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A review by vimcenzo
Dragon Ball (3-In-1 Edition), Vol. 12, Volume 12: Includes Vols. 34, 35 & 36 by Akira Toriyama
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
This three-for-one deal is a mix of extreme highs and lows.
I didn't think the Cell saga was all that interesting in terms of the stakes. Heultimately could not be negotiated with like I expected , like Freeza, but it still didn't do much to make me remember him. However, Kururin's, Android 18's, Gohan's, Future Trunks's, and Vegeta's development (some of which still have fun continuations in the next arc, specifically with Vegeta being a little more fatherly ) were all very cool to see, and Gohan's costly mistake was shocking. It was the protagonists' choices that were more interesting, while Cell was simply a force of nature that needed to be stopped; the force that comes up against their inddividual choices and determing who and what was important to them.
Both the cultural omnipresence of Dragonball and the established rules of the world work against the weight ofGoku's death. First off, immediately afterward, Goku's still alive in all the ways that matter, and so his decision to not come back and instead train forever in the afterlife has no real weight. It's just him deciding not to come back to help Chichi raise their kids, since he can see and contact them wherever he likes. Hell is just a foreign country, basically, with one-day visas to visit internationally. And we still see him all the time. So on the whole, what did it really matter?
Hercule is a lot of fun. Someone who must constantly dissemble all of his achievements for once is very unique in this world of extreme and earnest effort, so it's hard not to love it when he has to charm and bluff his way out of sticky situations.He also had to briefly redeem himself in the Cell fight, and actually contributed somewhat. So he's not some total jerk.
These are all the positives, most of which are frontloaded in the earlier volumes.
The series makes the perplexing decision of turning, however briefly, intoa high school drama . A reminder that the earliest points of the whole manga avoided this; Bulma outright skipped school because school was boring. School remains boring, down to the insipid romances and the manga/anime thing of leading a secret life of elevated prestige outside of being a loser at school.
Returning to the Tenkaichi Budokai was a blast from the past, but a lot of the scrappy relative simplicity is gone. Maybe people prefer Z as a whole. The Freeza arc was a good argument for bigger being better, but the power creep felt more incremental before at the very beginning, and I think I still like those stories the best. You had funny characters like Bulma to balance it out, and Goku was simpler while still having heart. Now there are borderline dynasties developing from these characters and it borders on Muppet Babies and Tiny Toons adventures. The Tenkaichi Budokai coming back is a lot like trying to fit the behemoth this story has become back into a bottle. Even more perplexing is everyone's sudden desire to keep their accomplishments a secret, even the more braggadocious Piccolo somehow agreeing to it. Vegeta for his part barely agrees, but why? What's with the sudden humbleness of anyone in this series? This just feels off and it's the least fun I've had reading this, I think. I hope it improves by the last two 3-in-1 books.
I didn't think the Cell saga was all that interesting in terms of the stakes. He
Both the cultural omnipresence of Dragonball and the established rules of the world work against the weight of
Hercule is a lot of fun. Someone who must constantly dissemble all of his achievements for once is very unique in this world of extreme and earnest effort, so it's hard not to love it when he has to charm and bluff his way out of sticky situations.
These are all the positives, most of which are frontloaded in the earlier volumes.
The series makes the perplexing decision of turning, however briefly, into
Returning to the Tenkaichi Budokai was a blast from the past, but a lot of the scrappy relative simplicity is gone. Maybe people prefer Z as a whole. The Freeza arc was a good argument for bigger being better, but the power creep felt more incremental before at the very beginning, and I think I still like those stories the best. You had funny characters like Bulma to balance it out, and Goku was simpler while still having heart. Now there are borderline dynasties developing from these characters and it borders on Muppet Babies and Tiny Toons adventures. The Tenkaichi Budokai coming back is a lot like trying to fit the behemoth this story has become back into a bottle. Even more perplexing is everyone's sudden desire to keep their accomplishments a secret, even the more braggadocious Piccolo somehow agreeing to it. Vegeta for his part barely agrees, but why? What's with the sudden humbleness of anyone in this series? This just feels off and it's the least fun I've had reading this, I think. I hope it improves by the last two 3-in-1 books.