Dragon Ball Z: The World's Strongest

Lore & Background

The film follows Gohan and Oolong as they search for the Dragon Balls, only to discover that the mad scientist Dr. Kochin has gathered them. Dr. Kochin summons Shenron and wishes for Dr. Wheelo and his lab to be released from ice. Dr. Wheelo, whose brain is kept alive by technology, seeks the body of the strongest warrior on Earth. After kidnapping Bulma to force Master Roshi to come to his lab, Dr. Wheelo battles Goku, Piccolo, and others. Goku ultimately defeats Dr. Wheelo with a Spirit Bomb.

Reader's Guide

Dragon Ball Z: The World's Strongest is significant as the second film in the Dragon Ball Z franchise, bridging the early TV series episodes. It introduced Dr. Wheelo, a villain whose brain survives in a robotic body, and featured the first film appearance of the Spirit Bomb technique. The film had multiple English dubs, including a Pioneer/Funimation dub in 1998, a Funimation redub in 2006, and dubs by AB Groupe and Speedy Video. Its box office success in Japan (¥1 billion rental income) and European releases helped expand the franchise's global reach. The film's 2008 Blu-ray/DVD release in a Double Feature set with Dead Zone marked a high-definition remaster.

Did You Know?

• The film was released at the Toei Manga Matsuri film festival alongside the second Akuma-kun film and the 1990 film version of Sally the Witch.
• The 2008 remastered Funimation dub miscredits Christopher Sabat as voicing the Ox-King, though the Ox-King does not appear in the film.
• The insert song 'I Lo~ve Mr. Piccolo♡' is performed by Masako Nozawa, the voice actor for Goku and Gohan.
• The Malaysian English dub by Speedy Video features an unknown voice cast.