Dragon Ball Sequential Binge-Watching Tips and Tricks

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What to Know

• Canonically : Includes_Dragon Ball_ ,Dragon Ball Z , and_Dragon Ball Super_ .
• Chronologically : Includes all series and movies. Start with_Dragon Ball_ and end with_Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero_ .
• Release order : Earliest title is_Dragon Ball_ (1986) and the most recent is_Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero_ (2022).

This article will cover the main Dragon Ball viewing orders and where you can watch it all online. Many Dragon Ball movies and series are on streaming platforms like Crunchyroll , but others are only available for purchase through platforms like the Microsoft Store.

How Should I Watch Dragon Ball?

Based on Akira Toriyama’s manga series of the same name, Dragon Ball is one of the most popular and influential anime franchises in the world. Numerous sequels, spinoffs, and feature films have been released since Toei Animation’s_Dragon Ball_ premiered in Japan in 1986, which makes watching it all an enormous undertaking.

Fortunately, there are a few different ways to watch Dragon Ball. While you can go the completionist route, a large portion of the franchise isn’t considered canon so you can save a lot of time if you cut out non-canon content. However, you’ll also miss some of Dragon Ball’s most creative and epic moments if you go this route so you might be better off doing a chronological viewing and deciding for yourself how much you’d like to watch.

How to Watch Dragon Ball in Canonical Order

If you’re just looking for the “core” Dragon Ball experience, a canonical viewing is the way to go. This viewing order cuts out the movies, as well as a few series like_Dragon Ball GT_ . Consider this Goku and the Z Fighters’ main story.

One important consideration you’ll need to make is whether to watch_Dragon Ball Z_ or_Dragon Ball Z Kai_ . The former is the original anime that ran from 1989 - 1996, while the latter is an updated version of the same series with remastered picture and sound, as well as a more streamlined story that cuts out much of the filler material found in_Dragon Ball Z_ .

It’s debatable which is better—Kai is higher-quality in several ways but lacks some of the charm of_Dragon Ball Z’s_ wackier excursions. You could always hop back and forth to decide which you prefer but it’s arguably worth sticking to one since there’s so much overlap.

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How to Watch Dragon Ball in Chronological Order

If you want to expand beyond the canonical texts, you might prefer watching Dragon Ball in chronological order. This viewing incorporates all of the movies and inserts them roughly where they would take place in the main series canon. It also means stopping and re-starting_Dragon Ball Z_ at numerous points, so keep this in mind if you want to stick to the suggested viewing order.

To simplify things,Dragon Ball Z has been incorporated into this viewing order and not_Dragon Ball Z Kai_ . You can still complete this viewing with_Kai_ instead, but the specific episode numbers will be different than those listed below.

Bandai Namco

How to Watch Dragon Ball in Release Order

This viewing order is similar to the ones listed above but instead of going through events chronologically, it’s categorized by release date. This is the completionist viewing since it includes all series, movies, specials, and OVA (original video animation).

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FAQ

• What does the Z in Dragon Ball Z stand for?
  The Z in_Dragon Ball Z_ stands for Zenkai, which means “Last Time” in Japanese, because_Dragon Ball Z_ was supposed to be the end of the series.
• How long would it take to watch all of Dragon Ball?
  It would take about 284 hours, or nearly 12 days, to watch all Dragon Ball series and movies.
• How many episodes of Dragon Ball Z are there?
  There are 291 episodes of_Dragon Ball Z_ . The original_Dragonball_ has 153 episodes.
• How old is Goku in Dragon Ball?
  The original_Dragon Ball_ follows Goku from age 12-18. In_Dragon Ball Z_ , he is 24-37.Dragon Ball Super begins when Goku is 41, and in_Super_ Dragon Ball Heroes he is 43_._

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