Ask John: Is Dragonball Z a Yu Yu Hakusho Rip-Off?

Question:
Is Dragonball Z a cheap rip-off of Yu Yu Hakusho? And why do Americans think that DBZ is the best anime out there when YYH is out there too and is a lot better?

Answer:
Dragonball Z cannot possibly be a rip-off of Yu Yu Hakusho because Dragonball Z came first. The Dragonball manga premiered in November 1984. (There is no such thing as “Dragonball Z” manga in Japan; it’s all just Dragonball.) Yoshihiro Togashi’s Yu Yu Hakusho manga premiered six years later, in 1990. The Dragonball TV series premiered on Japanese television on February 26, 1986. The first episode of the Dragonball Z saga aired on April 19, 1989. The Yu Yu Hakusho anime did not debut until three years later, broadcasting its first episode on October 10, 1992.

Even in Japan, Dragonball is unquestionably more popular than Yu Yu Hakusho. In comparison:

Yu Yu Hakusho: 112 TV episodes, 2 theatrical movies, 6 OAVs consisting of primarily recycled TV series footage

Dragonball: 510 TV episodes, 17 theatrical movies, 3 TV specials with entirely new story and animation

If anything, it could be said that Yu Yu Hakusho is Yoshihiro Togashi’s remake of Akira Toriyama’s Dragonball- the story of a rough-around-the-edges young man imbued with superhuman powers who joins up with similarly empowered friends and battles in supernatural martial arts competitions. The primary difference is that while Toriyama was content to focus his story on its male characters and prioritize creating an action/adventure story for boys, Togashi’s story included more drama, more emotional angst (Vegeta’s wounded pride in Dragonball doesn’t really count as being “emotional”) and a more significant role for female characters. (In practical terms, Dragonball includes no women. There are female characters, but none of them bring any significant femininity to the story.) What qualifies as “better” is up to personal evaluation. It’s natural that many American fans would prefer Dragonball over Yu Yu Hakusho because Dragonball was available in America years before Yu Yu Hakusho and has had far more time to establish a devoted fan base. Furthermore, it’s natural instinct to develop a fondness for one’s first exposure to anything appealing. Many fans prefer the straightforward style of Dragonball while others are partial toward the more character development oriented Yu Yu Hakusho. There are complaints over the repetitive format of Dragonball. Likewise some fans dislike Yu Yu Hakusho’s extended story development before it ever gets to its supernatural martial arts action elements.

I think it’s a bit narrow minded to flatly accuse either Dragonball or Yu Yu Hakusho of being no good. Considering how often unsuccessful anime are discontinued in Japan and new series created, any anime series that lasts even remotely as long as these two titles did must have some reason behind its popularity. The fact that some fans may prefer Dragonball over Yu Yu Hakusho or vice versa should not be taken as a criticism of the quality of either show. There are simply too many differences in the style and content of Dragonball and Yu Yu Hakusho to directly compare them. Considering that both series feature roughly equal production values and animation quality, trying to comparing Yu Yu Hakusho with Dragonball is like trying to compare the Matrix Reloaded with Attack of the Clones- both big budget sci-fi adventure movies featuring martial arts weapon combat. But the differences in style and format between the two titles far outweighs their commonalties, making direct comparison injudicious.