Final Forum: A Dragon Ball Podcast

Which episode should someone start with?

Dragon Ball fans should start at episode 1 where we do some taste calibrations for the two hosts. Non-fans can listen to episode 11 where we discuss the life and career of Dragon Ball’s creator, Akira Toriyama. Episodes generally all build off one another and the show is best listened to from the beginning as it functions like a walkthrough of the series and peeling back the layers underneath all along the way.

Which have been your favourite episodes so far?

Some of my favorite episodes to record are our tournament episodes where we put the characters against one another in hypothetical scenarios such as basketball games or cooking competitions. I’ve also learned a lot from our discussion of the character Boss Rabbit, our earliest discussions of the Budokai Tenkaichi (it’s based on a real tournament), and our discussions of the characters Chiaotzu and Tien Shinhan. We had a very unique discussion of Piccolo as well.

Which episode are you most proud of?

Episodes 20 and 45 were discussions of filler (not from the manga) episodes and so there’s less readily available information on them and their themes so pulling from our previously established base of knowledge from our prior episodes and finding some depth to those episodes was very rewarding.

What is your vision for your show?

I’d love to have it get popular enough that it helps shift the discussion around the franchise from power levels and what’s “canon” to character focus and thematics.

What is your favourite other podcast that isn't yours?

Failure to Franchise is a show where the hosts discuss movies intended to start a series that never took off. I learn something every episode. I also enjoy the Dragon Ball podcasts We Gotta Podcast and Kanzenshuu the Podcast.

How did you come up with the name for your podcast?

A common line/meme from Dragon Ball is “This isn’t even my final form!” Our name is a pun on that, using the word forum, a place for discussion and learning

Tell us a bit about yourself

A lifelong Dragon Ball fan who grew up in Buffalo, NY. I have always enjoyed “outsider” content, though much of it has grown more mainstream and popular over the years (Dragon Ball, Godzilla, Metallica). I live and work in Houston, TX, and am excited to share my love of the Dragon Ball franchise with people and attempt to inject some knowledge and positivity into the world through one of my passions.