“Look fast!”

Predictably (and predictedly), announcements are shooting up all over the place as the Tokyo Game Show draws ever nearer. Now that E3 has become an undead husk of its former self, TGS is the industry’s most important trade event, with enough gravity to pull news items not even pertinent to Japan into its lower orbit. Really, it doesn’t take much to surmise that the Japanese audience is at least matched by those of us angling for information worldwide, so there’s little reason not to send a few morsels our way. Companies get eyeballs, we get a briefly sating glimpse of what’s to come; everyone’s happy.

Case in point: an English trailer for Dragon Ball Origins. It’s significant just to have reconfirmation that this is coming out here, since Dragon Ball’s main appeal in the West has always been the cavalcade of grimacing muscle-men it became in later years, rather than the fanciful globetrotting adventure it started out as. Origins places its focus firmly with the latter, although someone in advertising clearly recognized the cultural divide, setting the trailer to the same kind of droning synth-rock that plagued the English dub of Dragon Ball Z. It’s only by the sanity of modern localizations that I trust the game itself will retain the lighthearted orchestral score of the original anime.

The ESRB notice gives the game a T for “partial nudity” and “suggestive themes,” which hopefully will be enough to account for the disparity between Toriyama’s outwardly kid-friendly art style and his blue sense of humor. In particular, it’ll mean the world to me if this brilliant use of the DS hardware goes unedited:

[[image:nn_081003_bulma_01.jpg:I would explain what’s going on here, but honestly, the context just makes it worse.:center:0]]
Oh, yes. The gap beween screens may have gotten you killed in Contra 4, but never forget the time it spared you the indignity of Bulma’s dainty parts.

10 thoughts on ““Look fast!”

  1. rukiri, Toriyama has *always* been about the lowbrow (but good-naturedly funny) sex and potty humor, when he isn’t being forced by marketing concerns to draw nothing but endless fighting tournaments.

  2. yeah… not sure how grade school girls lifting their skirts for old men is good-natured, but I see your point. Oh Japan… how I don’t understand you.

  3. Bulma’s at least a teenager at the beginning of the story. That’s…better, right?

  4. Bulma’s bloomers to be more precise. It’s right in her name, dammit, you’re surprised?

  5. I am pretty sure that Roshi asked her to do it before he is willing to train Goku. I do not remember exactly though.

    I really enjoyed the early portions of Dragonball. I stopped keeping tabs on it when the fighting got closer to the DBZ style. I hope The Red Ribbon Army and Tao Pai Pai are in this game.

  6. Bulma’s bloomers to be more precise. It’s right in her name, dammit, you’re surprised?

    She’s not wearing any. It’s a long story.

  7. Looks like the DS is the Toriyama handheld of choice.

    I can’t wait to play Dr. Chrono Blue Dragon Quest Warrior Trigger Ball Z 9000+. That said, I bet they will use this gap opportunity for the naked Goku scenes as well.

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