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Dragon Ball [¥É¥é¥´¥ó¥Ü©`¥ë] #8
Dragon Ball, Vol. 8: Taopaipai and Master Karin
Tired of losing their best operatives to Son Goku, the commanders of the Red Ribbon Army hire Taopaipai, the world's greatest assassin, to "take care" of him permanently! To have a chance of defeating this new opponent, Goku must climb the miles-high Karin Tower, where a mysterious hermit guards a jug of magic water which will grant the one who drinks it super strength. And while Goku struggles to get the magic water, time is running out...because Commander Red only needs two more Dragon Balls to make his deepest, darkest wishes come true!
192 pages, Paperback
First published July 10, 1987
136 people are currently reading
874 people want to read
About the author
Akira Toriyama
1,923?books1,656?followersAkira Toriyama (ÄñɽÃ÷) was a Japanese manga artist and character designer. He first achieved mainstream recognition for creating the popular manga series Dr. Slump, before going on to create Dragon Ball (his most famous work) and acting as a character designer for several popular video games such as the Dragon Quest series, Chrono Trigger, and Blue Dragon. Toriyama came to be regarded as one of the most important authors in the history of manga with his works highly influential and popular, particularly Dragon Ball, which many manga artists cite as a source of inspiration.
He earned the 1981 Shogakukan Manga Award for best sh¨nen/sh¨jo manga with Dr. Slump, and it went on to sell over 35 million copies in Japan. It was adapted into a successful anime series, with a second anime created in 1997, 13 years after the manga ended.
His next series, Dragon Ball, would become one of the most popular and successful manga in the world. Having sold 260 million copies worldwide, it is one of the best-selling manga series of all time and is considered a key work in increasing manga circulation to its peak in the mid-1980s and mid-1990s. Overseas, Dragon Ball's anime adaptations have been more successful than the manga and are credited with boosting anime's popularity in the Western world. In 2019, Toriyama was decorated a Chevalier of the French Ordre des Arts et des Lettres for his contributions to the arts.
In October 2024, Toriyama was inducted into the Harvey Awards Hall of Fame.
He earned the 1981 Shogakukan Manga Award for best sh¨nen/sh¨jo manga with Dr. Slump, and it went on to sell over 35 million copies in Japan. It was adapted into a successful anime series, with a second anime created in 1997, 13 years after the manga ended.
His next series, Dragon Ball, would become one of the most popular and successful manga in the world. Having sold 260 million copies worldwide, it is one of the best-selling manga series of all time and is considered a key work in increasing manga circulation to its peak in the mid-1980s and mid-1990s. Overseas, Dragon Ball's anime adaptations have been more successful than the manga and are credited with boosting anime's popularity in the Western world. In 2019, Toriyama was decorated a Chevalier of the French Ordre des Arts et des Lettres for his contributions to the arts.
In October 2024, Toriyama was inducted into the Harvey Awards Hall of Fame.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 128 reviews
August 18, 2014
Oh yeah, the love is back! I was worried with the last book that it would mark the beginning of a slide into mediocrity for the series but Akira Toriyama turns the ship back around into quality waters (terrible metaphor, I know!).
It¡¯s like he knew the audience was sick of General Blue and immediately at the start of the book has a new character called Taopaipai, the world¡¯s deadliest assassin, murder him with his tongue. You read that right - with his tongue! Just that detail alone made me realise Toriyama had returned with a vengeance! The martial arts cool is what makes Dragon Ball stand out and we get oodles of that in this volume.
Taopaipai heads to Karin Sanctuary where Son Goku and the Dragon Balls are - and defeats him! Goku must receive training from the Hermit Master in order to beat Taopaipai, get back the Dragon Balls and destroy the Red Ribbon Army once and for all!
Taopaipai is a great villain. He¡¯s arrogant, he¡¯s deadly, and Toriyama comes up with a really inventive way for him to get around - he cuts down a building pillar, hurls it in the direction he needs to be, jumps on top of it, and allows the motion to carry him along! He¡¯s also a real combat challenge for Goku, unlike Blue who relied a bit too much on lame trickery.
The Hermit Master was a cat character who made cat-puns that were genuinely funny because of how silly they were and the expressions he made as he said them. Who can¡¯t laugh at a cat smiling as he calls himself the ¡°Hermit Meowster¡±? I also loved that there was a totem pole that went so damn high up into the sky and this cat dude lived at the top of it - it¡¯s that mythological aspect that exists alongside the modern world, and both are real, that makes Dragon Ball so special.
Once Goku¡¯s training is complete, it¡¯s a non-stop action fest straight through to the end as he goes for a rematch against Taopaipai and then - single-handedly - storms the Red Ribbon Army¡¯s HQ! It¡¯s like Toriyama¡¯s making up for the overly cutesiness of the last volume by making this one extra-violent - and it¡¯s so good!
Dragon Ball Vol 8 sees the title regain the high quality storytelling that made it so awesome to start with. As if you didn¡¯t think Son Goku was a badass before, this volume shows you just how powerful he¡¯s getting. Wonderful stuff.
It¡¯s like he knew the audience was sick of General Blue and immediately at the start of the book has a new character called Taopaipai, the world¡¯s deadliest assassin, murder him with his tongue. You read that right - with his tongue! Just that detail alone made me realise Toriyama had returned with a vengeance! The martial arts cool is what makes Dragon Ball stand out and we get oodles of that in this volume.
Taopaipai heads to Karin Sanctuary where Son Goku and the Dragon Balls are - and defeats him! Goku must receive training from the Hermit Master in order to beat Taopaipai, get back the Dragon Balls and destroy the Red Ribbon Army once and for all!
Taopaipai is a great villain. He¡¯s arrogant, he¡¯s deadly, and Toriyama comes up with a really inventive way for him to get around - he cuts down a building pillar, hurls it in the direction he needs to be, jumps on top of it, and allows the motion to carry him along! He¡¯s also a real combat challenge for Goku, unlike Blue who relied a bit too much on lame trickery.
The Hermit Master was a cat character who made cat-puns that were genuinely funny because of how silly they were and the expressions he made as he said them. Who can¡¯t laugh at a cat smiling as he calls himself the ¡°Hermit Meowster¡±? I also loved that there was a totem pole that went so damn high up into the sky and this cat dude lived at the top of it - it¡¯s that mythological aspect that exists alongside the modern world, and both are real, that makes Dragon Ball so special.
Once Goku¡¯s training is complete, it¡¯s a non-stop action fest straight through to the end as he goes for a rematch against Taopaipai and then - single-handedly - storms the Red Ribbon Army¡¯s HQ! It¡¯s like Toriyama¡¯s making up for the overly cutesiness of the last volume by making this one extra-violent - and it¡¯s so good!
Dragon Ball Vol 8 sees the title regain the high quality storytelling that made it so awesome to start with. As if you didn¡¯t think Son Goku was a badass before, this volume shows you just how powerful he¡¯s getting. Wonderful stuff.
October 5, 2022
The thing about an action fighting manga, or any media form in that case, is that the readers will encounter many training and power-up moments, but as long as its done right, all is well.
March 5, 2021
The first time Goku really gets his tail handed to him - and, subsequently, the first time he has to find another teacher and train hard for a rematch. It's still done just fine here, but it sets a bit of a bad precedent that starts to show up in later arcs, especially in Z.
November 22, 2017
A bit predictable, but utterly captivating.
December 10, 2020
This was such a great book, focusing on Goku and the fight with the assassin Taopaipai, initially he loses and then he climbs the tree and meets Karin-sama and trains under him and the next time they face off, he is able to gain an advantage on him and then he goes after the Red Ribbon army base to get the dragon balls and ultimately battle Commander Black now! This volume was so awesome and epic and innocent, and the sheer simplicity of it made me fall in love with it. Its just Goku trying to do the right thing, when one of the persons he meet aka Upa. when his dad gets killed so Goku promises to revive him by using the dragon ball and he does that by taking the 4 dragon balls and the other 2 after defeating RRA. The fights were so simple and unique and just.. Mesmerizing. And the art is just too gorgeous.
March 29, 2021
All stars!
This one was just soo good! My favorite part was obviously the Karin Sen'nin training, the whimsy of the immortal cat/martial arts master making cat-themed jokes and delivering incredibly creative and effective training for Goku. But the whole manga was absolutely delightful, from deadly assassins to little Upa!
This one was just soo good! My favorite part was obviously the Karin Sen'nin training, the whimsy of the immortal cat/martial arts master making cat-themed jokes and delivering incredibly creative and effective training for Goku. But the whole manga was absolutely delightful, from deadly assassins to little Upa!
May 11, 2022
Honestly this was the best one yet!! Just pure fun. A truly evil villain assassin, Goku storming a base by himself, etc. Awesome action scenes. I¡¯m starting to really love this story!
4.5/5
4.5/5
October 2, 2017
Much more to my liking, lot of action and the plot really evolves in this one to the point where you get to see how big of a heart Goku truly has!
April 20, 2016
Previously on Dragon Ball, Goku is on the mission to find his grandfather's dragon ball and needs to find it before the Red Ribbon Army captures the dragon balls. He so far has four and he finds the next one is in the Karin Sanctuary which unfortunately he encounters a battle erupting as the Red Ribbon Army tried to steal the protector of Karin Sanctuary's son. Goku luckily saves him in time and as a reward the protector aka Bora gives Goku the next dragon ball which is his grandfather so the exploration is over... well not quite. For you see, the Red Ribbon Army sends a powerful assassin name Taopaipai who almost kills Goku is battle but sadly he kills Bora. Goku is devastated that a man who protected him has died and now wants to avenge his death by gathering all the dragon balls and summoning him back to life.
Taopaipai takes all of Goku's dragon balls but forgets the one Goku had hiding in his shirt and decides to revisit him to steal it to finally get his paycheck. Since Goku survived, he needs to get stronger and discovers that in Karin's sanctuary there is a tower that leads to the heavens and legends say that if you reach the top, there is a holy water that will get you super strength and he embarks on that journey. When Goku reaches the top, he discovers (I) a cat named Karin who is the guardian of the tower, (II) Goku must fight a telepathic cat to get the water, (III) Master Roshi was the only one who has climbed that tower and succeeded getting the drink and Karin was his master.
Goku is a freak of nature and within 3 days succeeds what took his master 3 years to accomplish, the water isn't super strength but the whole combat and mental training with Karin is what makes Goku invincible to kill Taopaipai and head off to Red Ribbons Headquarters to retrieve all the dragon balls and put an end to the Red Ribbon Army. Goku succeeds in each obstacle that comes his way and now that he has the six dragon balls all that is missing is the 7th one and I feel like retrieving it is not going to come easy.
What i really loved about this volume is it was able to bring back that spark that Akira Toriyama was able to achieve in the first few volumes and was able to eliminate the nonsense of superficial missions. Each volume feels like I am watching 5 episodes of the anime adaptation and this whole arc of the Red Ribbon Army in my opinion has reached its limit. I love the intro to finding the dragon balls the first time and the tournament which was epic and I really want to see Goku grow up to be the powerful humble fighter that he is in Dragon Ball Z.
Each time I read a new volume I get curious how they are going to transition to Dragon Ball Z because I thought Goku was going to wish he could flash forward time which would make the logical sense and now I am completely clueless. This series is truly underrated and I believe this to be action packed and provide important details for the next series. I cannot wait to read more and reach the conclusion of Dragon Ball. Until next time...
To check out all my reviews visit
Taopaipai takes all of Goku's dragon balls but forgets the one Goku had hiding in his shirt and decides to revisit him to steal it to finally get his paycheck. Since Goku survived, he needs to get stronger and discovers that in Karin's sanctuary there is a tower that leads to the heavens and legends say that if you reach the top, there is a holy water that will get you super strength and he embarks on that journey. When Goku reaches the top, he discovers (I) a cat named Karin who is the guardian of the tower, (II) Goku must fight a telepathic cat to get the water, (III) Master Roshi was the only one who has climbed that tower and succeeded getting the drink and Karin was his master.
Goku is a freak of nature and within 3 days succeeds what took his master 3 years to accomplish, the water isn't super strength but the whole combat and mental training with Karin is what makes Goku invincible to kill Taopaipai and head off to Red Ribbons Headquarters to retrieve all the dragon balls and put an end to the Red Ribbon Army. Goku succeeds in each obstacle that comes his way and now that he has the six dragon balls all that is missing is the 7th one and I feel like retrieving it is not going to come easy.
What i really loved about this volume is it was able to bring back that spark that Akira Toriyama was able to achieve in the first few volumes and was able to eliminate the nonsense of superficial missions. Each volume feels like I am watching 5 episodes of the anime adaptation and this whole arc of the Red Ribbon Army in my opinion has reached its limit. I love the intro to finding the dragon balls the first time and the tournament which was epic and I really want to see Goku grow up to be the powerful humble fighter that he is in Dragon Ball Z.
Each time I read a new volume I get curious how they are going to transition to Dragon Ball Z because I thought Goku was going to wish he could flash forward time which would make the logical sense and now I am completely clueless. This series is truly underrated and I believe this to be action packed and provide important details for the next series. I cannot wait to read more and reach the conclusion of Dragon Ball. Until next time...
To check out all my reviews visit
February 20, 2017
Zawsze uwa?a?am, ?e za ma?o Upy zar¨®wno w anime, jak i w mandze! :D
January 6, 2023
This one has been my favorite thus far. It felt refreshing to see Goku fighting an opponent that is better than him. We get to see more of the world and also are introduced to the immortal cat Kurrin. The cat was a great character that helped trained Goku in an interesting way by messing with him.
This volume just felt refreshing since Goku was not overpowered as usual.
This volume just felt refreshing since Goku was not overpowered as usual.
March 8, 2010
Pim, pam, pum. Mucha pi?a, mucha patada y muchas explosiones para cerrar una saga violenta a m¨¢s no poder, pero que deja momentos de gran emoci¨®n (o al menos un recuerdo de tal) y varias caracajadas en el camino.
February 6, 2023
Upa and his dad are underrated characters.
December 18, 2021
The assassin Taopaipai makes his entrance easily dispatching the previous big villain Goku struggled against (General Blue), before immediately killing on of Goku's allies and one-shotting Goku himself. It's a merciless and terrifying entrance as this odd man makes quick work of our hero with his own martial arts and energy blasts. So now Goku has to train! And come the rematch we get the first 'serious' fight in Dragon Ball. Goku has fought villains the past, often undercut with jokes and silly antics. But the big fight against Taopaipai is serious, there are real stakes other than winning a tournament. And the aerial battles, despite no one being able to fly and having to rely on jumping off of trees and towers to maneuver, are beautiful sights to behold.
The Red Ribbon Army saga of Dragon Ball is incredible and this volume in particular is a joy. Goku has a goal now, not just fighting his grandpa's four star dragon ball but now he has a grudge against the Red Ribbon Army and he's treating this less like an adventure and more like a mission. There are some intense fights, some great moves he pulls, and his one boy army waging off against this military of adults is brilliantly contrasted with the rest of the cast struggling to gather each other in order to come to his aid. The Red Ribbon Army might not be much individually but Commander Red's motivation for finding the dragon balls, the amount of soldiers the Army employs, and characters like the assassin Taopaipai turn them into a menacing force that's a satisfying challenge to see Goku take on.
The Red Ribbon Army saga of Dragon Ball is incredible and this volume in particular is a joy. Goku has a goal now, not just fighting his grandpa's four star dragon ball but now he has a grudge against the Red Ribbon Army and he's treating this less like an adventure and more like a mission. There are some intense fights, some great moves he pulls, and his one boy army waging off against this military of adults is brilliantly contrasted with the rest of the cast struggling to gather each other in order to come to his aid. The Red Ribbon Army might not be much individually but Commander Red's motivation for finding the dragon balls, the amount of soldiers the Army employs, and characters like the assassin Taopaipai turn them into a menacing force that's a satisfying challenge to see Goku take on.
December 17, 2023
3,5?/5
To ju? 8 cz??? historii dzielnego wojownika o czystym i z?otym sercu. Toriyama ponownie nie zawodzi dowo??c ciekaw? histori?, od kt¨®rej nie spos¨®b si? oderwa?. Mang? mo?na przeczyta? za jednym posiedzeniem, mimo, ?e przedstawione w niej historie s? dosy? nudnawe. Przedstawiaj? jednak wiele warto?ci, potrzebnych i wa?nych, kt¨®re nawet teraz nie zestarza?y si? i s? aktualne. Najbardziej lubi? to, jak w tych mangach przedstawiony jest charakter Goku. To wojownik, kt¨®ry nigdy nie my?li o sobie, a wr?cz zwraca uwag? na los uci?nionych, pokrzywdzonych, nieszcz??liwych. Nie patrzy r¨®wnie? na pieni?dze i zas?ugi jakie zdob?dzie, tylko chce pomaga? z czystego serca, nie przyjmuj?c za to ?adnej zap?aty. Pojawiaj?c si? w danej scenie, bohater potrafi zmieni? ca?y bieg wydarze¨½ i naprawi? wiele relacji. W tej cz??ci spodoba?o mi si? to jak Goku postanowi? wskrzesi? Bor?, ojca Upy, mimo, ?e dopiero pozna? tych bohater¨®w. Wa?ny by? r¨®wnie? aspekt treningu na Wie?y Karin ¨C ponownie wojownik da? si? pozna? z dobrej strony, b?d?c uczciwym i pracowitym. Czekam na dalsze tomy, zwa?ywszy na to, ?e dalsze historie lubi? bardziej, s? o wiele ciekawsze i lepiej rozbudowane. Powracaj?c do nich odczuwam przyjemn? rozrywk?, a oto przecie? w mandze chodzi.
To ju? 8 cz??? historii dzielnego wojownika o czystym i z?otym sercu. Toriyama ponownie nie zawodzi dowo??c ciekaw? histori?, od kt¨®rej nie spos¨®b si? oderwa?. Mang? mo?na przeczyta? za jednym posiedzeniem, mimo, ?e przedstawione w niej historie s? dosy? nudnawe. Przedstawiaj? jednak wiele warto?ci, potrzebnych i wa?nych, kt¨®re nawet teraz nie zestarza?y si? i s? aktualne. Najbardziej lubi? to, jak w tych mangach przedstawiony jest charakter Goku. To wojownik, kt¨®ry nigdy nie my?li o sobie, a wr?cz zwraca uwag? na los uci?nionych, pokrzywdzonych, nieszcz??liwych. Nie patrzy r¨®wnie? na pieni?dze i zas?ugi jakie zdob?dzie, tylko chce pomaga? z czystego serca, nie przyjmuj?c za to ?adnej zap?aty. Pojawiaj?c si? w danej scenie, bohater potrafi zmieni? ca?y bieg wydarze¨½ i naprawi? wiele relacji. W tej cz??ci spodoba?o mi si? to jak Goku postanowi? wskrzesi? Bor?, ojca Upy, mimo, ?e dopiero pozna? tych bohater¨®w. Wa?ny by? r¨®wnie? aspekt treningu na Wie?y Karin ¨C ponownie wojownik da? si? pozna? z dobrej strony, b?d?c uczciwym i pracowitym. Czekam na dalsze tomy, zwa?ywszy na to, ?e dalsze historie lubi? bardziej, s? o wiele ciekawsze i lepiej rozbudowane. Powracaj?c do nich odczuwam przyjemn? rozrywk?, a oto przecie? w mandze chodzi.
January 8, 2025
So many classic moments in this volume - Goku ascends the tower and meets Karin, has a new mission to collect the Dragon Balls (unexpectedly tragic and touching), fights the assassin Taopaipai, and busts into the Red Ribbon Army HQ. Toriyama is a master of drawing fight scenes with plenty of humor, especially as the villains realize they are outmatched by a child. His worldbuilding is also phenomenal, with just the right amount of wacky and fantastical, dangerous and amusing. In my opinion, the pacing works much better in the manga than the anime.
July 19, 2022
An excellent return-to-form as Akira Toriyama introduces us to Taopaipai and his deadly ways as well as the Karin Tower where Goky will finally get the chance to evolve through clever and discreet training.
December 13, 2022
Geeente, eu realmente n?o lembrava da crueldade do Tao Paipai (e da sua jaquetinha "Kill you!"). Nesse volume Goku tamb¨¦m foi praticamente o Rambo e detonou o ex¨¦rcito red ribbon sozinho. As cenas de a??o foram muito boas e o pequeno Goku est¨¢ praticamente invenc¨ªvel. Gostando muito at¨¦ aqui.
January 28, 2019
Stadig sjove b?ger, men nu begynder der at v?re for mange (for mig) ligegyldige kampscener, der blot er en gentagelse af nogle af de forrige.
April 14, 2020
Daaaammmn people just dyin' left and right in this volume, huh? And you thought this was all just fun and games and cute good times, huh?
July 24, 2024
Give me an entire series only about Karin
July 18, 2018
He went to Karin island. He do battle with Taopaipai. He is the best killer in the world. He is the enemy who is most fearful in vol.8. He kills children's father without any guilt. Goku coudn't permit that because he had the strong sense of justice. He promised with a child that he collect Dragonballs and father revive.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 21, 2023
mestre karin
July 1, 2024
Super
August 2, 2024
SOOOOO GOOD i love upa and his dad i love goku¡¯s little adventure to the tower and korin¡¯s training i love goku finally meeting his match and having to power up like i actually couldnt put this volume down¡ video of the year FOR ME AT LEAST¡
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April 19, 2022Sooo.. The whole thing is about how Goku is strong.. And that is it. I really enjoy the concept of the Dragon balls though.
And it is so "funny" how the villainize gays here ? even when this was published in the 80s.
And it is so "funny" how the villainize gays here ? even when this was published in the 80s.
May 6, 2015
It's surprising how dark this title can get at times. People die. Granted, it's usually minor characters, and Toriyama's art can make anything cheerful. Hands up, who'd like to see Akira Toriyama's version of Les Miserables? Still loving this series.
June 20, 2011
CHAPTERS 3,8, AND 9 WERE ALL THEY HAD AT THE LIBRARY
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