Synopsis: Mr. Popo tells Goku that his spirit and skills are both too weak, and thus he can't allow him to meet Kami-sama. Goku is in disbelief that someone could be so strong, and Popo chastises him, calling him foolish for believing that he was the strongest in the world just for defeating King Piccolo. Goku admits defeat and indeed feels foolish for forgetting the lesson that there's always someone stronger out there, but when Popo tells him to leave, Goku says he can't as he has to bring back the people that died. He asks Popo if he can use the sanctuary to train before taking Popo on again, and although he doesn't think it'll do any good, Popo allows him to, finding that he likes Goku quite a bit despite his momentary arrogance. Goku runs around and around the sanctuary, excited now to have learned about even stronger people he has yet to meet, but soon finds himself winded far sooner than he expected. Mr. Popo explains that the sanctuary is even higher up than Karin's tower and as such the air is that much thinner, and normal people aren't used to that. The air's thinness also makes all of Goku's wasted movements work against him, something Popo tells him he should take greater care with even back on the ground. He tells Goku that he must learn to be as quiet as the sky and quicker than lightning. Goku tries to move like that and realizes that it's hard, and Popo gives him an example, moving quicker than Goku can see him and even seeing what Goku is doing without looking at him. Goku is amazed, and Popo explains that Goku's mistake is using only his eyes to look – Popo is able to tell what's happening around him merely by someone else's presence and the movement of the air as they move. Goku is no longer surprised he couldn't win against Mr. Popo, and Popo attributes everything he knows to things he learned from Kami-sama. Goku asks Popo if that means Kami is even more amazing than him, which Popo confirms. Goku is even more eager than before to meet Kami, but Goku does wonder why if he and Popo are both so strong, neither one of them did anything to stop King Piccolo. Popo says that Kami has his own reasons, and then asks Goku if he'd like to try fighting him again after all, cautioning Goku that it could take many years before he's able to do anything against him, and that he might not even be able to win after that. Goku says he has to do it, but now he wants to do it as well. Hearing Goku's vigor, the voice of Kami speaks from the temple behind them, and says that he'll meet with Goku now. Goku is excited, and Popo tells him that he's a truly lucky individual. Mr. Popo leads Goku to the temple's entrance, and Goku is shocked when he sees “King Piccolo” step out from inside. Enraged that “Piccolo” is still alive, Goku rushes him before Popo can stop him, but Goku finds himself casually flicked away. As Popo catches him, Popo explains that Kami-sama isn't Piccolo at all and that he merely looks like him. Kami scoffs at Karin for not having explained things properly to Goku before doing so himself. He explains that long ago, he and Piccolo were one and the same. Much like Goku, Kami was a gifted martial artist who one day found out about the existence of Kami-sama. He came to the temple and desired to become Kami-sama's heir as even Gods die, and was distressed when the previous Kami continually turned him away. Kami believed himself to be the most worthy of anyone to succeed the throne of God, but the previous Kami saw an inkling of evil within him. Through many years of training, Kami eventually succeeded in purging the evil from his body, but to his horror, the evil lived and took on the name of the Demon King Piccolo, fleeing to Earth to terrorize humanity. This had long been Kami's shame, so he thanks Goku for defeating Piccolo for him, promising to hear Goku's plea as thanks. Before Goku can state his desire however, Kami-sama cautions him that he'll only grant him what he wants if Goku agrees to stay there with himself and Mr. Popo for a while longer to continue training. Goku eagerly agrees as he was going to ask if he could do that in the first place. Kami says that he already knows what it is Goku wants, and although he himself cannot bring people back to life, he can revive Shenlong and make the Dragon Balls that can revive people available again. Goku thanks Kami, but Kami further warns him that this is the only time he'll be doing this, as it wouldn't do for people to become overly reliant on 'God' to fix things for them – even the Dragon Balls require you to gather them for yourself first if you want a miracle to happen. As Goku celebrates, Kami prepares to get to work. Review: Maybe it's just my agnostic side talking, but man...Kami-sama's proving not to be much of a God right from the get go, huh? More on that in a bit. Right from the start, it's interesting to see Mr. Popo reiterate Roshi's lesson to Goku about there always being someone stronger out there. It's true that Goku's victory over King Piccolo had gotten the better of him, proving to Roshi that he'd been somewhat right to worry about his students in the first place (a bit ironic given that just an arc ago, Roshi thought the need for humbling had passed), but for that exact lesson to be worded the same way here kind of makes me wonder if Roshi himself didn't learn that lesson from Karin, who likewise learned it from Kami-sama. Either way, it's a fitting way to remind the audience of that lesson as well – just because Goku defeated Piccolo, there has to be even stronger threats out there, otherwise there's no point in the story continuing. Mr. Popo also gives Goku his next lesson, or at least a tease of it, by mentioning that Goku needs to make better use of his movements if he wants to get the most out of the strength he's gained. Again, this is all sounding really familiar to modern Dragon Ball, and for good reason. As annoying as retreading ground can be though, it's always nice to see the foundation laid for something that ties to skill rather than just brute strength. It also further cements the character of Goku, as after getting over his own arrogance, he's proven to be the same battle-loving guy looking for his next challenge, even after becoming the 'savior of Earth'. Once we actually get introduced to Kami-sama, it quickly becomes evident that it's lore dropping time, as we get a quick debriefing on the origins of King Piccolo, as well as who exactly Kami is. As mentioned before, Kami is his title rather than his name, a fact that's laid out quite plainly here as we're told about the previous Kami and what our current Kami had to go through to achieve the throne of God. It's an interesting backstory, and one that's even better in the anime as we're at least partially shown it rather than just outright told it as we are here in the manga – but it doesn't exactly leave Kami in the greatest of light, even from his introduction. I mean, let's break it down here. Kami-sama was a martial artist, just like Goku. He became really strong, came to meet the previous Kami, and decided – for himself, let's not forget – that he was the most worthy out of anyone to become Kami next. Even when the previous Kami repeatedly turned him down, he kept at it, and eventually decided 'I'm just going to purge evil from myself' – somehow – and then the evil just ran off to Earth to cause mayhem while Kami was given a new title and throne. Hell, this kinda puts into question the qualifications of the previous Kami too. Yeah, I know exactly who I want to take over for the most important job on the planet, the guy who just ditched his negative energy and let it run loose on all of the people I'm supposed to be watching over – it'll be GREAT! The worst part is that there's a halfway decent reason why Kami can't interfere with Piccolo's doings given later that isn't present here just yet, and I can't help but wonder if that reason came about because either Toriyama himself, his editor, or even the readership, weren't entirely convinced by Kami's words in this chapter. It's somewhat implied by Kami's speech here that the reason he didn't interfere is because humanity should figure out the solution to it's own problems. That's all well and good, hell, it's a sentiment that comes back at the very end of the original run of this manga, but here there's just one problem with that – Piccolo wasn't humanity's problem to begin with! It was Kami's problem, and it's a problem that he, as of this chapter at least, seemingly just crosses his arms at and says “Well, he's down there on Earth now, so technically he's YOUR problem, humans. No takesie-backsies!”. I mean, seriously, what kind of “God” drops his own misgivings and problems on the masses of the world and just leaves them to deal with it as if it was their problem to begin with? ...Actually, that...is starting to sound a little familiar...hmm. Until next time! Favorite Panel: Next Time: It's a Back-to-Life Bargain Sale!
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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
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