Top 10 Dragon Ball Z Abridged Episodes

Written by Shiggins

Well it might not be their anniversary just yet, but I wanted to make an article to remember the extremely popular and hilarious "Dragon Ball Z Abridged" series, made by the hard-working gang of creative types known as Team Four Star. And what better way than a Top 10? So without further ado or ceremony, let's go over what I consider the Top 10 best episodes!

Oh, and for those who don't know, the Team Four Star crew consists of Scott "KaiserNeko" Frerichs, Nick "Lanipator" Landis, Curtis "Takahata101" Arnott, Lawrence "MasakoX" Simpson, Anthony "Antfish" Sardinha, Corinne "Megami33" Sudberg, Kirran "yourMoonstone" Somerlade, Cliff "AinTunez" Weinstein, Grant "MasterWuggles" Smith, and Tyler Koi. As well as a buttload of collaborators and such that I encourage you to check out too, and I would list here but that would basically end up being the entire article. 

Note: This does not include the Kai episodes, the Shortz or the movies and specials. Only the 60 episodes and the prologue are considered for this list. Also, to keep as much of a variety as possible, I've tried not to include episodes connected directly to each other.

 10. Episode 39

Let's start our list off with Vegeta getting the shit kicked out of him. And no, this won't be the last time we check out this occurance. It happens a lot. Too much actually, but that's nothing to do with DBZA. That's just me commenting on the series itself. Anyway, here we have the first full episode of three massive characters to the franchise and boy, does Vegeta not like them.

Dr Gero has been killed by Android 17 and 18, who debuted at the very end of the last episode, and they go a step further by switching on Android 16, altering the timeline even more. Goku is unable to do anything due to his disease, Trunks can't stand up to his dad, and so Vegeta rushes off to take on 18 by himself in his brand new Super Saiyan form.

It's great to see the dynamic of the three androids together for the first time, with Shudo Ranmaru, Remix and Gaxingba all bouncing off each other effectively. 16 would quickly become a fan-favourite with his obsession for killing Goku dialed up to 11.5, and his love for birds. Vegeta gets to kill a bunch of people, Yamcha provides some worthless commentary on Goku, and it all ends with another wonderful scream by Lanipator.

 

9. Episode 53

I was trying to decide between this episode and episode 48, where Tien has his last badass moment ever against Semi-Perfect Cell, but episode 53 won for a few big reasons. For starters, this episode has more of a focus on KaiserNeko's performance as Trunks. If I was asked to point to any episode that displays his best Trunks performance, I would go for the History of Trunks special or this one. Oh and... Takahata101's Cell. WOW!

Vegeta got beaten last episode, after Krillin refused to take Android 18's life and then Vegeta allowed Cell to reach perfection by absorbing her, so now Trunks takes it upon himself to take on Cell in that weirdly buff form. In the end, Cell wins and breaks Trunks' spirit with his mockery and strength, while Android 16 cheers him on and the episode's animation is... rough, but again that's nothing to do with TFS.

I refuse to go any further without bringing up AinTunez's mix of Hikari no Willpower, an amazing track that I wish was longer and which is stuck in my head as I write this exact sentence (and that's not the last time I'll be bringing up AinTunez in this list). While this episode does have a few laughs, I appreciate this episode more for the strong writing and quotable lines that will most likely be overlooked by many due to not being as comedic. Cell's savagery knows no bounds, as expected, but that back-and-forth between him and Trunks... Oh my god. "Trunks. You couldn't fathom the amount of dead men behind me."

8. Episode 46

I can't be sure, but I'm willing to place money on Lanipator's excitement reaching the rooftops when they finally reached this episode. There are plenty of episodes out there in which Vegeta gets to brag and kick all kinds of ass, but the green man himself is long past his prime by the time the Androids Saga comes about. This is probably his final great episode in the series, so it's only fitting all the effort is in for the Abridged version.

Piccolo has fused with Kami to become Picami. Or Kolo. No, those are dumb. We'll stick with Piccolo. Anyway, he's at the top of his game and has to protect the sleeping Goku when the trio of androids come knocking at the door. Essentially, this entire episode is Piccolo fighting off against Android 17 while 16 and 18 watch, until Imperfect Cell arrives. 

Lanipator and Gaxingba are going all-in with their performances as these characters, which is good because the entire episode relies on them. Yes, the commentary by Android 18 and 16 (ShudoRanmaru and Remix) is brilliant but these are scenes beloved by the fandom. Piccolo and 17 trading blows to almost cartoony effect, Piccolo finally putting some punishment on the smug bot, and of course the Hellzone Grenade. Lots of fun, great episode. The burns on Yamcha are just icing on the cake.

7. Episode 56

This might seem like an odd choice, considering I've missed out a lot of episodes and not an awful lot of story actually happens throughout this one, but I stand by it for it's jokes and a bit of backstory that the original series never got to explore, unfortunately. So yes, that scene involving Android 16 is probably what gave episode 56 the win here.

The Cell Games are on the way, and everyone is preparing for it in their own way. Mr Satan makes his debut to challenge the bug, Mr Perfect Cell gets an interview, Android 16 is given a fixer, and Dende is brought to Earth to be the next Kami. Also, Zach Manley animates a Nappa-ball falling off a broom and it looks so seamless that I'm actually shocked. Massive praise to him right now!

Like I said, this episode has lots of jokes. Maybe it's the setting and lack of action, but it really did feel like a lot more of these jokes landed than usual. Chi-Chi is working on getting pregnant, Goku is running on an empty tank, Dende is fully comfortable with his sexuality towards Gohan, and Mr Perfect Cell goes through the entire series of Dragon Ball (yes, that includes the original too!). And of course, the Android 16 video is a great way to add some much-needed context to the character that the series never got to realise.

6. Episode 20

Marc "Ganxingba" Soskin. That is the name of the voice actor who absolutely owns this episode. Yes, there's a lot of fun going on here, but Ganxingba's performance as Recoome (and also Jeice) absolutely sells the "Namekmania" approach. The Ginyu Force are a very silly group in canon, and honestly, you have two choices when it comes to an abridging of them: Make them even sillier than before, or play it straight. And if you aren't sure which path TFS went with... well, Recoome sells vibrators with his own face on them. There's your answer.

In this special episode of DBZA, Vegeta has just destroyed Guldo and is now going to face off against the heavyweight champion Recoome! With a lot of violence, speeching, and a few nods to both GT and the Blue Ocean dub, Recoome conquers over Vegeta, Gohan and Krillin until Goku finally arrives. Jeice and Burter provide commentary.

Sponsorships, merchandise, action recaps and an exploding logo really shows how much fun they had with this episode. TFS knew they were only going to have this chance once, and so they went all-in at every opportunity, in jokes both big and small. Special shoutout to the "Raditz Menu". And although Ganxingba's time as Recoome was shortlived, I would still put his performance as one of my personal favourites in this series. As for who my all-time favourite is? Well, you'll see me swoon over him soon.

 
5. Episode 10

Yes, it's divided to three parts but this does officially count as one long episode. And so all three parts get included in this entry. As the first of the season finales, I find this rather interesting to watch not just because of the comedy, but I think it's a great way to see how much the creators grew in both experience and ambition between the season 1 and 2 finales.

Anyway, episode 10 focuses entirely on the fight with Vegeta. Considered by many to be the best of the  Dragon Ball franchise's fights, Goku battles against Vegeta with many iconic moments. The beam-clash between Kamehameha and Galick Gun, Vegeta turning into a giant ape, the first Spirit Bomb in a battle... Oh and Ghost Nappa.

That brings me to something that stands out for me when I first saw this episode. You see, due to the structure of the Saiyan Saga, both Goku and Vegeta had never interacted with each other before now and Nappa, Piccolo and Gohan had taken over the Abridged series until now. So if anything, episode 10 was almost like they were proving "yes. These characters are funny with or without their sidekicks/children". That was a huge relief. Best joke this time? Has to be the dead deer.
 

4. Episode 27

It could be argued that Vegeta is most enjoyable to watch in the few minutes before he gets the absolute crap beaten out of him in some way and has to resort to Kakarot for help, such as his time as Super Vegeta, or when he fought Better Broly. Fittingly, that fact applies here too. Lanipator's performance as Vegeta has gone through quite the transformation between the sagas, and this episode is a perfect example of that.

Basically, Frieza has brought out his final form and is going to have fun with it. Vegeta thinks he has become a Super Saiyan however, and is about five seconds away from stripping naked to flex everything. And he ends up getting the ass-kicking we all predicted. Well, unless you watched the show. Then you didn't predict, you already knew. 

It can be hard to exaggerate just how truly arrogant Vegeta can get at times, so it must have been a fun challenge for TFS to actually find a way to go even further than canon. And of course, this results is us finally getting a taste of how Goku and Frieza will be interacting throughout their next episode. This episode also includes my favourite out-of-nowhere joke in the series, involving a talking crab. Who even came up with that one?!

3. Episode 9

Back when TFS were starting out, it's no secret that Nappa was a massive part of what put this series on the map. Somehow, this crew brought out a whole new side to a character that, while enjoyable, was never really talked about again after his demise. And that is a shame because every time we get to see him return in some shape or form, like in FighterZ, he really does rock. Takahata 101's performance is just another example of how much fun he can be.

Episode 9 (and also episode 8 but we're not talking about that one here) is essentially the final hurrah of Nappa. Yamcha, Tien and Chiaotzu are all dead, and it's up to Krillin, Piccolo and Gohan to somehow survive until Goku arrives and we can finally see the infamous "OVER 9000!!" scene abridged. Then Nappa dies.

While it might be difficult to go back to nowadays when compared to the quality of effects and acting we got later on, (I mean, be fair. This episode came out in 2009!), the writing is still hilarious and the jokes that don't work are few and rare. Nappa's modelling career, that entire exchange about taking turns that results in Vegeta's aneurysm, 1006... You know what, Kai Abridged was right. "I am hilarious and you will quote everything I say."

2. Episode 60

When TFS announced their ending, I was sad to see it go. However, they probably couldn't have chosen a better time to end. While the story of Dragon Ball is all about Son Goku, I'd make the argument that DBZA was all about Gohan, and so ending it at Gohan's highest point and ignoring the Buu Saga (which I don't really like that much anyway) is more than fitting.

Episode 60 starts from Gohan beginning his fight against Perfect Cell, and includes Gohan's transformation, the deaths of Goku, Android 16 and Cell and most importantly of all, the time Krillin got laid. And while they didn't officially know it at the time, this was also the final goodbye (unless we count the Shortz), which is just added pressure!

I could rave about MasakoX's performance as Gohan, the highlight being when he absolutely hits that wonderful scream right in the sweet spot then delivers a surprisingly chilling performance as a Gohan hating the fight itself, or the speeches provided by Android 16 and Goku at different times within the episode, but what I love most about this episode is the phenomenal music! That cover of Unmei no Hi, Cell singing My Way as he disintegrates, the Father-Son Kamehameha song... AinTunez is going to go far. It's all wonderful, just like this episode.

 

1. Episode 30

I argued with myself constantly over whether this would come first or second, but then I realised only one of them had LittleKuriboh's perfect performance as Frieza and that stole the win. Another point to make is that when episode 60 came along, we were all pretty sure they could nail the ending, but episode 30 was an uncertain time where we didn't know if TFS could pull it off. We had seen them make a win with the Goku vs Vegeta finale, but there is a lot more going on with this one. And now it's number 1!

Episode 30, like episode 60, is divided into three parts which all focus on the finale of the Namek Saga. Starting from Goku's burst into Super Saiyan, the episode has to cover the death of Frieza, the return of Vegeta, the farewell to the Namekians, and remove one of the most popular characters of the abridged series, Super Kami Guru!

While there's less emotion and callbacks than in episode 60, this is one of those episodes where everything is perfectly in place. Again, LittleKuriboh's Frieza is flawless, full of comedic charm and villainous nuance. I could write an entire article about why I love it so much, (and I might someday)! The death of Guru is as ridiculous as the entire character has been since his first appearance and Goku is finally relatable to me, as he prioritises stuffed crust pizza over vengeance for his fallen friend. All in all, it's a fantastic ending that manages to come across as effortless despite the clear hard work put in from everyone. I give this episode five out of four stars! 

 
What's your favourite episode? Comment below!