Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z
Day 7 - Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z
Dragon Ball: The Story Begins
https://1anime.to/episode/172514-dragon-ball-z-kai-episode-1-english-dub - 0:58 - 5:23
In psychology, there is something known as Gestalt psychology, meaning that the parts of something
are as great as the whole (there is also Gestalt counseling, or therapy, but there is more to it than the
psychology of it, but only the psychology is needed here). An example of this in anime is seen with
the Dragon Ball series. The Dragon Ball series is one that is made of up several parts, as well as several
versions of these parts. As a whole, I prefer the beginning of the Dragon Ball series, meaning
Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z (DBZ). I prefer the beginning of the series to GT and Super (GT is good,
but I do not like Super - I have separate posts for both), which is important for the rest of the series, a fact
that people seem to forget/disregard. For example, what starts in Dragon Ball and DBZ continues
throughout the rest of the series. Anyway, as I mention in the title of the Dragon Ball part of this reflection,
Dragon Ball is what the Dragon
Ball series begins with.
The video I show of Dragon Ball is a recap of the series before getting into the action of DBZ (this
recap is actually what the first episode of DBZ Kai, the manga version of DBZ in anime form, starts
with). It begins with the birth/infancy of Goku/Kakarot, the main character and hero of the story,
who is sent to Earth while his homeworld Planet Vegeta, home of his people, the Saiyan race
(Kakarot is Goku’s Saiyan name), is under attack by the villainous Frieza. Despite efforts to stop
Frieza, Frieza easily destroys the Saiyans trying to stop him, as well as their planet. One of these
Saiyans is Goku’s father, who has a vision of his son facing Frieza someday, adding that Goku
needs to defeat Frieza to avenge not only him, but their race. Goku does do this eventually in DBZ
(other reasons too - more about that later), but before that, he has other adventures on Earth.
These adventures begin when Goku meets a young girl named Bulma after being raised by a kind
stranger named Gohan who gives him his Earth name of Goku (the recap video omits the fact that
Goku was not good when he arrived on Earth; a severe head injury changed his attitude - the recap
video leaves out other Dragon Ball details too). Goku helps Bulma in her quest to find the
Dragon Balls, which is not only how this series gets its name, but is also the reason for why these
adventures start. Due to what the Dragon Balls can do, which is grant a wish when getting all 7 together,
many other people are also interested in finding them, including people who would use them for evil
purposes (or for personal reasons, both heroes and villains). This is what the adventures, both in this
part and as a whole, revolve around, and how we would use them ourselves is an interesting thing to
think about, as well as gestalt psychology, before getting into the rest of the Dragon Ball series, both
continuing and finishing here with reflections of DBZ.
In psychology, there is something known as Gestalt psychology, meaning that the parts of something
are as great as the whole (there is also Gestalt counseling, or therapy, but there is more to it than the
psychology of it, but only the psychology is needed here). An example of this in anime is seen with
the Dragon Ball series. The Dragon Ball series is one that is made of up several parts, as well as several
versions of these parts. As a whole, I prefer the beginning of the Dragon Ball series, meaning
Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z (DBZ). I prefer the beginning of the series to GT and Super (GT is good,
but I do not like Super - I have separate posts for both), which is important for the rest of the series, a fact
that people seem to forget/disregard. For example, what starts in Dragon Ball and DBZ continues
throughout the rest of the series. Anyway, as I mention in the title of the Dragon Ball part of this reflection,
Dragon Ball is what the Dragon
Ball series begins with.
The video I show of Dragon Ball is a recap of the series before getting into the action of DBZ (this
recap is actually what the first episode of DBZ Kai, the manga version of DBZ in anime form, starts
with). It begins with the birth/infancy of Goku/Kakarot, the main character and hero of the story,
who is sent to Earth while his homeworld Planet Vegeta, home of his people, the Saiyan race
(Kakarot is Goku’s Saiyan name), is under attack by the villainous Frieza. Despite efforts to stop
Frieza, Frieza easily destroys the Saiyans trying to stop him, as well as their planet. One of these
Saiyans is Goku’s father, who has a vision of his son facing Frieza someday, adding that Goku
needs to defeat Frieza to avenge not only him, but their race. Goku does do this eventually in DBZ
(other reasons too - more about that later), but before that, he has other adventures on Earth.
These adventures begin when Goku meets a young girl named Bulma after being raised by a kind
stranger named Gohan who gives him his Earth name of Goku (the recap video omits the fact that
Goku was not good when he arrived on Earth; a severe head injury changed his attitude - the recap
video leaves out other Dragon Ball details too). Goku helps Bulma in her quest to find the
Dragon Balls, which is not only how this series gets its name, but is also the reason for why these
adventures start. Due to what the Dragon Balls can do, which is grant a wish when getting all 7 together,
many other people are also interested in finding them, including people who would use them for evil
purposes (or for personal reasons, both heroes and villains). This is what the adventures, both in this
part and as a whole, revolve around, and how we would use them ourselves is an interesting thing to
think about, as well as gestalt psychology, before getting into the rest of the Dragon Ball series, both
continuing and finishing here with reflections of DBZ.
Questions for Reflection and Discussion
- What is your understanding of Gestalt psychology?
- If the Dragon Balls existed, what would you do?
Dragon Ball Z - Pride and Power
Part 1 - Pride: Pardonable vs. Insolent
https://1anime.to/episode/172555-dragon-ball-z-kai-episode-42-english-dub - 10:10 - 18:15
https://1anime.to/episode/172222-dragon-ball-z-episode-229-english-dub - 12:50 - 15:15
From what I have seen with DBZ, the ideas that can be seen most in this series, both in this part of it and as
a whole, are pride and power. In addition to understanding the importance of the Dragon Balls, there is also
an importance in understanding pride and power. Part of this understanding involves the fact that pride and
power are related, but also understanding that they can be treated separately, which is what I attempt to do by
focusing on pride then power, since pride comes before a lot of things in life. In addition to coming before a
lot of things in life, and how it can be understood in relation to power, pride is also pardonable, or good, or
insolent, or bad. Pardonable pride is seen with the character Goku in the first video of this reflection, while
insolent pride is seen with the character Vegeta in the last three videos of this reflection.
In the first video of this reflection, we see an example of the pardonable pride of Goku in his reaction to the
death of Vegeta at the hands of Frieza. Like Goku’s father, Vegeta also wants Goku to defeat Frieza due to
what Frieza did to them, which they also did to others (insolent pride talking). Vegeta thinks Goku has to
change who he is in order to do this, but Goku thinks he doesn’t have to (insolent vs. pardonable). Goku’s
father didn’t say how to do that, so it’s possible that Goku’s father didn’t really care how Goku did it as long
as he did it (does his comment of redeem the pride of our race, seen in the video of the previous reflection,
mean restore our race’s insolent pride or change the pride from insolent to pardonable?). Anyway, the main
difference between insolent and pardonable pride, besides being bad vs. good, is that with insolent pride,
you only care about yourself, but with pardonable pride, you not only care about yourself, but others too, not
just your own people (Goku actually tells Frieza he doesn’t care what Frieza did to his people before Vegeta
tells him). Goku does eventually defeat Frieza, but does it in his own way by relying on his pardonable pride
(more about this in last part of reflection).
Despite what happens after this, Vegeta still relies on his insolent pride, which is seen in the second and thirdvideos of this reflection. In the second video of this reflection, Vegeta confronts three powerful
Androids by himself (these Androids are the enemy at this point), thinking he doesn’t need help to defeat them
due to his insolent pride. He can’t even come close to defeating one Android on his own, let alone three of them. The third video is an
example of the power of Vegeta’s pride. He chose to be mind controlled because he knew it would give
him a power increase (more about power in last part of reflection), but he only wants the power increase due
to his insolent pride, which involves caring mostly about yourself. Vegeta does start to change after this
fourth video, but for the most part, his pride is insolent.
These two versions of pride are also what give these characters (and others in the series) their power,
as well as their motivation for it. Before talking more about this in the next, and last, part of this reflection,
take time to reflect on what pardonable and insolent pride mean to you.
a whole, are pride and power. In addition to understanding the importance of the Dragon Balls, there is also
an importance in understanding pride and power. Part of this understanding involves the fact that pride and
power are related, but also understanding that they can be treated separately, which is what I attempt to do by
focusing on pride then power, since pride comes before a lot of things in life. In addition to coming before a
lot of things in life, and how it can be understood in relation to power, pride is also pardonable, or good, or
insolent, or bad. Pardonable pride is seen with the character Goku in the first video of this reflection, while
insolent pride is seen with the character Vegeta in the last three videos of this reflection.
In the first video of this reflection, we see an example of the pardonable pride of Goku in his reaction to the
death of Vegeta at the hands of Frieza. Like Goku’s father, Vegeta also wants Goku to defeat Frieza due to
what Frieza did to them, which they also did to others (insolent pride talking). Vegeta thinks Goku has to
change who he is in order to do this, but Goku thinks he doesn’t have to (insolent vs. pardonable). Goku’s
father didn’t say how to do that, so it’s possible that Goku’s father didn’t really care how Goku did it as long
as he did it (does his comment of redeem the pride of our race, seen in the video of the previous reflection,
mean restore our race’s insolent pride or change the pride from insolent to pardonable?). Anyway, the main
difference between insolent and pardonable pride, besides being bad vs. good, is that with insolent pride,
you only care about yourself, but with pardonable pride, you not only care about yourself, but others too, not
just your own people (Goku actually tells Frieza he doesn’t care what Frieza did to his people before Vegeta
tells him). Goku does eventually defeat Frieza, but does it in his own way by relying on his pardonable pride
(more about this in last part of reflection).
Despite what happens after this, Vegeta still relies on his insolent pride, which is seen in the second and thirdvideos of this reflection. In the second video of this reflection, Vegeta confronts three powerful
Androids by himself (these Androids are the enemy at this point), thinking he doesn’t need help to defeat them
due to his insolent pride. He can’t even come close to defeating one Android on his own, let alone three of them. The third video is an
example of the power of Vegeta’s pride. He chose to be mind controlled because he knew it would give
him a power increase (more about power in last part of reflection), but he only wants the power increase due
to his insolent pride, which involves caring mostly about yourself. Vegeta does start to change after this
fourth video, but for the most part, his pride is insolent.
These two versions of pride are also what give these characters (and others in the series) their power,
as well as their motivation for it. Before talking more about this in the next, and last, part of this reflection,
take time to reflect on what pardonable and insolent pride mean to you.
Questions for Reflection and Discussion
- What is your understanding of pardonable pride?
- What is your understanding of insolent pride?
Part 2 - Power: Need vs. Desire
https://1anime.to/episode/172153-dragon-ball-z-episode-160-english-dub - 8:55 - 15:55
https://1anime.to/episode/172122-dragon-ball-z-episode-129-english-dub - 12:30 - 18:35
Another way of understanding the differences in pride is understanding the differences in power. When
power is needed more than it is desired, or wanted, then it is pardonable, but when power is desired, or
wanted, more than it is needed, then it is insolent. Based on this logic, it makes sense that power that is
needed more than desired is seen in characters that display pardonable pride, while it also makes sense that
power that is desired more than needed is seen in characters that display insolent pride.
power is needed more than it is desired, or wanted, then it is pardonable, but when power is desired, or
wanted, more than it is needed, then it is insolent. Based on this logic, it makes sense that power that is
needed more than desired is seen in characters that display pardonable pride, while it also makes sense that
power that is desired more than needed is seen in characters that display insolent pride.
In the first two videos of this part of the reflection, we see examples of when power is needed in the
character Gohan, who also represents pardonable pride like his father Goku. In the first video, Gohan knows
he needs to increase his power in order to protect his friends, so he tells his father to attack him. Goku also
knows that his son needs to do this, even if it means attacking him, and that this power increase comes in
response to a need, not a desire, which Gohan hears in his head as he is defending himself from this attack.
Goku already knows how to do what Gohan is trying to do, which is transform into what is known as a Super
Saiyan to gain the power he needs to protect/avenge his friends, because he did it before due to his pardonable
pride in his fight with Frieza. With this help, Gohan transforms into a Super Saiyan to gain the power he
needs, until he needs a power increase again, which is seen in the second video of this part of the reflection.
character Gohan, who also represents pardonable pride like his father Goku. In the first video, Gohan knows
he needs to increase his power in order to protect his friends, so he tells his father to attack him. Goku also
knows that his son needs to do this, even if it means attacking him, and that this power increase comes in
response to a need, not a desire, which Gohan hears in his head as he is defending himself from this attack.
Goku already knows how to do what Gohan is trying to do, which is transform into what is known as a Super
Saiyan to gain the power he needs to protect/avenge his friends, because he did it before due to his pardonable
pride in his fight with Frieza. With this help, Gohan transforms into a Super Saiyan to gain the power he
needs, until he needs a power increase again, which is seen in the second video of this part of the reflection.
In the second video of this part of the reflection, we see Gohan facing Cell, a powerful enemy, due to his
initial power increase. Gohan also has a hidden power where his power significantly increases due to his
emotions, which has been seen in previous fights, but only for short bursts, so learning to control it now is
what would give him the needed advantage to stop Cell and protect his friends, as well as the entire world.
Despite the initial power increase of Gohan, it is not enough to stop Cell. He needs more power. Others
know that he has it, but he doesn’t know how to bring it out. One of these others is Cell and, as anime
villains tend to do, he puts the lives of his friends in danger. This only works when Cell kills Android 16,
one of these friends, after Android 16 tells Gohan he needs to release the power he knows Gohan has in
order to stop Cell and protect what Cell is trying to destroy. Seeing Android 16 die right in front of him
makes Gohan think about what he is doing and he wants (also needs) to do something about what is
happening, so he releases his hidden power to transform into an ascended Super Saiyan to continue his
fight with Cell, which he eventually wins. This is another example of when power is needed.
initial power increase. Gohan also has a hidden power where his power significantly increases due to his
emotions, which has been seen in previous fights, but only for short bursts, so learning to control it now is
what would give him the needed advantage to stop Cell and protect his friends, as well as the entire world.
Despite the initial power increase of Gohan, it is not enough to stop Cell. He needs more power. Others
know that he has it, but he doesn’t know how to bring it out. One of these others is Cell and, as anime
villains tend to do, he puts the lives of his friends in danger. This only works when Cell kills Android 16,
one of these friends, after Android 16 tells Gohan he needs to release the power he knows Gohan has in
order to stop Cell and protect what Cell is trying to destroy. Seeing Android 16 die right in front of him
makes Gohan think about what he is doing and he wants (also needs) to do something about what is
happening, so he releases his hidden power to transform into an ascended Super Saiyan to continue his
fight with Cell, which he eventually wins. This is another example of when power is needed.
Then we have power that is desired, which is seen in the third video in this part of the reflection with the
character Vegeta, who we already have discussed as an example of insolent pride. In the character Vegeta,
pride is incredibly obvious since he talks about it a lot, which is also what drives his desire for power seen
in this video. The relationship between pride and power is very obvious when it comes to characters like
Vegeta. This video is an example of that.
character Vegeta, who we already have discussed as an example of insolent pride. In the character Vegeta,
pride is incredibly obvious since he talks about it a lot, which is also what drives his desire for power seen
in this video. The relationship between pride and power is very obvious when it comes to characters like
Vegeta. This video is an example of that.
Like pride, power is also pardonable or insolent. Power is also needed or desired. Sometimes, power is
both needed and desired, but the important thing is the balance, meaning is power needed more than desired
or desired more than needed.
both needed and desired, but the important thing is the balance, meaning is power needed more than desired
or desired more than needed.
Questions for Reflection and Discussion
- When do you feel like you need power?
- When do you feel like you desire, or want, power?
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