May 09, 2023

Bora, Upa, and Indigenous Peoples in Dragon Ball (S2E8)

53 minutes

What happens when a creator from a racially homogenous society tackles the intricacies of indigenous peoples in North America?

Jelli and Bekinney continue breaking down Akira Toriyama's worldwide manga and anime phenomenon by breaking down episode 58, "The Land of Korin." We continue discussing the Red Ribbon Army, and get into how Indigenous People are portrayed in Dragon Ball and why they are portrayed that way.

In this episode:

Jelli remains convinced he is having a nervous breakdown as Bekinney attempts to get him to notice that they're standing in the same spot

We recap the episodes and discuss our favorite moments

We talk about the locale of Korin Tower

Attempting to contextualize where Akira Toriyama's knowledge of indigenous peoples comes from

Dunking on Disney, and specifically Peter Pan for their own depictions of American indigenous people

Discussion of the Noble Savage trope

Whether Bora and Upa are Comanchee or Navajo

A bit of Bora trivia including inspiration from One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and The Outlaw Josey Wales

Discussion of the problematic depictions of indigenous people in Looney Tunes

Whether Bora and Upa have names based on puns, as is typical for anime

Our overall discussion for the day, which focuses on how indigenous people have been depicted in media over the years, including modern day depictions such as Reservation Dogs and Prey

and more, including some general pop culture, trivia, and editorializing, as usual

Join us as we continue to uncover the cultural meanings, publication facts, inspirations and more behind the wildly popular Dragon Ball franchise.

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By Final Forum Podcast

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