Episode 107 of Dragon Ball, first broadcast in Japan on April 6, 1988, is almost entirely anime-original, and its English dub title, Tien's Atonement, is the more honest one. While Goku shadows Yajirobe waiting for Tambourine to show up, the heart of the episode belongs to Tien, who has to face the violence of his past to obtain a Dragon Ball. The rage promised by the Japanese title only arrives in the closing minutes.
Summary
Master Roshi, Tien and Chiaotzu bargain with a gang of pirates sailing through a forest on a ship fitted with caterpillar tracks. The captain names an impossible price for his Dragon Ball, and when the guns come out, Chiaotzu freezes the bullets in midair with telekinesis while Tien takes down the crew. The second ball is theirs.
Goku, meanwhile, has latched onto Yajirobe. The big swordsman wants to sell his ball and hates being followed, but Goku knows Tambourine will come for it and wants to be there for the rematch. A long chase follows, across fields, rivers and farmland. Tambourine reaches the spot shown on the radar and finds nobody; aboard the airship, Mai notices the ball moving at high speed, and King Piccolo steers his son onto its trail. Worn out, the two runaways stop on a riverbank to fish, until Yajirobe tricks Goku into the river and slips away.
The third ball is in the house of a man Tien beat in a match years earlier, breaking his leg without mercy even after the win was his. Recognizing the fighter who crippled him, the man refuses to hand it over. Moments later a squad of armed men in uniform bursts in, convinced Tien is the one murdering martial artists; it is Roshi, recognized by one of them, who calms everyone down. Then Tien kneels and begs forgiveness. Moved, the man lowers his gun and gives up the ball, which his baby is clutching in his sleep.
On a country road, a blast from Tambourine destroys the cart Yajirobe had hitched a ride on. The demon spots the ball hanging from the boy's neck, but Goku arrives just in time. Tambourine thought he had killed him and laughs at the challenge. This time, Goku replies, he has eaten and rested, and he will not lose.
Our take
The main plot advances only a few pages here, but the episode uses its time well. The story of the old opponent gives Tien a moment the manga never offers: the former Crane School pupil, raised to kill, has to look one of his victims in the eye and accept his contempt. A fighter this proud getting down on his knees is a powerful image, and it neatly closes the thread opened by Yamcha's bandaged leg in the previous episode.
The Goku and Yajirobe chase, on the other hand, is pure entertainment, with a classic cartoon feel that eases the tension. There is a risk of padding, but the direction keeps it in check by cutting between the three storylines at a steady rhythm. And the final standoff, barely begun, leaves viewers waiting for the reckoning with Krillin's killer.
Trivia
- The episode adapts only page 14 of chapter 140 and the first two pages of chapter 141 of Akira Toriyama's manga. It drew a 20.4% ratings share in Japan.
- The pirate negotiation, the chase and the whole subplot of Tien's old opponent are anime-only. In the manga, Goku and Yajirobe never leave the spot where Cymbal died, and that is where Tambourine catches up with them.
- It aired after a one-week break: no episode was broadcast on March 30, 1988.
- It was directed by Daisuke Nishio, who a year later would become series director of Dragon Ball Z.
Did you know? The pirate captain is a near double of the bear bandit who tried to eat Master Roshi's turtle in the very first episodes of the series.
Characters
- Goku
- Yajirobe
- Tambourine
- Tien Shinhan
- Master Roshi, Chiaotzu
- King Piccolo, Piano, Mai