Marvin's Monthly Book Bites is a monthly newsletter I started in 2024 to share the books I've read over a month. You can subscribe to updates here.

Hey there 👋

Remember last month when I said that this was a special month and I had read only mangas? Well, I did it again. So if you're looking for in-depth book reviews, you can skip this edition of Monthly Book Bites. But if you want to get my thoughts on the complete Dragon Ball manga series and why it hooked me like no other thing this year, you're at the right place!

As a kid from the mid-90s, you probably know this feeling of coming back home from school, throwing your backpack in the corner, jumping in front of the TV, and watching Goku and his adventures. Honestly, I loved Dragon Ball as a kid, but somehow I never grasped the full story and the lore of it. I just knew that there were some badass guys fighting very evil but at least as badass guys. I watched that and enjoyed it for so many days. I haven't even seen it as an anime, just as a damn good TV series. But like so many things, I somehow lost track of it.

Now you're probably asking: Well, Marvin, what have you brought back to Dragon Ball now? Easy: One of my biggest passions that I have to this day: Gaming. I've heard about the release of the new Dragon Ball Sparking Zero game for PS5, and since I also played some of the classic Dragon Ball games on my PlayStation 2, I immediately got hooked and watched all the trailers, only to realize I maybe know 1% of the characters. So before I jump into that game, I wanted to make sure I equip myself with as much Dragon Ball knowledge as possible!

So I started the very old anime show, the real OG Dragon Ball with Goku as a kid. However, I realized that the storytelling, due to its age, is pretty slow, and there are a lot of filler episodes. So I switched to the manga and jumped into the anime for some of the epic fights. 

Fast forward one month, I've read all 42 volumes of the manga, which were first published between 1984 and 1995 (which is INSANE 🤯).

I can't tell you why, but somehow Dragon Ball has a pulling effect on people that is hard to find elsewhere. I devoured volume after volume, bought games, and even a phone case with a Dragon Ball logo. As soon as I read a new volume, I felt 20 years younger and could see my younger self right in front of me.

So one big aspect is nostalgia, but the other thing is fairly simple: damn good storytelling. You can think of the classic hero's journey what you like, but Dragon Ball just nails this. From interesting characters to brutal villains and one challenge after another, we always push boundaries. We always learn something, and we always grow together. It kind of feels like a metaphor for life. It doesn't matter what kind of challenges you face; you can make it through.

Dragon Ball should be a must-read for everyone. I rarely felt more alive while reading a story.  
Thank you, Akira Toriyama. You will be forever in our hearts. Rest in peace.

Now it's time to read books again, I guess. Well, maybe.