Episode 25 of Dragon Ball, first broadcast in Japan on August 13, 1986 and known in the English dub as Danger From Above, is the second semifinal: Goku vs. Nam, the fighter competing to save his village from drought. It is a vertical fight, all towering leaps and diving attacks. And at the end, away from the ring, Jackie Chun briefly drops his mask.
Summary
Nam thinks of the 500,000-zeni prize and how badly his people need it. At the start Goku immediately tries the afterimage Jackie used against Krillin and attacks Nam from behind, but his opponent dodges with a huge leap and comes down with a kick. Tight, even exchanges follow, with Nam proving very fast and very precise.
Goku invents a new technique on the spot: he spins like a tornado and drives Nam to the edge of the ring. Just as he is about to push him out, though, he stops, dizzy, and topples over with his head spinning. Nam seizes the chance: he leaps high, crosses his arms in an X and dives down reciting a prayer. This is the Tenku Pekeji-ken, the "Heavenly Cross Fist", and it hits Goku squarely on the neck. Nam explains that he is no killer: the blow is only meant to put an opponent to sleep for ten days.
But before the referee reaches ten, Goku gets up, coughing, to everyone's astonishment. Nam prepares the powered-up version of the technique and leaps even higher. Goku decides to copy him and jumps too, but overdoes it and soars past him. In mid-air the two chase each other down toward the ring; Goku lands first, springs back up and kicks Nam a split second before he touches down, knocking him out of the ring. Goku is in the final. Nam climbs back into the ring and shakes his hand.
Backstage, Nam gathers his things, disappointed to go home empty-handed. Jackie Chun tosses him a capsule that can hold a huge amount of water, and when Nam asks how he knew about his problem, the old man confesses he is Master Roshi. He entered in disguise to beat his students and show them the world is full of strong opponents: if they won right away, they would stop improving. In return he asks Nam a favor: dress up as Roshi and be seen in the crowd. Yamcha falls for it and decides he was wrong.
Our take
The match with Nam is the cleanest of the tournament: no tricks, no toilet humor, just two serious fighters who respect each other. The Tenku Pekeji-ken is a visually striking technique, and Goku's answer, jumping higher to beat an attack that comes from above, is typical of how he fights: he does not study his opponent, he copies and then surpasses him.
The final scene matters even more. For the first time Roshi openly explains his disguise, turning what looked like a prank into a teaching method: beat your students so they never get complacent. The gift of the capsule gently wraps up Nam's story; he loses, but saves his village anyway.
Trivia
- The episode adapts chapters 44 and 45 and the opening pages of chapter 46 of Akira Toriyama's manga and drew an 18.1% ratings share in Japan, the saga's lowest.
- As he dives, Nam recites Namu Amida Butsu, the Buddhist invocation of Amida Buddha, which also contains his Japanese name, Namu.
- Pekeji in the Japanese title refers to the letter X, the shape of his crossed arms.
Did you know? When Nam asks how he knows about his village's plight, Jackie says he read his mind: the same trick he used before the match with Ranfan.
Characters
- Goku
- Nam
- Master Roshi / Jackie Chun
- Krillin
- Yamcha and Puar
- Bulma and Oolong