Part 2, #2
Story and Art by Toriyama Akira
Copyright © 1984 Bird Studio

DRAGONBALL Z. Almost everyone knows what it is, and almost everyone has an opinion on it. Whether or not you like it, it is one of the longest-running and most enduring anime and manga titles around. It's been translated into many other languages and show on televisions all over the world. But not everyone knows what it's all about.
DRAGONBALL Z continues where DRAGONBALL left off. In fact, there is no DRAGONBALL Z manga in Japan, it's all part of DRAGONBALL. A new race of beings called Saiyans has come to take over the Earth. However, the Goku, his son Gohan, some other friends, and even an old enemy, Piccolo, have taken a stand against them. The Saiyans are, quite naturally, annoyed and eager to be rid of these Earth pests.
This issue finds the Kuririn, Yamcha, Gohan, Tenshinhan, Chauzu, and Piccolo already battling against the Saiyans Vegita and Nappa. More accurately, they're fighting the Saiyan's underlings the Cultivars. At first it seems an evenly matched battle, but each time the Z fighters raise the stakes, the Saiyans are able to match it.
And that's pretty much all that happens in this issue. There's a lot of yelling and screaming and throwing of energy blasts, but not much plot. Sometimes in DRAGONBALL the battles span many pages, and that's what's happened here. The entire book is part of a battle. Not that that's necessarily bad, but it really doesn't take much time to read through a comic with so little dialog.
On the plus side, this allows Toriyama to exhibit his artistic talent. Power displays are inventive and interesting, and he has a knack for giving an urgency to battle scenes. But, at the end of the 32 pages, it's easy to feel like nothing really happened. This is one of the pitfalls of adapting manga into an American 32 page format. Sometimes you don't get a lot of story. But you do get plenty of action. The problem is that it doesn't feel like it's lead anywhere. They're still fighting the same fight, it's just with stronger attacks now.
Devout DRAGONBALL Z fans will no doubt snap this issue up, but the first-time reader may find themselves more confused than ever if this is the first issue he reads. It would be best to find some back issues and buy several issues at once so you can get a sense of the story.

English version published in North America by Viz Comics
Issue #2 (of 8), ongoing
32 pages; Black and White
ISBN 820090415300211
$2.95 per issue
Available now in the USA
Where to buy