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Dragon Ball [ドラゴンボール] #2
Dragon Ball, Vol. 2: Kamehameha
With the (reluctant) help of the shapeshifting pig Oolong, Goku and Bulma have fou
192 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 10, 1986
296 people are currently reading
2992 people want to read
About the author
Akira Toriyama
1,918 books1,727 followersAkira Toriyama (鳥山明) was a Japanese manga artist and character designer. He first achieved mainstream recognition for creating the popular manga series Dr. Slump, before going on to create Dragon Ball (his most famous work) and acting as a character designer for several popular video games such as the Dragon Quest series, Chrono Trigger, and Blue Dragon. Toriyama came to be regarded as one of the most important authors in the history of manga with his works highly influential and popular, particularly Dragon Ball, which many manga artists cite as a source of inspiration.
He earned the 1981 Shogakukan Manga Award for best shōnen/shōjo manga with Dr. Slump, and it went on to sell over 35 million copies in Japan. It was adapted into a successful anime series, with a second anime created in 1997, 13 years after the manga ended.
His next series, Dragon Ball, would become one of the most popular and successful manga in the world. Having sold 260 million copies worldwide, it is one of the best-selling manga series of all time and is considered a key work in increasing manga circulation to its peak in the mid-1980s and mid-1990s. Overseas, Dragon Ball's anime adaptations have been more successful than the manga and are credited with boosting anime's popularity in the Western world. In 2019, Toriyama was decorated a Chevalier of the French Ordre des Arts et des Lettres for his contributions to the arts.
In October 2024, Toriyama was inducted into the Harvey Awards Hall of Fame.
He earned the 1981 Shogakukan Manga Award for best shōnen/shōjo manga with Dr. Slump, and it went on to sell over 35 million copies in Japan. It was adapted into a successful anime series, with a second anime created in 1997, 13 years after the manga ended.
His next series, Dragon Ball, would become one of the most popular and successful manga in the world. Having sold 260 million copies worldwide, it is one of the best-selling manga series of all time and is considered a key work in increasing manga circulation to its peak in the mid-1980s and mid-1990s. Overseas, Dragon Ball's anime adaptations have been more successful than the manga and are credited with boosting anime's popularity in the Western world. In 2019, Toriyama was decorated a Chevalier of the French Ordre des Arts et des Lettres for his contributions to the arts.
In October 2024, Toriyama was inducted into the Harvey Awards Hall of Fame.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 287 reviews
June 21, 2016
This is shaping up to become a real page-turner! Toriyama is having lots of fun with his silly characters and stream-of-consciousness-style adventure, throwing in the occasional meta-reference for good measure - what's not to like?
May 21, 2024
In volume 2, the story becomes even more interesting as the Dragon Ball is granted with a ridiculous wish, causing the Dragon Ball to be buried for a year.
Here, Toriyama-sensei incorporates humor similar to Deadpool's by breaking the fourth wall, making this manga even funnier and more entertaining.
At the end of the volume, there is an "Ask Me Anything" segment by Toriyama, which is also done by Oda in One Piece.
Here, Toriyama-sensei incorporates humor similar to Deadpool's by breaking the fourth wall, making this manga even funnier and more entertaining.
At the end of the volume, there is an "Ask Me Anything" segment by Toriyama, which is also done by Oda in One Piece.
April 13, 2024
Thus ends the first Dragon Ball 'saga', if you can call it that. The structure was actually improved in the anime adaptation, but overall it was just a silly gag manga with some fun adventure inspired by China mythology. I do prefer how it develops next with the tournaments etc. and saving the world, yet before the cosmic scope of DBZ.
May 5, 2025
PT Dragon Ball é um dos meus animes favoritos de sempre — arrisco mesmo dizer que é uma das minhas séries de animação preferidas de todos os tempos!
Há muito que queria retomar a leitura da obra original, e finalmente decidi fazê-lo. Está a ser um enorme prazer revisitar as aventuras de Son Goku, agora em formato mangá.
Diria até que o humor atrevido do autor — e de algumas personagens — resulta ainda melhor aqui do que no anime, onde teve de ser moderado pelas regras da televisão.
Uma leitura obrigatória, tanto para os fãs do anime como para apreciadores de mangá em geral.
--
EN Dragon Ball is one of my all-time favourite anime — I’d even say it’s one of my favourite animated series ever!
I’d been meaning to return to the original work for a long time, and I’ve finally decided to do it. Revisiting Son Goku’s adventures in manga format has been an absolute joy.
I’d even say that the author’s cheeky humour — and that of some of the characters — works even better here than in the anime, where it had to be toned down due to television restrictions.
A must-read for both fans of the anime and manga lovers in general.
Há muito que queria retomar a leitura da obra original, e finalmente decidi fazê-lo. Está a ser um enorme prazer revisitar as aventuras de Son Goku, agora em formato mangá.
Diria até que o humor atrevido do autor — e de algumas personagens — resulta ainda melhor aqui do que no anime, onde teve de ser moderado pelas regras da televisão.
Uma leitura obrigatória, tanto para os fãs do anime como para apreciadores de mangá em geral.
--
EN Dragon Ball is one of my all-time favourite anime — I’d even say it’s one of my favourite animated series ever!
I’d been meaning to return to the original work for a long time, and I’ve finally decided to do it. Revisiting Son Goku’s adventures in manga format has been an absolute joy.
I’d even say that the author’s cheeky humour — and that of some of the characters — works even better here than in the anime, where it had to be toned down due to television restrictions.
A must-read for both fans of the anime and manga lovers in general.
March 16, 2023
Okay, I have to admit I wasn't sure about this series. The first volume was fantastic, but when I was a kid Dragon Ball was all the rage - and I was never into it.
This second volume is exactly what I want from comics. Just so much imagination on the page. It's fast-paced but has a ton of character development and plot.
In just the second volume Goku, Bulma and co have gathered up all the Dragon Balls and are nearly ready to make the first wish... but things get in the way.
As for the pervy jokes, I'm just pretending Bulma is an adult. I'll admit some of the jokes are quite funny.
At the end we see Goku make his way to Kame-Sen'nin, the Turtle Hermit, to begin his training. I'm hyped.
This second volume is exactly what I want from comics. Just so much imagination on the page. It's fast-paced but has a ton of character development and plot.
In just the second volume Goku, Bulma and co have gathered up all the Dragon Balls and are nearly ready to make the first wish... but things get in the way.
As for the pervy jokes, I'm just pretending Bulma is an adult. I'll admit some of the jokes are quite funny.
At the end we see Goku make his way to Kame-Sen'nin, the Turtle Hermit, to begin his training. I'm hyped.
August 7, 2014
Son Goku, Bulma and Oolong are nearing the end of their quest with just a couple of dragon balls left to find. But they have more to worry about than Lord Yamcha and Pu’ar on their tail as Reich Pilaf is after the dragon balls for his own evil plans of world domination!
Dragon Ball is an absolute delight! Thankfully this second volume is a lot less pervy than the first one (though it’s weird seeing a 10 year old, I think, girl in a bikini) but the humour’s still silly – and I love that! It doesn’t take itself too seriously but manages to keep a good balance between drama and comedy.
We learn more about why Kame Senin is such a cool fighter, despite coming off as the biggest perv in the world (the Hawaiian shirts don’t help!), and Son Goku becomes more powerful learning how to hadoken – in fact, we find out just how dangerous this strange little boy is and why he has a tail.
The bad guy Reich Pilaf (a questionable name but then a lot of the characters’ names are questionable. Chi Chi, the name of the 10 year old girl, means both father and breasts in Japanese. Hmm) is probably the cutest bad guy ever. The alien-looking little fella has the gang locked up in his prison, then there’s a panel of him holding his toothbrush and toothpaste as he grins and tells us he’s going to bed early because he wants to be fresh in the morning. Have you ever seen a villain do anything so adorable?
The characters are really fun and Akira Toriyama writes them all so marvellously that they’re a joy to read. His artwork too is outstanding with more and more outlandish characters popping up. Toriyama is clearly enjoying himself, throwing in just about every kind of genre into Dragon Ball: sci-fi, fantasy, action, martial arts, mythology, contemporary culture, comedy, drama, romance – it sounds like a mess but it all gels together so perfectly in a way I can’t explain because I don’t really understand it myself. It just works!
Besides the feeling of perviness that’s unfortunately still in this series, the only aspect of the book I felt was a bit sloppy was how Yamcha and Bulma became a couple. Suddenly Yamcha’s not afraid of girls? It felt a tad contrived.
It’s great how the series so far has built up to this big moment when the Dragon God emerges and how Toriyama totally undermines that with one of the characters – that kind of bait and switch was totally unexpected and brilliant. It also means that the series is now headed in a completely fresh direction full of potential, and I can’t wait to find out where it’ll go next.
Two volumes in and I’m totally hooked. Dragon Ball is aces!
Dragon Ball is an absolute delight! Thankfully this second volume is a lot less pervy than the first one (though it’s weird seeing a 10 year old, I think, girl in a bikini) but the humour’s still silly – and I love that! It doesn’t take itself too seriously but manages to keep a good balance between drama and comedy.
We learn more about why Kame Senin is such a cool fighter, despite coming off as the biggest perv in the world (the Hawaiian shirts don’t help!), and Son Goku becomes more powerful learning how to hadoken – in fact, we find out just how dangerous this strange little boy is and why he has a tail.
The bad guy Reich Pilaf (a questionable name but then a lot of the characters’ names are questionable. Chi Chi, the name of the 10 year old girl, means both father and breasts in Japanese. Hmm) is probably the cutest bad guy ever. The alien-looking little fella has the gang locked up in his prison, then there’s a panel of him holding his toothbrush and toothpaste as he grins and tells us he’s going to bed early because he wants to be fresh in the morning. Have you ever seen a villain do anything so adorable?
The characters are really fun and Akira Toriyama writes them all so marvellously that they’re a joy to read. His artwork too is outstanding with more and more outlandish characters popping up. Toriyama is clearly enjoying himself, throwing in just about every kind of genre into Dragon Ball: sci-fi, fantasy, action, martial arts, mythology, contemporary culture, comedy, drama, romance – it sounds like a mess but it all gels together so perfectly in a way I can’t explain because I don’t really understand it myself. It just works!
Besides the feeling of perviness that’s unfortunately still in this series, the only aspect of the book I felt was a bit sloppy was how Yamcha and Bulma became a couple. Suddenly Yamcha’s not afraid of girls? It felt a tad contrived.
It’s great how the series so far has built up to this big moment when the Dragon God emerges and how Toriyama totally undermines that with one of the characters – that kind of bait and switch was totally unexpected and brilliant. It also means that the series is now headed in a completely fresh direction full of potential, and I can’t wait to find out where it’ll go next.
Two volumes in and I’m totally hooked. Dragon Ball is aces!
July 28, 2022
A mixture of lighthearted and adult humor, expressive and dynamic art, well paced plot, make Dragon Ball an extremely entertaining read.
January 12, 2021
It's downright astounding, in retrospect, how quickly the plot can move in these early parts of the story. We're in volume two and already the first whole storyline has been done with! This is nothing like Namek.
This sort of a thing is quite common in manga, I suppose. More characters, deeper personalities and more growth, epic storylines as these short ones no longer cut it. It's not all bad, but it can get slow and bloated and these early parts serve as a good throwback.
This sort of a thing is quite common in manga, I suppose. More characters, deeper personalities and more growth, epic storylines as these short ones no longer cut it. It's not all bad, but it can get slow and bloated and these early parts serve as a good throwback.
March 29, 2016
Ok, the first volume was good, but this one's great! The characters get more layers, the stories become more and more imaginative, and the overall universe of the book suddenly gets so much bigger. And all of that works without sacrificing the silliness and the light-hearted feeling at the core of this great series. An absolute joy to read.
July 1, 2022
This volume introduces us to Oolong as the core crew grows and are off hunting for the remaining dragon balls. Fun, innocently perverted, and once more, nostalgic, the story moves forward quickly and builds its unusual world at a relentless pace.
August 8, 2022
Omg. This is just too good. I honestly just did not expect this series to be as hilarious as it is. The characters are fantastic, the action travels at a great pace, and it's so completely random that you can never have any idea what to expect.
Plus, everything just happened so quickly?! Ha ha! Love it!!
I'm enjoying this far more than I thought I would. I picked up Vol 1 out of curiosity because I never watched the show but I'll probably keep going now I think! It's just so good!
Plus, everything just happened so quickly?! Ha ha! Love it!!
I'm enjoying this far more than I thought I would. I picked up Vol 1 out of curiosity because I never watched the show but I'll probably keep going now I think! It's just so good!
June 5, 2022
to come
January 2, 2025
A gostar muito de ler esta coleção.
December 21, 2023
Eljutottunk addig, amire azt hittem, hogy a 16 kötet cselekménye lesz. De kezdek rájönni, hogy ennek a mangának nem úgy van cselekménye. Csak egy rakat marhaság egymás után pakolva. És ez nem baj, mert nagyon szórakoztató. Egyébként ez kifejezetten akciódús volt most. Az a helyzet, hogy kezd hozzám nőni. És nem bánom.
April 10, 2015
Interesting that the gathering of the dragon balls turned out to be less important than one would think. My guess is that Toriyama planned this so it could end quickly if it didn't catch on with readers. So anyway, a wish is made, the dragon balls disperse, and Goku sets out to gain some training. The dragon balls will be sought again. And we get our first kamehameha. Akira Toriyama has a knack for character design, and a gift for spinning serious and silly elements together into an entertaining narrative. It's easy to see why this is such a highly regarded classic.
July 4, 2011
The continuing tale of Son Goku volume 2 concluded the first chapter of the Dragon Ball saga with the first conjuring of the Great Dragon. The story ends with Goku going off to Master Roshi for further training leaving me looking mournfully at online stores and contemplating the cost to get the rest of the series.
March 5, 2010
Gran cierre a una primera gran saga de una gran serie y blablablá. El único motivo por el que baja una estrellita con respecto al tomo #1 es porque disminuye el factor sorpresa y hay menos chistes, pero sigue siendo un comienzo digno de recordar.
June 21, 2014
No puede ser que me gusten todos los personajes! Toriyama es un genio! xD
June 12, 2017
L'origine di Dragon Ball:comico,leggero,avventuroso e favolistico...lontanissimo dalla successiva svolta epica,ma incredibilmente unico
February 6, 2023
3.5⭐️ I can’t believe Goku already lost his tail. But if nothing else, that’s one less weakness, on the outside at least.
June 2, 2023
No se por que deje de leer los mangas, si la historia es una de mis favoritas y de los primeros animes que vi en tv, si no recuerdan por allá del 2019, ¡chanfle, mucho antes de la pandemia!, me leí el primer tomo y me gusto mucho, hasta me di cuenta que recordaba muchas cosas de lo que había visto en el anime, pero ahí quedo y hasta ahora se me ocurrió leerlo y fue muy genial.
No se, pero se me volvió a meter ese gusanito que tenia por leer este tipo de historias, pero ahora no solo fue el recordar cosas si no el ver otras que capaz por ser muy pequeña no me había dado cuenta, pero hasta de los arcos argumentales me di cuenta, cosa que si ya había visto en dragon ball z, pero no le había tomado mucha importancia hasta ahora.
Es que en este tomo seguimos las aventuras del grupo para poder obtener las esferas del dragon y que Shenglong el dragón legendario les cumpla su deseo, pero Piaf este ser despreciable quiere las esferas para poder dominar el mundo, así que pasa por varias cosas para obtenerlas y atrapa al grupo pero no todo es lo que parece, de hecho esta parte de la saga se conoce como "el arco del rey piaf" por otro lado vemos un nuevo arco que se llama "el 21° torneo de artes marciales" vemos a goku entrenando con el Maestro Roshi y un nuevo compañero y como compiten en el torneo de artes marciales.
En general amo esta historia es muy buena y me atrapa, no se por que en esta ocasión quiero leerme toda la saga hasta dragon ball super, pero ya veremos que pasa, si con un ex novio me veia el anime de dragon ball z y se me hacia aburrido no quiero saber que pasara, pero de que me dieron ganas me dieron ganas.
Otra cosa de la que me di cuenta es que cuando veía este anime en tv, no me había dado cuenta de toda la censura que se le ponía, por que si hay partes que me hacen sentir muy incomoda ya que son algo sexosas, es que a veces el maestro Roshi como rabo verde se me hace muy pero muy incomodo o cuando Oolong se pone de libidinoso igual, pero por lo demás creo que es una historia increíble que no se deben perder, como les digo me recordó parte de mi infancia por que en la escuela primaria a la que iba eran muy fans de el anime y era de lo que se hablaba, así que de ahí le agarre cariño a esta historia.
Se las recomiendo si tienen ya un corto camino recorrido en el manga, para iniciar no creo que sea tan buena opción por que las partes por ejemplo del torneo de artes marciales si los van aburrir un poco o se van a confundir entre una pela u otra, pero por lo demás muy recomendado si se quieren meter a este mundo un tanto extraño pero original.
Entrada completa en: httpo://calderoliterario7.blogapot.mx
No se, pero se me volvió a meter ese gusanito que tenia por leer este tipo de historias, pero ahora no solo fue el recordar cosas si no el ver otras que capaz por ser muy pequeña no me había dado cuenta, pero hasta de los arcos argumentales me di cuenta, cosa que si ya había visto en dragon ball z, pero no le había tomado mucha importancia hasta ahora.
Es que en este tomo seguimos las aventuras del grupo para poder obtener las esferas del dragon y que Shenglong el dragón legendario les cumpla su deseo, pero Piaf este ser despreciable quiere las esferas para poder dominar el mundo, así que pasa por varias cosas para obtenerlas y atrapa al grupo pero no todo es lo que parece, de hecho esta parte de la saga se conoce como "el arco del rey piaf" por otro lado vemos un nuevo arco que se llama "el 21° torneo de artes marciales" vemos a goku entrenando con el Maestro Roshi y un nuevo compañero y como compiten en el torneo de artes marciales.
En general amo esta historia es muy buena y me atrapa, no se por que en esta ocasión quiero leerme toda la saga hasta dragon ball super, pero ya veremos que pasa, si con un ex novio me veia el anime de dragon ball z y se me hacia aburrido no quiero saber que pasara, pero de que me dieron ganas me dieron ganas.
Otra cosa de la que me di cuenta es que cuando veía este anime en tv, no me había dado cuenta de toda la censura que se le ponía, por que si hay partes que me hacen sentir muy incomoda ya que son algo sexosas, es que a veces el maestro Roshi como rabo verde se me hace muy pero muy incomodo o cuando Oolong se pone de libidinoso igual, pero por lo demás creo que es una historia increíble que no se deben perder, como les digo me recordó parte de mi infancia por que en la escuela primaria a la que iba eran muy fans de el anime y era de lo que se hablaba, así que de ahí le agarre cariño a esta historia.
Se las recomiendo si tienen ya un corto camino recorrido en el manga, para iniciar no creo que sea tan buena opción por que las partes por ejemplo del torneo de artes marciales si los van aburrir un poco o se van a confundir entre una pela u otra, pero por lo demás muy recomendado si se quieren meter a este mundo un tanto extraño pero original.
Entrada completa en: httpo://calderoliterario7.blogapot.mx
October 20, 2020
We pick up with the team after the Dragon Balls and there they meet the Giant and Chi-Chi, who will later on become Goku's wife and they have to put out fire on the mountain. Then they battle the rabbit gang and the fight is hilarious and the gang advances towards finding Dragon balls but are captured by Pilaf-Sama! Will they escape this or not? And Shenron finally appears! But it doesnt go as planned and the team go their separate ways and Goku finally goes to train with Master Roshi. Also there is the ape transformation which is epic!! This volume was so good and hilarious and just the simplicity of it makes me appreciate it even more!
May 31, 2025
The adventure continues and finally Goku and friends gather the seven spheres, while bumping on weird, funny villains and bonding along the way.
We discover a big secret about Goku and we realise that the dragon balls quest is just the beginning of Goku's journey. Love the humour, and the anti-climax dragon-wish moment. Pure genius.
We discover a big secret about Goku and we realise that the dragon balls quest is just the beginning of Goku's journey. Love the humour, and the anti-climax dragon-wish moment. Pure genius.
May 6, 2022
This one was definitely funnier than the first! The characters are getting better defined and more interesting and with one Dragon Wish already fulfilled, this series could go in some crazy directions!
3.5/5
3.5/5
July 5, 2022
volume iconico, prime apparizioni memorabili! mi fa ridere che Goku sia arrivato sulla luna col bastone e non l'abbia usato per raggiungere Kami-sama, ma sappiamo com'è fatto Toriyama e quella era solo una vignetta che aveva una funzione comica.
May 21, 2023
Enjoying reading this.
June 14, 2023
agora sim as coisas engajaram
October 27, 2023
I love Goku
June 6, 2024
I gave this 2 stars because chapter 20 actually made me laugh and at least it's a bit self aware
July 27, 2024
fun read, a bit boring at the beginning but it definitely picks up in the middle and the end! a loooottt more classier than the first volume
Displaying 1 - 30 of 287 reviews