The 131st episode of Dragon Ball Z, first broadcast in Japan on March 11, 1992 and titled More Androids?! in Funimation's dub, looks like it's closing the book on the androids and instead throws it wide open. Piccolo shows how far he has come in three years and corners Android 20 without any help from Goku. Then Trunks returns from the future, and his reaction to Android 19's wreckage changes everything.
Summary
The fighters comb the canyon for Android 20, who leaves no trace. Hidden among the rocks, the android sizes up his prey and settles on Piccolo, the strongest after Vegeta. He grabs him from behind, clamps a hand over his mouth and starts draining him. Before blacking out, Piccolo manages to send a telepathic call to Gohan, who swoops in and strikes Android 20 on the head, freeing his mentor.
The others gather round. Piccolo eats a Senzu Bean, sheds his weighted turban and cape, and announces he'll handle the android alone. Android 20, expecting an opponent he had already analyzed, finds he can't keep up: Piccolo hits him at will and even rips off one of his hands. He explains that the warning they received three years ago gave everyone time to prepare. The android, meanwhile, frets that Vegeta is still at full strength, which is a real problem.
At Goku's house, Yamcha and Chi-Chi watch over the patient, who has just taken the medicine from the future, wondering whether it will be enough.
Elsewhere, the time machine brings Trunks back. He realizes events are not unfolding as they did in his era, then finds Android 19's head among the debris and is baffled: he has never seen this android before. He reaches the group just as Piccolo is winning. Hearing the young man's name spoken, Vegeta silently works out that the stranger is his son. Trunks, for his part, asks who they've been fighting: these are not the androids who destroyed his world.
Our take
For most of the episode Piccolo owns the stage, and rightly so. Since merging with Nail on Namek he has been one of the strongest fighters in the group, and here he proves it with an almost mocking confidence. Taking off the turban and cape, a ritual dating back to the Saiyan arc, is a gesture fans recognize instantly: when Piccolo lightens his load, he means business.
The message is clear: even without Goku, the heroes can hold their own. That is exactly why Trunks's arrival lands so hard. The Japanese title, "A present more terrifying than the future?", shifts the focus from strength to history: the boy's first trip has altered the timeline, and his knowledge is no longer reliable. For the first time, the prophecy that drove three years of training shows a crack, and the saga will mine that idea for a long time.
The only anime addition is Yamcha and Chi-Chi at Goku's bedside. It's brief, but it keeps reminding us that the hero is out of action and the clock is ticking.
Trivia
- It adapts chapter 346 and the first six pages of chapter 347. Written by Katsuyuki Sumisawa and directed by Mitsuo Hashimoto, with animation supervision by Yukio Ebisawa, it drew a 25.7% share.
- When Android 20 scans his targets, his display shows the Japanese names "Tenshinhan" and "Kuririn," and spells Piccolo as "Piccoro."
- Android 20's hat clangs like metal when Gohan knocks it off, though in an earlier episode it seemed to be made of fabric.
Did you know? Throughout the ambush, nobody senses Piccolo's energy dropping, so he has to call for help telepathically. It's a small inconsistency, since the group had immediately noticed when Yamcha was attacked.