Episode 105 of Dragon Ball, first broadcast in Japan on March 16, 1988 and known in the English dub as Here Comes Yajirobe, introduces one of the oddest characters in the series. Greedy, grumpy and touchy, Yajirobe nonetheless pulls off what Goku could not in his previous fight: he takes down one of King Piccolo's sons. One sword stroke is all it takes, and Cymbal is cut in two.
Summary
The stranger wants his fish back, Goku replies that he cannot prove it was his, and the argument heats up. Then Goku notices the young man wears a Dragon Ball around his neck and becomes convinced he is facing an accomplice of Krillin's killer. They fight, and Yajirobe proves a tough opponent: punches, headbutts and insults fly, with neither gaining the upper hand. Only at some point does Goku realize that this is the One-Star Ball, not his own Four-Star Ball, and he apologizes.
With the misunderstanding cleared up, the two get acquainted. Yajirobe explains that he found the ball in the jungle three years earlier and makes it clear that he is no thief. Meanwhile the Kame House group moves to another island to stay out of the demon's reach, Bulma seals Krillin's body inside a freezing capsule, and Master Roshi sets off with Tien and Chiaotzu to look for the Dragon Balls. Aboard the airship, Emperor Pilaf tries to entertain King Piccolo with a magazine, but the demon is asleep with his eyes open.
Cymbal swoops down from the sky, having tracked Yajirobe's ball. Goku immediately figures he is related to Tambourine and questions him, then he and Yajirobe play rock-paper-scissors for the right to fight, much to the demon's irritation. Yajirobe wins, and he is not out for revenge: he is simply hungry and intends to eat his opponent.
The fight is short. Cymbal lands the first blows but soon finds himself in trouble and switches to lightning bolts fired from his hands, which Yajirobe dodges one after another. A single slash of the katana cuts the demon in half. Far away, King Piccolo feels his son die and grimaces in pain.
Our take
Yajirobe works because he breaks every pattern the series has set. He is not a chivalrous rival like Tien, nor a disciple, and he has no interest in glory or in saving the world: he thinks about food and fights only when it suits him. Yet within a few minutes he kills a demon who would have been a real problem for anyone.
The direction plays on the contrast between the rock-paper-scissors gag and the brutality of the finishing blow. The result is disorienting: an enemy's death has never come so quickly or with so little fuss.
The episode also matters for Goku. For the first time since Krillin's death, his anger gives way to something else: he apologizes, makes a friend and recovers a little of his lightness.
Trivia
- The episode adapts chapter 138 from page 7 and the first twelve pages of chapter 139 of Akira Toriyama's manga. It drew a 19.0% ratings share in Japan.
- The move to a new island, the freezing capsule scene, Cymbal's flight in search of the ball and Pilaf showing the magazine to the sleeping demon are anime additions. The duel between Goku and Yajirobe is also longer than in the manga.
- Cymbal's death was altered for the Toonami broadcast of the Funimation dub: after being sliced in half he keeps groaning until Goku blows him up.
- Yajirobe's fish, toothless in the previous episode, has fangs here as in the manga.
Characters
- Goku
- Bulma
- Master Roshi
- Yajirobe
- Cymbal
- King Piccolo, Tambourine and Piano
- Tien, Chiaotzu, Yamcha, Oolong and Launch
- Emperor Pilaf