There's something wonderful about reading early Dragon Ball. It seems so innocent. When this part of the story (volumes 4–6) was written, Akira Toriyama was a well-known mangaka, but not the legend he is today. I mean let's face it, he literally changed the world with his creation. His story became a global phenomenon that generated untold riches. Next to Godzilla, it's probably the second best-known entertainment property from Japan. It's certainly the best-known anime/manga property of all time. Everybody knows DBZ. It changed the way manga is made and inspired/influenced countless mangaka. It became the blueprint numerous Shonen Jump manga has followed.

 

But before all that, it was just a story of an unusually strong little boy named Goku...

 

...who is in the middle of the Strongest Under the Heavens Tournament. Goku and his glabrescent partner Kuririn are making their way to the finals. At this point in the story, the characters don't have the godlike power they eventually attain, and Master Roshi is a tough fight. And as a training exercise to teach his students a lesson in humilty, he's entered the tournament disguised as the mysterious fighter, "Jackie Chun." 

 

These early battles are filled with Toriyama Sensei's signature humor. There are plenty of gags, most of them damn funny. There are also some classic fourth-wall moments as well. And the fights themselves are amazing. It's a wonderful mix of expertly drawn action, gags, and surprises. In terms of action, Toriyama Sensei is in a class of his own. His fights are bursting with energy and speed, yet the reader is never lost. The battle between Jackie Chun and Goku is particularly good, and filled with so many "Gotcha!" moments it will keep your eyeballs glued to each page to see how it ends. 

 

 

The next chunk in the omnibus focuses on Goku's quest to find the scattered dragon balls. This will bring him up against the nefarious evil organization, the Red Ribbon Army! To help a town that's being terrorized by the Army, Goku launches an attack on one of the Red Ribbon Army's towers and takes on a host of ridiculous foes. 

 

The first of which is a massive android named "Full Metal Jacket," who bears a striking resemblance to Arnold Schwarzenegger. After that battle, Goku fights a "wacky ninja," and Toriyama Sensei pulls out all the comedic stops and ends up with one of the, if not THE funniest fights in the entire series. It's some real Warner Bros. Looney Toons level stuff. And then he meets an android that looks exactly like Frankenstein's monster! That's what I love about early Dragon Ball—Jackie Chan, Schwarzenegger, Frankenstein! Anything goes! And that's what I mean about the story feeling so innocent. At this point, I doubt Toriyama Sensei ever dreamed the story would take off and become the global hit it did. That's probably why he felt comfortable putting thinly guised references to Jackie Chan and Arnold  Schwarzenegger in there.

 

 

Sadly, many years ago I used to be a real anime and manga snob. I wrote off Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z as a "dumb fighting manga." That was my loss. If you have a friend like that, I encourage you to point them to the early Dragon Ball volumes, so they can find out why this became the legendary manga it is today.

 

Oh, and these 3-in-1's are a great way to go! Can't beat three volumes for 15 bucks! It's lightweight, portable and comes with a huge title page gallery in the back, interview with Toriyama Sensei and volume notes.