Goku Son
When the series begins, Goku is 13 years old. His adventure starts when a young woman appears at his home looking for what she calls a Dragonball. It turns out that the memento Goku has kept to remind him of his deceased grandfather is one of the 7 Dragonballs Bulma is looking for.
Accordind to Bulma, there is an ancient legend about these 7 Dragonballs. When gathered and placed together, they will summon the ancient dragon Shenlon. The dragon, once summoned, will grant the summoner one wish. The idea of seeing a dragon so intrigues Goku that he decides to go with Bulma to find the other Dragonballs.
Goku is incredibly naive in the ways of the world and is not well acquainted with technology. Up until Bulma's appearance, he hadn't even known what a girl was. Goku is determined, energetic, and always willing to lend a helping hand.
There is more to Goku's past than even he is aware of. During the course of his adventures, however, he comes across the ghost of his dead grandfather and is told by him that he is an alien from another world. This explained the reason he has a tail and why it is that he can become so dangerous if he gazes up into a full moon!
Bulma
After finding out about the legend of the Dragonballs from some old texts, Bulma has made it her intention to find all 7 of the Dragonballs and summon the dragon to gain a wish. She created the Dragon Radar in order to be able to track the location of the Dragonballs and obtain them. The reason Bulma is going to all this trouble, despite the evident dangers, is that she wants to use the wish to get a fabulous Boyfriend!
Though at first not sure what use she would have for the diminutive Goku, she soon comes to find that he is indispensable. His tough skin and martial art skills get them out of a number of bad scrapes! As time goes on, he becomes almost like a brother to her.
Bulma is head strong, intelligent, and thinks highly of herself. To find a boyfriend worthy of her is her number one goal in life.
Master Roshi
Goku and Bulma met Master Roshi when they helped a large turtle return to the sea. He was in possession of one of the Dragonballs that Bulma was looking for. Though an accomplished martial artist, Master Roshi is an incorrigible letch. He trades Bulma the ball for a peek beneath her nightdress. He also gives Goku a candy cloud to use for transport. The cloud will only hold people of pure hearts -- which meant that he hadn't had a use for it. :-)
Master Roshi was Goku's grandfather's teacher and after seeing Goku's learning potential, he offers Goku the chance to come and be trained further in his studies of the martial arts. Goku turns down the offer since he'd already promised to help Bulma, but is able to take advantage of it later. It is from him that Goku learns how to use his 'ki' (the power within his inner self -- his soul) to create the energy beams known as Kamehameha!
Krillin
Once Goku decides to go and study under Master Roshi, another boy shows up looking to get the master to teach him as well. At first, Krillin does all he can, fair and unfair, to show that he is the better student. He had come looking for intruction from the Famous Master Roshi because he had left his group after being ridiculed by a group of bullies. As time goes by, however, Kuririn lets his better self come through and he becomes one of Goku's closest friends.
Kami-sama/Piccolo
Kami-sama is the power behind the Dragonballs and the Dragon Shenlon. It is he that enables the wishes to come true. However, Kami-sama is not a native of Earth. Rather, he is a being from the planet Namik who studied under the previous Kami-sama.
Originally found unworthy to become part of the echelon of heavenly powers, Kami-sama purged from himself the evil that tainted his soul. In so doing, however, the orginal Picolo Daimao was born.
As a being of pure evil, Picolo Daimao tried to take over the world until his spirit was trapped away so that mankind could be saved. Pilaf, one of Goku's first enemies, inadvertently releases Picolo from his prison. Goku, through a great effort, is finally able to defeat him, but not before Picolo generates a child. (he spits out an egg from his mouth as he is dying putting as much of himself as he can into the child.) This child first calls himself Ma jr. Luckily, he is not born as purely evil as his father, but he is seeking revenge for his father's defeat. To compare himself with this world's champions before deciding whether or not to go on a campaign of world domination, Picolo's child enter the Tenkai Ichi Budokai. It is here that Kami-sama has come disguised as a human in order to attempt to trap the new Picolo's soul away to make up for his original mistake of loosening his evil side on the world.
In the end, Goku is able to prove to Picolo that his future course of action is not a right one. Though at first their relationship is more of barely tolerated rivals, Picolo comes to respect and later admire Goku and even decides to help in the cause of protecting the Earth.
This series follows the adventures of Son, Goku. Though it begins as a search for the Dragonballs, the story actually end up following his life and how he fits into the world. From the first Dragonball search, you will go with him to train in martial arts, to his bedut in the Tenkai Ichi Budokai (The Greatest Martial Artist Constest), and beyond. As he grows in skill, Goku will use his powers to help the world against fiends such as Pilaf with his designs on world domination, the Red Ribbon organization, Tau Paipai, and the most fearsome of all, Picolo Daimao.
All his adventures happen on a world were animals speak and live like humans and is also a place with the technology of Hoi Poi capsules which allows all manner of things to be stored in miniature capsules for easy transport. It is a world where almost anything is posible, even being brought back from the dead by a wish.
Akira Toriyama's manga epic is even more enjoyable as a series! With fluid movements, a nice budget, and Mr. Toriyama's unique style, as well as his sharp humor, this is a series that can be enjoyed by the entire family.