There is no real plot work going on here, because Toriyama does not know how to write. So, things are not set up: They just happen. Twists are not rational: They are surprising. Stakes are not built because there is a reason for stakes to build: They are built because WOAH SO COOL!!! THE MOST POWERFUL ENEMY!??!?! BIGGER STAKES???!??!
Goku does not get more powerful because he should: He gets more powerful because he is Goku. And this is Dragon Ball Z. And that is what happens to Goku in Dragon Ball Z so stupid children lose their minds over the meaningless, anti-art nonsense we now call power scaling.
It is a series for stupid children, and as such is written stupidly.
All of this said, and let it also be said that the fight choreography is, as the kids say 'utter mid', Dragon Ball Z has the same appeal as.. The Fast and The Furious, for example. In that it is dumb. And badly written. And for children (or manchildren).
But yet it looks very, very pretty and is quite a good time. It's funny, it's silly, it's kinda cool. And if you learn to laugh at what it fails to do and appreciate all it succeeds at, you will enjoy it.
Now, the original Dragon Ball..
Is near perfect. The fight choreography is actually insane. I have never been more excited by manga than I was during the Tienshinhan arc. I was losing my mind. It was that awesome, and that brilliantly drawn, and that inventively choreographed... It is what Shonen combat should be. Dragon Ball understands Shonen combat. And it understands every other aspect of a good battle Shonen.. Because it is one. And maybe one of the best ever. It is such a pure, perfect and shockingly heartfelt distillation of the genre, with one of the best protagonists of all time.. It does not get much better than OG Dragon Ball.
So. Here's what I would say:
If you want fine dining, read the original.
If you want a 7/11 hotdog that tastes way better than it should for spinning on that rack for so many days, read on to Z.
