Over the four decades since its debut, Dragon Ball has had 24 movies released in theaters, one of the largest amounts by any anime franchise in history. During the airing of Dragon Ball and Dragon Ball Z, the original manga series by Akira Toriyama was still being written, and original films and filler helped the anime not to catch up.
Some of those original films have introduced fan-favorite characters and stories, while others have faded into obscurity, and are better off there. Not every Dragon Ball movie is a masterpiece, but there a few every fan should watch, and others that should be skipped.
Skip: Dragon Ball Z: Bio-Broly
Dragon Ball’s Worst-Ever Movie Isn’t Worth the Time
Of the anime-original characters introduced in Dragon Ball, none are as popular as Broly. Saiyans will always generate the most fanfare, and it seems Toei Animation was aware of that, putting Broly front and center in more than one of the franchise’s most underwhelming productions.
Dragon Ball Z: Bio-Broly offers very little of anything worthwhile. The film follows Goten, Trunks, and Android #18, who, while all being beloved characters in their own right, struggle to carry a movie without an interesting plot. Bio-Broly features very little of what made Broly great in the first place, and fans should skip this movie at all costs.
Must-See: Dragon Ball Z: Broly – The Legendary Super Saiyan
Broly’s Debut Stands Out as One of Dragon Ball’s Best Movies Ever
Unlike the sequels that followed, Dragon Ball Z: Broly – The Legendary Super Saiyan remains one of the series’ best movies ever. Released at a time when Super Saiyans were still a relatively new concept in Dragon Ball, the first Broly movie puts the series’ most exciting fighters up against one of the coolest villains ever introduced.
Broly is like a young boy’s anime dream character. Overly muscular with a stylish design and capable of overpowering strong attacks simply because he can, Dragon Ball Z‘s Broly is a monster, and he gives Goku and company the fight of their lives.
Skip: Dragon Ball Z: Broly – Second Coming
The First Broly Sequel Fails to Live Up to the Original
Though it certainly has some hype moments, and Broly’s presence is always welcome, Dragon Ball Z: Broly – Second Coming simply fails to live up to the Legendary Super Saiyan’s debut. Much like the later Bio-Broly, the film suffers by having Goten and Trunks in the leading roles, and Gohan’s eventual arrival doesn’t do enough to make up for it.
For some strange reason, Broly loses the inability to speak during the movie, other than his enraged screams for Kakarot. While not quite as bad as Bio-Broly, it’s hard not to believe that Broly – Second Coming existed simply to profit off the Saiyan’s name, rather than give the fan base a new and interesting original story to enjoy.
Must-See: Dragon Ball Z: Wrath of the Dragon
The Final Dragon Ball Z Movie Is One of the Series’ Very Best
While the two Broly movie sequels suffer from having Goten and Trunks in leading roles, 1995’s Dragon Ball Z: Wrath of the Dragon shows what can happen when a character like Trunks is placed central to a compelling story. The film introduces Tapion, a mysterious hero freed from a music box, who is also cursed with having a monster named Hirudegarn inside of him.
Wrath of the Dragon is unique among Dragon Ball‘s movies, taking on a far more serious tone while also doing its best to fit itself within the canon timeline of events. With impressive action and a great soundtrack, Wrath of the Dragon remains one of the franchise’s best movies ever produced.
Skip: Dragon Ball: Curse of the Blood Rubies
The First Dragon Ball Movie Is an Underwhelming Retelling of the Anime’s Events
Dragon Ball‘s list of 24 theatrical movies is undeniably impressive, but the series didn’t exactly start its theatrical journey on a high note. Dragon Ball: Curse of the Blood Rubies was released in 1986, the same year the Dragon Ball anime premiered, and rather than doing something original, the film gave the story’s first arc a new coat of paint.
Curse of the Blood Rubies is little more than a retelling of what fans already know, but worse. The movie’s pacing is all over the place, and simply too much is crammed into its 50-minute runtime. Fans might want to check out the film if they’re going through each one of the franchise’s movies, but there isn’t much worth seeing in Curse of the Blood Rubies.
Must-See: Dragon Ball Z: Bojack Unbound
Gohan Gets Rare Time to Shine in This Underrated Movie
Following the completion of the Cell Saga, Dragon Ball arrived at a crossroads. Its protagonist was seemingly gone for good, and the future of the series rested on his son’s shoulders. However, it didn’t take long for Gohan to return his protagonist role to its rightful owner, Goku.
Dragon Ball Z: Bojack Unbound gives fans a taste of what might have been with Gohan in the leading role, and it’s a fun and mostly fresh tournament story that ends with a flashy final battle. Super Saiyan 2 Gohan is one of the coolest characters in Dragon Ball, and Bojack Unbound is worth a watch simply to get to see more of him.
Skip: Dragon Ball Z: Lord Slug
The (Almost) Debut of Super Saiyan Comes in an Underwhelming Movie
Dragon Ball was at the height of its popularity in Japan when 1991’s Dragon Ball Z: Lord Slug hit theaters, with both the manga and anime deep in the series’ iconic Planet Namek Saga. While the film isn’t the worst of the original movies, it also doesn’t hold a candle to what was happening in the source material at the time.
Lord Slug makes use of the Namekian race, which was a recent development in the anime, and introduces a largely uninteresting villain with uninteresting motives to stand opposite Earth’s greatest heroes. Interestingly enough, Lord Slug was almost the debut of Goku’s Super Saiyan transformation, but his hair was kept black in what fans now label ‘False Super Saiyan’.
Must-See: Dragon Ball Super: Broly
Broly’s Revival Made Up for Dragon Ball’s Past Mistakes
Following Bio-Broly, Dragon Ball fans had largely given up on ever seeing the hulking Saiyan ever again. While the Broly they knew wouldn’t return, a new, reimagined Broly was introduced in his place more than 20 years on from the original character’s debut. Dragon Ball Super: Broly offers an all-new, modern version of the story, and it’s glorious.
Dragon Ball Super‘s version of events paints Broly in a far more sympathetic light than the original film did, and in the process, makes him a far more interesting character. The modern visuals give way to some of the best action Dragon Ball has ever seen, and a large portion of the fan base considers it the best Dragon Ball movie ever made.
Skip: Dragon Ball Z: The World’s Strongest
Piccolo Almost Becomes a Villain Once More in a Largely Underwhelming Movie
Dragon Ball Z: The World’s Strongest isn’t the franchise’s worst movie, but it’s far from the best. Visually, there’s a lot to like about it. Some sequences contain the best-looking action to ever fall under the Dragon Ball Z title, and the series’ most popular fighters at the time are all featured prominently.
However, much of what happens during Dragon Ball Z: The World’s Strongest simply isn’t very interesting, and even becomes nonsensical at times. Dr. Wheelo’s search for a new host loses all meaning when his cyborg form is shown to be devastatingly strong, bringing the film to an underwhelming final act.
Must-See: Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero
The Franchise’s Latest Film Is One of Its Best
Following the great box-office success of Dragon Ball Super: Broly, the series returned in 2022 with Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero, a film that put Goku and Vegeta into the background while Gohan and Piccolo were given a chance to shine. A new CGI-heavy animation style proved to fit the series well, sending Dragon Ball in a new direction.
The film did what Dragon Ball failed to do in the past, and once again returned both Gohan and Piccolo to their former glory. The kaiju-like Cell Max might have disappointed some fans initially, but Super Hero‘s introduction of Beast Gohan and Orange Piccolo more than make up for its somewhat underwhelming final antagonist.
- Created by
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Akira Toriyama
- First Episode Air Date
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April 26, 1989
- First Film
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Dragon Ball: Curse of the Blood Rubies
From the creative mind of Akira Toriyama, Dragon Ball is a mega multimedia franchise that spans back to the 1980s. Dragon Ball expanded quickly, starting as a serialized manga for Weekly Shonen Jump in Japan. It made its way overseas via manga and an anime adaptation that is enjoyed worldwide. Dragon Ball was the initial starting animated series that followed the adventures of the young Son Goku as he sought after the Dragon Balls. These mystical orbs would grant the wish of any who gathered them together. Then, the series would branch off into the immensely popular Dragon Ball Z, which followed Goku as an adult and featured high-intensity battles and Goku’s never-ending search to be the strongest. The series has also enjoyed several popular video game adaptations and continues to release several new animated series and theatrical films up to the recent popular Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero.
