Dragon Ball has been around for almost 40 years now, and it’s amassed a large number of story arcs. Most of them, of course, were part of the original anime and manga, but as the franchise has evolved, its canon has started to include movies and even new anime and manga content from Akira Toriyama and other talented creators.

There are over a dozen story arcs within Dragon Ball’s canon, and some are naturally better than others. While each fan will always have a subjective opinion and their favorite arcs, factors like story content, how the characters involved in each arc are utilized, and the entertainment value of the fights, there’s a hierarchy at play with Dragon Ball’s story arcs and plenty of merit to ranking them.

Non-canon stories like Dragon Ball GT and the original movies won’t be included, nor will one-off stories like Dragon Ball Minus and The History of Trunks. Also, every ranking is subjective, so a story arc’s placement shouldn’t be seen as a definitive statement of its quality for anyone who might think differently.

23

Golden Frieza Saga

Resurrection ‘F’ Film & Episode 16–27 of Dragon Ball Super

Of all of Dragon Ball Super’s arcs, the one that stands out as the worst is the Golden Frieza Saga. Whether it’s the movie or the anime, the story is filled with senseless padding and questionable art and animation, so it quickly becomes tiresome to sit through.

What truly sinks Resurrection F and the Golden Frieza Saga in general is that, despite the story being Frieza’s big return to the franchise, Frieza is largely treated as a joke by the narrative, and his unceremonious defeat has the biggest contrivances and anticlimax of the entire franchise. Everything that should have made the Golden Frieza Saga work fails from its terrible execution, and as such, it’s easily the worst arc in Dragon Ball Super, saved from being Dragon Ball’s worst arc only due to Dragon Ball GT.

22

Emperor Pilaf Saga

Chapters 1–23 of Dragon Ball’s Manga & Episodes 1–13 of Dragon Ball’s Anime

The Emperor Pilaf Saga’s placement, along with other Dragon Ball-era arcs, is less because it’s a bad story and more because of what it’s lacking. As the very first story arc in Dragon Ball, the Emperor Pilaf Saga is, naturally, much rougher than the arcs that would follow in terms of action, comedy, characterization, and overall writing.

That isn’t to say it’s not entertaining, as it’s still a great introduction to Dragon Ball, but it’s clear that Akira Toriyama still needed time to figure out how things were going to work, so it’s hard to justify putting it ahead of the arcs where the writing was far more concrete. The Pilaf Saga is definitely Dragon Ball at its goofiest, and though that plays to Toriyama’s strengths after he spent so long working on gag manga like Dr. Slump, it also results in a weaker story at times.

21

Super Android 17 Saga

Episodes 41–47 of Dragon Ball GT

At just seven episodes, the Super Android 17 saga is the shortest in all of Dragon Ball, and it shows in the worst of ways. Despite the interesting premise of Dragon Ball‘s past villains returning from Hell, the Super Android 17 saga never uses its returning villains for anything other than quick cameos, which makes it feel like they shouldn’t have come back, in the first place. Frieza and Cell provide a bit more than other villains, but with how easily Goku deals with them, with Goku never even needing to transform, it still does a disservice to their characters.

The biggest problem with the story, of course, is the titular Super 17. Between his lack of personality and how he provides a largely boring and repetitive fight for Goku and everyone else, Super 17 is one of the worst villains in all of Dragon Ball, and it wasn’t until Dragon Ball Super that Android 17’s reputation would recover from being turned into Super 17. Dragon Ball GT might not be as hated now as it used to be, but even now, it’s hard to see the Super Android 17 saga as anything other than the worst saga in GT.

20

World Tournament Saga

Chapters 24–54 of Dragon Ball’s Manga & Episodes 14–28 of Dragon Ball’s Anime

Dragon Ball’s second story arc, the World Tournament Saga, is a definite step above the Emperor Pilaf Saga, but it’s still not without its flaws. With the World Martial Arts Tournament, Dragon Ball started better developing the martial arts elements that would define the franchise, and the fights are appropriately entertaining, especially Goku and Master Roshi’s.

Unfortunately, though this is the start of Dragon Ball’s famous tournament arcs, the fights in the World Tournament Saga still lack the polish that later ones would have, and while the comedy and overall writing are good, there are still numerous moments where it feels noticeably weak. Tournament arcs would later become a staple of Shonen storytelling but weren’t quite as common outside of sports manga when Dragon Ball first started. All of it results in a story arc that doesn’t rank very highly but is still a step in the right direction.

19

Red Ribbon Army Saga

Chapters 55–69 of Dragon Ball’s Manga & Episodes 29–45 of Dragon Ball’s Anime

The Red Ribbon Army Saga, while still being weak, is another step above its predecessors. While the writing still needed polishing at this point, it does a much better job of establishing how the characters and the world would behave, especially Goku. The addition of the titular Red Ribbon Army also worked well to show how varied Dragon Ball could be with its stories and the action that accompanies them, and as such, the inventive ways with which Goku deals with every enemy adds a lot of life to the story.

The Red Ribbon Army are Goku’s first major villains that aren’t a complete joke like Emperor Pilaf, and this results in their titular saga inadvertently setting up plot points that wouldn’t be paid off till years later. The Red Ribbon Army Saga still doesn’t hit the franchise’s highs, but it has plenty to offer, nonetheless.

18

Tien Shinhan Saga

Chapters 113–134 of Dragon Ball’s Manga & Episodes 84–101 of Dragon Ball’s Anime

The Tien Saga is where Dragon Ball truly began to find its footing. While it still had trouble with pacing and anti-climax, the more serious tone of the saga still lent itself to both great fights and stellar character moments. Tien’s character arc of abandoning his villainous ways is especially good for how well-executed it is from start to finish, something that would undoubtedly play a big part in his character still being held in such high regard after so many years.

The roots of what sort of writing would define Dragon Ball are especially apparent in the Tien Saga, and as such, it ends up deserving plenty of praise. Villains becoming heroes, and a greater focus on one specific villain as opposed to a villainous group are all hallmarks of later Dragon Ball, and those elements truly started with the Tien Saga.

17

Saiyan Saga

Chapters 195–241 of Dragon Ball’s Manga & Episodes 1–26 of Dragon Ball Z

The Saiyan Saga was the first story arc of Dragon Ball Z, and its quality is appropriately mixed. The increased intensity of the action and stakes perfectly set things apart from the original Dragon Ball era, and there is never truly a dull moment to be found. Dragon Ball had always had science fiction elements, but the revelation that Goku was a Saiyan completely redefined the series’ lore and fans’ understanding of shonen’s most iconic hero.

What ends up holding the arc back though is that most characters who are not Goku end up contributing very little to the plot, and similar to the Emperor Pilaf Saga, it’s clear that Akira Toriyama still needed time to work out how everything would work going forward. There are plenty of rough patches to be found, but even so, the Saiyan Saga is a great start to Dragon Ball Z.

16

Shadow Dragon Saga

Episodes 48–64 of Dragon Ball GT

The Shadow Dragon saga was, for a time, Dragon Ball, as a whole, and unfortunately, it’s very much a mixed bag. While the Shadow Dragons work as a perfect way of making the Dragon Balls central to the plot again, all of the Shadow Dragons, save for Nuova and Omega Shenron, never give Goku a challenge, and with their relatively flat characterizations, it’s hard to get invested in them as villains. The final fight against Omega Shenron has plenty of highlights, most notably Super Saiyan 4 Gogeta, but with its inconsistent and repetitive animation, it’s notably lackluster.

The ending to the Shadow Dragon saga is what saves it as an arc, if only ever so slightly. Dragon Ball GT ending with the Dragon Balls vanishing, Goku ascending to a higher plane of existence with Shenron, and Goku being revered as a hero a century later made for a truly poignant finale that did a great job of closing the book on Dragon Ball. There are plenty of good reasons for people to not like Dragon Ball GT, but the Shadow Dragon saga shouldn’t be one of them, if only for its ending.

15

Dragon Ball Daima Saga

Dragon Ball Daima Anime

What makes Dragon Ball Daima work so well is how strongly it embraces the adventurous spirit of the original Dragon Ball while still retaining the faster-paced combat and larger-scale action associated with Dragon Ball Z and Super. The Demon Realm setting gives the franchise one of its most visually creative worlds in years, and the smaller-scale journey allows characters to interact in ways modern Dragon Ball often neglects. Goku especially feels more balanced as both a fighter and an adventurer, something longtime fans have wanted to see return for decades.

Daima also benefits from its pacing and presentation. Unlike some of Dragon Ball Super’s weaker anime arcs, Daima maintains consistently strong animation and a tighter narrative focus throughout most of its runtime. The action scenes are inventive without becoming overwhelming, and the story’s lighter tone helps it recapture some of Akira Toriyama’s classic comedic sensibilities. At the same time, the arc still delivers meaningful lore additions tied to the Demon Realm and the wider mythology of the franchise.

The series is not without flaws. Some supporting characters still struggle for relevance, and certain reveals don’t land with the same emotional weight as iconic moments from the Frieza or Android Sagas. Even so, Dragon Ball Daima succeeds by feeling refreshingly different without losing sight of what makes Dragon Ball appealing in the first place. As one of the final Dragon Ball projects directly connected to Akira Toriyama, Daima also carries an emotional significance that elevates its place within the franchise’s history.

14

Piccolo Jr. Saga

Chapters 162–194 of Dragon Ball’s Manga & Episodes 123–153 of Dragon Ball’s Anime

The Piccolo Jr. Saga was the grand finale of Dragon Ball, and there’s a lot to praise for it. The action is some of the best-choreographed in the entire franchise, and it provides a great bridge between the differing styles of Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z. The story, however, is very simplistic and largely an extension of the King Piccolo Saga, with Piccolo mostly being a copy of King Piccolo at this point, so a lot of the dramatics have trouble landing.

Even so, between Goku’s becoming a champion and marrying Chi-Chi, it still did an excellent job of closing out Dragon Ball and setting up Dragon Ball Z. All the seeds for Dragon Ball’s second part were sown in the Piccolo Jr. Saga, so for its place in the series’ history, the Piccolo Jr. Saga deserves a decent rank among the franchise’s arcs.