Synopsis: Using his Kamehameha to propel him through the air, Goku launches himself towards Tenshinhan in mid-air for one final attack. Goku tells Tenshinhan that not even he is that fast in the air, and Roshi shouts jubilantly about his student's quick thinking as Goku slams head-first into Tenshinhan's chest. Both fighters begin to fall towards the ground as the announcer tells the crowd what just happened, and Kuririn shouts that Goku's won the match for sure now, but Roshi thinks that it might not be entirely over yet after all. The announcer notes that Goku doesn't seem able to move, so it's going to come down to who touches the ground first. Goku realizes he spent too much energy with that last Kamehameha, causing his body not to listen to him. Seeing both fighters hurtling towards the ground away from the arena, the announcer quickly pulls out a jet capsule and races towards them to continue his commentary. He notes that Goku seems to be lower and likely to hit the ground first, but Goku quickly uses the very last dregs of his ki to make a tiny Kamehameha. The blast barely works, but it's enough to push him back higher into the air than the falling, seemingly unconscious Tenshinhan. Listening in with a radio from the hospital where his leg was broken leg was treated, Yamcha along with Bulma, Puar, and Lunch all celebrate Goku's impending victory. Kuririn lets out a sigh of relief as well, but at the last second, Goku collides with a van driving down the road, causing his body to hit the ground a fraction of a second sooner than Tenshinhan's does. As a result, the announcer declares the end of the 22nd Tenkaichi Budokai, as well as Tenshinhan as it's new champion. Later that day, the announcer tells everyone that he'll see them again in three years, and Goku and friends prepare to depart from the island once again. Seeing that Goku's uniform is all torn, Kuririn gives him his own gi and changes into the suit he arrived in. He bemoans that Goku was so close to winning this time, but Goku thinks that a loss is still a loss. An awkward Tenshinhan offers to give him half of the prize money, but Goku rejects him saying that he doesn't understand how to use money anyway. Tenshinhan tells him he has a right to the money, since if they're talking purely about strength, he lost this match outright to Goku. Roshi chuckles and says that luck is part of strength as well, and says that Goku learned a lot from fighting someone like him, a fact that Goku readily agrees with. Roshi suggests they all go out to dinner, and Tenshinhan says that they should at least let him pay for dinner then. Kuririn laughs and says that's his worst mistake yet, as he's about to find out just how much one of them can eat. Goku suddenly realizes he forgot the four-star ball and his nyoibo, and Kuririn offers to go get it for him since he must be exhausted. As Kuririn leaves, Tenshinhan apologizes to Yamcha for all of the terrible things he did to him, but Yamcha tells him not to worry as he's just glad to be alive. Roshi asks Tenshinhan and Chaozu what their plans are now that they're off on their own, and offers for them to come back with him to Kame House. Lunch (in her blonde form) quickly agrees to this idea, saying that she's fallen in love with Tenshinhan's savagery. Tenshinhan says he's grateful for the offer, but says that although they've left the Crane School, they still can't walk side-by-side with the Turtle School like their time there didn't happen. Tenshinhan says he and Chaozu will find somewhere else to settle, with Lunch cursing and asking if they can stay in touch at least. The discussion is interrupted by a sudden scream of pain, with Goku instantly recognizing the voice as Kuririn's. Everyone rushes back into the tournament grounds, only to find Kuririn and the tournament announcer both lying on the ground next to the nyoibo and a small, empty bag. Goku rushes to ask Kuririn what happened, and the announcer says that a monster came out of nowhere, took the tournament roster from him and a strange ball from Goku's bag, and then fled. As Tenshinhan checks on the announcer's condition, Goku makes a horrifying announcement – Kuririn isn't unconscious on the ground...he's dead. Review: The final chapter of the 22nd Tenkaichi Budokai arc is one full of highs and lows, as well as being a turning point that's going to end up defining the series for the entire rest of it's run, as well as all future incarnations of it. But more on that later (likely in the next chapter's review rather than this one's), for now let's wrap up the tournament with as much gusto as it deserves. Last review was largely a lot of talk about the Kikoho, but now it's time to talk a little bit about Goku's increasingly creative uses of the Kamehameha. From the series' start pretty much all the way through the Fortuneteller Baba material, Goku has largely always used the move as an attack, or to destroy something that was in his way. Starting with this tournament, we've seen him use it a couple of different times just to save himself from going out of the ring, a trick he probably picked up from remembering “Jackie Chun” do just that back in the 21st Budokai. Here though, we're seeing him combine those two ideas, firing the Kamehameha as a means of propulsion rather than outright as an attack in-of itself. That's just such an obvious yet crazily fun use for the move that I love seeing every time it happens, with a personal favorite coming later in the next Budokai. Both instances I think perfectly cement the Kamehameha as the superior move between it and the Dodonpa, despite the series insistence at this point that the Dodonpa is stronger. Strength isn't everything, and the Kamehameha seems to have far more ways to use it creatively than we ever see with the Dodonpa. While this final blow is a brilliant one, I unfortunately can't really say the same about the finale that it leads to sadly. In some ways, this ending is very similar to the one from the previous 21st Budokai, but since we've already seen that one, it feels a bit repetitive to see it again here, where I also don't think it's handled quite as well. Something about the pacing or the paneling just doesn't make the tension of who's going to hit the ground first work as well as who's going to stand up first did last time. It also feels more like a cheap outing and theft of Goku's victory compared to last time. Goku fought “Chun” to an even match, and was never outright the winner of the fight between them. He also had more to gain from losing that tournament than he did from winning it. Here, Goku is already older, wiser, and Roshi even notes that neither of his students are the types to rest on their laurels if they win, so there's no thematic reason for Goku to lose like there was before. It's also pretty clear that he's the stronger of the two fighters this time. It really does feel more like he was robbed of victory this time, and I wouldn't be surprised if Japanese fans were somewhat disappointed by this outcome when it first happened. Amidst the fight's ending though, it is nice to finally see Yamcha and Goku's other friends again, listening in to the tournament via radio at least. They were left unseen for the majority of this tournament, with only Oolong and Turtle remaining behind in the stands, so this was the first inkling we really got that Yamcha was alright all things considered. After this point, he largely seems to take his loss, as well as Tenshinhan's earlier ugly bravado, fairly well all things considered, and forgives him immediately. The guy is way too good for what's coming for him down the line, I swear. With the tournament's conclusion, we're once again left with the question that we and Toriyama have both had to ask ourselves a few times now – what's next? At each turn of the story, what's coming next has been a fairly easy conclusion to reach. Throughout the first hunt for the Dragon Balls, Goku meets Roshi and wants to train to get stronger, so he heads off to do that since he can't get his grandfather's memento back just yet. In the 21st Tenkaichi Budokai arc, he trains with Roshi, gets entered into the tournament, and loses, thus gaining a new goal to win it one day, while also reaching a point in time that he can go and retrieve the four-star ball. The Red Ribbon storyline leads him to ultimately get his Dragon Ball back, while also greatly increasing his strength so that he can then get right back to his newfound goal of winning the next tournament. With the conclusion of the 22nd tournament, Goku has lost yet again, still leaving him with the goal of winning the next one perhaps...but beyond that, what does he do now? He has his Dragon Ball, he already seems to have trained about a much as seems to be possible with what we have established in the world so far. The story seems to have nowhere to really go outside of jumping ahead another three years to get us to the 23rd Tenkaichi Budokai right away, a feat that would probably feel pretty hollow since we just finished it's predecessor. Nowhere to go, that is, outside of a swerve that comes completely out of left field. The tone of this chapter's already somewhat somber ending changes completely from one page to the next, as we're immediately ripped away from the hilarity of Lunch hitting on Tenshinhan (a relationship that's always left me scratching my head, no matter how much I do enjoy it in a way), to the sight of Kuririn on the ground. Goku's Dragon Ball is missing, his best friend is dead, and there's an air of mystery as we don't know who killed Kuririn, or even ultimately why. An educated guess can be made that the Dragon Ball had something to do with it, both due to it's nature and the fact that it was taken...but what of the tournament roster? What exactly is going on here now that the story has charged immediately into the next one, and such a grim opening at that? As mentioned before, the answer will completely change Dragon Ball moving forward. Buckle up folks – we're in for a wild ride now. Until next time! Favorite Panel:
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About the AuthorAspiring author and big anime/manga fan, just trying to do my best in the world. For more details, go to About Me. Archives
September 2022
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