Dragon Ball Movie Box Set (2, 3, 4)
TheDragon BallfeaturesSleeping Princess in Devil's Castle(Majinjou no Nemuri Hime, 1987),Mystical Adventure(Maka Fushigi Daiboken, 1988), andThe Path to Power(Saikyou e no Michi, 1996), also known as "The Way to Become the Strongest," were follow-ups toCurse of the Blood Rubiesin 1986. WhenDevil's Castleopens, Goku is a just a boy. He meets an equally young Krillin, who unfortunately looks like a character fromSouth Park. Both of them want to train with Master Roshi, who insists he can only afford to support one student. Roshi sends them to capture the Sleeping Princess from the castle of vampire-demon Count Lucifer, a mission that pits the two boys against each other. Their adventure doesn't quite unfold the way it was supposed to, as young heroes run into Bulma, Oolong, Yamcha, and Pwar. InMystical Adventure, young Goku and Krillin have just completed their training with Master Roshi. The old lecher decides to test his student's skills at a prestigious martial-arts tournament held by the Emperor Chaozu. The Emperor's lieutenant, Master Shen, has gathered six of the Dragon Balls to use in his plot to usurp throne. However, Bulma, Oolong and company are also after the Dragon Balls so Bulma can once again wish for a boyfriend.The Path to Powerre-introduces the regular cast: Bulma, the first girl Goku has ever seen, recruits him to help her find the Dragon Balls. With some help from their usual allies, they battle the Red Ribbon Army at the Muscle Tower. Goku makes a new friend: the misprogrammed android, Eighter. LikeMystical Adventure,Path to Powerconsists of recut footage from the TV series. In all three films, the stories are just set-ups for the familiar mixture of martial-arts mayhem and slapstick comedy. Goku beats his enemies to a pulp after hard battles; Bulma fusses; Master Roshi leers at every female who crosses his path: All ends happily, with Goku victorious. In short, the films provide exactly whatDragon Ballfans love and expect. (Rated TV PG: violence, ethnic stereotypes, nudity, risqué humor, alcohol and tobacco use)--Charles Solomon