In February 2009, Toei Animation announced that it would begin broadcasting a revised version

of Dragon Ball Z as part of the series's 20th anniversary celebrations. [38] The series premiered on Fuji
TV in Japan on April 5, 2009, under the title Dragon Ball Kai. The ending suffix Kai (改「かい」) in
the name means "updated" or "altered" and reflects the improvements and corrections of the original
work.[39] The original footage was remastered for HDTV, featuring updated opening and ending
sequences, new music, and a re-recording of the vocal tracks.[39][40] The original material and any
damaged frames were removed, along with the majority of the filler episodes to more closely follow
the manga, resulting in a faster-moving story.[41] Torishima later explained the origins
of Kai: Bandai was having a hard time increasing their sales and asked if a new Dragon Ball anime
could be made, but Toriyama refused to create a new story. Realizing that the anime-exclusive
scenes that were added to increase the distance between the original anime and the manga hurt the
pacing of the series, Torishima thought of cutting them so that it faithfully followed the manga. He
said the reception to Kai was positive, "so it all worked out".[42]