A grand send off to the other side of DBZ
Ironman | Carmel, IN USA | 09/24/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"It's fairly well known that the Movies never really fit in the Dragon Ball Z universe. Granted one or two of them did so (Bardock, History of Trunks, Dead Zone) most of them were more of an "Elseworlds" tale. Wrath of the Dragon fits in the tradtion of the "Elseworlds" tales, but also in a small way can fit into the DBZ universe itself.
Wrath of the Dragon is about a sorceror who tricks the Z fighters to release a legendary hero Tapion using the Dragon Balls. The problem with this is that Tapion has half of an evil demon Hirudegarn. As Tapion struggles with the demon, the other half of it starts creating chaos on earth. Eventually the Z fighters learn the truth and attempt to destroy the beast.
This is one of the best Z movies, and is also one of the longest. The inner struggle with Tapion is realy well done, and the friendship he gains with Trunks is memorable. This story is also quite a bit of a Trunks story as a few revelations are also revealed during this tale. Overall this is one of the best Z movies, and is a great send off to a legendary series"
A must for Dragon Ball fans.
Joshua 'P' | Modesto, CA, USA | 06/28/2006
(4 out of 5 stars)
"One of a handful of stories written by Toei Animation worthy of the Toriyama original story. The film moves quick, the action is fun an intense, the characters are in full development (even the new addtions) and Dragon Fist! is just a kickass looking attack. One interesting point of the story is how it moves from one character to the next, being passed along, so it isn't focusing on a singular character. Something the other movies didn't really do. Because of this, it feels more like an American animated film (except in art style, naturally) and this brings my single complaint; It isn't long enough. The story could've been even better if played around with me. But I suppose Japanese children and teens don't have high enough attention spans... ?"
Good writing, dub and sub alike
GPeralta | CA, USA | 09/17/2006
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Well, here it is: the final DBZ movie.
Unlike most of the other DBZ movie releases, it seems like this one has been pretty well hyped through the commercials and the movie's general rep already. So I guess it makes sense that this disc come not in a regular black case, but a clear one with some okay art on the inside cover.
In general, the overall writing for FUNimation's dub as well as the original Japanese version is better than the average DBZ movies which are kinda lackluster and derivative. However, like most of the other DBZ movies this doesn't fit into the series' continuity, so don't even try and say otherwise.
For those of you in the dark, the movie focuses on an alien named Tapion who is considered a hero for sacrificing his body to seal up half of a giant beast-- Hildegarn (or as the dub calls him 'Hirudegarn'). It can only get better from here.
On a technical level, the video quality isn't exactly gorgeous in comparison to newer anime, but what do you expect from something made in'95?
As for "extras" we're given the same 'meh' FUNimation extras as usual: badly written character descriptions and some trailers for future releases.
In conclusion, this is a pretty good movie that's a must have for any DBZ fan, dubbie or subbie alike."
Terrific end to a series.
Rolando Delrio | Carolina, Puerto Rico | 05/27/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This is the last movie of the Dragon Ball Z series. As every true Dragon Ball Z fan knows the timeline of the TV series and the timeline of the movies do not go hand in hand. The movie "Wrath of the Dragon" serves the purpose of not only closure of the series, but also answers a peculiar question of one of the character, we see how does Trunks obtains the sword that he will later use to kill Freeza and King Cold.
As everything Dragon Ball Z is entretaining and exiting. Great fights, and great plot. Highly recomended."