Episode 21 of Dragon Ball, first broadcast in Japan on July 16, 1986 and known in the English dub as Smells Like Trouble, opens the final stage of the 21st World Martial Arts Tournament. The draw sets the bracket, and in the first match Krillin faces the most disgusting opponent imaginable: Bacterian, a giant who has never washed in his life and fights with his stench. What saves him is an observation from Goku as simple as it is absurd.
Summary
After the preliminaries, Goku and Krillin find their friends in the crowd. Roshi claims he got lost on his way back from the bathroom, then gives Bulma a souvenir T-shirt and asks to touch her in return; she sends him flying with an uppercut. The loudspeakers call the eight finalists to the main hall, and as soon as the boys leave, the master vanishes too.
In the hall Goku catches up with Yamcha and sizes up the other finalists: a turbaned man deep in meditation, a pretty girl ignoring a very persistent old man, and above all a filthy giant surrounded by flies. Yamcha explains that this is Bacterian, who forces opponents to hold their noses so they cannot use their hands. For Goku, with a nose as keen as a dog's, it is torture.
The draw decides the matches: Krillin vs. Bacterian, Yamcha vs. the old man Jackie Chun, Ranfan vs. Nam, Goku vs. Giran. The announcer stumbles over Goku's name and Yamcha has to help him out. The rules are simple: you lose by leaving the ring, staying down for a ten count or giving up, and strikes to the eyes and groin are banned. The winner gets 500,000 zeni. Before it all starts, Goku asks for food and clears dozens of plates.
In front of the crowd the announcer introduces Krillin, at 13 the youngest competitor, and Bacterian, "the man who has never taken a bath". Bacterian breathes in Krillin's face, then points a finger fresh out of his underwear at him, and Krillin passes out. He gets up, but the giant crushes him, sits on him and finishes him off with a fart. As the referee counts, the whole crowd cheers for the boy. Goku has a brainstorm and yells that the smell is all in his head, because he has no nose. Krillin thinks about it, realizes it is true and gets up. He dodges a gob of spit, kicks Bacterian in the temple and, to even the score, returns the favor with a fart in his face. Bacterian gives up.
Our take
This is the saga's most scatological episode, and anyone who cannot stand that kind of humor will struggle. Beneath the gags, though, lies a very Dragon Ball idea: some opponents are not beaten with muscle alone, sometimes you just have to look at the problem differently. The joke about Krillin's nose, which is indeed not drawn on his face, is a stroke of genius from Toriyama because it turns the character's design into a weapon.
The draw is the real key moment. In a few minutes the series lays all eight finalists on the table, each with a recognizable trait, and sets up the stories of the coming episodes: Nam's meditation, Ranfan's flirting, and the mysterious old man who looks a bit too much like someone we know.
The crowd cheering for Krillin is a nice touch too. Until yesterday he was the bullied kid from Orin Temple; today he is the arena's favorite.
Trivia
- The episode adapts chapters 35 and 36 of Akira Toriyama's manga and drew a 24.8% ratings share in Japan.
- The announcer reads the kanji of Goku's name, 孫悟空, as "Mago Gosora": an easy mistake in Japanese, where the same characters can have several readings.
- The high priest of the temple hosting the tournament opens the finals with a one-word speech: a solemn "woof" that knocks the whole crowd off its feet.
Did you know? The original Japanese title is the first in the series to carry Krillin's name, Kuririn.
Characters
- Krillin
- Goku
- Bacterian
- Master Roshi / Jackie Chun
- Yamcha and Puar
- Bulma and Oolong
- Nam, Ranfan and Giran