Episode 77 of Dragon Ball Z, first broadcast in Japan on February 6, 1991 and simply called The Fusion in Funimation's dub, kicks off the direct confrontation with Frieza. While the tyrant seethes over his lost immortality, Piccolo makes a choice that reshapes his destiny, and Vegeta, convinced of his newfound might, makes the worst mistake of his life: asking the enemy to show his true form.
Summary
Frieza has caught up with Vegeta, Gohan, Krillin and Dende. He has worked out that the Ginyu Force is finished and, worse, that his dream of immortality died with Grand Elder Guru. Nearby, Captain Ginyu, now stuck in a frog's body, sees his boss arrive and ducks out of sight in shame. Vegeta steps forward, ready to fight, and Frieza begins to power up.
Meanwhile Piccolo is flying toward the battlefield when he senses a fading life force. He lands and finds Nail, left for dead after his duel with Frieza. The Namekian warrior recognizes him and warns him that he cannot win alone. His only real hope would be to reunite with Kami, but Kami is on Earth, and Piccolo wants no part of it anyway. So Nail offers another way: merge with him. Piccolo hesitates, then feels Frieza's power rising and agrees. Nail disappears into him, and Piccolo takes off again, flooded with a strength he has never known.
On the battlefield, Frieza opens fire on Vegeta, who dodges with ease. Gohan and Krillin strike from behind, but Frieza swats their attacks aside and nearly kills them, until Vegeta deflects the beam at the last second. The prince declares that he and Gohan have reached a new level and that he himself is now a Super Saiyan. Frieza lunges, but Vegeta catches both his fists and holds firm; their power climbs so high that Frieza's scouter bursts. They are dead even. Then Vegeta, who learned from Zarbon about Frieza's transformations, taunts him into changing. Frieza warns him he will regret it, confirms that he destroyed Planet Vegeta, and begins to transform.
Our take
The Piccolo-Nail merger is one of the saga's pivotal moments, even if it lasts only a few minutes. It is the first time two characters ever fuse into one, and Toriyama uses it to give Piccolo a believable shot: without it he would stand no chance against Frieza. There is a deeper meaning too. Piccolo agrees to change who he is in order to protect others, one more step on the long road from demon to Gohan's mentor.
Vegeta, on the other hand, is at the peak of his arrogance. The test of strength with Frieza is a fantastic scene, but pride blinds him: inviting a tyrant who still has cards to play to lay them on the table is madness, and the audience senses it before he does. This is where his confidence peaks, right before the fall.
The anime adds very little here: just Frieza's volleys of energy at Vegeta, Gohan and Krillin before the test of strength, which the manga skips. What disappears is Zarbon's explanation of the transformations, a manga scene the anime never adapted.
Trivia
- Written by Katsuyuki Sumisawa and directed by Minoru Okazaki, with Minoru Maeda as animation supervisor.
- It adapts the end of chapter 294, chapter 295 and the start of 296, with a 25.4% ratings share.
- In the Japanese version, Frieza openly admits to destroying Planet Vegeta right before transforming.
- In the original Funimation broadcast, Kami was voiced by Chris Forbis in the flashback; Christopher Sabat replaced him in the remastered dub.
Did you know? Nail points to reuniting with Kami as Piccolo's surest path to greater power. Piccolo refuses here, but he will go through with it later, in the Androids Saga.