Synopsis: As Goku and Tenshinhan leave the ring, Chi Chi congratulates her fiancé and expresses surprise over how strong he is. Yamcha tries to console Tenshinhan by saying it was a close fight, but Tenshinhan says it wasn't close at all, saying that Goku's strength is on a whole other level now, to the point that he wasn't even using close to his full strength against him. Tenshinhan's pride is wounded, but he doesn't hold it against Goku – he just wishes he knew what kind of training he went through to get this strong. Kuririn wonders just how much more amazing Goku is going to get if he's already this strong now. A watching Piccolo is pleased that his destined foe is strong, and can't wait to fight him himself. The announcer calls for the start of the last semi-final match, asking for both Demon Junior (Piccolo) and Shen (Kami) to enter the ring. Before Kami can leave however, Goku asks Chi Chi to wait outside and walks over to talk to him. He tells Kami he didn't recognize him at first due to the borrowed body, and asks him why he came to take down Piccolo himself after all. Kami confesses that he came because he doesn't think Goku can do it. Goku is confused, but Kami reveals that he knows that Mr. Popo told Goku not only knows about he and Piccolo once having been the same being, but also about their connection meaning that when one dies, the other will as well. Goku says that Popo cares about Kami, but Kami says he believes this knowledge will prevent Goku from doing what needs done in the end. Goku says he'll find a way to beat Piccolo without killing him, but Kami says this isn't the kind of opponent that will work with, while also saying that since Piccolo was a problem he created after all, he'd rather take care of it himself. As the announcer calls again for Shen to come to the ring, Piccolo wonders if his opponent is a coward, as Goku's friends spot him talking to the man. Kami says that he left most of Goku's training to Mr. Popo, so he admits to not having a very firm grasp on just how strong Goku has become, bu the still believes he himself is now the only one capable of defeating Piccolo. Goku doesn't like the sound of that and asks if Kami is planning to die, but Kami assures him that even God values his own life, and says that humanity has shown him an alternative method. He then steps out into the ring, apologizing for the delay by claiming to have had to use the restroom, causing Piccolo to suggest he would have been better off fleeing. Kuririn asks Goku what he and that Shen guy were talking about, and Goku promises to tell him once the tournament's over – at least, if everything goes as he hopes it does. As the announcer declares a start to the match, Piccolo apologizes to 'Shen' but says he has to end this quickly, as his destiny lies with Goku. 'Shen' tells Piccolo that is' foolish of him to already be planning for world domination as soon as he kills Goku and anyone else in his way, and Piccolo is shocked that the man knows this, as well as his real name. 'Shen' says he won't let Piccolo have his way, and launches a powerful shockwave towards his opponent, knocking him into the air and catching everyone else by surprise. Piccolo manages to stop himself in mid-air, and 'Shen' leaps up after him. Piccolo demands to know who or what 'Shen' really is, and launches a massive energy blast at him. 'Shen' is able to dodge it, and as it erupts into the water, Piccolo slams his fists into his opponent, knocking him back down to the ring. As 'Shen' lands however, Piccolo appears behind him and tries to hit him again, only to find that 'Shen' has disappeared. Reappearing above Piccolo, 'Shen' hits him hard enough to knock him through the ring's floor, but Piccolo merely breaks back through to the ring's surface in another spot. As the two fighters scowl and size each other up, Kuririn wonders what in the world is going on with the pair of them. Review: Have I mentioned before that I don't particularly care for Kami? Because I really, really don't care for Kami. Don't get me wrong, it's nice to see him actually be proactive. One of my biggest issues, hell THE biggest issue I have with the character, is that he basically dumps his personal demon on the world below and then leaves them to clean up his mess, rather than actually trying to do anything about it. Well, here he's doing just that, he's trying to take care of Piccolo himself...but honestly, at this point? It's too little too late. It also doesn't help that we find out that he didn't even take care of much of Goku's training himself, and largely left it all to Popo. So...what exactly where you doing all that time, Kami? Watching Goku with one eye and Piccolo down on Earth with the other, and sizing up if you really liked the odds on the bet you'd just made? Way to not have much faith in your student there. Oh, I'm sorry – way to not have much faith in POPO'S student. Honestly, the only part of the exchange between Goku and Kami that doesn't irritate me a little is the reminder for the audience about Piccolo and Kami's shared lifeline, as well as the reveal that Goku knows about it as well. This is the one part of Kami's reasoning that I can work with: he presumably knows Goku well enough by now to know what a kind-hearted soul he is overall, and that would give him reason to be suspicious as to whether or not Goku will actually kill Piccolo if it means killing him as well. This is a good moral dilemma to present our hero and the audience both with, is it right to kill someone evil if it also means killing someone good at the same time? It's basically a high fantasy version of a bad guy taking an innocent hostage, with the problem being do you find a way to save the hostage at the risk of the bad guy winning or getting away, or do you “make a sacrifice” for the “greater good”? The series doesn't particularly dive into the ethos of this much, but it is there if you want to read into it that deeply, and I do appreciate Toriyama throwing in something to make this a little different than Goku's last fight with Piccolo – the trappings of the tournament are nice, but they probably wouldn't really have been enough, and on their own could actually have stifled this arc to a degree. Once we get to Piccolo and Kami's fight proper, Piccolo probably speaks for the audience when he says he wants to get this over with and get to the fight with Goku. We've barely seen what either fighter is capable of, and it seems inevitable at this point that they're going to be the final match of the tournament, so really this fight just seems to be in the way at this point. That said, Kami doesn't plan to step aside at all, and though this fight might seem like it really is pointless, it's actually serving the narrative by making things even more dire – though we won't really get into how it does that until the next chapter. 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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