I’m here to do DBZ some justice in giving it the good reviews it needs. What can I say, it got me started on anime. And I don’t like to bite the hand that feeds me. ^_~

A quick history lesson in the wide world of Dragon Ball Z, more commonly known as DBZ. DBZ started out as an anime (Japanese animation series) and eventually got so popular they made movies. Cool! It was created by Akira Toriyama and involves a main character whose name is Goku. Goku is a Saiyan (or in Japanese, Saiya-jin), a superman-like character, only he can’t do the freezing breath or laser eyes. He’s just super powerful (personally I think he could beat Superman…) and able to manipulate “ki” (energy). Anyway, the driving force behind DBZ are the dragonballs. Just think a magic lamp with a genie inside. Collect all 7 and you get a wish…or three. Depends. Eventually though, the bad guys forget all about them and either just want to kill Goku and all his friends (who are pretty powerful themselves – not all of them human either) or blow up the earth. It happens.

That’s where things are going in this movie. The bad guy just wants to trash stuff. Sort of.

After a beginning that was, well, kind of pointless really, we are introduced to Turles (sometimes also spelled Turlus, Taurus, and whatever else people come up with – I don’t think anyone ever knew for sure, but it’s Turles on the cover). Turles and his band of evil buddies decided (for some reason) to come to earth in order to plant the Tree of Might. This tree sucks out the life energy of the planet (it’s a big tree) and bears fruit that empowers the eater to a great degree.

Now, in this movie (at least the dubbed version) Turles comes off as Goku’s brother, even admitting it a few times. Whether he truly is or not in the Japanese version, I’ve yet to find out. I never did my homework. But it doesn’t really matter because he still wants to kill everyone – including Goku.

So pretty much it’s Goku and his pals vs. Turles and his space pirates. And throughout all this, they need to destroy the tree in order to save earth. Yea, that’s pretty much it. I know, it doesn’t seem like much, but it is entertaining. The fights are all pretty interesting and Turles has a sneaky little ace up his sleeve concerning turning Goku’s son, Gohan around on his father. So how will Goku stop Turles and destroy the tree? Will he be able to?

It’s not the best DBZ movie made, but it’s definitely better than the one that came after it at the very least. The dubbing is good (ah, the good ole days of decent dubbing), though these days you can get the DVD version and click on the subtitles. But it’s not as though there isn’t any depth to the movie. Okay, there’s not a lot, but if you’ve seen some DBZ already you know the deal, but if not, that’s okay too because you get to see Goku’s love for his son and his planet and the devotion his friends have to him.

If you wanna be serious, then don’t watch this *haha* but if you wanna just kick back and be entertained at 12am or during a rainy day, sure, this movie is great. =P

NT

Other DBZ reviews:
The Movies:
Dragon Ball Z: The Movie – Dead Zone
Dragon Ball Z: The Movie - The World's Strongest
Dragon Ball Z: The Movie – Cooler’s Revenge
Dragon Ball Z: The Movie – The Return of Cooler
Dragon Ball Z: The Movie – Super Android 13
Dragon Ball Z: The Movie – Broly: The Legendary Super Saiyan
Dragon Ball Z: The Movie – Bojack Unbound

The Series:
Dragon Ball Z - Saiyan Saga: 8-Volume Box Set
Dragon Ball Z - Namek Saga: 9-Volume Set
Dragon Ball Z - Captain Ginyu Saga: 2-Volume Box Set
Dragon Ball Z - Frieza Saga: 10-Volume Box Set
Dragon Ball Z - Garlic Jr. Saga: 3-Volume Box Set
Dragon Ball Z - Trunks Saga: 4-Volume Box Set
Dragon Ball Z - Androids Saga: 4-Volume Box Set
Dragon Ball Z - Imperfect Cell Saga: 4-Volume Box Set
Dragon Ball Z - Perfect Cell Saga: 4-Volume Box Set
Dragon Ball Z - World Tournament Saga: 3-Volume Box Set
Dragon Ball Z - Babidi Saga: 4-Volume Box Set
Dragon Ball Z - Majin Buu Saga: 7-Volume Box Set

Recommended:
Yes

Video Occasion: Good for a Rainy Day
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children Age 13 and Older