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  Daizenshuu EX - Guides - Guide to DragonBall Music Videos  
     
 

[ Introduction ] [ Influential / Amazing ] [ Other Favorites ]

Remember that is is, by its very nature, a very biased list. You don't have to agree with anything I say (which includes inclusions and exclusions of any particular videos). I'm merely offering my suggestions in the form of a guide. In order of fairness, the videos will be listed in chronological order of their releases / premieres.

NOTE: None of these videos are available for download on this site! Many of the videos are stored on the www.AnimeMusicVideos.org server space. To download these videos, you must simply be a member of the site. It's free to sign up, and only takes a minute. Sign up, and download away! Please realize that on this page, you'll be clicking a link that will take you to individual entry pages; THESE pages will contain the "Local" download links. Have fun!

April 2006 - The Upcoming
Title: "The Upcoming"
Song: "Liberation!"
Artist: IMMEDIATE MUSIC
Length: 1:39
Size: 50.6 MB
Format: XviD
Source: DragonBall Z
Editor: Greek Prince
Participation: n/a

Just a Few Words: I don't really understand the whole idea behind making a "trailer" for one of your upcoming videos... I mean, especially when it's not even using the same song, doesn't that just end up making it... err... its own (new) video? Whatever!

Regardless of what the point of the video is, it's simply a pretty well-executed "dramaction" Gohan video. The footage looks pretty good, and you can tell there's been a good deal of color tinkering done to it. The majority of the effects work well, and the timing's relatively consistent throughout the video. It gets in and out before it wears out its welcome, and basically satisfies exactly what you were looking for. Certainly worth the checking-out.

 

September 2003 - The Slugfest Can Can [Version 2]
Title: "The Slugfest Can Can [Version 2]"
Song: "Can-Can"
Artist: Offenback
Length: 2:05
Size: 32.1 MB
Format: MPEG-1
Source: DragonBall Z
Editor: Meredith "Meri" Cantoni
Participation: AWA 9 Expo

Just a Few Words: It's really just something you don't see a lot of with DragonBall music videos... fight scenes set to something other than hard-rock or nü-metal! The original version of this video was released in 2001, and was completed in two days (not to mention was edited at MY house on MY computer, thank you... just... not by me). The remake is leaps and bounds above the original.

For starters, it looks better. Rather than being captured off of VHS, it's straight-up digitally ripped from the DVDs, this time, and it shows. It's vibrant, and it looks fantastic. Also, the editing is just so much tighter, clean, and consistent this time around. Where-as the original didn't always keep up with the song, this one definitely does. Plus... it's just such a great concept. Every time this video is played in front of a new audience, they bust up laughing at the 41-second mark when the first punch is thrown to the music.

Why is it not on the "top" list? Well, there's just something about it that I can't put my finger on. It's a great video, and it's fun to watch, but I guess it's just really nothing ground-breaking. It's fantastically amusing, but other than being fun, it's not really re-defining the genre, or anything. There's also a few scenes that, in retrospect, I think could have been done differently (I kept saying that the 1:41 mark, while building up dramatic mood, still needed some more "mmph!" to it). Definitely recommended to watch, though!

 

(Sometime) 2003 - Cooler Reloaded

[ AMVorg info / DL page ]
[ DannyPoo's Profile ]
Title: "Cooler Reloaded"
Audio: Matrix: Reloaded Theatrical Trailer
Source: Matrix: Reloaded
Length: 2:24
Size: 11.6 MB
Format: RealVideo
Source: DragonBall Z Movie 6
Editor: DannyPoo
Participation: n/a

Just a Few Words: Easily the best DBZ trailer I've seen... which hasn't been that many! There's Rocky Ball 3, which is funny but extremely awkwardly-edited.. and there's The One, which is absurdly cute... but beyond these three, there's really not all that more that's worth watching!

Unless you, too, have seen them all, you wouldn't believe the ridiculous number of Matrix: Reloaded trailers that came out in 2002-2003 (mostly 2003). It really was... well... almost obnoxious, since they all mostly used the same trailer audio, too. In comes the "old-school" (well, in the DBZ arena) DannyPoo with his DBZ trailer. I figured it would be interesting, and sure enough, it was a riot. If you think about it... it makes a lot of sense, using movie six. What's fantastic is just the sheer about of "clever" put into the video. When all the Coolas show up on the mountain, and Neo says "A lot more..."... well, you'll love it. The voice / character selections and fits are all done with fantastic precision, too.

Why isn't it on the "top" list? Well, despite how awesome it is, it's still VERY simply edited (and sometimes a little awkwardly). There were a few times when I thought that it really could use some extra "Mmph!" to it, whatever that may be. Also, as clever as it was, I'm sure it was admittedly easy to come up with and edit (as seen by the fantastic matches... so it's kinda a double-edged sword). Also, it suffers from a pretty low-bitrate compression... I'd love to see a higher quality version. Definitely recommended, though... it's a fantastic riot!

 

November 2001 - Battle Royale
Title: "Battle Royale "
Song: "Boomin'"
Artist: Mindless Self Indulgence
Length: 1:33
Size: 25.1 MB
Format: MPEG-1
Source: DragonBall Z
Editor: B.J. Dutton ("Lifehost")
Participation: n/a

Just a Few Words: To be honest, I'm sure not sure why I like this video so much. Technically, his video Final Vengeance is superior to this one in almost every way (and I definitely suggest checking it out)... but there's just something about this one...

It's a very simple action video, and in fact, only uses one fight (#18 vs "Mighty Mask"). The thing is... it's just so damn fun. Sure, Mindless Self Indulgence was pretty much MADE in the AMV scene by xianpower's Pokemon / Bitches video, but... it's just so damn fun! It's very tightly edited, and screams of effort.

Why isn't it on the "top" list? The problem is... it's just a single fight put to music. Luckily, just when it's starting to go on a little too long... it's over! It's a very short video, but it does its job well. But yeah, that's the thing... it's just a short, pointless action video. Despite how fun it is, you can't get around that.

 

September 2001 - The Inevitable
Title: "Cell Project II: The Inevitable"
Song: "New World Order"
Band: OneSideZero
Length: 2:48
Size: 42.5 MB
Format: MPEG-1
Source: DragonBall Z
Editor: Kyle Smith ("Shiniryu")
Participation: n/a

Just a Few Words: The concept behind this video is actually pretty amazing for 2001, back before "AMV Projects" were the "in" thing to be doing. Kyle Smith did his OWN little AMV project, in which he took all three forms of Cell (1st, 2nd, and Perfect) and did individual (almost "tribute") videos showcasing the form, and the events surrounding it. PLEASE be sure to check out Part 1 ("Fly into Freedom") and Part 3 ("Perfection"), as well.

For some reason, and despite my absolute hatred for Cell's second form... I find myself liking the second video in the project the most. It's just a damn good video. One thing that's done phenomenally well is setting the mood. The song's mood changes drastically between the choruses and the verses, and Kyle changes the mood of the video (through the style of editing and scene choices) absolutely beautifully, which is something a lot of people just can't get a grasp on. I think the entire Tenshinhan part of the video (early on) is so great... the firing of the Shin-Kikôhô, ending up with Goku teleporting off... the action syncs are just amazing in the video!

Why isn't it on the "top" list? One thing that really threw me was the sudden ending. I don't want to say he edited himself into a corner in way too much of a linear fashion, because I have no idea how the video was edited... but it almost comes across like that (suddenly, there's a couple seconds left in the video, and we need to wrap things up!). Also, it's really just a traditional action video telling the same story as the actual TV series, and doesn't attempt to do anything really "new" with the footage. Despite all this, it's part of an insanely awesome concept (especially for 2001), and you should really check it out. Still one of my favorites, to this day.

 

June 2001 - Forgotten
Title: "Forgotten"
Song: "Forgotten"
Band: Linkin Park
Length: 3:37
Size: 36.1 MB
Format: MPEG-1
Source: DragonBall Z
Editor: Justin Stenberg ("NeoGohan")
Participation: n/a

Just a Few Words: So many people quote this as one of their favorite "old-school" ("old-school," of course, meaning 2001 :P) DBZ videos, and I can totally see why they'd say that. For mid-2001, it's a pretty damn good action/drama DBZ video.

The action syncs are all done extremely well, showing great effort in this department. The story is told as best as it could be through the song and video, creating (as-noted) a pretty good hybrid action/drama video.

Why isn't it on the "top" list? Unfortunately, while I do like the video, I find more that I dislike about it than I like (which is pretty ironic, since I like the video, as a whole, and an recommending it to you...). For starters, it's just WAAAY too literal in the scene choices. Things like "pollution" mentioned in the song have absolutely nothing to do with air pollution... yet... that's exactly what is shown in the video. "From the top to the bottom" is not referring to the position of someone's hand firing a blast, nor their being hit from the air to the ground. Nothing is really left up to any sort of metaphorical or symbolic interpretation, and I think that hurts the video a lot.

The switch to fansub footage really hurt, as well. I totally understand that this episode was not yet domestically available (and still isn't... Hell, I don't even think it had aired on TV yet, which is why the fansub was used!)... but the switch between footage is REALLY blaring, especially when there are two instances of subtitles on the screen. While I'm at it, what's with the weird aspect ratio...?

Like I said earlier, it's ironic that I find so many negative points about the video, yet I really enjoy it and am recommending it to you. It's silly how videos can work out like that!

 

January 1998 - My Resolution
Title: "My Resolution"
Song: "I'm Already There"
Artist: Lonestar
Length: 4:15
Size: 12.1 MB
Format: RealVideo
Source: DragonBall Z
Editor: DannyPoo
Participation: n/a

Just a Few Words: This is another video that many people say is one of their favorite DBZ videos of all time, and it's yet another example of me totally sympathizing with these people. If I had seen it earlier in my fandom, I probably would have liked it even more than I already do! And that might be tough to top! ^^

This video is such a fantastic example of what DragonBall is truly about, it almost hurts. It's not about fighting, it's not about rivalry... it's about friendship, family, and love. This is a very slow and dramatic video, something that's rarely done with DBZ (despite it lending itself to it so well! More, people... more!).

The editing is, for the most part, really well done for such a slow song. The 2:30s are a prime example of this slow, fading style of editing that works so well in the video. Despite being a slower song, there's also some great "BOOM!"-type, dramatic moments.

Why isn't it on the "top" list? While I do like the style of editing, there are many times when I thought there simply needed to be MORE editing, even though it is a slower song. Occasionally, a scene would just drag out too long, and it would have been nice to see some sort of scene change or action-sync during that time. Also, the voices were extremely distracting, and I don't think they added to the video at all. I feel very strongly that if you need to rely on the actual dialogue from the show, you're not telling your story as well as you could be. It has nothing to do with the fact that it was English voices; I just don't feel they belonged in the video.

DannyPoo did a lot of both very literal and metaphorical scene choices. I felt the former sometimes seemed a little out of place (such as on the phone), where-as things like the "imaginary friend" with the ghost-like hand of the father seemed to border on brilliance. It's things like these that really make the video stand out, and I truly do recommend it to everyone. All in all, it's just a great video.

 

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