When Funimation got their hands on the Dragon Ball series, they had a daunting task: adapting the Japanese series for American audiences while keeping it kid-friendly. This resulted in heavy creative censorship, common in early English dubs of the 80s and 90s.
Although the company later revised and re-released these earlier episodes and generally moved away from extensive censorship, the toned-down classic episodes still remain a fond memory in the minds of old-school Dragon Ball fans. From toning down language and gestures to completely rewriting certain scenes, Funimation’s dub changed many elements to make the series appropriate for American television.
10 Alcohol and cigarettes have been modified or eliminated entirely
Sparkling water was a more age-appropriate replacement for beer
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How Dragon Ball Censorship Changed
Here’s a look at how Dragon Ball censorship evolved and changed throughout the anime’s broadcast history in the United States and Japan.
Funimation has made several changes to Dragon Ball And Dragon Ball Z reduce the presence of alcohol and tobacco, with the aim of making the shows more suitable for a younger audience. One of the main targets of this censorship was Master Roshi, who was frequently seen drinking beer in the original series. Funimation either removed these scenes or replaced the beer with a generic drink like “soda water” to tone down his wild, drunken antics. The same treatment was given to other characters and situations involving alcohol.
In a scene from Dragon Ball ZGoku and his friends are having a party where alcohol is present, but Funimation has changed the drinks to soda or fruit punch. Cigarettes and cigars do not escape censorship either. Characters like Commander Red and others who were seen smoking in the original version had their cigarettes digitally erased in the Funimation dub. These changes were made to align with stricter US broadcast standards, ensuring the show remains suitable for children.
9 Vulgar gestures had to be cleaned up in the dubbing
A closed fist is less offensive than flipping the bird
Funimation Dragon Ball dub has taken painstaking measures to clean up the more vulgar moments from the original Japanese version, particularly regarding crude gestures and swearing. One of the most common changes involved the middle finger: several characters in the Japanese version were quick to freak people out when they were angry. But when Funimation initially localized the series, they made sure those middle fingers were gone. Instead, characters would be shown with clenched fists or hands at their sides, completely ignoring the whole flipping the bird thing.
The original Japanese version of the series also didn’t shy away from using some pretty colorful language, especially from villains and hot-headed characters like Bulma. Funimation, however, erased these swear words. Phrases like “whore” and “bastard” have been replaced with much milder insults like “asshole” or “damn.” Sometimes the dialogue was simply completely rewritten to be less aggressive without replacing specific words, although said dialogue sometimes ended up being quite clunky.
8 Mr. Satan had a major name change
His evil name was controversial
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Funimation made a notable change to Mr. Satan’s name, renaming him Hercules in his original version. DBZ dubbing. “Satan” was a little too intense for younger audiences and for some regions where religious sensitivity was a concern. So, Funimation opted for the much tamer Hercules, presenting him more as a strongman hero rather than someone with an evil nickname. Interestingly, later, when Funimation’s dubs became more faithful to the Japanese versions, they had the chance to restore the original “Mr. “Satan” name. But by then, fans were so accustomed to Hercules that Funimation stuck with him primarily for the sake of consistency and familiarity.
In some cases, especially when it came to subtitled versions or home releases, they started using “Mr. Satan” again. However, for mainstream dubs, “Hercules” remained because it was already a household name among fans, and Funimation didn’t want to cause confusion. This name change is a perfect example of how Funimation has balanced censorship with fan satisfaction, while trying to ensure the series remains accessible to wide audiences, especially in more conservative markets.
7 All mention of the word hell has been removed
The House of Infinite Losers doesn’t seem as bad as the fiery pits of Hell
When Dragon Ball was dubbed by Funimation, they had to deal with “offensive” words that would not appeal to American audiences, especially younger viewers. One of the biggest examples is the word “Hell”. In the original, some afterlife characters, such as ogres, proudly wear shirts that literally say “HELL” in bold letters. However, Funimation decided it was too intense, so they cleverly renamed Hell to “HFIL”, which means Home for Infinite Losers.
These same ogres have had a new wardrobe, wearing HFIL shirts instead, making the whole thing a lot less intimidating.
Another notable censorship concerned written Japanese. Kanji characters on signs, paper, or screens have either been translated into English or removed entirely. Sometimes they would replace a parchment with just a blank sheet of paper, leaving viewers wondering what was originally written there. This was done to avoid confusion for audiences who might not understand Japanese, while still keeping the flow of scenes intact.
6 General Blue magically had a younger brother
Samuel does not exist in the original Japanese version
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In Dragon BallGeneral Blue, one of the villains of the Red Ribbon Army, has a particular scene in the original Japanese version where he is a little too attracted to Obotchaman, a childish android. This moment alluded to Blue’s homosexuality, but also had other troubling implications, with his attraction being seen as a case of predatory behavior towards a child, which would certainly not go down well with international audiences. To avoid controversy, Funimation removed Blue’s attraction, and he instead thinks Obotchaman is his long-lost brother, Samuel, who does not exist in the Japanese or original manga!
This random brother story conveniently distracts from the questionable implications of Blue’s attraction. Funimation softened the scene to make it more palatable to younger, international audiences without delving into inappropriate themes. This is a great example of how localization can dramatically change content to match cultural sensitivities while still keeping things entertaining!
5 Mr. Popo received a major character overhaul
Fans had mixed reactions to this change
When Dragon Ball Z Kai airing on The CW, Funimation made a major change to Mr. Popo’s appearance to avoid controversy. Mr. Popo, originally depicted with jet-black skin and bright red lips, has long been criticized for his resemblance to a black face.an offensive racial stereotype. So for the TV show, Funimation changed her skin color to blue and her lips to orange. This version of Mr. Popo, sometimes humorously nicknamed “Blue Popo” by fans, aimed to avoid racial insensitivity while keeping the character. Fans have mixed reactions, with some seeing the need for change and others thinking it went too far.
This type of censorship is not specific to Dragon Ball. Similar changes were made to Jynx in Pokémonwhere her dark skin was recolored purple following similar accusations of resembling blackface. Funimation’s changes were part of a larger trend to avoid problematic imagery in older anime, especially as it was marketed to younger, more diverse audiences in the West. Even though the change made Mr. Popo look like an alien Smurf, it was Funimation’s way of navigating cultural sensitivities without cutting the character completely.
4 All instances of nudity have been removed
The underwear has also been added, changed and edited several times
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Funimation has gone to great lengths to censor nudity, especially when it comes to Bulma and Goku.. Whenever there was nudity, they got creative. For example, they added objects like flowers, tables or changed camera angles to hide exposed body parts. Scenes where Bulma showed off her underwear or showed nudity, such as when Goku accidentally lifted her nightgown, were either heavily edited or removed entirely. In one episode, her underwear even changed from white to pink, presumably to look like shorts to match her dress. But it was still a special change for the fans.
Some scenes have also been completely reworked. When Bulma tried to lure a transformed Oolong out of the water by tying her underwear to a fishing rod, Funimation traded her underwear for money, as bribery is apparently less scandalous than pennies -clothes. In another classic Oolong moment, when he wished for a pair of Shenron’s underwear, the underwear was again slightly altered. Funimation really tried to make Dragon Ball more suitable for young audiences by removing these riskier moments.
3 Violence has been greatly reduced
Some character deaths weren’t as gruesome as the original
Funimation took a big advantage DBZThe violence of censoring or toning down many of the more brutal moments to make the series more kid-friendly. For example, Raditz’s death in the Saiyan Saga was originally quite bloody: Piccolo’s special beam cannon impales Raditz and Goku, and there is a fair amount of blood. Funimation removed most of the blood, making the scene less graphic and reducing the impact of the moment. Likewise, Guldo’s death in the Frieza Saga was also censored. Vegeta originally decapitates him, and it’s a pretty clean kill. In Funimation’s version, the decapitation is cut out and fans only see the aftermath without the gore.
This trend continued throughout the series, with blood being removed or minimized at many key moments. Characters like Goku, Vegeta, Frieza, and Gohan took less visible damage during their most intense fights. Funimation also reduced the amount of blood shown in moments like Frieza’s impalement of Krillin and Vegeta’s beating at the hands of Recoome. While Funimation tried to maintain the high stakes and intensity of the original, their edits ensured that the violence was less disturbing and more suitable for younger viewers.
2 Funimation had to seriously tone down Master Roshi’s evil antics
Her lust still wouldn’t fly today
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Master Roshi is notoriously an over-the-top lecher who constantly leered at women, tried to sneak glances, and even asked for inappropriate “favors” in exchange for training. Funimation cut or reworded several of these moments. For example, scenes where Roshi asked to see Bulma’s underwear or tried to grope her were either removed or toned down, with the dialogue replaced with something less suggestive. In a famous scene, Roshi asks Bulma to “take a look” at his chest in exchange for her help. In the Funimation version, this was reworded to talk about her showing “a little skin”, making it less overtly inappropriate.
Sexual innuendos in general were also censored. For example, when Oolong transforms into Bulma to trick Roshi, the original scene contained heavy innuendo. Funimation edited it to make it more comedic and less suggestive. Similarly, when Roshi uses his “Kamehameha” to remove women’s skirts, Funimation cuts these scenes or removes the most blatant perversion. His nosebleeds were also removed. All instances of Goku touching people to see if they are a boy or girl, while somewhat innocent due to his naivety, have also been removed.
1 The concept of death did not exist
Characters were always sent to another dimension
Death was a sensitive and frequent topic in the series, so Funimation often used creative workarounds to soften the concept. Instead of outright saying that the characters died, Funimation would say that they were “sent to another dimension.” The previous Ocean Dub in the series was also guilty of using this same concept. This famous censorship tactic aimed to make the series less morbid for young viewers, like the Kingdom of Shadows in Yu-Gi-OhIt’s an English dub.
One of the most famous examples is Vegeta’s assault on Earth in the Saiyan Saga. When Nappa destroys a city, the Funimation dub claims that its inhabitants have been sent to “another dimension”, rather than acknowledging the mass casualties. The same explanation was given for every case where a character died. It was also an easy excuse to get away with it, given Dragon Ball’s constant habit of bringing characters back to life via the titular Dragon Balls. And so, characters often don’t stay dead, or in the other dimension, for too long.
Dragon Ball
Dragon Ball tells the story of a young warrior named Son Goku, a peculiar young boy with a tail who embarks on a quest to become stronger and learns of the Dragon Balls, when once the 7 reunite , grants any wish of choice.
- Created by
- Akira Toriyama
- First film
- Dragon Ball: Curse of the Blood Ruby
- Latest movie
- Dragon Ball Super: Super Heroes
- First TV show
- Dragon Ball
- Upcoming TV Shows
- Dragon Ball DAIMA
- First episode broadcast date
- April 26, 1989
- Cast
- Sean Schemmel, Laura Bailey, Brian Drummond, Christopher Sabat, Scott McNeil