I’m Eager For New Dragon Ball Content In 2026, But Now A Sweet Streaming Update Makes Me Want To Rewatch The OG Series

Dragon Ball will celebrate its 40th anniversary in late November, and plans are already in motion for a big celebration in 2026. Fans still have some time before they find out what the future holds for the franchise. In the meantime, though, Toei Animation just revealed a sweet streaming-related detail that has me wanting to revisit Goku's early years.

While Dragon Ball Z tends to carry more weight in the nostalgia department for the millennial crowd, the original Dragon Ball is still a classic and beloved for its storytelling. I, for one, would love to revisit the time when characters like Yamcha and Tien were higher on the ranked list of Z fighters. Now, I may be convinced to dive back in, given the recent announcement that, for the first time, the dub of the OG series is available to stream in HD:

It may not seem that impressive at first glance, but I implore anyone who thinks that to go ahead and do a quick YouTube search and see the difference. There's a crispness to the new scene and more pronounced coloring that really makes Master Roshi's showcase of the raw power of the Kamehameha Wave shine.

Americans were late to the party on Dragon Ball, as the anime series didn't really get a ton of attention stateside until the popularity of Dragon Ball Z. For those who haven't watched it, the first show serves as the origin story of how Goku comes to meet most of the characters later featured in DBZ. For those who have ever wondered why characters like Oolong, Chi Chi's father, the Ox King, and more were in the story, they'll find those explanations there.

For those who never watched, know that the series lacks Super Saiyan transformations or some of the wilder stuff we saw in Super or Daima. While we may have to wait for a follow-up series to tackle more of that material, DB does some important world-building and reveals key detials, including how Goku learned some of his most iconic techniques.

Dragon Ball's HD facelift for streaming is sweet, but it's still unclear whether the franchise will receive a new series following the death of creator Akira Toriyama. Based on social media chatter, there seem to be a lot of anime fans who would love news on another spinoff or continuation of Super as we head into the 2026 TV schedule. I think anything is possible, given the franchise's continued popularity, and I would be surprised if next year ends with zero updates on a bold new direction for this beloved anime.

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Both Hulu's Ad-Supported and Ad-Free tiers give subscribers access to everything the platform has to offer, including Dragon Ball in HD! And new and eligible returning customers can enjoy a whole month of the service for free before paying, with plans starting from $9.99 a month.

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Use a Hulu subscription to stream Dragon Ball in HD now, and strap in for 2026 as we wait to see how Toei Animation plans to celebrate the big milestone for the beloved series. I don't want to get my hopes up too high, but I really want to believe we're going to get a return date for new episodes of Super!