Dragonball Book 2: Wish Upon A Dragon (NSFW)

NSFW:  Flash of bare boob.

"Augh!! What a diseased mind!" - Lord Pilaf

This is my cut n'paste intro for my end of month indulgence as I make my way through all forty-two collected volumes of the enduringly popular and influential manga Dragonball. The series used to be split into the fantasy and whimsy filled Dragonball and the more serious, sci-fi orientated strip it became after sixteen volumes known as Dragonball Z, but now the series is being released under the one "Dragonball" title again; uncut and with a spiffy new translation.  The series first ran in the famous anthology magazine "Shonen Jump" from 1984 to 1995 and was written and drawn by Akira Toriyama (It has been translated here by Mari Morimoto and adapted into English by Gerard Jones, the western publisher is Viz Media) and pretty much set the standard for the similar shonen manga and anime that came after like Bleach and Naruto.  It follows the adventures of the kindly if somewhat sheltered and simple "Son Goku" as he trains, goes on adventures and enters competitions all with the aim of making himself a stronger and better fighter.  Along the way he accrues a colourful cast of friends and rivals in a world where humans live alongside anthropomorphised animals, dinosaurs never died out and tiny capsules can contain vehicles and houses to be easily carried around.

[Note:  This manga is "unflipped" so must be read from right to left]

Previously on Dragonball:  A sixteen year old tech genius called Bulma is hunting the seven "dragonballs", which when collected together means a magical dragon called Shenlong can be summoned to grant one wish.  Twelve year old orphan Son Goku holds the third ball she has found using the radar she built to locate them, and when he won't part with it, she invites him along with her to hunt them together.  In the process of discovering the fourth and fifth balls, Goku gets given a flying cloud he can ride by an old man called Kamensen'in, and they also meet a shapechanger called Oolong who Bulma adds to the team as well.  After tangling with the desert bandit Yamcha and his shapechanger friend Puar, they find themselves at "Fry-Pan" mountain. At the top is a castle belonging to The Ox King and where the sixth ball is located, but the mountain is on fire and they can't get to it.  What to do?  And now the continuation.

Goku, meet Chi Chi

Gyu-Mao the Ox King reveals that his old kung fu master "Muten Roshi" was also Kamesenin'in the man who gave Goku his cloud.  He also says that Goku's grandpa "Son Gohan" trained with him at the same time.  He then says that Kamesenin'in owns something called a "Basho-sen" which is a magic fan which could put the fire out.  He tells Goku to look for his daughter Chi Chi who he sent out looking for it as well.

The watching Yamcha and Puar realise this is the young girl Yamcha knocked out.  They speed back and find her still unconcious.  Yamcha gently wakes her up and apologises saying he was "crazy with love".  Then he sees Goku coming and makes himself scarce.  Goku tells Chi Chi to get on the cloud as she is pure of heart enough to ride it.  She grabs his tail as she climbs up and he howls in pain.

Goku: "Don't squeeze my tail will ya'?  It makes me lose my strength."

The watching Yamcha realise he can use this information against Goku.  Meanwhile Goku and Chi Chi zoom off.  Goku pats her crotch to see if she is female and she pushes him off the cloud in outrage.  But as he climbs back aboard, she thinks only a man who wanted her for a wife would do that.

Wheee!

They fly across the sea to a small house on a small island where Kamesenin'in lives.  Goku and Kamesenin'in catch up while Chi Chi, disbelieving that he is a kung fu master throws her helmet blade at him which embeds in his forehead.  He yells no one is fast enough to dodge that and shows her his driving licence which says he is an invincible old master and she apologises.

He says he'll lend them the Basho-sen on one condition.  That Bulma "boingy boingy" for him, the old perve.  Goku agrees so Kamesenin'in looks for the fan but then remembers he spilt soup on it and threw it out.  But never fear he can put the fire out himself.  He summons a flying turtle and they all fly back to Fry-Pan mountain.

Kamesen'in says to Gyu-mao that his treasures have "cost a few lives".  Gyu-mao repents his greed and says he destroy all his treasure. "Let's not go overboard" says Kamesen'in.  Goku says to Bulma that Kamesen'in wants to "pat pat" her chest as payment or he won't put out the fire.  She angrily agrees but only after he has done it.

There's more to Kamesen'in than meets the eye.

Kamesen'in pumps his body up into a hugely muscled form and then he fires a bolt of pure ki energy called the "Kamehame-ha"  It puts out the fire, but destroys the mountain as well!  They search the ruins for the dragonball, Goku wants to learn the move but Kamesen'in says it takes fifty years to master.  Goku however copies his movements and fires a small one at their car.

When Gyu-mao reveals Goku is Son Gohan's grandson, Kamesen'in realises it explains a lot and when he finds out Son Gohan is dead, he invites Goku to come train under him.  Goku enthusiastically agrees to come once they have found all the dragonballs.  Bulma finds the sixth ball and Gyu-mao gives them a capsule containing a hover car.  Before they can leave Kamesen'in demands his payment.

Bulma takes Oolong to one side and tells him to impersonate her.  Oolong does so and goes to Kamesen'in and flashes him a look at "Bulma's" bare boobs, much to his delight and Bulma's annoyance.  Chi Chi says to Goku that when he is old enough her father will offer Goku her hand.  Slightly confused Goku agrees to come back for it.  Then the gang bid Gyu-mao, Chi Chi and Kamesen'in farewell and zoom off still shadowed by Yamcha and Puar.

Oh Kamesen'in, never change.

They arrive in a small town and Bulma, still dressed in the outfit with bunny ears, is regarded with fear by the townsfolk.  She goes to buy some hoi-poi capsules which the frightened shopkeeper gives her for free.  Two thugs with rabbit ears come into town and start bullying the locals.  Bulma gets changed into some more normal clothes and everyone stops being scared of her.

The rabbit eared men threaten Goku and Bulma with guns.  Bulma casually says to Goku, "These are bad guys.  Beat 'em up for us."  Goku finishes his rice bun and sys "Okay".  A fight commences and he easily beats them.  One of them calls for their boss via a radio and a townsperson says Goku has bought "doom on us all."

Everyone flees leaving our heroes alone with the two rabbit eared thugs.  Their master appears, he is an anthropomorphised rabbit.  He offers his hand to Bulma who shakes it.  Yamcha pops up yelling not to touch him, that he's the "carrot master!".  But it is too late and Bulma turns into a carrot.

The "Carrot Master".

Goku tries to threaten him into turning her back but he says he'll nibble on her if he attacks him.  Then the two thugs beat up  Goku who can't fight back.  Yamcha tells Puar to turn into something that can swoop in and grab the carrot.  Puar does so, while Yamcha comes to Goku's rescue.  Goku whacks the rabbit with his Nyo-boi staff and the rabbit turns Bulma back to get him to stop.  Then Goku grabs the rabbit and his two henchmen and makes the staff grow long enough to deposit them on the moon.  The narrator says that "the rabbit in the moon" is a Japanese children's story.

With that sorted, they go on their way into a desert landscape.  A woman watches them and says over a radio to a "Lord Pilaf" that it is time to "commence the operation." Goku and the others are attacked by a dog headed person in a robot suit, it destroys their car and grabs the suitcase the dragonballs are in and flies off.  Goku gives chase on kinto'un.

He finds the robot suit empty and the dog man and the dragonballs gone.  He returns to Bulma who laments that they must have the seventh dragonball and now have them all.  Goku points out he still has his dragonball so all is not lost.  Yamcha and Puar pull up and offer them a lift while they track where the balls have gone.

Lord Pilaf.

The two goons have returned to the diminutive Lord Pilaf who wants to wish for world domination.  Goku and the others arrive at Pilaf's palace and sneak inside.  But they fall into a trap and end up stuck in a small cell.  Pilaf demands the final ball and grabs Bulma with a robot arm.  He says he's going to subject her to humilating acts and blows her a kiss.  Bulma laughs at him saying she expected much worse and lists them much to Pilaf's horror.

He dumps her back in the cell and then uses knock out gas on them.  His female goon goes in and takes the final dragonball and as Goku and friends recover, Pilaf gathers the balls together and starts to summon the dragon Shenlong.  Goku is able to make a small hole in the cell wall with his kamehame'ha, but they are all still trapped.

Puar and Oolong fly out through the hole to try and stop Pilaf but it is too late.  Shenlong asks to know what the wish is and as Pilaf starts to say his, Ollong wishes for "the panties of a hot babe!!!" A pair of panties land on Oolong's head and with the wish granted, Shenlong disappears and the seven dragonballs fly off in different directions.

The spectacular Shenlong.

Goku is upset that his grandpa's ball has gone.  Bulma tells them the balls become ordinary rocks for a year before turning back into dragonballs that can be tracked again. Over the tannoy, Pilaf says that their steel lined cell will heat up in the sun and cook them.  They try to break out again, but can't.  They all sit down, and lament their fate.  Puar flies up to the skylight and says she wants to see a full moon before she dies.

Goku says he has never seen a full moon because hes grandpa told him that a "horrible monster comes out when the moon is full."  His grandpa was killed when said monster stepped on him, he didn't see it because he was asleep.  His granpa exhorted him to "never look at a full moon."  The others realise what this could mean.  Goku admits he did wake up to go pee on the night his grandpa died.  Bulma then orders Goku to look at the full moon.

Goku transforms.

Goku goes into a trance and starts to change.  He grows bigger and hairier and becomes ape-like.  He bursts out of the cell and starts rampaging and smashing up Pilaf's palace. He doesn't respond to the others shouting at him to change back.  Goku keeps attacking them, until Yamcha has an idea and grabs his tail which makes him freeze.  Puar turns into a giant pair of scissors and snips off Goku's tail and he changes back into normal sleeping Goku.

As day dawns, they decide not to tell Goku what he turned into or that he accidentally killed his grandpa.  Goku wakes up and shrugs off his missing tail.  He goes to look for his nyo-boi staff in the ruins. Yamcha and Bulma realise that he is not scared of her, and that they would make a good couple.  So both their wishes have actually been fulfilled.

Were-Goku dealt with.

Goku comes back with his staff and Bulma says they are going to the city and would he like to come?  Oolong invites himself along as well.  Goku says he is going to train under Kamesen'in, and will they come and hunt dragonballs in a years time?  Bulma says she doesn't need dragonballs now, so she gives him the dragon radar so he can track them when they turn back into dragonballs.

They all pile into a small plane and wish Goku well and depart, he summons kinto'un and flies back to his home to collect some clothes and bedding before flying to Kamesen'in's house.  There Kamesen'in is perving over a TV exercise programme.  Goku attracts his attention saying he came for training and is hungry.  Kamesen'in directs him to the fridge and Goku eats a full weeks worth of food.

Once his favourite TV show is over, Kamesen'in contemplates his new young charge.  He tells Goku that before he starts to train him he needs to bring him a "hot girl".  He lists off all the attributes he is looking for much to Goku's bewilderment.  Goku flies off and returns with a female weightlifter.  Not quite what Kamesen'in had in mind.  And that brings this volume of Dragonball to a close.

The adventurers part for now.

As usual this was a lot of fun.  And it lays down some important continuity that will come into play throughout the series.  We haven't seen the last of Goku's were-ape form although it won't be explained why he changes for a long time yet.  His prodigious appetite will also be explained much further down the line as well and it's fascinating seeing how early these elements of the later series were first laid down.  The smutty humour remains a guilty pleasure, going to all the trouble of collecting the dragonballs only to have the wish spent on a pair of knickers is hilarious.  And it's very sweet that Yamcha and Bulma realise they don't need a wish anymore because of how the quest has bought them together.  The next volume will pick up the other major strand of the manga, training to improve ones body and mind and another rival/friend of Goku's will be introduced as well.  So join me next month for a look at just what Kamesen'in's training regime entails.