Dragon Ball Z Season 4 Review

Episode Guide

The Heavens Tremble
Black Fog of Terror
Battle in Kami’s Lookout
Fight with Piccolo
Call for Restoration
Suicidal Course
Extreme Measures
The World Awakens
Brief Chance for Victory
Krillin’s Proposal
Frieza’s Counterattack
The Mysterious Youth
Another Super Saiyan?
Welcome Back Goku
Mystery Revealed
Goku’s Special Technique
Z Warriors Prepare
Goku’s Ordeal
The Androids Appear
A Handy Trick
Double Trouble for Goku
Upgrade to Super Saiyan
The Secret of Dr. Gero
More Androids?!
Follow Dr. Gero
Nightmare Comes True
Goku’s Assassin
Deadly Beauty
No Match for the Androids
Last Ditch Effort
Closing In
Unwelcome Discovery

Back for a fourth season, Dragon Ball Z returns in a gripping but slightly disjointed season of action-packed fighting. It was always going to be a difficult job surpassing the excellent work done last year in the epic Frieza saga and this year certainly feels the effects of this. Beginning with the Garlic Junior saga and continuing through to battling murderous Androids, Season 4 feels like a transitional season, building toward the next big battle for the Z fighters. Although the episodes still feature some good action and decent characterisation throughout, it does pale somewhat in comparison to what’s come before in the series’ history.

The episodes begin with the Z fighters (minus Goku) battling a new foe atop Kami tower, Garlic Junior. In many ways this saga does feel lacklustre but serves the purpose of depicting the capabilities of the Z fighters without Goku’s help. After this short but action-packed set of episodes and Goku’s inevitable return to the fray, the story evolves to the start of an epic new saga featuring the insane Dr Gero and his deadly creations – the Androids. The end of this season teases the ultimate evil to come next, setting things up nicely for a big showdown with another deadly foe of the same calibre as the evil Frieza last year.

The plot does feel a bit disjointed at times this year, especially with the way this season jumps forward in time and has several different sagas crammed into the episodes depicted. Having said that, there’s still an awful lot to like here and the intense action and decent characterisation is as strong as it’s ever been in the series. New character Trunks is an excellent addition to the cast too and with more emphasis on the various Super Saiyans this year, there’s a really nice power dynamic at play. During the latter half of this season, deep in the Android saga, the action and storytelling really kicks into gear and starts ramping toward next season where the inevitable battle for Earth begins.

Although Season 4 is enjoyable and features some impressively shot action, there’s no denying that this season feels a little underwhelming compared to the Frieza saga last year. There’s a bit of a stop/start feeling too and a lot of this derives from the various different sagas crammed into these episodes. Toward the end, there’s a growing confidence in the writing and the way this season teases something bigger to come leaves this season on a nicely worked ominous tone that sets everything up nicely for next year’s climactic battle.