Episode 243 of Dragon Ball Z, first broadcast in Japan on October 19, 1994 and titled The Z Sword in Funimation's dub, is the one where Gohan succeeds where no Supreme Kai ever had: he pulls the legendary Z Sword from its rock. The triumph is short-lived, because the weapon is so heavy he cannot even swing it. Back at Kami's Lookout, Goten and Trunks call Goku a coward, until another massacre by Majin Buu convinces them to get to work.
Summary
The mood at the Lookout is grim. Bulma cannot accept that Gohan, who beat Cell, has been defeated, and Chi-Chi lies in bed tended by the Ox-King. Videl, curled up in a corner, is the only one who refuses to give up: Krillin tells her they can no longer sense Gohan's energy, but she points out that nobody has found his body.
On the sacred world, Gohan grips the hilt and pulls with everything he has, but in his base form the sword does not budge, and he ends up flat on his back. On his second try he transforms into a Super Saiyan and, with a colossal heave, tears it free along with a chunk of the ground, to Kibito's astonishment. The trouble starts right after: the Z Sword is so heavy that Gohan staggers and topples over. Kibito reminds him that he will need to master it to beat Buu, but when he takes the sword himself it slips straight out of his hands.
At the Lookout, Goku and Piccolo walk the boys through the basics of Fusion and how little time they will have once fused. When Goku asks them to go Super Saiyan, Goten and Trunks glare at him: why wasn't he there when Vegeta was fighting Buu? Goku says he had been knocked out, but the boys call him a coward. It is Piccolo who stands up for him.
In another city, Babidi broadcasts a new demand. When nobody answers, Buu turns the inhabitants into chocolate bars. Meanwhile Mr. Satan clumsily tries to teach himself to fly, until a crowd begs him to take on Buu and he claims to be perfecting a secret technique. Once full, Buu melts the leftovers and destroys the city. Horrified, Goten and Trunks shout to Babidi that they are coming for him, and Piccolo silences them before the wizard can trace them. Now they are ready to listen to Goku.
Our take
The sword scene is a perfect bit of Toriyama-style comedy. For a whole episode the weapon has been built up as the ultimate answer to Buu, and the moment it comes out of the rock it turns into a burden that knocks over anyone who touches it. It is a first hint that the Z Sword is not what it seems.
The Lookout scenes are more bitter. The boys' accusation is unfair, since Goku had been knocked out by Vegeta himself, but it rings completely true coming from two children who have just lost a father and a brother. The fact that Piccolo, Goku's old enemy, is the one to defend him says a lot about how far their relationship has come.
The anime also starts building Mr. Satan's subplot here, a thread that will lead all the way to his encounter with Buu.
Trivia
- It adapts chapter 472 of the manga. Written by Masashi Kubota and directed by Shigeyasu Yamauchi, with Masayuki Uchiyama as animation director.
- Its 22.0% share is the best among episodes 241 to 245.
- The mourning at the Lookout, including Videl's exchange with Krillin, and Mr. Satan's flying practice are anime additions.
- It is the last time in Dragon Ball Z that Gohan is shown turning Super Saiyan.
Did you know? Among the people Buu lifts into the air is a man clinging to a statue that closely resembles Colonel Sanders, the mascot of a well-known fried chicken chain.