I've been watching Dragonball Kai with the classic soundtrack added in

Oh man is this show good. All the twists and turns of the Namek saga but without the pacing issues that DBZ is classically mocked for. A friend who's only casually seen DBZ on TV is watching with me and they're hooked.

The soundtrack for Kai always put me off from watching because it sounds like a marching band is blasting during emotional scenes but some heroes of humanity provided the option to switch to the Bruce Faulconer American music or the classic Japanese soundtrack so it's easily the definitive version to watch.

Live your life life like a kamehameha

Give your all, don't ever give up

Heartomaton posted...

Live your life life like a kamehameha

Give your all, don't ever give up

Is that from the Kai soundtrack? It sounds like it would be lol.

The soundtrack fan edits don't cover the little animated promos that play mid-episode signifying an ad break so it's really jarring going from the moody synth-heavy U.S. music to the marching band on crack during those parts.

You're not a man if you don't listen to it in Bruce Faulconer OST

Pow_Pow_Punishment posted...

Is that from the Kai soundtrack? It sounds like it would be lol.

Yeah, English dub ending theme. It's one of those songs that Funimation had one of their voice actors cover.

https://youtu.be/W4mEQVGH9Zo?si=X8aF-mZxW3n_Ciy6

Arcanine2009 posted...

You're not a man if you don't listen to it in Bruce Faulconer OST

Hell yeah. I get the criticism of it because in the old show the U.S. music would just never shut-up, but there are actually moments of silence in the fan edit using that same music.

Some tracks are also inferior and don't sound great but for the most part I greatly prefer it.

Wow, I usually find Chris Sabat annoying (the new Piccolo voice is ugh) but he did a much better job with Vegeta getting shot by Frieza than the old dub. The lines and level of emotion were perfect.

Is DBZ Kai a new dub overall?

What parts were cut out from original DBZ? Is there a guide somewhere?

AlCalavicci posted...

Is DBZ Kai a new dub overall?

What parts were cut out from original DBZ? Is there a guide somewhere?

DBZ was never huge on filler episodes. It's just more they've cut down on the charging up for 10 minutes stuff.

AlCalavicci posted...

Is DBZ Kai a new dub overall?

What parts were cut out from original DBZ? Is there a guide somewhere?

Yup, they redubbed everything. The writing for the characters' lines are generally much better and more true to the original Japanese, although by the Buu saga the old dub was getting its shit together so the improvements are subjective there. Example:

Vegeta getting shot by Frieza in the old dub: "Frieza took me away from my dad when I was just a little kid and made me what I am today wahhh"

Kai dub: "Frieza killed our whole race, including our parents. Please, make sure he dies by a Saiyan's hand."

They would literally just make plot points up in the old dub, like Vegeta crying how Frieza made him evil or claiming that Goku's dad invented an energy technique that recreates a full moon so Saiyans can transform. Kai is much more of a faithful translation.

On the other hand, they do talk a lot quicker because of the faster pace and I liked some lines in the Buu saga better in the original, like Majin Vegeta's pride scene.

In my opinion, Piccolo's voice sounds worse in Kai. It's too deep and similar to Vegeta. Vegeta's voice is also deeper and almost sounds like he's been smoking one pack too many in his life.

As a whole, Kai is the better dub, even if the music is awful (but luckily, there are fan edits to fix that).

You know what that's a good point I never did ask this, in Kai how did they handle Gohan super saiyan 2 ? Does it have the epicly haunting song or is it just yelling without music to pump you up?

royic posted...

DBZ was never huge on filler episodes. It's just more they've cut down on the charging up for 10 minutes stuff.

It definitely has them though. Two whole arcs (Garlic Jr and Otherworld Tournament) and a bunch of filler during Gohans time alone in the wilderness and the flight to Namek. Some of the Buu fights are spread over multiple episodes where 98% of the action is filler. But nothing as infamous and lengthy as Narutos filler after Sasukes defection.

Not saying filler is inherently bad, of course. I think the extended Gohan vs Super Buu and Vegito vs Buuhan fights are great. It can be fine as long as its not nonsensical bullshit.

Revisited posted...

You know what that's a good point I never did ask this, in Kai how did they handle Gohan super saiyan 2 ? Does it have the epicly haunting song or is it just yelling without music to pump you up?

I don't remember exactly but before the big "click", it's just silence.

Pow_Pow_Punishment posted...

although by the Buu saga the old dub was getting its s*** together so the improvements are subjective there.

The quality of the voice acting was better, but Funimation still changed the script plenty. Same thing when they dubbed GT.

Incredible posted...

The quality of the voice acting was better, but Funimation still changed the script plenty. Same thing when they dubbed GT.

Yeah there were a few ahem choice lines they cooked up that contributed to peoples misunderstandings to this very day. Especially when combined with some of the more nonsensical filler.

Talking about the dub made me look up and see if the old DBZ Uncensored website from the 90s/early 2000s is still up, and it is. This is such a hilarious and charming case of nerd rage about the dub. Enjoy this gem from the early internet, A Black Day For DBZ:

"This trash isn't fit for public access TV. We can only hope that some apocalyptic calamity will consume the earth before fall arrives, otherwise it's going to be a very tragic time. Fans are going to abandon the show in droves, potentials will be driven away by the terrible dubbing and music, and advertisers will leave just as quickly. In other words, my dear friends, US DBZ is almost certainly dead in the water, all that remains for us is to watch it sink. I can say with a fair amount of confidence that there will be no Season 4."
https://dbzu.3gkai.com/editorial/editorial15.html

Pow_Pow_Punishment posted...

They would literally just make plot points up in the old dub, like Vegeta crying how Frieza made him evil or claiming that Goku's dad invented an energy technique that recreates a full moon so Saiyans can transform. Kai is much more of a faithful translation

Goku's dad didn't invent the mini moon :o ? That was made up?