Your Ideal Dragonball- The Race Question

[mr. peasant]

i seriously have no clue how you can say that the only conclusion is that Goku (a character with an ASIAN name, based on an ASIAN character) is white based on character from a European based fantasy world. just because Akira Toriyama made both of these characters (about a decade apart each other and in 2 worlds unrelated to each other) doesn't mean that they're supposed to be based on the same ethnicity.

Erm, no. Sun Wukonng (The Monkey King) is most definitely not Asian. He's a monkey! Nowhere in his heritage does it mention any relation to humans. As for your second comment, it's not so much that Akira Toriyama drew them but that he drew them so alike.

based on your arguments against Goku being an Asian, i'm having a real hard time believing that you're an Asian from Asia. i can understand if you don't have a problem with Goku being played by a white guy, but i never thought i'd see an Asian argue AGAINST an Asian actor in the role of Goku. if it's such a non-issue then why are you putting out that kind of vibe?

I'm not arguing for Goku to be Caucasian but rather that it simply doesn't matter what race the actor is (hence why I bolded the second conclusion, which was the one I'm in favor of).

 

[Asgard]

I dont remember anyone in the anime mention that Goku looks Asian or Caucasian, so it doesnt matter whether they cast an Asian or white guy to play him since it fits either way.

 

[Legion]

Erm, no. Sun Wukonng (The Monkey King) is most definitely not Asian. He's a monkey! Nowhere in his heritage does it mention any relation to humans. As for your second comment, it's not so much that Akira Toriyama drew them but that he drew them so alike.
quote]

So you don't think Zeus was supposed to be Greek even though he's a god and not human?

 

[mr. peasant]

So you don't think Zeus was supposed to be Greek even though he's a god and not human?

Actually strictly speaking, I don't think he's actually Greek though he did on occasion take a human disguise which would've been Greek (it wouldn't be much of a disguise if he appeared as a Native American, would it) but he could take on any form he wanted (he's appeared as animals such as swans as well).

Also, here are a few drawings of Sun Wukong.

Doesn't look remotely Chinese to me.

 

[Legion]

He is still an Asian character, I don't see how you can base a character off him and make him white. Didn't Jet Li have the role of this character in the Forbidden Kingdom anyway?

 

[DorkyFresh]

Erm, no. Sun Wukonng (The Monkey King) is most definitely not Asian. He's a monkey! Nowhere in his heritage does it mention any relation to humans.

well...Sun Wukong certainly isn't an American or African character. he's in an Asian folktale, therefor, he's an Asian character. not in the sense of ethnicity, but association. sorry you were too focused on ethnicity to realize that's what i was talking about. if you go back and read my post, it says "based on an Asian CHARACTER"...not "based on an Asian". Sun Wukong is Asian in the sense that he comes from an Asian folk tale.

even if you want to argue that the monkey king isn't ethnically Asian, he wears Asian clothes, speaks an Asian language, and is constantly being portrayed by Asian actors. there is little you can do or say to make it seem like Sun Wukong isn't Asian from at least a cultural standpoint. it's like someone trying to make a case that Superman isn't an American.

As for your second comment, it's not so much that Akira Toriyama drew them but that he drew them so alike.

that's what i meant. i guess you didn't read my response to Overlord when i made the comparison between the rest of the big eyed, pointy nosed characters in the cartoon. that's typical of anime. it's not EXCLUSIVE to only Goku and Chrono. Yamcha has the same facial features as Goku even though most people think of him as an Asian. anime, in general, portrays most of their characters (regardless of race) with big eyes and pointy noses...but that doesn't necessarily mean that character is supposed to be Caucasian. the fact that you either don't realize this or are ignoring it makes it even harder for me to believe that you're from Asia.

I'm not arguing for Goku to be Caucasian but rather that it simply doesn't matter what race the actor is (hence why I bolded the second conclusion, which was the one I'm in favor of).

okay, well that's fine if you think that way. i've mentioned my stance several times and it happens to be similar to yours (even though i would have PREFERRED for Goku to be portrayed by an Asian). i fully understand that people think of Goku in different ways and that's fine, but once someone starts getting their facts and logic mixed up...that's when i have to interject. if race wasn't an issue....then this thread wouldn't exist. so if you're going to say that it's not an issue, make sure you're only referencing yourself.

 

[Lobo]

They should just have cast real Saiyans .

 

[DorkyFresh]

They should just have cast real Saiyans .

if Saiyans really existed...we'd be screwed.

 

[Legion]

They should just have cast real Saiyans .

They are apparently harder to come by than real Kryptonians

 

[mr. peasant]

well...Sun Wukong certainly isn't an American or African character. he's in an Asian folktale, therefor, he's an Asian character. not in the sense of ethnicity, but association. sorry you were too focused on ethnicity to realize that's what i was talking about. if you go back and read my post, it says "based on an Asian CHARACTER"...not "based on an Asian". Sun Wukong is Asian in the sense that he comes from an Asian folk tale.

LOL! Okay, I get it now. You meant culturally and not ethnically (that makes more sense). Thing was the entire thread was talking about race so I kind of jumped the gun. Yeah, Sun Wukong is definitely an Asian character in the cultural sense.