Synopsis: Goku says he's going to go meet the car that's headed their way and ask if he can borrow their Dragon Ball, but Yamcha says finding the car might not be that easy. Baba thinks it shouldn't be a problem however, as it appears to be the only car on the road, but Bulma is still trying to figure out why the Dragon Ball isn't showing up on the radar if it's just in a car. Goku calls down kinto'un, and leaves the other six Dragon Balls in the care of Upa while he goes to retrieve the last one.
As Mai drives the car, Pilaf goes over their plan one last time to make sure his minions have got it down – so long as they grab Goku's tail, he'll be easy for them to deal with, and this time he'll get his wish and become the ruler of the world. Shu asks Pilaf what he's going to do first when he's the king, catching Pilaf, who doesn't have a real answer to that question, by surprise. The conversation is soon interrupted when Goku lands on top of the car and leans down over the windshield, asking if he can have the Dragon Ball. The trio stares at the boy incredulously for a moment, until Goku starts to think they look familiar. Freaking out, Mai swerves the car and throws Goku off of it, and the car stops a few feet away from where Goku easily lands. The trio have no idea how Goku could have possibly found them, especially since their Dragon Ball should be shielded from detection by the box Pilaf put it in. Goku recognizes the trio at last as the group that tried to kill him and his friends at the end of their first search for the Dragon Balls, prompting Mai to ask Pilaf what they should do now. Pilaf tells her to remain calm, saying that this could actually be the best thing that could have happened to them, especially since they still know Goku's weakness. Goku yells for them to get out of the car, and the trio does so, with Pilaf complimenting Goku for somehow finding out the location of their Dragon Ball. Goku asks if they're plotting something evil again and tells them to just hand over the ball, but Pilaf says they're not so different, he and them, since they all want the Dragon Balls for themselves. Pilaf then proposes a deal – they'll fight, and if Goku wins, he gets their Dragon Ball, but if Pilaf and his minions win, they get all six of the balls Goku has. Goku is surprised they know he has the other balls, but ultimately agrees to the deal. Goku is ready to fight the Pilaf trio, but the Pilaf trio first throws out capsules, revealing a trio of different robot suits that they all climb into. Pilaf laughs and tells Goku he may as well surrender as there's no way he's stronger than their suits, but Goku tells them to fight already. Pilaf asks Goku if he really wants to die that badly, warning him that he'll regret it if he's mocking the suits Pilaf himself designed. Pilaf then tells Mai to show Goku how strong the suits are, with Mai objecting and saying that Pilaf himself should probably go first, outraging Pilaf who accuses her of not trusting his handiwork. Goku decides that if they don't want to, he'll attack first, and promptly kicks Pilaf's robot, sending it flying into a nearby boulder before falling to the ground. Shu and Mai rush over to their leader to check if he's okay, and inside the suit Pilaf questions if Goku is even human. Review: We're in the endgame of this arc now, and as this chapter primarily sets things up for that conclusion even further, this is another one where I'll most likely be pretty brief. Remember how I said the fight with Black was, action-wise, quite a big step down from us seeing Goku take on Taopaipai for a second time? Well, this is pretty similar to that – there's absolutely nothing the Pilaf gang can do to rival the spectacle we've just seen from Goku and Gohan, but like that previous finale, I think this one works well enough for what it's going for. The Baba arc as a whole was less about breaking new ground and more about establishing the new status quo (mainly by showing just how strong Goku is now) and wrapping up the last plotline left over from the Red Ribbon arc, and this story beat with Pilaf serves basically the same function as well. It also serves as a way to make the world feel more alive in a way, by showing us that previously defeated but not killed villains such as the Pilaf gang could still be out there, plotting away against our heroes unseen. Hmm...that sounds a little familiar, actually... That's getting way ahead of ourselves though, and as of right now, the Pilaf gang is basically just a fun callback to the original storyline of the manga, and as I said before, I for one love seeing them again. I still think it may have been more effective if it was only now, in this chapter, that we learned it was them that had the last Dragon Ball however. The surprise was already spoiled two chapters ago, and the last chapter didn't even feature them at all, so as fun as it is seeing them again now, it can't help but feel a little bit lesser since the 'wow' factor of their return is gone. Pilaf's robot suits are a fun surprise though, as they make for a pretty comedic subversion of the robot suit we saw Black don in his attempt to best Goku. Unlike that one, these are all far smaller, much less imposingly designed – though they are each varied and unique to which character is piloting one, which is nice – and they certainly don't seem to be as impressive. Remember that with his suit, Black was actually able to hurt Goku. Not lasting damage by any means, but Goku at least felt it's hits. Based on the performance of Pilaf's suit so far, it doesn't seem likely that these ones are going to be anywhere near as impressive. Guess instead of designing these himself, he should have outsourced the work to someone outside his group. Though...that does beg the question of just who DID design all of the Red Ribbon's tech, doesn't it? Hmm... That's a question that long time fans already know isn't going to get answered for a long, long time though. Until next time! Favorite Panel:
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September 2022
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