Synopsis: With 'Shen' down for a ten count, 'Demon Junior' is declared the winner, with Piccolo thinking to himself that even if the human Kami had possessed got back to his feet, there would be nothing he could do. Everyone is confused and stunned by what they just witnessed, especially Goku who is surprised to see Kami lose and get contained in a small bottle. The announcer wakes Shen up to confirm that he's still alive, and as the man comes to, he's surprised to see a large audience clapping for him. He asks the announcer if this isn't the Tenkaichi Budokai, and the announcer confirms that it is, wondering if Shen hit his head. Shen bashfully apologizes for being on the stage and rushes off of it, through a crowd that continues cheering for him. He wonders how in the world he got up there in the first place, wondering if he got drunk, but to his surprise, his son calls out to him and praises him for being super strong, confusing Shen even further. The announcer declares the final match of the 23rd Tenkaichi Budokai to be Son Goku V.S. Demon Junior, and says it will start after a ten minute break. Piccolo scoffs as he needs no break, but Roshi takes advantage of the recess to leave Bulma, Lunch, Oolong and Puar in the stands so he can go talk to Goku and the others. Goku stands in the way of Piccolo leaving the ring, and demands that he hand over the bottle holding Kami captive. Piccolo laughs and says he finally has Kami right where he wants him, and promptly puts the bottle in his mouth and swallows it. Piccolo sneers and says that unless Goku kills him, he'll never get the bottle, but if he does kill him, then Kami will die as well. Goku curses Piccolo, and Piccolo laughs once again as he leaves the area, saying that in the next round, it will be Goku's turn to become tattered. Outside of the arena, Roshi approaches the group and asks Goku what's going on. Goku finally explains to everyone exactly what's going on – he tells them that 'Demon Junior' is actually the reborn Demon King Piccolo and how he came to be; that this Piccolo seems to be way stronger than the previous one; and even that the being they saw get sealed away in the bottle was actually Kami-sama himself, as well as Kami and Piccolo's connection to each other. Everyone is surprised by this deluge of information, with Chi Chi surprised to learn that it was Goku who defeated King Piccolo, and everyone else surprised both by Piccolo's origin as well as the new peril they all face. Roshi says that he can see why Kami would have opted for the Mafuba, as it was seemingly the only way to deal with Piccolo without killing him. Goku asks if there's any way to get him out of the bottle, and Tenshinhan says they'd have to pop it's cork, but since Piccolo swallowed the bottle... Kuririn wonders if Goku even stands a chance against Piccolo now, and Yamcha and Tenshinhan think that Goku is the only one they can rely on, as even if they all rushed Piccolo together, it wouldn't make any difference. They all resolve to place their hopes in Goku, as Piccolo seems to harbor some fear of him, hence his showing up at the tournament at all. Piccolo speaks up, having been listening in for some time, and confesses that that might be true, saying that Goku does pose an obstacle to his plans, even more so than Kami ever did. He boasts however that the Piccolo that Goku defeated before is nothing like the one they now see before them. Goku says that the same is true of him, and Piccolo tells him to enjoy the final moments of his own life and the world's freedom. The announcer calls for both contestants to return to the ring, and Piccolo tells Goku not to worry – as soon as he's dealt with him, he plans to send all of Goku's friends to the afterlife as well. Kuririn asks Goku if he's confident he can beat him, but Goku confesses that he can't be confident as he hasn't fought him yet. Kuririn is worried, and Chi Chi demands that Goku not get killed and make her a honeymoon widow. As Goku steps into the ring and says that there's no way around it now, he'll just have to see how things go, Kuririn wonders how Goku can sound so calm when the fate of the world will be decided by this fight. As Goku and Piccolo face each other, Piccolo asks Goku if he's prepared to die. Goku doesn't respond, and as his friends watch, the announcer declares the match's start, and Goku and Piccolo both rush towards one another. Review: The bulk of this chapter basically serves as a recap of everything leading to the fight we're finally going to see starting next chapter, and as such, it doesn't really give me a whole lot to comment on. As much as I usually hate recap stories like this however, this one I find a little bit forgivable, as there is a LOT of information that only Goku and Piccolo were privy to that his friends now need to know to understand what's happening at this tournament. An argument could be made that Toriyama could have easily had all of that information conveyed off page and thus gotten to the start of the fight much quicker, but I think the recap does serve a little bit in hyping things up as far as they can be by reminding us as an audience of everything leading up to it as well. The hype and tension couldn't possibly be any higher either once the other shoe drops and Piccolo swallows Kami's bottle. Now, Goku seemingly has no choice but to kill Piccolo, since it's seemingly the only way to get Kami out of him; but in doing so, Kami will die as well. As I mentioned before, it's basically the perfect catch-22. There are a few other small moments in the chapter that I like, such as Chi Chi realizing that it was her new fiance that saved the world – man, has she missed a LOT by being MIA since the first story arc – but I think my absolute favorite has to be Shen (though we never do learn his real name) waking up and rushing off back to his kid in the crowd. Based on everything here, we can assume he was just a guy who turned up to watch the tournament with his kid before Kami showed up, possessed him, and used his body like a ragdoll to enter the tournament. I'm not entirely sure how that all worked given that Kami previously said he just put his soul into Shen's body, and what we'll see later contradicts the idea that Kami's actual body is back up on his sanctuary, but it's still pretty hilarious to see his poor sap wake up and have no idea what's going on. With both the audience and the supporting characters all made aware of what's really going on now, there's nothing left for the arc but to get to it's grand finale, and guys? It doesn't get much more grand than this. I'm literally squeeing with excitement right now, you have no idea. 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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