Kamehame…Nah!
When you’ve be going on for as long as this hit anime franchise has, there are bound to be a few blips along the way. While Dragon Ball certainly has its fair share of campy and cheesy moments that fans can look back on as guilty pleasures, there are still a select few instances that firmly place themselves into the category of “wasted potential.” Thankfully they are far and few in-between but when they rear their ugly heads, you’d best watch out. These five films serving as a perfect example of how a hit shounen like Dragon Ball can sometimes strike out.
Fair warning, there are SPOILERS AHEAD!
#5: “Sleeping Princess In Devil’s Castle” (1987)
While the idea of a young Goku blasting apart a vampire named Lucifer might sound like a hoot, the execution of this flick left a lot to be desired from fans of the original anime. With a lacklustre villain and serious lack of charm, this one needed a lot more polish before even thinking about a theatrical release. Whether or not Lucifer makes for a better vampire compared to those found in the Garlic Jr. Saga is still up for debate.
#4: “A Hero’s Legacy” (1997)
The fact that this basically serves as an epilogue to Dragon Ball GT should be all the reason you need to give this one a miss. While the concept of Goku’s descendent setting out on a quest to save the life of his grandmother Pan does sound like it has the potential to be fun, the result unfortunately suffers from the curse of GT; pointless, annoying and lacking any and all impact. This was the equivalent of a dying horse desperately pulling itself along with its one functioning leg. Someone should have put it out of its misery a long time ago.
#3: “Broly – The Second Coming” (1994)
Everyone loves Broly. He’s an engine of pure destruction that can decimate a whole group of Super Saiyans with ease, all the while constantly crying out “Kakarot” like he’s some kind of world-ending parrot. Unfortunately, all that enthusiasm fans felt towards him was lost when he made his way back to Earth and spent the better part of this sequel beating Gohan to a pulp, all before Goku arrives to clean up the mess, this time through the power of a good ol’ family Kamehameha. It’s boring, predictable and ruined Broly’s chance of standing tall as an legendary one-off villain.
#2: “Bio-Broly” (1994)
Will you please leave this poor man alone! Bad enough he suffered a terrible sequel but this is just putting the final nail in the coffin. Though the power of science, Broly is brought back from his second death, now nothing more than a giant slime monster that ends up getting defeated by Goten and Kid Trunks of all people. The conclusion of the “Broly trilogy” proved that the hulking mass of rage and muscles was a victim of his own hype, culminating in a sub-par conclusion that even Lord Slug would be embarrassed to be seen in.
#1: “Episode of Bardock” (2011)
Who was asking for this? Who thought that the awesome yet tragic film featuring Goku’s father needed a sequel? One that just so happened to include time-travel, derpy aliens and a pointless cameo by Frieza’s ancestor. We’re guessing nobody did, yet we still got Episode of Bardock; a special that practically spat in the face of the character and his legacy on the franchise just so the creators could get another Super Saiyan transformation sequence. Best if you just pretend the whole thing is Bardock hallucinating in his final moments as Planet Vegeta explodes.
Be sure to check out the video below to see our picks for the Top 10 Greatest Dragon Ball Z Characters.
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