Original Anime vs Kai

[SSJ2]

Which in your eyes is better? Preferably regarding the Japanese version, but feel free to use the English dub if that's all you've seen.

 

[Kyo]

Kai and to this day I can't fathom why anyone would argue otherwise outside of nostalgia, and maybe a few key scenes in which the original's voice or music direction was better (whether it's Japanese or English).

The pacing is simply too large of a factor to ignore. If you want to sit through those absolutely sluggish 276ish episodes for what you consider to be a better experience because of the voice acting or soundtrack or what have you, then more power to you. Even if I were to skip the episodes that are entirely filler, I just couldn't do it.

 

[SSJ2]

Is the voice acting better in Kai? I'm pretty unfamiliar with both.

 

[Kyo]

In the English dub you can tell the voice actors who returned are clearly more experienced, and the voice actors who were changed (e.g. Freeza) are generally a much better fit than the old ones (some others are more arguable). Sometimes the direction the voice actors are given in Kai feels more stiff than in DBZ's which is what I was referring to in my first post, but for the most part I would consider Kai better.

In Japanese they're both good and I haven't seen enough of Kai in Japanese to really tell if it's any better or worse. I'd imagine King Kai's voice might sound worse than it originally did for example but I don't recall.

 

[SSJ2]

Does anyone know if this remains in Kai? I'm considering buying it for my collection, but this will be a deal-breaker if this was cut out.

[youtube]zaLoTA6yICc[/youtube]

 

[Kyo]

I failed to consider that. Pretty sure that was unceremoniously left out. Shame.

Go with the original after all of

 

[SSJ2]

Not as bad as this

[youtube]B-OhIgJAGOE[/youtube]

 

[theallpowerfulpuipui]

Quality wise kai ia better, but personally prefer the original funimation garbage. Kai does have some big time weaknesses like 'little girl Gohan' and the fact that every female character is a shopping addict. (In the dub)

Considering that Kai takes itself seriously and the original episodes were pretty much improvised there shouldn't be a contest yet there is.

 

[Warmmedown]

Original has a better score overall, just due to having more variety. Also, post-Namek the original Kai score is totally removed due to plagiarism, so it just has Kikuchi pieces shoehorned in at short notice, which made it even worse from then onwards.

There are also bits of filler that added depth to Z, such as Gohan's training alone, the driving lessons, Krillin throwing a rock at Goku's head and fake Namek (fku, I will die on this hill). Garlic Jr was largely a waste of time, but it also gave us a chance to see Krillin etc in action again. I'm fairly certain there are a few story-enhancing embellishments added on Namek too, such as Goku having a vision of Vegeta.

All in all, I would recommend people to watch the Japanese original dub if they are willing to go through so many episodes (the pacing really didn't feel that bad first-time through when you don't know what's coming, until it got to Semi-Perfect Cell and again in parts of the Buu Saga where it was honestly irritating), but otherwise Kai isn't an awful choice either. Obviously there's plenty of enjoyment and value to be got from just watching the Funimation dub too, which was still good enough to pull in the vast majority of American and Canadian fans and is probably still impressive if you've never seen anime before (unless you just hate DBZ-esque stuff, in which case go watch Bridget Jones or something).

If I'm watching it myself any time soon, it's likely to be Kai, just to save time. But I don't watch Kai as its own series, more just as a homage to the original or as supplement to my existing connection to Dragon Ball, I guess you could say. If I have kids or something I might rewatch the original though.

 

[SSJ2]

Original has a better score overall, just due to having more variety. Also, post-Namek the original Kai score is totally removed due to plagiarism, so it just has Kikuchi pieces shoehorned in at short notice, which made it even worse from then onwards.

Really? So from Android saga on they use the original score?

 

[SSJ2]

Also another thing, what is the animation quality like? Is it better than the original? The blu ray for Kai does look pretty nice..

I already own the original series but have yet to watch it. If the animation is noticeably better on Kai I might buy it.

 

[Future Warrior]

Also another thing, what is the animation quality like? Is it better than the original? The blu ray for Kai does look pretty nice..

I already own the original series but have yet to watch it. If the animation is noticeably better on Kai I might buy it.

It's the same animation though? If you meant the visuals, it does look a bit more clear I guess.

 

[SSJ2]

Also another thing, what is the animation quality like? Is it better than the original? The blu ray for Kai does look pretty nice..

I already own the original series but have yet to watch it. If the animation is noticeably better on Kai I might buy it.

It's the same animation though? If you meant the visuals, it does look a bit more clear I guess.

I was under the impression that it was remastered

 

[Future Warrior]

Also another thing, what is the animation quality like? Is it better than the original? The blu ray for Kai does look pretty nice..

I already own the original series but have yet to watch it. If the animation is noticeably better on Kai I might buy it.

It's the same animation though? If you meant the visuals, it does look a bit more clear I guess.

I was under the impression that it was remastered

Lol no, it's pretty much exactly like Z but with less filler and different music.

 

[SSJ2]

https://www.kanzenshuu.com/animation-production/kai-remastering/

?

 

[Future Warrior]

It literally says there that it mostly uses the same footage from Z.

 

[Warmmedown]

Just checked ep 56 (Trunks vs Freeza) on a pirating site and the English dub has Kikuchi's music. The Japanese upload is ripped straight from the TV broadcast by the looks of it (has the time in the top-right corner), so it has what sounds like Yamamoto's music, but I imagine all dvd/blu ray copies after the plagiarism scandal will have Kikuchi's music for the Japanese dub too.
They were also limited by only having access to certain Kikuchi pieces, rather than the full original score.

The Buu Saga I believe has its own score composed by some other guy (never watched that far).

 

[SSJ2]

It literally says there that it mostly uses the same footage from Z.

Yeah but it was remastered into HD and color corrected, hence why I'm asking if the quality is a noticeable improvement.

 

[Kyo]

The Buu Saga I believe has its own score composed by some other guy (never watched that far).

Some of the tracks (maybe all) from the Boo arc I believe are used in Super so maybe same composer there or something.

 

[Alin]

Speaking as someone who has never actually completed any of them, and as someone who isn't a massive anime fan, I'd say I'd prefer to watch Kai over DBZ. The dub is inarguably superior, with some VA changes that some might like (Freeza, Gohan, 18). Much shorter with the original OST and cleaned up visuals. I honestly don't know if I could sit through almost 300 episodes of Z when a condensed and more refined experience exists.