Episode 61 of Dragon Ball GT, first broadcast in Japan on October 29, 1997 and titled The Limits of Power in Funimation's dub, has one of the strangest titles in the series and delivers on it literally: to keep the dragon from regaining his full strength, Goku eats the Four-Star Dragon Ball. The rest of the episode is a race against Omega Shenron to bring Gogeta back, and it ends in the worst possible way.
Summary
Both sides want the same thing: to get back to where they were. The dragon wants his last Dragon Ball, Goku and Vegeta want another fusion. To take the ball out of play, Goku stuffs the Four-Star Ball into his mouth and nearly chokes before he manages to swallow it. Even with only six balls the dragon becomes Omega Shenron again, if not at full strength, and announces that he will simply have to kill Goku to get it back.
Vegeta attacks without landing a single blow; Goku at least manages a headbutt to the back of the dragon's head. He even tries a lecture: people who do evil live in fear, because they know their lives could be taken at any moment. Vegeta adds that he learned that lesson the hard way. Omega ignores them and tosses them around like toys, leaving the Saiyan prince baffled that two Super Saiyan 4s are being treated as a joke.
The dragon has figured out what fusion is, and every time the pair start the dance he cuts them off. On the sidelines Goten wants to rush in and help his father, but Gohan holds him back: only those two can win this. Goten breaks down in tears. Meanwhile, on the Sacred World of the Kai, Elder Kai is listening to music on a CD player until Kibito Kai breaks it.
Eventually Goku and Vegeta confuse their opponent with afterimages and complete the dance, but nothing happens. Goku blames Vegeta's index finger, which was in fact exactly where it should be. Trunks works out the real reason: after such a long battle Goku's power has plummeted, and the two are no longer evenly matched. The dragon realizes it too and lets them try again, certain of the outcome. On the next attempt Goku loses Super Saiyan 4 and reverts to his child form. As Omega moves in to finish him, the Four-Star Ball appears on Goku's forehead.
Our take
This is the weakest episode of GT's finale, and also the one with the oddest idea. The flaw is obvious: for almost the entire runtime the dance is attempted, interrupted and attempted again, and the pacing sags just when the saga should be sprinting. The odd idea is the ball itself. This is not just any of the Dragon Balls: it is Grandpa Gohan's, the one Goku treasured from the very first chapter of Dragon Ball and that young Gohan wore on his hat. Having Goku swallow it hands the last piece of the dragon's power to the purest character in the series, and the final shot makes clear it will matter.
The failed fusion, on the other hand, plays by the rules: as our guide on how to do the Fusion Dance explains, the two partners need almost identical power. Goku's excuse about Vegeta's finger is a wink at Fusion Reborn, where that very finger produced the flabby Veku.
Trivia
- Written by Atsushi Maekawa and directed by Jun'ichi Fujise.
- In the Japanese version, the tune Elder Kai is enjoying is GT's own opening theme, DAN DAN Kokoro Hikareteku. Funimation's dub swapped in its English opening, and the old Kai sings along.
- The Japanese title calls the ball by its Chinese-derived name, Sūshinchū.
- Funimation's dub first aired in the United States on January 8, 2005.
Did you know? According to the Dragon Ball GT Perfect Files, Nuova Shenron, the Four-Star Dragon, was born from the wish that restored King Piccolo's youth.