Movies in the Dragon Ball franchise are infamously uneven in quality. For what they are, Wrath of the Dragon and Battle of Gods are fairly spectacular, while Return of Cooler and Super Android 13! represent the worst of what the film series has to offer. Of course, no fandom is a monolith, and there are many installments that don’t have the reputations they should.

Dragon Ball movies don’t always get the appreciation they deserve, especially not those from outside the DBZ era. Original Dragon Ball movies are often ignored, while Super’s movies are some of the most divisive. There are also a number of Dragon Ball Z films that receive far too much vitriol, especially in light of how much praise lesser entries tend to receive.

Related

This Dragon Ball Z Character Isn’t the Loser Anime Fans Think He Is

Yamcha has been the butt of jokes for decades, but Dragon Ball Z’s biggest punchline doesn’t deserve the disrespect.

10

Bojack Unbound Has a Distinct Identity And Battle-Heavy Atmosphere

Gohan Only Takes the Leading Role in a Single Dragon Ball Z Movie

Bojack Unbound tends to be one of the more forgotten DBZ films. This can most likely be attributed to its forgettable villains, and it having been released in-between the far more recognized Broly movies. But while Bojack and his crew of pirates may lack personality, the film surrounding them is full of it.

The first half of Bojack Unbound is nothing but fun, with its tournament set-up allowing fans to spend downtime with Gohan in-between the Cell and Buu Sagas for the first and only time. It also allows for fights in lovingly detailed and distinct locations, and for an unexpected bout between Future Trunks and Tien Shinhan. While the final act of Bojack is formulaic, it’s the only time Gohan is ever able to defeat a movie’s main villain by himself, and the power-up sequence that leads up to this is magnificent.

9

The World’s Strongest Stands as One of the Best Dragon Ball Z Movies

The World’s Strongest is Unusually Original

The World’s Strongest is notable for being one of the only Dragon Ball Z movies with a mostly original story. While Dr. Wheelo’s attempt to acquire the body of the world’s greatest fighter isn’t the most captivating of plots, it’s serviceable, and sets up a number of excellent fights. Most importantly, it enables Master Roshi to get in on the action for the only time in any Dragon Ball Z film.

Because of when it’s set, World’s Strongest is able to challenge Goku in creative ways that don’t just involve throwing strong opponents at him. It also benefits from fantastic animation, making the most of the charming art style shared by the early DBZ movies, and the Bio Warriors are one of the most entertaining groups of henchmen in the film series. The movie is also notable for featuring Oolong, kicking off the trend of him getting far more screentime in the films than in the anime, and giving him an odd but adorable friendship with Gohan.

8

Dragon Ball Super: Broly Introduced a Divisive But Gorgeous Spin on Dragon Ball Lore

Broly Sports the Best Animation of Any Dragon Ball Film

Dragon Ball Super: Broly was controversial before it even released. Between its canonization of Broly, the changes made to the Legendary Super Saiyan’s personality, and the canonization of Goku’s retconned origin from Dragon Ball Minus, it’s understandable why some dislike it. However, what some see as weaknesses, others can view as strengths, and it cannot be argued that it doesn’t deliver on its main selling point, the fights.

Dragon Ball Super: Broly is more of a visual spectacle than any other piece of DB media. While its art style may not be everyone’s preference, Dragon Ball fights have never looked better, and the clashes between Goku, Vegeta, Frieza, and Gogeta against Broly are all masterpieces of animation. And while Broly may not be the character fans remember, this version of him is infinitely more likable and endearing than the original ever war.

Related

15 Ways Dragon Ball’s Humans Can Catch Up to Goku and Vegeta

Krillin, Tien, and Yamcha aren’t lacking in ways to become as powerful as their Super Saiyan friends in Dragon Ball, but they have a long road ahead.

7

Curse of the Blood Rubies Exudes Palpable Dragon Ball Charm

Curse of the Blood Rubies Doesn’t Deserve the Hate it Receives

Curse of the Blood Rubies was the first Dragon Ball movie ever produced. The film is frequently panned for wasting much of its runtime recapping the events of the Pilaf Saga, leaving little time for its original story. While this is a fair critique, it isn’t enough for it to be placed among the worst films in the series, as it so often is.

Curse of the Blood Rubies offers a lot of the same humor and character interactions as the Pilaf Saga, making it a quick alternative to a full rewatch of the arc. Its original plot isn’t bad at all, centering around a girl named Panzy, and her quest to save her village from the cursed King Gurumes. The ultimate resolution is both creative and heartwarming, and the sequence is bolstered by some lovely colors.

The Path to Power is an Excellent Way to Experience Dragon Ball’s Early Days

The Path to Power is technically the only Dragon Ball GT movie, but it isn’t based around DBZ’s controversial sequel at all. Rather, it’s a re-telling of Goku’s earliest adventures, blending together elements of the Pilaf and Red Ribbon Army Sagas. While this doesn’t sound too special, the film does a lot to improve upon its source material, even if it can feel rushed.

Dragon Ball has arguably never looked better than in Path to Power, with both the series’ classic art style, and animation on par with the best of Dragon Ball Super. It also features manga-accurate details, like Bulma’s purple hair, and some wholesome interactions between Goku and his friends, most notably Eighter. Path to Power also fixes one of the Red Ribbon Army’s bigger issues, its anti-climax, by turning the final encounter between Goku and Staff Officer Black into a thrilling, if similarly short, battle.

5

Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero Excels For Most of its Runtime

Super Hero is Only Spoiled by its Finale

Fans dislike Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero for a variety of reasons. Some find its art style and animation to be a significant step-down from Broly’s, others find the marginalizing of Goku, Vegeta, and Broly to be frustrating, and there are also fans who take issues with the new transformations introduced, and the way the final battle against Cell Max plays out. While it’s true that the film doesn’t look quite as good as its predecessor, and the third act is exceptionally clunky, the absence of the typical protagonists is actually one of Super Hero’s many strengths.

Gohan and Piccolo are just as important to Dragon Ball as Goku and Vegeta, and with fans having also wanted better material for Pan for decades, the three more than deserved a film to themselves. All their interactions and hijinks throughout the first two-thirds of the film are delightful, and Gamma-1 and Gamma-2 are extremely fun antagonists to go up against them. The introductions of Beast Gohan, Orange Piccolo, and Cell Max are no doubt sloppy, especially the former, given Gohan’s lack of relevance for much of the story, but they’re still beneficial to the storyline moving forward.

Related

Dragon Ball: 10 Times Goku Treated His “Friends” Like Absolute Garbage

Goku is Dragon Ball’s greatest hero, but his behavior with his friends leaves a lot to be desired, even though he’s repeatedly saved the world.

4

Sleeping Princess in Devil’s Castle Is The Least Derivative Dragon Ball Film

Sleeping Princess in Devil’s Castle is the Only Original Dragon Ball Movie with a Fully Original Story

Sleeping Princess in Devil’s Castle is the awkward middle-child of the original Dragon Ball film trilogy. Set during Goku and Krillin’s training with Master Roshi, it’s the only one of the first three movies to not primarily serve as a re-telling of events from the anime. But what it lacks in memorable iconography, it more than makes up for with atmosphere and laughs.

Chronicling Goku and Krillin’s battle against the villainous Lucifer, Sleeping Princess in Devil’s Castle features one of the strongest scores in any DB movie, along with the most distinct color palette. Both the art and the music fit the campy horror vibes of the film perfectly, and even the story has a solid twist to keep it from being too straightforward. It’s also one of the funniest DB movies, with plenty of gags not present in the original anime, but that would fit in it flawlessly.

3

Mystical Adventure Perfectly Captures the Spirit of the Original Series

Mystical Adventure Learns From Curse of the Blood Rubies’ Mistakes

While not the most well-constructed film, there are few Dragon Ball movies more entertaining than Mystical Adventure. Whereas Curse of the Blood Rubies suffered from recapping events of the anime before telling its own story, Mystical Adventure seamlessly blends its new and original elements into its retelling of events from the Red Ribbon Army and 22nd World Martial Arts Tournament Sagas. Its first two acts are paced perfectly, and the climax, while strange, is oddly fitting as an ending for this continuity.

Sporting an especially vibrant color palette, Mystical Adventure delights in taking known characters and placing them in new roles. Recasting Chiaotzu and Tien Shinhan as an emperor and a bodyguard works exceptionally well, and allows for some genuinely emotional drama, while Upa and Bora get to act as independent heroes, rather than just allies of Goku. The film is hilarious, with tons of memorable gags, with the most notable being Arale’s sudden entrance in the third act to help Goku beat up Mercenary Tao.

2

Broly: Second Coming is a Worthy Sequel To Goku’s First Fight With The Legendary Super Saiyan

Videl, Goten, and Trunks Are a Fun Lead Trio

Broly – The Legendary Super Saiyan is one of the most popular movies in the entire series. By contrast, both of its sequels are typically placed among the worst of the franchise’s offerings. While it’s true that Broly – Second Coming lacks in lore and action compared to its predecessor, it makes up for this with its other merits.

Second Coming spends the first half of its run following the unusual trio of Goten, Trunks, and Videl, allowing for charming interactions between them, and for Videl to take point as they search for the Dragon Balls. The set-up of the heroes stumbling upon a village performing human sacrifices, and needing to figure out what to do, is an engaging hook, and it’s almost a shame when a mysteriously alive Broly bursts in to spoil the drama. The fight between Broly and the outclassed kids goes on a little too long, but this is redeemed by Gohan’s final battle against Broly, and the iconography of the Family Kamehameha.

1

Bio-Broly Stands Alone as the Most Unfairly Hated Dragon Ball Movie

The Reception to Bio-Broly Proves That Fans Don’t Want Anything New From Dragon Ball

The final installment in the Broly trilogy, Bio-Broly is a delightfully silly film with a unique cast of characters, an interesting set-up, and well-animated action. In spite of this, it’s by far the least popular of the original 13 Dragon Ball Z films. The most common critiques of the movie are that it’s too juvenile, and that it’s a mockery of Broly’s character, but Dragon Ball has always been juvenile, and Broly was never a character worthy of reverence in the first place.

For as much as Dragon Ball fans claim they want to see new ideas, and stories about characters other than Goku, Bio-Broly proves that this is only true in theory. Goten, Trunks, Mr. Satan, Android 18, and Krillin are the most random team possible, but the way they interact with each other, and the ways in which their storylines collide, are major treats. Bio-Broly may be ugly, but a sludge monster isn’t automatically any worse a design than an over-muscled brute, and the final battle against him has some of the highest production value of any 90s Dragon Ball battle.

• 

  Dragon Ball

  Dragon Ball tells the tale of a young warrior by the name of Son Goku, a young peculiar boy with a tail who embarks on a quest to become stronger and learns of the Dragon Balls, when, once all 7 are gathered, grant any wish of choice.

• 

  With the help of the powerful Dragonballs, a team of fighters led by the saiyan warrior Goku defend the planet earth from extraterrestrial enemies.

• 

  After Goku is made a kid again by the Black Star Dragon Balls, he goes on a journey to get back to his old self.

• 

  With Majin Buu defeated half-a-year prior, peace returns to Earth, where Son Goku (now a radish farmer) and his friends now live peaceful lives.