Search - Dragon Ball Z Double Feature - The History of Trunks / Bardock the Father of Goku (Steelbook) on DVD

Forget What You've Heard...

Nick Golden | Anaheim, CA USA | 02/20/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"...about the supposed "bad picture quality". I am here to dispel these rumors and give a true fan's review of this product.



First of all, let's start with the first feature in this DragonBall Z Double Feature DVD: The History of Trunks.



This TV Special (or movie, whichever you prefer to call it) was made to show the horrible past that the well-liked character, Trunks, has experienced before traveling back in time to warn Goku and his friends of the looming android threat.



In Trunks' timeline, Androids 17 and 18 has been set loose on the world by the evil Dr. Gero, to wreak havoc on the human race. Goku, having died of a heart disease before Dr. Gero's evil vision came to fruition, was not able to help his friends fight the Androids. Thus, 17 and 18 brutally murdered them all, save one: Goku's son, Gohan. At the time, Trunks was only a baby.



Now, 13 years later, Trunks is aching to fight the Androids, despite his mother's wishes. After stumbling upon a city full of people that 17 and 18 had annihilated, Trunks asks Gohan to train him. Gohan agrees, and the two begin training.



Not too long after, Gohan and Trunks witness a new attack by the Androids. Gohan decides to go and fight, but he won't allow Trunks to go with him. Will he survive alone against the Androids? You'll have to watch to find out!



STORY: 9/10



The storyline is great: one of DragonBall Z's better stories.



MUSIC: 7/10



I normally prefer the American soundtrack to the anime, but in this case, I have to say: go with the Japanese score. It's much better than the faux-rap and bad rock music that Funimation brought to the table.



VIDEO QUALITY: 9/10



The remastering process' effect on the video is quite obvious. It looks clearer than ever.

________________



Now, let's move on to the second TV Special in this double feature: Bardock, the Father of Goku.



Enter the Saiyan race, a band of ruthless warriors who transform into giant apes in the moonlight.



Bardock and his team have just completed a mission on another planet, having just exterminated another race of beings. However, they seem to have missed one.



In a sudden move, one of the creatures bursts out from under the rocks and stabs Bardock in the back of his neck. Afterwards, as Bardock looks on in shock, the creature explains that he has transferred psychic powers into Bardock, which will allow him to see the bitter end of the Saiyan race.



Not liking what the creature has told him, Bardock kills it. He and his team proceed to fly back to Planet Vegeta. However, in his healing process Bardock is plagued by visions of the future of planet Vegeta and his newborn son, Kakkarot. But will he be able to warn everyone and stop the destruction of his planet before it's too late?



STORY: 8/10



It's not the best story ever, but it's definitely intriguing and interesting enough to keep you wondering what happens next.



MUSIC: 10/10



In this feature, I would recommend the Dub Music. It has a sort of rock-like feel, without being too overpowering.



VIDEO QUALITY: 9/10



The video quality is GREAT. I love watching this on my big TV. The coloring has obviously been fixed as well.



Overall, I would definitely recommend this release to any person wondering if they should buy it or not. It is a great release to add to your collection, even if you have/used to have the original DVD release-especially considering Funimation is planning on releasing all of the DragonBall Z movies in this format (i.e. Remastered Double Feature Steelbooks). Thus, without this, your DBZ collection would NOT be complete when all of the movies and seasons have been released.



OVERALL GRADE: 9/10"

For DBZ fans

AKJ | Maryland, USA | 08/27/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"History of Trunks is a great movie all around, a good tragedy ending in hope (or HOPE!! if you know what I mean). Bardock however seems to have been a subpar dub. I watched both and the details that were omitted or changed in his lines are quite unnecessary. This includes details about him talking about his son (changed to something unrelated like 'Oh I better not waste time'). That's coming from a long time fan of the dub, they just botched this one up. But the original is still there, so it gets credit where due. Oh again for the faint of heart: cropping unnoticeable."