Time Chamber (Episode
132)
The Summary
Our episode starts off
with Goku talking with Chi-Chi in Master Roshi's Kame house about
how it is time for him to begin his training again. He tells Chi Chi
that he knows of a place where a year can pass in a single day, and
that he would like to take Gohan with him. Chi Chi at first seems
like she going to be mad, but then lets Goku take him on the condition
that when gets back from training and fighting that he will study.
She also comments in her mind that she could never refuse him. So
with a kiss that we didn't see (editied?) Goku teleports to the plane
where Gohan and the rest of the Z Warriors are while trying to tack
down Cell.
On the plane, Krillin
is speaking to Gohan and the rest of the guys about how they really
need Goku, no sooner does he say his name does Goku appear on the
plane. Krillin doesn't notice and keeps talking about how great it
would be if he was there while Gohan keeps staring in amazement that
his dad is there. Krillin turns around and eventually does a double
take that Goku is well. Krillin is so excited that Goku is well that
he is in tears and knocks him out through the back of the plane because
he is so happy. Tien then has to, "swing back around to pick them
up."
Goku then explains the
them that he must begin his training again because in their present
condition they couldn't possibly defeat Cell, and speaks with Piccolo
("Kamiccolo", as Goku first called him, much to Piccolo's discontent),
all the while, little Gohan has tears welling up in his eyes and just
about to cry, when Goku, the ever so loving father figure tries to
comfort him until Gohan laughs and tells him that he misses him. Goku
and Gohan then go off to get Vegeta and Trunks to join them in the
Hyperbolic Time Chamber.
We then cut to Vegeta
standing amidst the rocks thinking to himself about how he can feel
another level beyond Super Sayain, and that he will ascend, the only
question is how. Meanwhile, Trunks is sitting some distance away thinking
to himself about how he is there to stay, and if Vegeta can ascend,
so can he. At that moment, Goku and Gohan appear and ask how the training
is going. Trunks replies:
Goku then replies that he is probably
looking for a way, and said that he will go and have a word with him.
He then goes over there and tell Vegeta about the room where you can
get a years worth of training in an single day. Vegeta is intrigued
by this and agrees to go with Trunks only so long as he can go first.
We then cut to android 18 trying some
various outfits on and saying that whoever has wears these outfits
needs to have their eyesight adjusted, and guess who's clothing it
is… that's right, it's Chi-Chi's! The androids finally arrived at
Goku's place, only to find it empty. Android 16 then states that Goku
was last detected on an island to the south, so that's where the androids
go…
Meanwhile, the four arrive at the time
chamber, with Mr. Popo telling them how the chamber will work, and
Vegeta and Trunks enter the chamber, which is a small room in an empty
void. Trunks sort of has a hard time with this, and hopes that he
could stay there for a year…
We then cut back to the Kame house
where everyone but Piccolo is sleeping. Piccolo cant stand the thought
that they are doing nothing while Cell continues to absorb innocent
people. Then he feels the presence of 17, 18, and the monstrous 16.
He then tells the others to get up because they have company, when
Piccolo looks outside, 17 asks, "Can Goku come out and play?" Piccolo
basically tells 17 to find Goku himself and that he'll fight him on
the next island, mano a mano. The androids and Piccolo arrive at the
island with 17 about to face off…
And the episode ends.
The Review
Well, once again that was quite a summary,
and I actually had to write this in three separate sittings because
of the amount of writing I have done today. Lots of plot, which was
ok, not much action, but that was ok too, and here's why:
I have been "accused" (which of course
was done so lovingly by the fellow staff, not out of animosity… who
wants to keep their job? That's right…) of emphasizing action over
plot, which is true in a sense but also not true in others. Keep in
mind that action is what has made DBZ so distinguished from other
anime.
Music was pretty good too, actually.
I rather enjoy Cell's "Theme Music" which is a little more "hard-core"
than some of the other numbers. I just hope that they can continue
to improve upon it.
The only thing I was really wondering
about with today's episode was the fact that we didn't see Goku and
Chi-Chi kiss, only a "smooch" sound with Master Roshi being goofy.
I don't know if the original version shows them kissing or not, but
I think that's kind of pathetic that we see someones hand sticking
through a body sometimes and blood and the assorted gore (though not
as much on the TV versions), but they wont show something as truly
meaningful as a warm, heart-felt kiss in a long-term monogamous relationship
(…and thank you Dr. Celestrian for that insightfull commentary which
all of you could care less about, I know monogamous relationships
was the subject burning on your mind form this episode…) But I just
find it a very interesting message of FUNimation; "Sex is bad, but
violence and blood is GOOD!" Oh well, if I talk anymore about this
I might receive some angry mail.
So that's my two cents on that.
The other reason that I wasn't
too hard on the lack of action was the simple fact that Goku is back.
To be quite frank, he seems to add an extra dimension to the plausibility
of the series as well as the characters around him. I was very touched
by the scene where Gohan was about to cry and he was there to comfort
him and asking, "Why the long face?" So there you have my soft spot
in this series,… as much as an action junkie I am when it comes to
DBZ, I really do like the relationship that those two have, and it
makes the episode far more realistic both in plot and in character
"rendering" (for those who do not have a strong background in English,
"rendering" is the process of developing characters to seem more "real"
or "three-dimensional"), which translates to a far more enjoyable
and entertaining episode than those where the characters are very
flat (19 was a very good example of a "flat" character).
The Final Word: I really enjoyed today's
episode, and I let it sink in before I formulated this review. The
music was par, and I've already gone into great depth on the other
elements I found well done. However, as much as I loved todays….
I am really amped for Monday's episode.
Oh yeah baby, 17 vs. Piccolo!
The Celestrian gives today's wonderfully
written episode: 4.6/5 (The Dad thing really went a long way…)
- The Celestrian DBZN Staff
