More Dragon Ball goodness as the second DBZ saga begins.  Things look pretty desperate as not one, but two Saiyans have landed on Earth.  They're not here to conquor though, they are here to destroy all life and then sell the planet to the highest bidder.  Though the battle with the Saiyans lasts a bit longer than it should, the beginning presented in this disc is really exciting.

Background or "Aren't these on DVD already?":

Dragon Ball Z first came to the US in its cartoon form in 1996.  The only problem was that these shows were sanitized for American audiences with any hint of blood cut or swearing cut out.  That made the shows run a little short, so episodes were spliced together to make sure that they'd run the proper length.

Then in early 1999, Pioneer started releasing this series on DVD.  The only problem was that the weren't putting the original Japanese episodes out, they were releasing the edited US TV versions.  I suppose they thought that the only people who would watch them were kids.  The entire first two story arcs were released in that format.  FUNimation took over after that and continued the series, and their releases were uncensored happily, but that still left the first dozen and a half DVDs in cut form only.

Now FUNimation has decided to go back and re-release the early Pioneer discs in their uncut form.  If you've been holding off getting these discs, wait no longer.

Series Synopsis:

Goku is a Saiyan, a race of the greatest fighters in the galaxy.  He's lived on Earth since he was a tot, and is peaceful and kind.  Unfortunately another Saiyan, his brother, came to Earth to destroy everyone living there.  Goku and his greatest enemy Piccolo team up against this common enemy They manage to destroy him but not before the Saiyan could signal two more of his race to Earth and at the cost of Goku's life.

With the Saiyans on their way, Krillian, Yamcha, and the rest of the gang only have a short time to train and hone their powers to defend the Earth.  Piccolo decides to train by himself but takes Goku's son Gohan in order to turn him into a fighter too.  For the first step of the training: leaving Gohan in the wilderness to fend for himself.  Meanwhile, the dead Goku is in the afterlife heading to King Kai's in order to get special training from the master before he is wished back to life with the Dragon Balls.

Now the Saiyans have arrived, and though Goku has been wished back from the dead he still has to travel back across Snake Way before he can get back to Earth.

This volume:

With Vegeeta and Nappa on the planet Earth, things don't look too good.  Nappa shows off a little of his power by destroying an entire city.  Then they locate the strongest power sources on Earth, belonging to Gohan and Piccolo, and begin their attack.

The Saiyans don't just attack though, they have a trick up their sleeve: The Saibaimen.  They grow six powerful fighters from seeds, and set them off.  Luckily the other Z Warriors arrive making it an even battle, six-against-six.  Even so, things aren't as easy as they sound, and the protectors of Earth lose their first member.  Can they hold out long enough for Goku to return?

This was a good volume.  After establishing how powerful the Saiyans are, they raise the stakes by killing off one of the good guys.  (And he does die.  In the original releases, people only went to "another dimension" but here people actually die.)  If one hero can die, certainly a second one can too.

Though these three episodes contain just one fight (that isn't finished, by any means) the tension level is kept up and the battle doesn't get boring.  When the Saiyans themselves start into to fighting, things really get interesting.

One of the aspects of this story that I enjoy the most is how young Gohan develops.  Though he's been training with Piccolo for a year, he's still very unsure of himself and terribly scared when he sees the Saiyans. How this battle effects him will have some consequences in future sagas.

These episodes are uncut, and there is some good footage that hasn't been seen on R1 DVDs before.  In addition to letting people actually die, some footage of Tien's battle that was considered too intense for American audiences is included.

This disc contains the next three episodes of Dragon Ball Z in its uncut format.  The disc comes in a standard keepcase. A deluxe edition is also available that comes with an attractive thick board slip case to hold the entire saga and a Vegetta action figure that is actually pretty nice.

Audio:

This DVD has four audio options: the original Japanese in stereo, English and Spanish stereo dubs, or an English 5.1 soundtrack.  I preferred the original soundtrack over the English dub, though the English actors did a good job.  The English track has music added to the background, and though it fits in well with the show, I liked the more spartan sounding original track.  One critique I do have concerning the English dub is that Vegetta and Nappa are voiced by different actors.  Though its not that big of a deal with Nappa, Vegetta is an important character through the rest of the series, and the fact that his voice is radically different makes it harder to listen to the English dub.  The sound is very good for a show of this age, there isn't any noticeable hum or distortion, and the range is fine.

Video:

This show is pretty old, being first broadcast in Japan in the late 1980's, but the image looks good for the most part.  The colors are bright and the lines are tight.  There is some mosquito noise in all of the shows, but it's not too bad.  There was a minor amount of print damage, just an occasional white speck, but this was fairly rare.  Overall a nice looking disc.

Extras:

FUNimation has included some bonus items on this disc.  There is a DBZ trivia game, though most of the questions come from later in the series.  There is also an episode of Mr. Stain in Junk Alley, an odd CGI series that's worth watching, and a series of trailers.

Final Thoughts:

Another fun volume of Dragon Ball Z.  This beginning of the epic battle between the Saiyans and Earth's defenders is pretty exciting.  I really like the fact that some of the good guys fall, it puts some tension in the battle and makes it much more interesting.  Though a lot of people don't like DBZ for good reasons, if you're one of the people who do appreciate this classic show you should pick up this disc.  Recommended.