Dragonball is a long running TV series with tons 
of cels. In comparison top series like the 
Simpsons and PowerPuff are several hundred. 
Disney TV cels are only a bit more. Compared to 
these, Dragonball doesn't seem cheap. 

And talk about movies. Kikis around $1000, Totoro 
around $2000, Mononoke around $4,000 , and top 
hankens for $10,000. These are all recent movies, 
just like The Little Mermaid cels are $1500 and 
up. 

I used to think anime was less expensive than 
Amercian animation. However, when placed in the 
context it's about the same if not more.