Film: 
DVD: 
Original Japanese Version by Akira Toriyama
Features:
- Contains episodes 248-250
- Trailers
Dindrane’s Anime Warnings:
- Animated violence
- Endangered children
Released by FUNimation
Rating: 13+
Region: 1
Anamorphic: N/A; episodes appear in their original 1.33:1 format.
My Advice: Buy it.
The Majin-Buu Saga continues in the new Fusion storyline as three more episodes bring us more fine DBZ arse-kicking. First up, in “A Whole New Gohan,” the fusion of Goten and Trunks, known as Gotenks, finishes its half-hour time allowance, but that wasn’t enough. Buu gets ready to devour them, too, just as Gohan returns from the Supreme Kai’s world all souped up himself. “Search for Survivors” brings us a desperate ploy by Buu after Gohan beats him at every turn–he blows himself up. Gohan, however, is ready for this to be a ploy so Buu can just buy time to regenerate or plot some new evil. In “Majin-Buu Transforms,” Buu shows back up, just as Gohan predicted, and he does have a new trick up his sleeve–absorbing the bodies and powers of his enemies. After Buu absorbs Piccolo and Gotenks, it’s hard to believe even Gohan’s new powers will be able to stop this new “Super Buu.”
The plot of this disc is much like those that came before–great DBZ heroic action! If you’ve been as tired and irritated by Buu as the rest of us, then you might be glad to see the changes he undertakes on this disc. While it seems bad for Our Heroes that Buu keeps absorbing people, it also makes him look different, think more tactically, and develop a real voice–no more silly, nerve-rending giggles. Huzzah! The fused version of Goten and Trunks is fun to see in action–too bad their moment in the sun is all too short; though if we know Seiyans, they’ll find enough trouble when they grow up to make up for it.
The audio and video of this series continues to be problem-free. The colors were as clear as they were when first shown on TV, if not a bit crisper, and the sound is perfectly intelligible and enjoyable. The art is familiar and comfortable, as well as nicely done. The lines are simple without being boring, and the characters are all beautifully differentiated, even when they’re similar, such as fathers and sons. Even in their Super Seiyan forms, you can tell Vegeta from Gohan, for example.
As with the rest of the series, this disc’s features are minimal. There are some trailers for other FUNimation titles and an ad for the new online Z Store. It would have been nice to have had interviews with creators, especially discussing the series’ warm reception in America, or perhaps a look at other iterations of the story, like manga, etc.
Overall, there’s a reason why the series is a popular as it is–it’s good. The action is lively and usually pretty logical, even if you have to suspend some laws of physics as you know them. The superheroes are heroes, pure and simple, yet they aren’t so perfect that they’re unbelievable. Vegeta is a nicely conflicted hero character, and the women, while less heroic and mystically powerful than the men, are at least powerful in their own ways, intelligent, and unique. I can’t wait to see more of Videl, especially. This disc is worth owning, bare bones as it is.
Also: DVD Reviews for Majin-Bu: Revival, Majin-Buu: Tactics, and Imperfect Cell: Race Against Time.
