DRAGON BALL Z – SUPER ANDROID 13 / BOJACK UNBOUND (a J!-ENT Anime Blu-ray Disc Review)

SUPER ANDROID 13

The peace of a routine day is shattered by violent explosions, with the citizens of the world trembling in terror.  Goku knows that he is the target of the vicious assault – and the devastating power of the attacks can mean only one thing: Androids.

A mysterious fiend is creating Androids that are faster, stronger and far more deadly than anything over devised by the deceased Doctor Gero.  Goku and the rest of the Z-fighters will have to find the identity of the murderous mastermind if they are to halt the onslaught of his lethal inventions.

This is the story of the Android Assault.

BOJACK UNBOUND

Warriors from every corner of the galaxy are gathering to battle in the most incredible martial arts tournament ever conceived.  Many will test their power and technique.  Few will make it to the finals.  One will be hailed as the greatest.  But before a victor can be crowned, sport gives way to a fight for survival.

Bojack – an intergalactic scourge as evil as he is mighty.  Leading a gang of deviant criminals, Bojack will stop at nothing short of universal domination.  One by one, Earth’s a greatest heroes fall.  Only young Goahan can stop the wicked invaders – if he can summon the strength within.

This is the story of one boy’s greatest stand.

FUNimation Entertainment introduces another action-packed “DRAGON BALL Z” movie volume on Blu-ray.   The fourth volume featuring the two films “SUPER ANDROID 13” and “BOJACK UNBOUND” featuring more intense battles and more DBZ fun!

For those not familiar with the “DRAGON BALL Z” films, where they would fit into the timeline of television series is left to interpretation of the viewer.  For these two films, these two films take place after the “Android” and “Cell” storylines.

The best old school anime memory back in the early 90’s that I have for any of these two films was back in 1994 which I remember 50-60 people crammed inside a hotel room for a very early anime con watching “SUPER ANDROID 13” and people cheering for Trunks and laughing at Goku’s ability to eat.  Suffice to say, those were special times of watching a film in not-so-great video quality.

So, to watch it 15 years later in Blu-ray in 1080p High Definition and really vibrant colors was quite amazing and nostalgic at the same time.

The first film on the Blu-ray disc is “SUPER ANDROID 13” which came out in theaters back in 1992.  The seventh in the “DRAGON BALL Z” movie lineup which takes place after the “ANDROID” saga and introduces us to the storyline when both Androids 17 and 18 destroyed their creator Dr. Gero.  What the two androids don’t know is that underneath Dr. Gero’s lab is a super computer that had been developing three other androids.

While these androids are being developed, Goku, Chichi, Gohan (along with Kuririn) are out shopping for new clothes in the city.  While they are enjoying their family time out, two androids start destroying parts of the city and making their way to the area that Goku and family are at.   The two are androids 14 & 15 who have been programmed to fight Goku and thus the fight begins.

While Goku tries to lead the androids to another area, he gets some help from Picollo, Trunks and Vegeta.   But the androids also get some help from Android 13, an even more powerful android and thus the Z-fighters must protect themselves from the android assault.

The second film included on the Blu-ray disc is “BOJACK UNBOUND” which came out in theaters in 1993. This film is not the eighth but actually the ninth “DRAGON BALL Z” film.

This film takes place right after the Cell saga and it’s time for a new martial arts tournament.  But this time, warriors from different parts of the galaxy are invited and unlike the previous tournaments of one versus one battles, it’s an all out battle royale of who from Earth will make it to the semi-finals and will go head-to-head against the galactic champions.

But behind-the-scenes, on the side of the galactic champion side, the galactic champions are being murdered by a super powerful being known as Bojack who came along for the ride to Earth with his henchman.

What will happen to the Z-warriors when they encounter Bojack?  With Goku still not in the land of the living (note: watch the end of the Cell storyline to find out what happened to Goku) and not there to save the day, that leaves only Trunks, Kuririn, Gohan, Piccolo and Vegeta to take on Bojack and his group.

VIDEO:

As mentioned in previous “DRAGON BALL Z” volumes, the more recent the film, the better the video quality in the transfer.  Both films are in 1080p High-Definition and 16×9.  Colors are vibrant and compared to the earlier films on Blu-ray which has quite a bit of scratches and dust, you don’t see it as much in these two films.  Very little which is great.

But the colors really do stand out for these two films and considering they are over 15 years old, the transfer to Blu-ray does showcase the colors and these two films are a perfect example because of so many colors utilized.

AUDIO:

Like the treatment they have given to their TV season box sets of “DRAGON BALL Z”, this Blu-ray disc features Dolby TrueHD, English 5.1 with Japanese or U.S. Music and the original 2.0 Japanese track.

I love having been given the choice and although I grew up watching “DRAGON BALL Z” with its original Japanese language, I have to say that the English dubbing for the US “DRAGON BALL Z” is terrific and perfectly cast.

Although, I did question the Western twang of Super Android 13 but overall, everything was good.

The Dolby TrueHD English 5.1 track is where you are going to hear the difference because of the utilization of the rear channels during the battle scenes.  So, it’s great to have FUNimation really work the 5.1 track for the Blu-ray release.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

Surprisingly there are no special features included on the Blu-ray but there are a good number trailers for a lot of the recent FUNimation DVD and Blu-ray releases.

This time around, this volume breaks away from the standard numerical order of DBZ films by featuring the seventh film “SUPER ANDROID 13” and the ninth film “BOJACK UNBOUND”.  Primarily because the eighth film “BROLY: THE LEGENDARY SAIYAN” was being paired with the ninth tenth film “BROLY: THE SECOND COMING” to give viewers a “BROLY DOUBLE FEATURE” and coming soon a “BROLY TRIPLE FEATURE”.

What I enjoyed about “SUPER ANDROID 13” is that you get a glimpse of the Goku, Chichi and Gohan on a family shopping spree in the city.  Something you rarely see in the television series and really rare to see the entire family doing something together away from their home.  So, it was quite enjoyable to see the family shopping at a mall and eating a food court.

I definitely enjoyed the numerous location shots throughout that city area during the first half of the film and of course, then it becomes more action-based and everyone takes it out towards to an area full of snow.  But the Blu-ray does showcase the vibrant colors when Goku and family are around the colorful city, the mall and good utilization of sound and rear channels during the film.

Also, with the film “SUPER ANDROID 13”, many “DRAGON BALL Z” fans have wondered who were the previous androids to 16, 17 and 18.  The three which we knew from the television series and thus, we get to see the previous three who have been lingering in the underground in the cave where Dr. Gero’s lab is located.

With “BOJACK UNBOUND”, this was definitely a humurous and action-packed film as the film focuses on a martial arts tournament.  Unlike what we saw on television, this was not one-on-one matches right off the bat.  If anything, it’s more of the last person standing as all fighters are put in a platform and whoever falls in the water is eliminated.

So, it was great to see Gohan and Trunks amongst the competitors and to see Chichi and Bulma each supporting their son and getting in each other’s faces of who will win.

Again, the Blu-ray transfer of the film showcases the vibrancy of the colors and another film that shows off the unknown strength of Gohan.

If you thought Gohan’s battle with Cell was exciting and action-packed, definitely check out how Gohan takes on Bojack and his henchman.  Definitely a film for those who enjoy watching Gohan kick ass!

Overall, the two films were fun and enjoyable but most of all giving “DRAGON BALL Z” fans what they want and that is all-out action.

Another fun, action-packed volume in the “DRAGON BALL Z” movies on Blu-ray!  Check it out!