Plot Details: This opinion reveals minor details about the movie's plot.

Note: This is not a movie, but a set of tapes with episodes of the Dragon Ball Z show on them.

Runtime: 5 hours, 20 minutes

Ok, here’s the intro part:

Background: Dragon Ball Z (DBZ) is a Japanese cartoon (anime) that was created by Akira Toriyama. DBZ is a show of super-powerful beings that fight evil – most of the conflict centered around magical items called dragonballs. Dragonballs can only be created by Nameks, powerful alien beings (of which the character Piccolo is one). The idea? Collect all seven dragonballs and a dragon will appear and grant anywhere from 1-3 wishes (depending upon which set of dragonballs one is using – there are about 4 sets throughout the entire DBZ existence). The main hero of the entire series is Goku. Goku is a Saiyan – an alien race that thrives on battle (Goku is the exception) and was destroyed many years ago.

Now there have been six previous sagas; The Saiyan Saga, the Namek Saga, the Captain Ginyu Saga, the Frieza Saga, the Garlic Jr. Saga, and the Trunks Saga. It is possible to start from here, but there are at least two or three characters you would need background information on just so you wouldn’t be confused.

Moving along…

Finally, things begin to pick up again. I kinda feel sorry for the Z boys because they just can’t get a break – but hey, it’s their job, right?

A very old foe of Goku’s (back when Goku was a child and in the Dragon Ball series – yea, no Z in that one, it was when Goku and Krillin and such were kids) is back. His name; Dr. Gero and he’s created some nasty androids that don’t give a crap about anything or anyone (think terminator with an evil sense of humor). They have minds of their own – they just don’t care. These androids are Android #17 (male) and Android #18 (female) and the two are like brother and sister and will refer to each other as such. At least, those are the androids must deal with in his timeline…

But first they must deal with Android #20 and Android #19. Android #20 is actually Dr. Gero (naw, really? I’m not giving anything away – it’s pretty obvious, seriously). He’s had a grudge against Goku ever since the little Saiyan boy destroyed the Red Ribbon Army back in the Dragon Ball days. He’s been studying Goku and the others for years – and now he’s ready to strike back.

However, during his fight with #19, something happens to Goku that Trunks warned him about in the Trunks Saga. Apparently Goku didn’t listen closely enough. As he gets removed from the battlefield by Yamucha, Vegeta steps in. Ohyea. Vegeta rocks my world…*ahem* sorry. This time Vegeta has a little trick up his sleeve and, well, moving on…

Android #20 eventually wakes up #17 and #18. That’s when things start to get rough. The Androids seem to have an unlimited amount of energy (they must be using Energizer batteries) and when the fights are on, they don’t seem to be taking much damage – at all. Here is where we see Krillin turn into a total chicken. Sad, but true.

And there’s one more surprise on the way – something Trunks hadn’t prepared the others for and something he didn’t know about – another Android! #17 and #18 awaken #16. The three Androids begin to wreck havoc while the others try and figure out what to do…and then suddenly another strange discovery is made…

How will the Z fighters take out the Androids? What will happen to Goku? And what is this strange finding going to lead them to? There’s only one way to find out…

Now, I know I said something about Trunks’s timeline earlier – well, that’s a separate deal (called the Trunks Special that you can watch) but he’ll explain himself – unless you catch it first. There’s something about that Trunks kid you should be able to realize right off the bat – and if you don’t, don’t worry, it will be revealed to you later. Good times, good times…

This saga is the beginning of a trying and exciting new era of DBZ and will get even better as the story progresses.

Once again, these volume sets are generally $5 per tape, but if you shop around, you might be able to get it for less. You can find this saga on both VHS and DVD. And as I’ve said everything; English uncut is good, Japanese uncut and subtitled is better.

NT

Episode List:

#111 The Androids Appear
#112 A Handy Trick
#113 Double Trouble for Goku
#114 Upgrade to Super Saiyan
#115 The Secret of Dr. Gero
#116 More Androids?!
#117 Follow Dr. Gero
#118 Nightmare Comes True
#119 Goku’s Assassin
#120 Deadly Beauty
#121 No Match for the Androids
#122 Last Ditch Effort
#123 Closing In
#124 Unwelcome Discovery

Other DBZ reviews:

The Series:
Sagas before this one:
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

Sagas after:
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

The Movies:
Dragon Ball Z: The Movie – Dead Zone
Dragon Ball Z: The Movie - The World's Strongest
Dragon Ball Z: The Movie - The Tree of Might
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

Recommended: Yes

Viewing Format: VHS
Video Occasion: Better than Watching TV
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children Age 13 and Older