To say it straight up, i absolutely loved this episode, and i will forever remember this as my favorite episode in all of DBZ. The entire series was built up showing what Gohan's rage could do, beginning with the battle against Raditz, to 2nd form Frieza, until it reached its climax with Cell, the being who had reached perfection. This showcased Goku's trust in Gohan, and told of everything DBZ was composed of. It told of the impact Goku had on the entire team of Z fighters, and even more on Vegeta who swallowed all of his pride to assist Gohan on the most historic, and manliest Kamehameha I know to date.
6 Reviews
Epic!!!!
jonathanbice30 October 2020
Favourite Episode
imcoolgo17 December 2015
The entire episode is the climax to the best saga of DBZ. Both Gohan and Cell are locked in an intense beam struggle. We see Goku cannot step in to save the day as he usually does and instead motivates Gohan telepathically. His guidance and support really captures the relationship between father and son. Goku's words are extremely moving. As Cell gains the upper hand, every character left standing has their chance to shine, starting first with Piccolo who shows how much he cares about Gohan when he steps into the fray despite having no chance of beating Cell. His admirable example leads Tien into the fight also, uttering "He (Piccolo) didn't think he could (take on Cell) but he tried to anyway." This is possibly a callback to Tien's big moment in "Sacrifice." Krillin and Yamcha are also moved into action by these words. It's a great life lesson. Even when the odds are stacked against you, never give up, never give in. Despite the overwhelming difference in power, you could see Cell was getting infuriated with the Z Fighters. His epic lines "They just keep lining up to die!" and "AAH! No chance! You have NO CHANCE!" adds to the tension. Meanwhile the episode still has room to show us Vegeta's internal struggle. At first he scoffs at the Z Fighters for even attempting to fight Cell, but as he quickly realizes that their plan might actually work, he is held back by one thing: his pride. Just as Gohan is about to lose, a powerful blast smashes into Cell, knocking him off balance. Cell looks up, surprised and who does he see? Vegeta! Its a wonderful moment for Vegeta's character to put aside his pride and help save the day not for glory but to give Gohan with... (as Goku puts it) the chance he needs to finally finish Cell off once and for all. The viewer is treated to a blinding ray of light and an epic one handed Kamehameha walk as Gohan unleashes his full power to destroy every last cell of the diabolical android for good. This episode is a treasure in both DBZ and anime history and will never be forgotten.
One of the Best Episodes of any TV show Ever
JayWolfgramm2 March 2023
I typically don't give reviews for individual episodes of shows. But, when looking through IMDB's highest ranked episodes of DBZ, I found that this episode was ranked number 275 of 277. Why was this episode ranked so low? I didn't think it was divisive episode, everyone I have spoken to about the show marks this as one of, if not, the best episode of the show. I will personally take it one step further. Not only is this the best episode of Dragon Ball Z, this is one of the best episodes of any TV show EVER.
This episode felt like the culmination of everything DBZ was building up to. It gives such a good sense of closure; it is no wonder that both DBZ Abridged and DBZ Kai ended their runs after this episode. "Dragon Ball" was the story of Goku rising up and gaining the title of "strongest under the heavens", "Dragon Ball Z" felt more like the story of his son Gohan. They introduce Gohan in the first episode of the series. Throughout his journey there were different sparks of brilliance, where people could see that there was something more to this kid. The show wisely never had him strong enough to just flat out defeat the enemies, but the strength was there. Against Raditz, Nappa, Recoome, Ginyu and Freiza you would see these little glimpses of Gohan's strength but never having him just solve the problem on his own. (Unless you count Garlic Jr.) Point is, this is the blueprint of how to do an "untapped potential" story. After nearly 200 episodes of buildup, this is the payoff.
Cell is also the, (forgive the pun) perfect villain for the series. He is an amalgamation of all that has come before him. The strengths of all the strongest fighters put together in one. He is also a good carry over from a conflict introduced during the "Red Ribbon Army" saga.
On top of all that, this episode provides closure for a lot of the other characters. Piccolo, Krillin, Tien, Yamcha and especially Vegeta, all get a time to shine in this episode.
What more can I say? It is a PERFECT ending.
This episode felt like the culmination of everything DBZ was building up to. It gives such a good sense of closure; it is no wonder that both DBZ Abridged and DBZ Kai ended their runs after this episode. "Dragon Ball" was the story of Goku rising up and gaining the title of "strongest under the heavens", "Dragon Ball Z" felt more like the story of his son Gohan. They introduce Gohan in the first episode of the series. Throughout his journey there were different sparks of brilliance, where people could see that there was something more to this kid. The show wisely never had him strong enough to just flat out defeat the enemies, but the strength was there. Against Raditz, Nappa, Recoome, Ginyu and Freiza you would see these little glimpses of Gohan's strength but never having him just solve the problem on his own. (Unless you count Garlic Jr.) Point is, this is the blueprint of how to do an "untapped potential" story. After nearly 200 episodes of buildup, this is the payoff.
Cell is also the, (forgive the pun) perfect villain for the series. He is an amalgamation of all that has come before him. The strengths of all the strongest fighters put together in one. He is also a good carry over from a conflict introduced during the "Red Ribbon Army" saga.
On top of all that, this episode provides closure for a lot of the other characters. Piccolo, Krillin, Tien, Yamcha and especially Vegeta, all get a time to shine in this episode.
What more can I say? It is a PERFECT ending.
Worst Episode in the Entire Dragon Ball Z Series Run
Zabon29 June 2013
Warning: Spoilers
This here would be the worst episode of the entire series. Well, this and the one before it. I absolutely hate this ending and the overall emphasis placed on just one beam struggle. The grunting and moaning in the episode also annoyed me. I was completely towards disliking the saga overall but this ending was my least favorite as well as worst overall in terms of storyline progression. In general, I hated this episode and the one prior to it, I believe it was called "Horror won't end", yup, those two are my least favorites due to the ongoing emphasis of boredom here. This episode also lacks the sheer brutality of the 200 or so other really awesome episodes of DBZ. This is the prime example of an overall terrible episode as it is an attempt to conclude a one-on-one fight that just dragged on too long as it is. Cell v. Gohan was the most boring fight in the series, but this ending to the fight was the most grueling and boring due to the fact that if someone is not a fan of Cell (which I am not), then this episode's appeal is very minimal if any. It concentrated too heavily on a beam struggle and not enough on anything but that. There was hardly any dialogue if any and mostly concentrated on repeated footage of the two characters blasting each other, which is the opposite of a very well orchestrated fight scene, but rather, a prime example of "I must hold this face to appear more and add more unnecessary airtime"... very poor episode overall.
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