Dragon Ball is a Japanese manga by Akira Toriyama serialized in the weekly anthology magazine, Weekly Shonen Jump, from 1984 to 1995 and originally collected into 42 individual books called Tankōbon. In 2004, the manga was re-released in a 34 volume collection (called Kanzenban) which included a slightly rewritten ending, all new original covers, and original color artwork from its Weekly Jump run.
In the US, the manga was first released as two American-style comic books: Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z starting in 2000 (the split corresponds to the two different anime series, though the original Japanese manga does not distinguish between them. See below). This style of release was unsuccessful due to its large size and expensive cost ($2.95 for an issue of 2, later 3, chapters), and both series were cancelled in 2002. The Dragon Ball Z manga was transitioned into a launch title for the new US edition of the Shonen Jump anthology, starting in January 2003. In parallel to these releases, VIZ Media is in the process of releasing the 42 volumes (nearly matching the first Japanese set) in English. Viz titles the second part of the manga Dragon Ball Z to reduce confusion for American audiences.