Synopsis: The villagers all run back into their houses in fear of the Rabbits' boss arriving, leaving Goku and the others to face him alone. Bulma's not worried, but the goons seem certain in their bosses victory, promising them that their 'asses are grasses...or carrots rather'. Oolong is worried about what that could mean and wants to leave, but Goku says they shouldn't have to leave because they're not the ones that have done anything wrong. A rabbit-themed car soon pulls up, and out from it steps the Rabbits' leader, a rabbit person himself. The goons point out the group to their boss, who is disappointed that they couldn't deal with some kid, a girl, and a pig. Watching from afar, Yamcha is sure he's seen this rabbit somewhere before. Rather than attacking, the rabbit leaps in and offers Bulma a handshake, prompting Yamcha to remember who he is – the Carrot Master! Whatever they do, they can't touch him, but Bulma slaps the Master's hand away before Yamcha can warn any of them, causing her to promptly turn into a carrot. Goku demands that the rabbit turn her back, but he refuses. Oolong suggests that Goku attack him with his nyoibo so that he won't have to actually touch him, and Goku tries, but the rabbit is just barely able to dodge out of the way. The rabbit tells Goku to freeze unless he wants him to eat the carrot-Bulma, and Goku stands down. Before he can get any other ideas out of Oolong, the pig has already fled in their car. With Goku at his mercy, the rabbit makes him stand still while his goons get their revenge by beating on him. Still watching from afar, Yamcha finds he can't watch this any longer – besides, if Bulma remains stuck as a carrot, they'll never get to steal the Dragon Balls from everyone. Yamcha has Puar turn into a bird and steal the carrot back from the rabbit, and Yamcha himself drops in and knocks out the goons. Goku is at first confused about why Yamcha's there, but follows the older boy's orders and attacks a protesting Carrot Master with the nyoibo. Puar then gives the carrot-Bulma back to Goku. Completely defeated, the rabbit is forced to return Bulma to her original body, or else Goku will hit him again. Bulma is confused as to what happened, but Goku explains that Yamcha came and helped them out. Bulma wants to know where her 'hunk' ran off to, but Yamcha's already hiding around the side of a building in fear at being so close to a girl. Goku then finishes tying up the Rabbit Mob and comes up with a great plan for their punishment. He sticks the nyoibo in the ground and extends it as far as the eye can see, carrying the gang along with him. When he gets back down, Bulma asks him what he did with the trio, and Goku asks her if she remembers that old story about rabbits on the moon making mochi? Review: Like it's predecessor, this chapter continues to feel like it's mostly fluff that anyone would be forgiven for thinking didn't exist in the manga. The ironic part? The anime version is at least a little more fleshed out in comparison. Even there though, this storyline overall feels like it adds very little to the world or plot of Dragon Ball as a whole. The villagers are almost non-existent in this second chapter so of course they continue to be uninteresting; the Rabbit Mob quickly proves to be not much of a threat at all, with their only joke being their goofy appearances; and there's nothing new gained or learned about the world or the characters brought in. While it's certainly more forgivable and enjoyable compared to Chapter 10, these two chapters still come off really below the bar Dragon Ball has already set for itself. About the only thing I'd say that could really be argued this chapter brought to the forefront was the idea of Yamcha working together with the gang rather than attacking them or following them, and in a way that is a precedent that I suppose needed set up before the final run of this storyline. I still don't think this chapter really pulled that off the best way possible though, and honestly? Yamcha's whole reason for helping here, that he needs them to get the last Dragon Ball so he can take them from them, would still have worked well enough as his reason for helping against Pilaf's group, so it really didn't have to be done here at all. A big part of the letdown falls on the head of Carrot Master as well. While a lot of fun was had with Oolong being a fake-out villain who only pretended to be strong, nothing nearly as interesting is done with him or his power, and he basically gets one up on Goku only to lose it almost right away afterwards. He really never leaves the area immediately in front of Goku. I mentioned the anime fleshed this all out a bit, and it did so by having the rabbit chase Puar around after he stole the carrot-Bulma back, showing the rabbit off in a more energetic manner. It also adds a bit where Puar turns into the rabbit and makes the rabbit worry he's going to get turned into a carrot himself. Neither of these are really a ton better, but somehow I can't help finding that I like the story better with those elements present. A brief pair of moments I do like though are Oolong just cutting and running once it looks like things are going south for the gang – he doesn't even show up again in this chapter afterwards! The other moment is Goku standing down when it looks like fighting could get Bulma hurt. It really shows how much he already cares for his friends, even if Bulma has largely treated him like a tool rather than a friend for much of their time together. Goku taking the Rabbit Mob to the moon and leaving them to make mochi is something out of an old Japanese myth apparently, but one I'm not very familiar with outside of knowing it's existence unfortunately. That said, it's retroactively hilarious that this happens given what's going to happen to the moon not once, but twice, throughout the course of the series. Rest in piece, Carrot Master and his two goons. You won't be missed, but still, rest in piece guys. Until next time! Favorite Panel:
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