22, 2007. Beginning with this release, several of the in-house voice actors re-dubbed their characters' lines to keep consistency with the remainder of the dub. The third season set, containing the Frieza Saga, was released on September 18, 2007. The fourth season, containing both the Garlic Jr., Trunks and Android sagas, was released on February 11, 2008. Season five, containing both the Imperfect and Perfect Cell sagas, was released May 27, 2008. Season six, containing the Cell Games Saga, was released September 16, 2008. Season seven, containing both the Great Saiyaman and World Tournament sagas, was released November 11, 2008. Season eight, containing both the Babidi and Majin Buu sagas, was released February 10, 2009. Season nine, containing both the Fusion and Kid Buu sagas, was released May 19, 2009.

The series has been re-transferred at 1080p resolution with digital restoration technology removing all grain and scratches from FUNimation's original prints of the series. It is important to note however, that like many late 80's-early 90's Toei productions (for example, Saint Seiya, Sailor Moon, Marmalade Boy, Ghost Sweeper Mikami and Slam Dunk), the series was produced on 16 millimeter film which tends to be fairly grainy and soft. The new restoration was supervised by colorist Steve Franko.

The series is presented in widescreen format (1.78:1, cropped from the original full frame) for the first time. Comparison images from the new set show that while there is missing footage on the top and bottom, there is at least additional footage on the right and left that has not appeared in any prior release, having been taken straight from the original Japanese film master recording.

This format change was highly controversial among fans, as this is not how the T.V. episodes were intended to be seen and this substantially alters them. Many fans launched a letter-writing campaign against the release. In response to the negative fan outcry regarding the release's apparent cropping of the source video, a FUNimation representative has released a document from the team remastering the video, which explains the logistics of the new release. This document details how certain areas of the original film are damaged, and admits that though the video is cropped, this release will eliminate the grain that would be present on prior 4:3 releases. It has also been theorized that it is ultimately more inexpensive to transfer the series in 16:9 and thereby remove the damaged portions of the frame than to repair 291 episodes' worth of damaged film.

The boxset contains a revised English track in Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound (it contains the original Japanese score by Shunsuke Kikuchi, although it is unknown just how the English dialogue is revised). For the first time ever, there is a choice between having the Japanese dialogue with Toei's original Japanese music, or English dialogue with either FUNimation's dub music or Toei's original Japanese music.

Special features include a featurette on the remastering of the original Japanese print and a 24-page booklet with episode summaries, character descriptions and a DBZ timeline.

FUNimation Dragon Box Sets

Moar info: Funimation Dragon Box Sets.

FUNimation Dragon Box sets were confirmed for release by FUNimation Entertainment on July 19, 2009. The Dragon Box will be produced from the original Dragon Box masters after a frame by frame restoration and will span the entire 291 episode television series and all 13 of its movies.

This definitive DVD box release begins with Dragon Box One which includes the first 42 episodes, uncut, on 6 discs.

The Dragon Box releases will feature an aspect ratio of 4:3, the original Japanese audio (with options for an English track or English subtitles), the original episode previews, complete opening and closing credits and a collector’s booklet.

Dragon Box One was released on November 10th, 2009 with an SRP of $79.98, while Dragon Box Two was released on February 16th, 2010, Dragon Box Three was released on May 4th, 2010, and Dragon Box Four was released on September 21, 2010.


Main cast list

Character Name Voice Actor (Japanese) Voice Actor (English -
Ocean Group) 		Voice Actor (English - FUNimation)
Goku Masako Nozawa Ian James Corlett (ep.1-41 uncut)
Peter Kelamis (ep.42-67 uncut; 108-143)
Kirby Morrow (ep.144-291)

Sean Schemmel (adult)
Stephanie Nadolny (child)

Gohan Masako Nozawa

Saffron Henderson (ep.1-67 uncut; 108-150)
Jillian Michaels (ep.151-193)
Brad Swaile (ep.199-291)

Stephanie Nadolny (child)
Kyle Hebert (teen and adult)
Goten Masako Nozawa

Jillian Michaels (child)
Brad Swaile (teen)

Kara Edwards (child)
Robert McCollum (teen)

Chi-Chi Mayumi Sho (ep.1-66)
Naoko Watanabe (ep.88-291)

Laara Sadiq (ep.1-66 uncut)
Lisa Ann Beley (ep.108-291)

Cynthia Cranz
Vegeta Ryo Horikawa Brian Drummond Christopher Sabat
Trunks Takeshi Kusao

Cathy Weseluck (child)
Allistair Abell (teen)

Laura Bailey (child)
Eric Vale (teen)

Future Trunks Takeshi Kusao Allistair Abell Eric Vale
Bulma Hiromi Tsuru

Lalainia Lindbjerg (ep.2-67 uncut)
Maggie Blue O'Hara (ep.108-291)

Tiffany Vollmer
Piccolo Toshio Furukawa

Scott McNeil

Christopher Sabat
Krillin Mayumi Tanaka Terry Klassen Sonny Strait
Yajirobe Mayumi Tanaka Brian Drummond Mike McFarland
Yamcha Toru Furuya Ted Cole Christopher Sabat
Tien Hirotaka Suzuoki Matt Smith Chris Cason (ep.75-107)
John Burgmeier (ep.118-288; 12-107 remastered)
Chiaotzu Hiroko Emori Cathy Weseluck Monika Antonelli
Master Roshi Kohei Miyauchi (ep.2-260)
Hiroshi Masuoka (ep.288-291)

Ian James Corlett (ep.2-39 uncut)
Peter Kelamis (ep.43-63 uncut)
Terry Klassen (ep.108-291)

Mike McFarland
Oolong Naoki Tatsuta

Alec Willows (ep.1-57 uncut)
Doug Parker (ep.108-291)

Mark Britten (ep.88-193)
Brad Jackson (ep.208-291; 18-107 remastered)
Puar Naoko Watanabe Cathy Weseluck Monika Antonelli
Launch Mami Koyama Cathy Weseluck (polite-self)
Teryl Rothery (mean-self) 		Monika Antonelli (polite-self)
Meredith McCoy (mean-self)
Hercule Daisuke Gori

Don Brown

Chris Rager
Videl Yuko Minaguchi

Moneca Stori

Kara Edwards
Android 18 Miki Ito

Enuka Okuma

Meredith McCoy
Baba Junpei Takiguchi (ep.9-34)
Mayumi Tanaka (ep.207-271)

Ellen Kennedy (ep.9-34 uncut)
Brian Drummond (ep.207-271)

Linda Young

Dende Tomiko Suzuki (ep.46-288)
Hiro Yuuki (ep.290-291) 		Paulina Gillis (ep.46-67 uncut)
Andrew Francis (ep.173-291) 		Ceyli Delgadillo (child - original dub)
Laura Bailey (child - remastered dub)
Justin Cook (adult)
Ox-King Daisuke Gori

Dave Ward (ep.1-64 uncut)
Dale Wilson (ep.108-291)

Mark Britten (ep.88-193)
Kyle Hebert (ep.208-291; 5-193 remastered)
Mr. Popo Toku Nishio

Alvin Sanders (ep.1-38 uncut)
French Tickner (ep.108-288)

Chris Cason (ep.76-100)
Christopher Sabat (ep.108-288; 17-100 remastered)

Korin Ichiro Nagai (ep.26-192)
Naoki Tatsuta (ep.217-285)

Paul Dobson (ep.26-37 uncut)
Ted Cole (ep.109-285)

Mark Britten (ep.109-192)
Christopher Sabat (ep.217-285; 26-38 remastered)

Kami Takeshi Aono

Michael Dobson (ep.6-28 uncut)
Dale Wilson (ep.108-141)

Christopher Sabat
King Kai Jouji Yanami Don Brown Sean Schemmel
Supreme Kai Yuji Mitsuya

Michael Dobson

Kent Williams
Elder Kai Reizo Nomoto

Scott McNeil

Kent Williams
Frieza Ryusei Nakao

Pauline Newstone

Linda Young

Cell Norio Wakamoto

Dale Wilson

Dameon Clarke

Majin Buu Kozo Shioya

Scott McNeil (Majin Buu & Kid Buu)
Brian Dobson (Evil Buu & Super Buu)

Josh Martin (Majin Buu & Kid Buu)
Justin Cook (Evil Buu & Super Buu)

Shenron Kenji Utsumi

Masaharu Satou (ep.192-193)

Don Brown Christopher Sabat
Narrator Jouji Yanami Doc Harris Dale Kelly (ep.68-194)
Kyle Hebert (ep.195-291; 1-194 remastered)

Theme songs

Japanese themes

  • Openings
    1. "Cha-La Head-Cha-La"
      • Lyrics: Yukinojō Mori, Music: Chiho Kiyooka, Arrangement: Kenji Yamamoto, Vocals: Hironobu Kageyama
        • Version 1: episodes 1~21 (Not on FUNimation's DVDs, except for the remastered version of Dragon Ball Z: Dead Zone)
        • Version 2: episodes 22~117
        • Version 3: episodes 118~194
    2. "WE GOTTA POWER"
      • Lyrics: Yukinojō Mori, Music: Keiju Ishikawa, Arrangement: Keiju Ishikawa, Vocals: Hironobu Kageyama
        • Episodes 195~291
  • Closings
    1. "Detekoi Tobikiri Zenkai Pawā!"; でてこいとびきりZENKAIパワー! (Come Out, Incredible ZENKAI Power!)
      • Lyrics: Toshihisa Arakawa, Music: Takeshi Ike, Arrangement: Kenji Yamamoto, Vocals: MANNA
        • Episodes 1~194
    2. "Boku-tachi ha Tenshi Datta"; 僕達は天使� った (We Were Angels)
      • Lyrics: Yukinojō Mori, Music: Takeshi Ike, Arrangement: Osamu Tozuka, Vocals: Hironobu Kageyama
        • Episodes 195~291

English anime themes

Vocals: Tendril

See also

External links

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