Dragon Ball Z Cell Games — Nightmare’s End Review
KichigaiSaru
Funimation’s release of the finale of the Cell Saga is obviously a must have for any DBZ fan. This is the best of the episodes, at least in my humble opinion. The great fight between Gohan and Cell, Trunks in his own time, all this and more collected on this one DVD. Episodes 176 through 179, on a 4 episode DVD, tell the tale of the final conflict with Cell and the hero’s stories afterwards.
Warning: This Section Contains Spoilers, but spoilers are all but inevitable when discussing the last episodes of a series
In Save The World, Episode 176, Cell and Gohan are in the final showdown, the world is at stake, and Gohan is unsure of his abilities. In the Other World, however, Goku is coaching his son, refusing to give up, and never letting Gohan doubt himself. His words carry Gohan through the battle, despite injury, and with the help of his friends, and the final distraction by Vegeta, Gohan finally puts an end to things.
Goku’s Decision, Episode 177, deals with the aftermath. Having finally defeated Cell, the heroes gather to assemble the DragonBalls and make their wish. They have much to do though. With the new and improved Eternal Dragon they can make two wishes, and there is no shortage of damage to repair. Android 18 is lurking nearby when the heroes make their wishes, leaving us wondering if they are still a threat. The Eternal Dragon’s power isn’t enough to revive Goku for a second time, but he chimes in from the Other World to insist that he stay there. Seeing another adventure to embark upon, he doesn’t care to return to Earth.
In Episode 178, One More Wish, the Eternal Dragon becomes impatient with the group as it waits for their second wish. With Goku’s choice to stay in the Other World, they are at a loss for ideas. Krillin, however, has a thought, and decides to make a wish to help Android 18. This means that she will have Android 17 with her, but Krillin just wants her to be happy. But it seems, despite the loss of Goku, and the return of Android 17 and 18, peace has returned to Earth.
In Free The Future, Episode 179, Trunks has just gone back to his own time. His home is in shambles, but it’s home all the same. The Androids 17 and 18 are around, wreaking their own brand of havoc, but Trunks is ready for them now. While the androids aren’t much of a problem, Trunks knows it will not be over until he takes care of Cell.
Since these are some of the later episodes of the series, the art and the sound have had a good chance to develop. The art is crisp, and the style, although the traditional DBZ style, has the clean feel of the later episodes. A really cool thing about the art was Cell at the end of the last episode. He was the old Cell, before he absorbed the androids, he was done perfectly, definitely one of my favorite parts.
The only extras with the DVD were previews for other series and the next episode of DBZ. It’s nice, but it’s nothing extraordinary. The Japanese language feature on the other hand is absolutely fantastic! The intro is completely different, and the music and sounds are wildly different as well. It’s great, almost like watching a different episode entirely.
Technical: 8.5
This matches the DBZ standard for art and music, as well as voice acting. It is pleasing to the eye, and having the Japanese language option is an extra bonus. The subtitles also vary a little from the English version, but they more closely follow the actual Japanese dialogue, so if you want it in it’s native form, they are the way to go.
Entertainment: 9.5
This is a high intensity set of episodes. The first and last episodes are all action, this is always a great sign. I can’t help but love the sequence of episodes that begins and ends in pure unadulterated violence. Needless to say, this gets huge points for this.
Overall: 9.0
I love it. More action then usual, enough story to make it meaningful, but not so much that it gets bogged down. Definitely the best set of episodes on a single DVD that I’ve come across.
DVD Contents: Save the World, Goku’s Decision, One More Wish, Free The Future, English/Japanese Dialogue, English Subtitles, Anime Previews
Purchase Dragon Ball Z Cell Games–Nightmare’s End from AnimeNation
