Dragon Ball (Vizbig Edition), Vol. 4

The Manga deserves a 5 Star, dont get me wrong. A 3 Star rating is just cause the condition of the book I received had a lot of shelf wear. I wouldn't call it "used", but the back had scuff marks.The reason I am not returning and getting an exchange is because it is not available anywhere else. I think I have to make do with this one :(

The VizBig books are 3 in 1 book like the other DB available, but much better quality pages, bigger page size (hence big) and a number of colour pages.The only disappointment is there is no pattern across the spine for the series like the other versions have.The content is an absolute classic in every way, I raced through it in very little time. Will revisit.

Spedizione arrivata puntuale, peccato che il fumetto è arrivato con l’aletta di quarta di copertina completamente tagliata e la copertina spiegazzata.Da vero collezionista maniacale NON sono affatto contento.

Niece loves the book

Review concerns only the release; Dragon Ball is a five-star series in my book. For the product itself, I have to give praise to the quality of the print and paper, and its affordability; three volumes in one for half of what you'd pay for the standalone volumes is a steal. Also included are some of the colored artwork absent in the Tankobon and 3-in-1s Viz later put out. Easily the best official release in English, at least until Viz gets to the Full Color editions of this portion of the series. However, this release is not without quite a few issues, namely the censorship of vulgarity (i.e middle fingers), somewhat wonky translation, and inconsistent inclusion of the color pages keeps me from giving this release a fifth stars. Also, the generic cover art is a little off-putting for me, but that hardly undermines the actual content of the prodcut.

These VIZBIG editions for Dragon Ball are a wonderful option. They pack three of the regular volumes in one book (except for the last book of each series: book 5 of the VIZBIG edition for Dragon Ball includes 4 volumes while book 9 of the VIZBIG edition for Dragon Ball Z includes only the last 2 volumes) in a larger format (kanzenban, instead of tankoubon) with full-color pages in some chapters (these selected chapters are entirely colored). Also, they're cheaper than trying to buy each tankoubon separately: each tankoubon is roughly $7.95 (Amazon price), whereas each VIZBIG kanzenban is about $12.20. Considering Dragon Ball is 16 volumes (tankoubon) long but only 5 kanzenban long, and Dragon Ball Z is 26 volumes (tankoubon) long but only 9 kanzenban long, well... You do the math.The only caveat is, obviously, that the VIZBIG books are quite bulky: there could be more risk of damage from shipping and the books will fill a lot of space in your backpack if your planning to take them with you anywhere. Also, they're quite heavy and could make reading unconfortable: I read them while lying down on my bed, so I put a pillow over my belly to support the book while reading, otherwise my wrists would hurt after a while from the weight of the book. I also read them while riding the subway and it was quite difficult (definitely no stand-up reading), but I managed. Even with these nuances, I still think the books deserve 5 stars: the printing and binding (very important for such heavy books) are top-notch.Some people complain about the translation because apparently it uses too much childish jargon, but I didn't find it annoying at all. Maybe there are better options for sociolinguistic register, but I can't really vouch for that, as my Japanese is not good enough to read the original manga. For the same reason, I can't confirm if the Viz edition really got censored (I went online for a quick check of some fan scanlations, but couldn't tell if there are actually redrawn panels).Of course, if you're a collector, you might aim for the original tankoubon. Well, that task may prove a bit difficult, as, apparently, Viz is realeasing sort of a new edition of the tankoubon. I haven't confirmed this, but if it's true, soon the 1st edition volumes (the red ones for Dragon Ball -the kanzenban are yellow- and white ones for Dragon Ball Z -the kanzenban are red-) will be rare items soaring through the skies.In all, I really think this was a very nice investment. I don regret it in the least and I actually recommend it strongly.