Based on Akira Toriyama’s manga series of the same name, Dragon Ball is one of the most popular and influential anime franchises in the world. Numerous sequels, spinoffs, and feature films have been released since Toei Animation’s Dragon Ball premiered in Japan in 1986, which makes watching it all an enormous undertaking.
What to Know
- Canonically: Includes Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, and Dragon Ball Super.Chronologically: Includes all series and movies. Start with Dragon Ball and end with Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero.Release order: Earliest title is Dragon Ball (1986) and the most recent is Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero (2022).
Fortunately, there are a few different ways to watch Dragon Ball. While you can go the completionist route, a large portion of the franchise isn’t considered canon so you can save a lot of time if you cut out non-canon content. However, you’ll also miss some of Dragon Ball’s most creative and epic moments if you go this route so you might be better off doing a chronological viewing and deciding for yourself how much you’d like to watch.
This article will cover the main Dragon Ball viewing orders and where you can watch it all online.
How to Watch Dragon Ball in Canonical Order
If you’re just looking for the “core” Dragon Ball experience, a canonical viewing is the way to go. This viewing order cuts out the movies, as well as a few series like Dragon Ball GT. Consider this Goku and the Z Fighters’ main story.
One important consideration you’ll need to make is whether to watch Dragon Ball Z or Dragon Ball Z Kai. The former is the original anime that ran from 1989 - 1996, while the latter is an updated version of the same series with remastered picture and sound, as well as a more streamlined story that cuts out much of the filler material found in Dragon Ball Z.
It’s debatable which is better—Kai is higher-quality in a number of ways, but lacks some of the charm of Dragon Ball Z’s wackier excursions. You could always hop back and forth to decide which you prefer but it’s arguably worth sticking to one since there’s so much overlap.
Dragon Ball Z Kai is currently unavailable on any US streaming platforms, which means you’ll need to purchase individual seasons through physical release or digitally via a platform like the Microsoft Store or iTunes. Although the show is listed on Funimation, you can’t actually stream any episodes.
How to Watch Dragon Ball in Chronological Order
If you want to expand beyond the canonical texts, you might prefer watching Dragon Ball in chronological order. This viewing incorporates all of the movies and inserts them roughly where they would take place in the main series canon. It also means stopping and re-starting Dragon Ball Z at numerous points, so keep this in mind if you want to stick to the suggested viewing order.
To simplify things, Dragon Ball Z has been incorporated into this viewing order and not Dragon Ball Z Kai. You can still complete this viewing with Kai instead, but the specific episode numbers will be different than those listed below.
How to Watch Dragon Ball in Release Order
This viewing order is similar to the ones listed above but instead of going through events chronologically, it’s categorized by release date. This can be considered the completionist viewing since it includes Includes all series, movies, specials, and OVA (original video animation).
- What does the Z in Dragon Ball Z stand for?
- The Z in Dragon Ball Z stands for Zenkai, which means “Last Time” in Japanese, because Dragon Ball Z was supposed to be the end of the series.
- How long would it take to watch all of Dragon Ball?
- It would take about 284 hours, or nearly 12 days, to watch all Dragon Ball series and movies.
- How many episodes of Dragon Ball Z are there?
- There are 291 episodes of Dragon Ball Z. The original Dragonball has 153 episodes.
- How old is Goku in Dragon Ball?
- The original Dragon Ball follows Goku from age 12-18. In Dragon Ball Z, he is 24-37. Dragon Ball Super begins when Goku is 41, and in Super Dragon Ball Heroes he is 43.
The Z in Dragon Ball Z stands for Zenkai, which means “Last Time” in Japanese, because Dragon Ball Z was supposed to be the end of the series.
It would take about 284 hours, or nearly 12 days, to watch all Dragon Ball series and movies.
There are 291 episodes of Dragon Ball Z. The original Dragonball has 153 episodes.
The original Dragon Ball follows Goku from age 12-18. In Dragon Ball Z, he is 24-37. Dragon Ball Super begins when Goku is 41, and in Super Dragon Ball Heroes he is 43.
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