DBZ bojack
i actually lyk this movie! it was funny in the beginning with krillin and the fights were good. they shouldve extended the fightin wen gohan turned SSJ2 but buyin this item is still a good deal!

not really worth it.
I wasn't all that impressed with Bojack Unbound. While many dbz fans would scream murder over this. I'm just saying that this wasn't as good as it should have been. Let's face it, if your going to drop 20 or more on an anime dvd. It had better live up to the hype. Bojack was a throw away villian. Who didn't really seem to have any idea of what he was doing. All he did well was kill his minions. I didn't like this at all and the only good thing about this was future Trunks and Vegita. Not a good reason to buy anything. Unless it's a dvd about them. over all there are far better ways to get your dbz fix. save your money unless you find this really cheap.

This one has grown on me.
Had I reviewed this 2 years ago I would have given it 2 stars at the most. But I've come to appreciate this movie alot. For the simple fact this one could have actually fit in the storyline after the Cell Saga and before the Great Saiyaman. This one takes place after Goku's death and Cell's defeat. Mr. Satan hosts a tournament that is eventually sabotaged by a group who wants to take over the planet. The villian Bojack and his crew engage in an all out battle with the Z- fighters. All the stories in DBZ is pratically the same. Its just the action that people really care for and Bojack Unbound doesn't disappoint. The dvd has a few trailers. Also some weird commercial that cant be skipped unless you have a X-Box. This is a very good DBZ movie. Its not too long and it gets straight to the point.

A solid DBZ film
Bojack Unbound.

INTRODUCTION:
The Dragon Ball Z series is one of the finest animes out there, as any fan of Japanese animation will tell you. The series has a "love it or hate it" reputation, but those fans who get into the series are totally immersed by it for a number of reasons. Young people love the series for the fast-paced action and adventure, while older fans enjoy it for the sheer number of characters, and the way they are developed and evolve over the course of time. It's no wonder the series is considered Akira Toriyama's magnum opus, and by far the best of the three Dragon Ball series. When Toei animation made Dragon Ball into an anime, they didn't copy Toriyama's mangas verbatim. They added in many sagas and plot elements not in the manga, often as a result so that the manga and anime were released at the same pace. Toei even created movies based on the series! There were thirteen movies, two television specials, and one OVA/OAV. While not usually canon to the storyline, they are an undeniable part of the Dragon Ball Z franchise that can't be ignored.

OVERVIEW:
This is the ninth of the thirteen Dragon Ball Z movies.

THE STORY:
The Cell Game has ended and Goku has died. Peace has returned to the world, at least temporarily. Future Trunks has returned from the future with the announcement that his timeline is now safe. Everything seems great.

But not for long.

When Goku teleported Cell to King Kai's planet and destroyed it, he destroyed a seal that was holding prisoner some of the deadliest warriors in the galaxy. This deadly group is lead by the space pirate Bojack. While the Z Fighters participate in a tournament organized by a millionaire for his son's birthday, Bojack invades, and soon the world is in a deadly struggle all over again.

REVIEW OF STORY:
Not bad. With Goku dead, he can't hog the spotlight anymore. And Gohan does a great job taking his place in the struggle against evil. While I admit that the plot here is a bit generic when talking about the movies, the truth is that having Gohan as the main character rather than Goku greatly makes up for this. There are some great fights in this movie, as well as plenty of comical moments. Definitely worth adding to your collection.

OFFICIAL?
This is a rare example of a Dragon Ball Z movie that rather conveniently fits into the series chronology. It could very well have taken place following the Cell Game and Future Trunks' return to the present for a brief period. I don't consider it official because the story wasn't in the original manga, but you be the judge.

REVIEW OF DVD:
All of FUNimation's Dragon Ball Z DVDs are pretty much the same as far as content goes. There is no bonus content, unless you consider the obligatory trailers on the DVD to be bonus material. And honestly, I could have lived without them. Some more recent DVDs have character profiles, though these are lacking and could have been written better. Why couldn't get get interviews with cast and crew, or trivia/facts, something like that? FUNimation has a lot of room to improve on the DVDs.

THE DUBBED VERSION:
Lots of people tend to bash FUNimation's dub of the Dragon Ball Z series? Why? It's inaccurate and sometimes just plain stupid. They can do good dubbed versions for plenty of other animes, such as Full Metal Alchemist, but every time they've tried dubbing Toriyama's classic, they butcher it to hell. The nu metal they put in as background music only further defiles the original series. Stick with the uncut subbed track.

OVERALL:
Overall this is a solid movie. Not my favorite but still pretty damn good. Don't hesitate to give this one a viewing if you're a fan of the series!

EDITION NOTES:
It was released in edited and uncut versions. Do I even have to say it? Get uncut. And watch the subtitled Japanese version.

Plague disc -- avoid it!!
As a general rule, martial arts films are fairly stupid. Animated martial arts films are, as a general rule, terminally stupid. I will be the first to admit that the Dragonball Z material, which is extensive, isn't the most absolutely stupid, although at times it comes perilously close.

Those who are unfamiliar with this subset of the genre, the Dragonball series concerns the dynasty of muscle-bound martial arts superheroes founded by an alien (Seiyan), Goku. He was sent to Earth to destroy it as an infant, but forgot all about it an became the closest thing to Li'l Abner seen in modern anime (he's hugely strong, mild of manner, and innocent to the point of impraticality.

You would think the series would actually be about "Dragonballs". Well, it sort of is, occasionally. These little orange balls with stars on them, if collected together, allow the possessor to call up a gigantic magic dragon that will grant a wish. At times where's a lot of plot business connected with rivalry in getting the balls. However, at other times the dragonballs completely disappear. This is one of those times.

Instead we get lots of martial arts and of course the other thing associated with Dragonball Z, overabundant and overdone "comic relief" -- which is too self-consciously "comic" and from which there is little relief. A lot of this is provided here by a stock Dragonball character, Hercule. The reader is referred to an other "Hercule", Clouseau's assistant in the early Pink Panther films (and clearly a parody of a third Hercule, namely Poirot). The Panther Hercule is only marginally brighter than Clouseau ... the Dragonball Hercule is more than marginally less bright. Despite the clearly greater martial powers of the Goku dynasty and other fighters, he always manages to retain the title of World Martial Arts Champion through some fluke. For a while, Hercule has no idea he's benefitted from other than his own skills, but by the time of the "Bojack" film, he's well aware of his position at the bottom of the totem pole.

You won't see much it here, but Dragonball comedy tends to use laughable names for its characters, particularly villains -- such as the perennial Garlic Jr.

As is usual with Dragonball, there is a martial arts contest and it turns into a serious threat to the continued existence of Earth. The threat is then dealt with (with lots of cliffhangers) by a member of the Goku dynasty. (By the way, nobody ever explains how the continued mating of the Goku dynasty members with Earth people fails to produce weaker and weaker offspring. If anything, this genetic dilution seems to produce stronger results. On the other hand, expecting things in this series to make any real sense in the real universe is very, very foolish.

The "Bojack" film is fairly harmless and will no doubt fascinate kiddies whose educational prospects are limited. Nevertheless, I urge you not to buy this turkey. The reason is simple: it is preceded by 2 blatant and obnoxious commercials that can't be bypassed. If you want to watch the film, you have to watch the commercials.

Shades, we hope, NOT of things to come.