From as early as the first Dragon Ball anime adaptation, Toei has been churning out films on a consistent basis. At least during the anime’s original run from the start of the Hunt for the Dragon Balls arc up to the end of Dragon Ball GT. With Broly coming out at the end of the year in Japan and the start of next year internationally, every single major Dragon Ball anime will have at least one movie in its series. There have been a few quiet periods here and there, but, for the most part, Dragon Ball has never slowed down when it comes to its cinematic side.
As a result, there are a little over thirty different movies in the entire franchise each one of a varying quality. It makes sense that over thirty films in over thirty years would result in a lack of consistent quality, after all, and the Dragon Ball anime is a piece of media that is inherently flawed. Characters often act of character when compared to the source material; Toei’s choreography isn’t as good as Toriyama’s, and the slow pacing does not reflect the manga’s quick pace. That’s not to say Toei isn’t capable of crafting some of the best material in the series, however. There are equal ups and downs. Some you’ve forgotten, some you want to forget, all of them Dragon Ball.
30 FORGET: Evolution
Even if you’re not one to think about the live action film all that often, the series’ legacy will never escape Evolution. Reportedly, Akira Toriyama hated the live-action movie so much that it inspired him to once again involve himself with the series, rewriting Battle of Gods and effectively kicking us off into this new era of modern Dragon Ball.
We wouldn't have modern Dragon Ball without Evolution.
In that respect, you literally cannot forget about Evolution no matter how hard you try. It is an awful movie that does everything in its power to stray away from the Dragon Ball mythos, but it also single-handedly revived the franchise and gave use Dragon Ball Super. For that reason alone, Evolution’s legacy will never fade away.
29 FORGOTTEN: The Path To Power
An anniversary film celebrating the first arc of Dragon Ball, The Path to Power came out during Dragon Ball GT’s run and was subsequently ignored by the fandom for decades. Maybe it’s because of the overt GT aesthetic or just the fact that The Path to Power is yet another retelling of series’ first story arc, but fans don’t give this movie the love it deserves.
It is a love letter to Dragon Ball in its purest form. While the GT art and music can be off-putting, it clearly understands what makes the series so strong. It understands Toriyama’s nuances and the inherent pathos of the franchise. The animation is some of the best in the entire franchise and the story is a fresh take even if derivative. The Path to Power deserves to be remembered.
28 FORGET: The Magic Begins
Before there was Evolution, another live-action movie permeated the series’ legacy: The Magic Begins. A Taiwanese produced film, The Magic Begins was an unlicensed, unofficial remake of Dragon Ball’s first film, Curse of the Blood Rubies. Naturally, nothing about that sounds appealing.
As this was one of the earliest pieces of Dragon Ball media to come out internationally, the magic began here for someone.
The Magic Begins is an odd film that clearly understands its source material in some minor capacity, but is so outlandishly bad that it’s hard to appreciate that fact. It’s horribly shot, poorly edited, and downright nonsensical at its absolute worst. Give it a watch if you want to look at a weird bit of Dragon Ball history, but it’s honestly best left forgotten by time.
27 FORGOTTEN: Curse Of The Blood Rubies
What isn’t best left forgotten, however, is the actual first Dragon Ball movie: Curse of the Blood Rubies. A reimagining of the Hunt for the Dragon Balls arc, Curse of the Blood Rubies does play things relatively straight, but it’s still worth remembering due to what it represents for the series. Not the advent of the films, but rather the series’ alternate continuity.
Before the Dragon Ball Z films came out to solidify each movie in their own continuity, Curse of the Blood Rubies started off an alternate universe. Each original Dragon Ball retold a portion of the series while also pushing an overarching narrative. This idea would get scrapped after the third film, but CotBR makes for a unique watch in that it’s literally an alternate start to the franchise.
26 FORGET: Bio-Broly
Bio-Broly is a movie so bad that it’s literally impossible to forget. The final installment in the original Broly trilogy, Bio-Broly follows the events of Goten and Trunks as they fight off sludge men while Android 18 tries to swindle Mr. Satan out of money. Conceptually, it’s probably the most unique premise of any of the films. It’s in the execution where it falters.
Because a Broly movie where he's literal slime is a great idea, right Toei?
Bio-Broly is a ferociously boring movie that does virtually nothing with its rather interesting plot. Android 18 is relegated to the background rather quickly and Goten and Trunks never fuse into Gotenks, keeping the action relatively on the tame side. Krillin does make an appearance, and one of his better ones, but even he can’t save this atrocity of a movie.
25 FORGOTTEN: Sleeping Princess In Devil’s Castle
The second movie in the franchise, and the second installment of the Dragon Ball cinematic continuity, Sleeping Princess in Devil’s Castle follows the events of Goku and Krillin as they train with Master Roshi for the first time. Specifically, this movie sees their attempts in proving their worth to Roshi by finding him a lady love.
What’s interesting about this movie is that it focuses on such a minor part of the series’ lore while also changing it enough to give the film its own central identity. There is a genuinely gothic feel to this movie and the monstrous imagery goes a long way in helping it stand out from later films. Lucifer isn’t the most compelling antagonist, but the overall aesthetic makes this a fun watch.
24 FORGET: The Return Of Cooler
Remembered mainly for its visual references towards other science fiction films and for finally introducing Vegeta into the Dragon Ball Z movies, The Return of Cooler really does not stand up as a strong film. It’s poorly animated, has an awful story, and Metal Cooler is easily one of the worst villains in the entire franchise.
"Freeza's brother but robot" is not a good premise.
The Return of Cooler only works if you are willing to accept all its horrible parts in favor of its references and slightly interesting set piece. It is worth noting that The Return of Cooler is actually fairly original in its premise, but its originality does not help make it a better movie by any means.
23 FORGOTTEN: Mystical Adventure
The third Dragon Ball film, and the final entry in the series’ alternate cinematic continuity, Mystical Adventure is a combination of the 21st Tenkaichi Budokai, the Red Ribbon Army arc, and the 22nd Tenkaichi Budokai. For all intents and purposes, this is a movie that should not work, but it does. For the most part.
While it ultimately does suffer when it’s tackling Red Ribbon analogous material, Mystical Adventure blends three arcs together into a distinctively stylish film that completely shatters preconceived notions of the franchise in favor of its own canon. Had the movies continued after Mystical Adventure, it’s likely that the cinematic continuity would have wound up rather beloved.
22 FORGET: Episode Of Bardock
First thing’s first, an important distinction needs to be made here: Episode of Bardock is not Bardock - The Father of Goku. Those are completely different films with completely different storylines and atmospheres. Where the latter is a classical tragedy with a flawed protagonist, the former is everything wrong with modern Dragon Ball.
Otherwise titled "How to Ruin Bardock in Half an Hour"
Bardock goes from being a genuinely broken man to a cold anti-hero; he goes from being a literal nobody to becoming the legendary Super Saiyan, and he goes from leaving no legacy behind to leaving behind the franchise’s largest legacy. Episode of Bardock is a tone-deaf movie that doesn’t understand its source material. Pretty animation, though.
21 FORGOTTEN: Summer Vacation Special
Don’t feel bad if you have no idea what the Summer Vacation Special is, you’re honestly not missing much. A brief special that takes place in the same continuity of Super Android 13 of all things, Goku and Gohan show up in tuxedos to basically talk about the history of the Dragon Ball movies up to that point while urging fans to go out and see Super Android 13 in theaters.
At its core, this is basically a glorified advertisement. If you haven’t seen it, don’t bother seeking it out. It’s visually uninteresting and the content isn’t all that special. It’s only worthwhile if you really want to see Goku turn Super Saiyan while in a tuxedo, but even that’s debatable.
20 FORGET: Plan To Eradicate The Saiyans
Easily one of the strangest and most obscure pieces of media in the Dragon Ball catalogue, Plan to Eradicate the Saiyans was all but forgotten until its remake came out a few years ago, reviving interest in the film. Taking place sometime during the Call arc, PtEtS sees Tuffles coming back to haunt the Saiyans.
It was actually based off a NES video game.
Literally. Old villains, both canon and non-canon, come back to attack our main heroes. All things considered, it’s a rather bland movie lacking a cohesive center. While it is fairly interesting, and even served as the basis for Dragon Ball GT’s Baby arc, there’s not to note here. Plan to Eradicate the Saiyans was best left forgotten.
19 FORGOTTEN: Dream 9
A crossover event between Dragon Ball, Toriko, and One Piece, Dream 9 feels something of a fever dream, pairing Dragon Ball up with two series that are very much inspired by it. In a way, this makes sense. After all, it’s nice to see the inspiration acknowledge those it's inspired. On the other hand, it’s a bit awkward as Dragon Ball is very much not contemporary.
Not that it really matters considering how obscure this special actually is. While One Piece is still going strong, Toriko basically has no presence at this point, severely dating the crossover event. This is the rare forgotten movie that’s honestly best left forgotten. It doesn’t have much going for it at all.
18 FORGET: Plan To Eradicate The Super Saiyans
Plan to Eradicate the Super Saiyans is a remake of Plan to Eradicate the Saiyans that plays its source material painfully straight. It’s basically the exact same movie, but… modern looking. To say that the remake is prettier, would honestly be to lie. It certainly looks crisper and conventionally cleaner, but this movie is basically Yamamuro’s designs at their absolute worst.
Still technically based on an NES video game.
Characters are lifeless, the scenery is bad, and the action is as uneventful as ever. Unlike Plan to Eradicate the Saiyans which has some sort of historical context in the series that might make it alluring to some fans, Plan to Eradicate the Super Saiyans has none of that. It’s a generic film with no real heart.
17 FORGOTTEN: The Dragon Ball Z Year-End Show
One of the rarest of animation in Dragon Ball Z’s run, if not the rarest, The Dragon Ball Z Year-End Show was a TV special that aired during the Majin Buu arc, specifically during the 25th Tenkaichi Budokai. This special takes place on the day of the tournament before Kaioshin tells the cast about Buu, and involves the Son family chronicling their adventures over the past year.
Goku talks about fighting Paikuhan, and he later discusses the events of the Cell Games with Gohan. As a piece of animation, it isn’t particularly remarkable, but it’s nonetheless wildly fascinating. Here we have a glimpse at a DBZ where Goku never came back, reminiscing with his sons about the past. It gives you a sense of where the series could have alternatively gone.
16 FORGET: The Real 4-D
A “4D cinematic attraction” exclusive to Japan, The Real 4-D sees Freeza coming back to life yet again so that he and Goku can have a CGI battle to their graves. All things considered, this is more of a novelty than a movie. It has no coherent plot, the characters have no motivations, and it exists solely to show off 4D technology. If you’re ever in Japan, for sure go give it a watch, but don’t go out of your way to watch Goku fight Freeza again, only uglier than ever before.
15 FORGOTTEN: Yo! Son Goku And His Friends Return
Dragon Ball’s Jump Super Anime Tour Special is easily one of the strongest films in the entire series’ catalogue. Focusing on a self admittedly uneventful day taking place after the Majin Buu arc, Yo! Son Goku and His Friends Return is a love letter to all things Dragon Ball and Toriyama. Characters dress how they once did, they use their signature attacks, and the animation is DB incarnate.
Make Tarble canon again, Toei!
Even the plot itself is quite charming. Vegeta reunites with his brother Tarble and the two finally get a chance to connect. All the while, Goten and Trunks try their hands at remnants of Freeza’s army. It’s all low stakes, but it’s the kind of low stake that benefits the series. In many ways, the JSAT special paved the way for Dragon Ball Super.
14 FORGET: Broly - The Second Coming
Because one Broly movie wasn’t enough, Toei fell right back into bad habits after Bojack and gave fans Broly - The Second Coming. Without any of intensity or novelty of the first, The Second Coming sees Broly coming to Earth to face off against Goten, Trunks, Videl, and Gohan. What a dream team.
Vegeta doesn’t even bother showing up for this fight and one of the most memorable moments involves Trunks urinating on Broly’s face. This is the same Broly who devastated the Z-fighters just two movies ago, pushing Goku to his absolute limits. The only highlight is the Son Family Kamehameha at the end of the film, but that’s just a ripoff of the Cell Games.
13 FORGOTTEN: History Of Japan
What do you get when you combine basic, elementary Japanese history and Dragon Ball? History of Japan, of course! A cute tv special that takes Dragon Ball characters and places them into real events from Japanese history, History of Japan is a charming little Dragon Ball endeavor that sees all your favorite characters reimagined in historical events. Although it’s not an official part of the series’ canon, or even feels remotely like Dragon Ball, History of Japan remains an incredibly endearing piece of Dragon Ball media.
12 FORGET: Super Tenkaichi Budokai
A sequel of sorts to The Real 4-D, Super Tenkaichi Budokai is yet another interactive, mostly CGI Dragon Ball “experience.” This time, rather than fighting Freeza, Goku and Vegeta find themselves in a heated battle against Broly. Not just any Broly, though! This Broly has God Ki. That’s right, this is Broly God, a force unlike any other, shattering the notion of canon completely.
Because one 4D movie wasn't bad enough.
It’s a horrible premise. Truly horrible. It’s made even worse by the lame climax. Rather than fusing with Goku to become Gogeta, a feat that would actually be somewhat interesting, Goku fuses with the entire audience. You aren’t having a stroke, that actually reads “Goku fuses with the entire audience.” Super Tenkaichi Budokai is like a bad fever dream that just won’t end, introducing absurd concept after absurd concept in the name of 4D.
11 FORGOTTEN: Son Goku Versus Jiren
If both the Bardock TV Special and History of Trunks can be considered movies, so can Dragon Ball Super’s hour long special Son Goku versus Jiren. The episode that gave us Ultra Instinct, Son Goku versus Jiren isn’t thought of as a movie, but it does fit all the criteria. In that respect, it isn’t so much forgotten as it is just not acknowledged among the other movies.
Of course, as part of a preexisting story, Son Goku versus Jiren doesn’t really tell a full story with three acts. It’s just another chunk of the Universe Survival arc. Why should that forfeit it, though? It has the production value of a Dragon Ball movie and expands the series’ lore much like Bardock and Trunks did. It’s a movie. Just an odd one.