The 130th episode of Dragon Ball Z, first broadcast in Japan on March 4, 1992 and titled The Secret of Dr. Gero in Funimation's dub, is a showcase for the new Vegeta. Freshly transformed, the Saiyan prince takes the revenge Goku was denied: Android 19 is humiliated, dismembered and finally erased with a brand-new technique. His partner, Android 20, decides that running is the better option.
Summary
Android 19 lands punch after punch and a headbutt on Vegeta, who doesn't budge an inch. Once the android stops laughing, Vegeta answers with a kick that dents his body, knocks off his hat and slams him into the ground while Gohan, Piccolo, Tien and Krillin look on in disbelief. A flurry of blows leaves a huge crater in the earth.
At the bottom of the pit, Android 19 manages to seize Vegeta's arms and starts draining him, vowing never to let go. Vegeta plants both feet in the android's face and pushes until 19's arms tear clean off. Without his energy absorbers, Android 19 is just a frightened machine: he scrambles up the crater wall and runs. Vegeta catches up in the air, looks down at him and blows him to pieces with a new move, the Big Bang Attack.
Elsewhere, Yamcha flies home with Goku over his shoulder, begging him to hang on, while Bulma and Yajirobe spot the explosion in the distance and start bickering about whether to get any closer.
Left alone, Android 20 insists he is different from his partner and far more powerful, but the moment Vegeta turns his way he bolts at top speed and vanishes into the rocky canyons. The fighters split up to search. An impatient Vegeta fires a blast into the rocks to flush him out, but Android 20 secretly absorbs it. Now he has a plan: Vegeta won't fall for the same trick twice, so he'll take energy from the others instead.
Our take
If the previous episode was about Vegeta's return, this one is about measuring his strength, and it does so with a streak of cruelty. The contrast is deliberate: the same blows that brought Goku to his knees now bounce off the prince, and Android 19 goes from predator to prey in minutes. Tearing the android's arms off is a reminder that Vegeta has lost none of his ferocity, even while fighting on the heroes' side.
The pacing is surprisingly brisk for this era. The episode covers the end of chapter 343 plus two full chapters, rare for a series that often stretched every fight. The anime additions are few and short: Yamcha urging Goku on mid-flight and some squabbling between Bulma and Yajirobe.
There's also a hint of suspense that the Japanese title plants, "No. 20's defiant smile," and that the story will pay off: the older android is no mere sidekick, and his secret only comes out two episodes later. Meanwhile his escape turns the battle into a hunt through the rocks, with an enemy who now knows he can't win in a straight fight.
Trivia
- It adapts chapter 343 from page 12 to the end, plus chapters 344 and 345 in full. Written by Hiroshi Toda and directed by Kazuhito Kikuchi, with animation supervision by Kazuya Hisada, it drew a 23.8% share.
- It marks the debut of the Big Bang Attack, one of Vegeta's signature techniques.
- Despite the title, no secret is revealed here: Android 20's true identity only comes out in episode 132.
- Funimation's dub never names the attack, even in the uncut version: Vegeta just makes a sarcastic crack about a going-away present before firing.