Release Date: July 2017 RRP: 5616 yen With Dragon Ball Super now over 100 episodes in, it’s fair to say that the Dragon Ball franchise is back in a big way. The same goes for its S.H. Figuarts line too, which has crawled back from the odd web exclusive every so often to a string of regular releases that are both retail and exclusive. August will see the long awaited release of S.H. Figuarts Nappa , with Tienshinhan and Yamcha figures to follow the end of the year. With so many Saiyan Saga -era figures coming, it seems only fitting that there’s also a brand new S.H. Figuarts Vegeta based on his original antagonistic appearance – finally getting the retail release treatment he deserves like the Super Saiyan version did last year.

Do you hear that? That’s the sound of Dragon Ball Z collectors selling off their S.H. Figuarts Super Saiyan Vegeta –Premium Color Edition- figures after Bandai Tamashii Nations almost immediately followed its release up with the announcement of a newly improved mould. Unlike the five Vegeta figures that have preceded it, this S.H. Figuarts Super Saiyan Vegeta isn’t an exclusive release and marks the first time the character has been a mass release figure – despite being the secondary lead in the franchise by this point. Using the same new-style body as the recent Super Saiyan Trunks figure, this Vegeta is supposedly based on the ascended version from the Cell Saga but ultimately works as him from any point in the show’s timeline.

Ever since LEGO started delving into the world of licensed franchises everybody has something they would like to see the construction toy juggernaut tackle. Unfortunately the wait for Dragon Ball Z themed LEGO has proven rather fruitless, so Bandai have decided to take things into their own hands somewhat with a new candy toy line - Figmes. Whether exactly this is a one-off or a line Bandai has expansive plans with is yet to be seen, but looking at this set they've certainly started things off with a bang. Included in this set are Goku, Vegeta (in both normal and Super Saiyan  varieties) , Piccolo, Kuririn, Freeza and Cell. If you've ever dreamed of adding the Z Fighters to your LEGO collection, then this is one set of candy toys you won't want to miss out on.

One of the biggest problems of the Dragon Ball Z range of S.H. Figuarts is that most of them have been Tamashii web exclusives . This essentially means that most of the cast has been limited to one initial run, and the constant reissuing of the lines few early retail releases (Super Saiyan Goku, Gohan and Piccolo) are enough to make up for this. Characters such as Vegeta and Trunks fetched ludicrous prices on the aftermarket, so Bandai Tamashii Nations decided to get in on the action themselves with new Premium Colour Editions . While basically re-releases of the original figures, they have also been given a more accurate colourscheme to get around the usual “one and done run” of web exclusives. First up is Super Saiyan Vegeta , which was originally released back at the tail end of 2011. Trunks is set to follow in January 2016, with Super Saiyan 3 Goku seen at events and Perfect Cell also rumoured to make an appearance again sometime this year.

After 18 long years, Dragon Ball is well and truly back. Sure it's had a few OVA moments in that time, but thanks to the success of recent movies Battle of the Gods and Resurrection F  the franchise has finally returned for a brand new series. And with original creator Akira Toriyama back in tow for character design and original story concept, it's a pretty big deal. Like many others my first experiences with anime as I know it today was coming home from school every day and watching Dragon Ball Z on Toonami , so the though of having a new episode to week every is making my inner child scream. Thank you Toei Animation , thank you for the gift that is Dragon Ball Super.

First off, I'd like to wish a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to every reader of this blog. Hope Santa brought you everything you want and you have a great rest of the year. Next, here I decided to review something that I'd never seen but was already close to my heart. I'm a long time fan of Dragon Ball/Dragon Ball Z - DBZ was pretty much what INTRODUCED me to anime. But Dragon Ball GT (which after much searching the internet I found stands for Grand Tour) was something I had never watched. I don't know whether it was because of the debated canonicity or the fact most fanboys seem to hate the series, but it had always escaped me. So now after playing Dragon Ball Z Budokai: Tenkaichi 2 on the wii (whose story mode featured the sagas from GT) I decided it was finally time to give this series a go. Set 5-10 years (depending on the version) after DBZ, GT sees Goku returning to life as a child after an accidental wish is made on the Black Star Dragon Balls, which a...