Chapter 27: Outlining
Instead of jumping ahead into driving but getting stuck on the way, Alexander opted to scout and know which roads lead to where, ahead of time.
To make a grand Dragonball extensive worldview, one needs to be a plotter and not a pantser.
He didn't want to go into a writer's block that many writers ditch themselves into as new Dragonball isn't just copying and pasting Toriyama but expanding on it.
It would be quite shameful to have made mishaps and also unresolved plot holes as he goes along.
He could criticize others when they make mistakes but don't want to be the receiving end of that criticism. To make that happen, he needed to do the best he can.
Alexander could already imagine Dragonball being a decades-long venture and he needed to make sure that those years of hard work would be smooth-sailing and worth the effort.
It is still impossible to compress that long a project within a Sunday break though, so he just had to make do with what he can.
To do so, he just needs to make himself an outline of major events and possible minor events to supplement them.
It is also important not to forget the fact that they needed to tie into one main storyline.
Fillers and side stories are tolerable but not necessary for him while reboots are out of the question.
Reboots only serve to incense a lot of people and it is better to stick with what he got than try to correct everything by erasing and replacing it.
Granted, there are successful reboots but Alexander didn't want to go down that road.
-------
Goku would meet Bulma. This was the start of the story and set the introduction for the main characters.
They would go on adventures to find the Dragonballs and the adventure part is where Alexander is dissatisfied with.
The Pilaf finale with the panty Shenron wish and ending with King Kong Goku inadvertently saving the day is genius. What is unbearable is the fact that the said climax happened within a span of 20 manga chapters.
Every other chapter consists of the Dragonballs being picked but it felt too easy and quick to be considered an adventure.
Alexander set the stage to make every Dragonball difficult to acquire and story-worthy.
Bulma's attic Dragonball and Goku's special Four-star Dragonball is just the freebies and the rest is a task of its own.
Toriyama also employed this idea and all that Alexander had to do was expand on it.
The first meeting with Bulma and Goku would be a battle expansion of martial arts and technology until they make up.
Son Gohan and Power Pole could also have a bit of backstory at this point.
They would then work to find the next Dragonball guarded by the strong beasts of the mountain forest, where Goku and Gohan senior closely house themselves.
They would encounter Master Roshi after helping Turtle but the Turtle-helping story could use much more trouble than just defeating a talking bear.
Oolong's story could also be extended. Yamcha and Puar would be antagonists first as always.
The Ox-King parts and the introduction of Chichi are also something that could use more chapters to convey.
Kame Hame Ha would have its debut and Alexander opted to keep that name as it is perfect in his opinion.
Emperor Pilaf would be introduced earlier and wouldn't be abrupt additions to the climax.
It is important to note that Pilaf has always made use of robot mechs and it would be a shame to not include something merchandisable into the story.
Pilaf's machines could very well be a toyline like Iron Man's Mark suits.
The Boss Rabbit that can turn people into carrots would also serve as a preliminary introduction to magic lore. Oolong's and Puar's shapeshifting is just a trace of it.
Bobby D, Bibby D, and Buu needed a foreshadowing to not make them too abrupt as the original.
That about wraps it up for the first arc with the ragtag Dragonball team disbanding and heading to new adventures.
Alexander stayed through with Toriyama's plot for the first part because its success has some basis to ground himself.
Even if he opted to tone down some of the sexual innuendos, he still kept most of it as it was an appeal for the young Goku stories. It could be said that lewdness is what brings out the comedy to the series.
------
The rest of Alexander's outlining is more on the next arcs as he went on with his story expansion plan.
For the one year that the Dragonball is recharging, Goku and his friends has a lot of stories to be tapped.
Training arcs, dealing with complications of Shenron wishes, Martial Arts Tournaments, and just the establishment of the power dynamics.
Alexander had pretty much used his brain powers to muster as many martial arts moves to expand on the story and how they compare against each other.
Solar Flare, flight, Destructo Disc, KameHameHa, eight-arm fist, and all that can't just be the few named techniques that originate from Earth.
Alexander has also formed expansive arcs for that lead to the next Shenron wishes and the possible complications of them to be put on arcs as well.
Dr. Gero also has a major storyline as he is literally an evil that could surpass the comedic Pilaf.
There is even a business conspiracy arc that pits Dr. Gero, Dr. Brief of Capsule Corp., and Emperor Pilaf against each other.
Alexander also plans to put Bulma in a more forefront role as her genius isn't any less than the others. Her creation of the Dragon Radar is a testament to that.
Senzu Beans, Evil King Piccolo, Kami, Piccolo Jr., Korin, and all the considered peaks of Earth are also deserving of their expansive stories. Even FortuneTeller Baba has a much in-depth exploration of her lore.
--------
Alexander, who was plotting all of these things, was already sweating for the grandness and difficulty to put thingsinto action.
He still hasn't even touched the Saiyan stories and Galactic threats such as Freeza and Broly.
The challenge is real but his gaze was much more determined as he went on. As someone who saw through the secrets of coding malfunctions to the very end, there was no way a newer Dragonball franchise could stump him.
He put everything else to the back of his mind and worked on outlines and the outlining of every possible plot point, major event, and minor detail he could work on.
By the time Sullivan had already finished setting up dinner and called for him, Alexander has already put down his pen and finished his vision up to the Universal Survival arc.
The much-disliked GT was also used by him but it was more as an inspiration for Goku's galactic adventures than an entire series.
Toriyama, who is still working on his Dragon Boy manga, could only be in awe at what a 9-year-old with hyper-enhanced memory could do if he ever saw those expansive but somewhat coherent timelines of events.