Series: Dragon Ball Z & One Piece (crossover)
Company: Bandai
Year: 2008
Size: 5~8.5cm
Main distribution: Japan
This is a very special collaboration between Dragon Ball Z and One Piece to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Weekly Shōnen Jump. It’s a line of small figures that came in blind boxes, called “Dream Fusion”.
For the 40th anniversary of Weekly Shōnen Jump the 2 most popular manga collaborated and did a crossover. Dragon Ball Z and One Piece got special, limited edition merchandise, including this line of small figures.
10 figures come in this set, with a secret 11th re-colour. Most of them come on a little square black base, with Dragonballs along the edge and the One Piece skull in the center.
I got 3 of them.
Chopper
Chopper is wearing Goku’s Gi and is riding Nimbus. He also has a Dragonball on his hat, much like young Gohan did.
Goku & Luffy Fusion
Goku and Luffy are doing the Fusion dance of Dragonball Z, and stand in the last pose, fingers touching.
Zoro riding Shenron
Zoro is riding Shenron, holding swords ready. Shenron is the toon version.
Luffy Kamehameha
Luffy stands in Goku’s signature Kamehameha pose.
Thousand Sunny and Shenron
It’s a small figure of the Thousand Sunny, with the Dragonballs on deck and Shenron summoned above.
Goku
Goku stands in his signature greeting pose, wearing a pirate captain’s coat. I don’t think Luffy wore this though?
Vegeta
Vegeta is wielding 3 swords like Zoro does in One Piece.
Nami
Nami is on Bulma’s motorcycle and holding a Dragon Radar. She does not come on a base.
Sanji
Sanji is wearing a Scouter from Dragonball Z.
Bulma
Bulma is on the Going Merry and wearing a Log Pose. She does not come on a base.
I remember the 40th anniversary of Weekly Shōnen Jump well. I was getting pickier with my anime merchandise, but Dragon Ball Z remained a high favourite. I hadn’t seen much Dragon Ball merchandise anymore lately though, so seeing these had me ecstatic.
I also admired the magazine that has been running since 1968! No small feat, especially in a day and age where online and digital reading is becoming more and more a thing. On its 40th anniversary, the American Shōnen Jump had its 5th anniversary. Although technically neither of these were available in my country (except I later found one comic book store in Utrecht selling them for a high mark up), my uncle who worked at NATO, an American base, was selling the American Shōnen Jump in their convenience store. He bought me them whenever he saw them, as they didn’t always arrive in that shop every month. From 2007 to 2009 I got it, with a few months missing here and there. As I can’t read Japanese, getting this magazine made me feel closer to the Japanese distribution of Manga. I also loved how it was a platform for my favourite mangaka when they were starting out.
In 2009, I temporarily moved to Sydney, Australia. Much closer to Japan, and a major city as well, there was just so much more stuff I suddenly could get my hands on. I found a massive bookstore that stocked Weekly Shōnen Jump and I loved looking at the pictures. There were several arcades with many prices, and the first time I encountered an UFO crane machine!
These blind boxes were in one of those crane machines. I am pretty good catching plushies, but boxes were new (and hard) for me. I wanted the Goku and Luffy Fusion, as I felt this was the best mashup idea. At the time I probably wanted to get Vegeta as well, as I wanted anything Vegeta, even though I don’t really like this particular figure. I kind of like the Goku wearing the pirate coat (even if it’s not from One Piece) now too. I managed to get a box, opened it, and it wasn’t the ones I was after! So I tried again. And again. I only managed to get 3 of them, and none of them I particular wanted. Nevertheless, it were Dragon Ball figures and a Shōnen Jump anniversary, and I had to have them!
Over a decade later, and the figures have mostly been in a box stored away. They have travelled over 3 countries so far! As much as I like Dragon Ball Z, I don’t like One Piece. And I managed to get all the One Piece Characters! It was cool at the time to find Dragon Ball stuff in an arcade, but practically I have no room for stuff I care only mildly about. And as much as I love limited edition anniversary merchandise, I’m giving these up.
I have to say though that Chopper is such a cute “fusion” with Dragonball, with the Dragonball on his hat and Goku’s Gi and Nimbus. I think he’s one of the better figures in this line. Also reminds me of the plush.
I still have the Goku in Luffy’s outfit figure, so it’s not like I abandon this line completely. I will always remember my time in Sydney, the time I won these and rekindling my joy in Dragon Ball.
Again, the figures itself are alright, although not the highest quality, and this is mostly personal preference. I just don’t like the characters. I hope they find new homes where they will be much more loved.
I still wanted to catalogue them here for fellow collectors. The photo’s are, as always, of the actual figures in hand.
Got any more details / information you think I should add? Or did I get something wrong? Do you own the same figures? Do you agree or disagree with my findings? Let me know in the comments below!