Hello there Dragon Ball fan. How are you this fine day? Are you relaxed? Oh, good, lets sit back and watch some TV! Ahhhhh, lets see what's on good 'ole Cartoon Network. Oh....heh....it's that Toonami program, the greatest compilation of edited and or poorly localized Japanese Anime, this side of the Western Hemisphere, (with the occasional computer generated or Third Earth folly). Wow, there seems to be a lot of commercials for Dragon Ball Z. Wow, there's a lot of commercials for that Gundam show too! Well that's kinda cool I guess. Oh, the show is back on. *Minutes pass*, well albeit the fact that the voice acting was horrendous, the music sounds like it was composed by a cat walking across a synthesizer, and the cheese-filled one-liners run as freely as buffalo on the western American plains states, (pre-Reconstruction and Expansion Westward), the show was pretty stupid! I can easily see why so many youngsters can enjoy this show! *said sardonically*. Oh okay.....uh....more anime commercials. Oh, another DBZ commercial. And another. Oh, now it's a DBZ action figure commercial.....AH! I can't stand it! Let's change the channel, shall we? How about the WB Network? Aside from the NEW Batman and Superman Adventures, (the old episodes of Batman which ran on Fox being far superior), there are some quality shows on this network. Oh look, a Pokemon commercial! Aren't those little guys cute? Well, at least Pokemon has an excuse to be commercial, as it's being aimed at young children. Oh look, here's another commercial! It's.....dear Lord. It's a Dragon Ball toy commercial! Et tu WB? You know, I really can't take this. Maybe TV wasn't a good idea! Lets go rent a movie! Ah, here we are at Blockbuster! What a wonderful place, filled with choice movies for the taking! Ah look, there's Dogma, what a hoot! And over there is Sleepy Hollow, remember how we all had a laugh when the Headless Horseman made Rico from Starship Troopers luggage-size? Ho ho ho! Oh! Look over here! It's the anime section. Wow, what an excellent selection! Ghost in the Shell! Ninja Cadets! Slayers! Akira! Project A-Ko! Vampire Hunter D! Tenchi the Movie! Goldenboy! Iria! All our old favorites in one place! Oh, there appears to be more on the other side, lets go check it out! *Rounds corner, and freezes as a wall of Dragon Ball Z videos, toys and key-chains are spread out like pieces of candy for children to pick up and beg their parents to buy* Approximately 7 seconds of pure silence pass *Grabs your arm and pulls you, screaming like a maniac out of the store*. Phew, that was a close one! We almost witnessed something no DBZ fan should ever see, a shoddy toy, bearing somewhat of a resemblance to a DBZ character, toting a shot-gun. Hey lets go to Hot Topic, they might have some cool anime stuff there. *Walks in and sees people with multiple piercings and white make-up on their faces, politely acknowledges them, but doesn't linger* Okay, here's all the anime stuff buddy, lets see what they've got. What is this?????? DRAGON BALL Z SHOT GLASSES!!!!!??? (I kid you not ladies and gentleman). *With your help sets explosives around the store and blasts it into the Next Dimension*. I'm in the mood for a video game, lets go to Electronics Boutique and/or Babbages! *Doesn't bother walking in either store when he sees a large anime video section in the windows showcasing Trunks videos*. Ummmm, this is getting frustrating, lets go get some fresh air. Ah, Times Square is so lovely this time of year! The rush of the city, the excitement of the people! I love it! The advertisements are always funny too! Hey, look, a GAP billboard! Hah, when will those crazy kids ever get enough singing and dancing! Wow, a gigantic Cup Noodle! Now that's clever! Oh, look at that one way up there.....what does it say? I can't quite make it out from here...."Wat..ch T....oon..ami On Cart..oon N..et..work We..ekd..ays". You know, maybe going outside wasn't such a good idea. Lets go back in. Oh! The T-Shirt Factory, what zany surprises will they have in store for us today? Hah! That shirt says "Make 7" on the front and "Up Yours" on the back! Pure genious! *Hairs on the back of Greg's neck raise up when he sees a showcase with DBZ T-Shirts* You know what Maybe we should check out the Warner Bros. Store. They probablly have some cool Taz boxers or something. *Walks into the store* Sweet Mary Mehozafitz! DBZ WALKIE TALKIES AND A "DRESS UP AS GOKOU SET"!!? Forget this, I've really got a old fashioned hankering for a geek boost, lets go over to the comic book shop! Hey, look, Magic Cards! I never really liked those things, but they had cool pictures. Oh....Dragon Ball cards.....and lots of them... And over there is a Dragon Ball Role Playing Game. I'll just back out of this store slowly and... *Greg backs up into a vendor, and sees that he's peddling DBZ Mini-Action Figures, Greg proceeds to build a rocketship which blasts you and him safely back to his house* Whew! All that running around has made me hungry, (^_^ You know where this is going don't ya?), I think we should go to the Home of the Whopper! *Greg doesn't get two feet inside the door before he falls down dead. Autopsy reveals it was Commercialitis, a rare disease transfered by shows that pop-up absolutely everywhere in society, but shouldn't*

Ladies and gentleman, this is meerly my sardonic thesis to what I could make into a 100+ page thesis on commercialism of not just DBZ, but many other objects, topics and people as well, but since this site is DBZ based, I'll keep it to that. Before we forget, I must state both sides. Is DBZ really all that commercial here as compared to what it was in Japan? No way! There was a Dragon Ball-everything! From eye-drops to cooking gear and even a sports drink, DB was in every part of Japanese society. And rightfully so! Japan IS commercial! Japan has an excuse to be commercial! Because in Japan, EVERYTHING is commercial! We're talking about people who play an arcade game which tests your physical abilities by seeing how far you can stick your finger up an animatronic rear-end. (seriously) Everything about pop-culture Japan is trendy, hip and commercial. If you were to gather an opinion of Japanese people by commercials alone, you'd think they danced around in neon colors, while sticking rotating popsicle sticks in their mouths while executing backflips, (which in some cases isn't too far from the truth), and although life in Japan is not a big party, it IS very commercial. In America, we treat only fads commercially. Ghost Busters, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Spam, Power Rangers, Tomagotchi, Furby, Pokemon and now, Dragon Ball Z. DBZ deserves more respect than to be treated as a fad. Perhaps the true sign of a shows' excellence is when it becomes a so-called "cult classic" and lives on in fans' hearts forever, instead of enjoying a few albeit euphoric moments of bliss then crashing, and crashing hard, being remembered as, "That old show", instead of, "Remember DBZ? That was hardcore good!". FUNimation currently has 50 people employed. 50 people! That is NOTHING! Do you have any idea how much money they're raking in? And all because they sold-out to the almighty dollar. And not only that, but with only fifty people on their pay-roll, you'd think they could hire some talent, instead of a librarian, to do voices. In an interview at DBZ Uncensored, Ian Corlett talked about his career as Gokou's first American voice. Although he was a gentleman by not divulging exactly why he left, it was clear that he was unhappy with the way FUNimation ran things, whether it be pay, scheduling, or whatever. Now granted, maybe FUNimation needed some time to get back on their feet to start Season 3, so they hired blue-collar workers. Understandable, but now that DBZ has become a super power of sorts, there's no excuse for them to continue employing what they currently have. Oh wait, there is that thing about contracts and morality. If FUNimation is so moral, then why have they left original fans in the dirt since the release of the DVDs? I'm not saying they could have possibly done an uneditted format of DBZ at the time of its' release, but somehow, someway, they should have done something for us. Maybe let Viz translate a Daizenshyu, or bring over an art book. I don't know, just something! With what FUNimation is making now, they can do anything. And they will be successful, I don't doubt it, but I will never be able to look at American DBZ the same way. All I see are dollar signs in Gokou's eyes.